Northern Minnesota Quiz and FAQ
I grew up in Northome, MN, one of the few people who lived not East or West of the Mississippi
River, but North of it (also see the Radio Stations reference on my
Measurements and Useless Trivia page). Since then I have lived in the crowded southern lands,
including Texas, Virginia, Connecticut and Illinois, and everywhere I go, people tend to ask me
the same questions.
So here is a collection of some of those questions, and the answer best understood by
southerners (like Iowans).
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I heard you (ya'll, you guys - pick your favorite) get no summer in northern Minnesota -
is that true?
A: This is a complete fallacy and over-exageration. In fact, last year we had summer on
both July 8th AND July 9th!
Q: You're just about Canadians aren't you?
A: I resemble that remark...just because some people claim we talk like Canadians do, and
we can get their TV channels, and quite often use their coins along with American ones,
doesn't mean a thing.
Q: You sometimes use odd phrases and end your sentences with a preposition.
A: So, what part of grammar do you have a question with now, then?
Q: Do all Minnesotiyans use a long-a in the word "flag"?
A: That's Minnesot'ns (accent on the 'o', no vowel in the next syllable), and you should
see my (upcoming) web page with results from a vowel survey.
Q: Does Minnesota really have 10,000 lakes?
A: It's actually closer to 12,000 lakes, but we don't want to be seen as bragging.
Q: How big is your hometown of Northome?
A: Bigger than some nearby towns. Our suburbs don't start until 2nd Street!
Q: How many people really live that far north?
A: As few as possible.
Q: How cold does it get there?
A: Cold enough to keep the riff-raff out.
Q: And how cold is that?
A: A winter isn't a winter until it hits 40 below a couple times. Coldest I recall seeing
is -47'F.
Q: And that's without the windchill factor?
A: Definitely - in fact our school had a policy where they would close school if the
wind chill got to -60, but every time it did they would decide it wasn't so bad and we'd
have school anyway. Windchills of more than -90'F are not unheard of.
Q: So do people get really bad cabin fever waiting for summer?
A: Not at all. With consistent snow cover there's a lot to do in the winter.
In fact, modern rollerblades were invented by Scott Olson of Waconia, MN in order to
keep playing hockey during the "off season" (ie. summer).
Q: Were any other "off season" sports invented in Minnesota?
A: Funny you should ask. Ralph Samuelson of Lake City, MN invented waterskis so he wouldn't
have to stop skiing just because summer came around. An interesting
page has more on his first attempts,
including using barrel staves and downhill skis.
Altho my friends would use snowmobiles for "water skipping" in the early spring,
it appears jet skis were not invented in MN, but many are built there.
Q: So you never got cabin fever?
A: Not till I moved to Texas and had to stay inside air-conditioned buildings or cars for
6 months straight.
Q: Did you have air-conditioned cars in northern Minnesota?
A: Not unless you count the rust holes in the sheet metal.
Q: Why do rural people drive so slow?
A: Considering that most of us learned to drive on farm tractors, doing 55 is pretty good.
Q: Do people still drive their tractors into town for business?
A: Only the town drunk, and then only when his driving license has been revoked again.
Q: Did he at least put a windshield on his tractor?
A: You betcha!
Are you a Minnesotan/Northern Minnesotan Quiz
To score your quiz, answer each question by how strongly you agree with it:
- A heckuva deal (5 points)
- That's a pretty good deal (4 points)
- Not too bad of a deal (3 points)
- Couldn't say for sure (2 points)
- A fella could do worse (1 point)
- No idiot would ever say such a thing! (-10 points) (exclamation point alone is -5 points)
(Actual quiz will be coming soon - can't rush a good thing...)
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