why we live in Minnesota

[Martha]

To make Nords and others question even more why some of us live in the north, a weather advisory issued this morning:

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DULUTH MN HAS ISSUED A LAKE EFFECT
SNOW WARNING.

LOCALIZED HEAVY SNOWFALLS OF 6 TO 10 INCHES TODAY AND 4 TO 6 MORE
INCHES TONIGHT WILL RESULT IN UP TO 16 INCHES OF SNOW IN A FEW AREAS
FROM THE BAYFIELD PENINSULA WESTWARD THROUGH THE DULUTH AREA THEN UP
MUCH OF THE NORTH SHORE BY FRIDAY MORNING. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO BE
INSIGNIFICANT, BUT VERY HEAVY FALLING SNOW MAY BLOCK SOME SECONDARY
ROADS, MAKE OTHER ROADS DIFFICULT TO TRAVEL, AND RESULT IN VERY LOW
VISIBILITIES WITH BRIEFLY DANGEROUS WHITE-OUT CONDITIONS.

ANY TRAVEL IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED. IF YOU LEAVE THE SAFETY OF BEING
INDOORS, YOU ARE PUTTING YOUR LIFE AT RISK.

I love the last sentence.

To show how tough we are, none of our employees are even asking to go home early.

Martha

Martha,

Living in the Twin Cities is almost tropical compared to Duluth. I love Minnesota about 8-9 months a year. This is the worst month (when I contemplate moving). When spring finally comes in April, I get sucked into another year of staying in Minnesota.

With that said no appreciates good weather, than those that have been subjected to months of cold, gray winter. 8)

[Nords]

I thought you lived in Minnesota as a favor to the rest of the country-- that way the govt can't ask people like us to move up there to rebalance state populations.

So, thanks!

FWIW, if one inch of rain truly equals one foot of snow, Oahu would be ten feet under. It's been a heckuva wet winter...

[Zipper]

Hey, we're in the "Banana Belt" in Southern ON.

Lake Erie and Lake Huron keep us warmer in London than Minnesota.

It's just all that snow I've been shovelling for the last week!

[RAE]

I'm in the UP of Michigan, and similar to what Cut-throat said, I love it here for about 8-9 months of the year. From December - March, though, you can have it. My situation is that the job will keep me here for 5 more years, but after that, I'm (we're) outta here in the winter. Too much fun to be had in warmer climes to hang around here shoveling snow for 4 months. Part of my motivation for stashing away a big chunk of my income now is to have enough to be able to afford renting a place somewhere warm for the winter months. We don't need anything fancy......just a small cottage on the beach somewhere would be fine! (my wife and I are taking vacations in the winter now, looking for our perfect spot) Bob

[RAE]

Cut-throat - yep, the Bahama out-islands are definitely under consideration. We've been to Eleuthera and love it, and are going back this March for 10 days. No cruise ships or casinos there either (yet). Long-term rentals there are a little pricier than I would like though, so we're still looking around at other places. I think we bought two big lobster tails in Eleuthera last year for $18, so not too much more than what you paid in the Abacos. And I know I can catch most of my own fish to eat, and have fun at the same time. Kalik beer was $37/case, as I recall (and the rum was much cheaper than in the States). Transportation might be a bit of a problem, as car rentals are expensive - might have to look into shipping a little motor scooter or something over there for our use. Oh well, all of this is 5 years away, but I can dream and scheme, anyway! Bob

[Otis]

I'm a born and raised Indiana boy and over the past few years I've realized that I really HATE winters here in Indianapolis.

We're on the edge of the zone that doesn't get a ton of snow (Northern Indiana gets lake effect), and doesn't get any (Evansville shuts down the county with 2" on the ground). So we flip between the two... a few days at 35-40, a few days at 15-20. Repeat the cycle for 2-3 months. I get tired of 40 degree cold rainy days very quickly.

I love a good snowstorm, although I prefer not to drive in it, and I wince at our heating bill each January. But all the snow is prettier than the semi-frozen mudfield that my lawn turns into each December. In Indy, the snow melts almost as fast as they can get the streats cleared.

So when we have some greater flexibility, I'm looking to move just a little further North... probably lower-peninsula Michigan or perhaps Wisconsin.

