I Have a Feeling We're not in New York Anymore

Flying is pretty easy for me, because I knock out almost immediately in long trips in any moving vehicle.  So, I slept for about two and half hours of my three hour flight here on Sunday.  I kept the shade down the last half hour, except for a couple of minutes to take some in air photos for Snapchat.  I landed in the Minneapolis St. Paul Airport and the minute I stepped off the plane everything was already different.  The airport was just as confusing as JFK, but even outside the airport was different.  There was basically no traffic going onto any of the highways, and everywhere I looked people would shoot me a smile and occasionally a “Hey, how are you.”  Where I live, you would only get that in stores you walk into, and that’s just because the store owners don’t want to you walk out without paying for your purchases. 

Once we got to Menominee, it really hit me just how different the mid-west is to the east coast.  Not only in the community demeanor, but also in the scenery around us.  On the streets of New York people can walk right towards and look right through you, I’ve gotten used to avoiding eye contact while walking the streets.  But here in Menominee just about everyone I have walked towards has acknowledged me in some way; whether it be a kind hello or just a smile. 

I am pretty sure I was born without an internal compass and I am directionally challenged.  But I have tackled getting to and from Red Cedar Hall and the campus.  One of the first days we were here, we got to take a bike tour, and everything seemed so close in the moment, but if I were to have to get back there I would be lost.  A personal goal for this summer is to learn the directions to and from a different area every week without the help of Google.

      

Besides the amazing work I knew I would get to be a part of, I wanted to come out to this side of the country because I wanted to get a chance to explore a part of the world that I know I normally wouldn’t.  I wanted to leave New York for the summer and see what else was out there.  And I can tell you, I am not disappointed in the slightest.  The only things I am missing from my town in New York are my family, of course, and a sense of diversity.  I have seen a few  African Americans on the streets, in and around the UW Stout campus.  While I knew this is the mid-west and I was prepared for the fact that there may not be anyone who looked like me out here in this quaint little town, it is a culture shock for me to witness. 

Aside from this, Menominee has been extremely welcoming and lovely place to visit.  I can’t wait to see the rest of town in the weeks to come.