When we moved from Chicago almost 5 years ago, I got a lot of snickers and jeers from my co-workers. Completely understandable given that Chicago sees itself as the second city and all the reports of Mayor Daley trying to make it into NY without the bad parts.
It’s the quality of life that separates the Twin Cities from that cross-country rivalry. That’s continually highlighted in the recent WSJ article: The Twin Cities Hit ‘Critical Coolness’.
The quote, “It’s such a get-out-there and do something culture,” reminds me of Rex‘s MSP vs SEA comparison (can’t find the like right now) – everyone in MSP has a side project.
UPDATE: Rex’s comment reminded me that MSP has far more in common with PDX and SEA than ORD. But if you’ve spent anytime in the PNW you already know that. There’s been times that I’ve wondered if there’s some sorta high-speed tunnel between MSP and PDX.
Bad link (to me)!
Anyway, yeah, what I love about Minnie is the way that everyone has a thing they do, and then another thing they do. Now, some people think that means they have “a job” (the office) and then “a hobby” (the band”), but that’s not even what I’m saying. It’s more like there are several different forms of profession and expression. The guy who’s a programmer is also a gallery owner, the girl who’s a fabric specialist at Target is also a fashion show expert, the smart 3M dude is in the cool new band… coolness is much less secularized.
Rex, thanks for clarification and I fixed the link to you. Any chance you can find the permalink to the post I was referring to?