[Spanky]

As I am writing, the driving condition is poor. It will probably take me an hour and a half to get home from work. The drive is about 30 miles.

As CT says, from Jan to early April, we keep saying to ourselves that why don't we just move to a warmer place, such as San Diego, CA. As the weather gets warmer (in Minn), there are so many things to do, e.g., fishing, biking, tennis, boating, and hiking. The are a few bad things about the summer - humidity and mosquito. We learn to live with it.

The reasons for staying in Minnesota are: low unemployment, uncrowed shopping malls, grocery stores, banks; plenty of parks and lakes; no tax on clothing and food items; plenty of shopping malls.

Some of the things that I do not like about Minnesota: climate, high state income tax.

[haha]

Is it my imagination, or are there more than expected Minnesotans on this board?

Maybe you guys are in a hurry to RE so you can spend that February month in a warm place?

Mikey

[haha]

When I was in my 20s, living in Venice Caifornia I used to read the Whole Earth Catalog and Mother Earth News. I didn't know myself very well, so I always looked at the land ads. I remember there was usually about 10,000 acres in Bemidji Minnasota offered for $50 an acre or so.

Later I learned that Jane Russell, actress and GF of Howard Hughes was born in Bemidji.

Eventually I figured out I would rather own a studio apt in Venice than a million acres in Bemidji, so that particular fantasy got lost. They sure did have cheap land though.

Mikey

[Martha]

Quote:

Eventually I figured out I would rather own a studio apt in Venice than a million acres in Bemidji, so that particular fantasy got lost. They sure did have cheap land though. Mikey

I lament missed opportunities as well. It is probably 5000 an acre today.

Quote:

Is it my imagination, or are there more than expected Minnesotans on this board?

It is still snowing.

Old habits die hard. I was reading the Dallas Morning News and saw an add for 100 acres of hunting land
(west of the metroplex) for $37,900 (with easy terms).
I thought "what the hell?", I'll just go look at it. If it's as nice as they say, even I could afford it. It was located
about 300 miles from where I was staying, so I didn't
make the trip. That's the thing about Texas. You look
on the map and say to yourself "That's not so far."
Then, it turns into a 2 day drive and you haven't left the
state. Anyone who has driven across Texas from one border to the opposite border can verify this.

JG

[unclemick]

I did that once - once was enough! Subsequent expeditions pulling the camper were shorter.

[unclemick]

I did that once - once was enough! Subsequent expeditions pulling the camper were shorter.

[Skylark]

Quote:

That's the thing about Texas. *You look on the map and say to yourself "That's not so far." Then, it turns into a 2 day drive and you haven't left the state. *Anyone who has driven across Texas from one border to the opposite border can verify this. JG

Yahoo Maps Drive Time:

Texarkana to El Paso TX: 12 Hours 21 Minutes
New Buffalo, MI to Ironwood, MI via St Ignace, MI: 14 Hours 9 Minutes

That's true Slylark. The Michigan trip is a prettier drive too.

JG

[BigMoneyJim]

And via Chicago: 7 hours 17 mins. Now try driving from from Texarkana to El Paso while driving around the far side of Lake Texoma. :

By the way, I decided to hole up for the weekend rather than take a road trip I had tentatively planned. I was holing up to avoid the several inches of snow Indy was supposed to get, but looking out my window it looks like it didn't come--my car is only lightly dusted.

[Otis]

Quote:

By the way, I decided to hole up for the weekend rather than take a road trip I had tentatively planned. I was holing up to avoid the several inches of snow Indy was supposed to get, but looking out my window it looks like it didn't come--my car is only lightly dusted.

I'm on the North side of Indy and we got enough to mess up the roads a bit, but not enough to keep us home today. Mom and Dad (up by South Bend) were expecting up to 8", some of that from Lake Effect. When I talked to them this afternoon, they had at least 6" of new fluffy white stuff with more on the way over night.

Got my pictures out from our trip to Nassau last fall just to remember what sunshine looks like.
:P

[unclemick]

72, partly cloudy - rather than be happy - I occasionally get a gear skip/brain phart about my pre 1974 days on the ski slopes in Colorado.