Ask a Floridian who grew up before 1971 what they remember, and the stories rarely start with theme parks. They come from an earlier Florida, one that Disney was about to change. Here are the signs someone grew up in Florida before that happened. 1. The Parkway’s First Name The Sunshine State Parkway completed its…
If you’re hosting Thanksgiving in Virginia this year, the thought of keeping a problematic relative off your guest list may have drifted through your mind. But how rude is it? One aunt took that question to Reddit’s popular AITA forum, where people ask strangers to judge whether they were in the wrong. She posted an…
Some store names feel like part of the family. Ohioans who shopped in the 1980s may still picture their trips downtown and to the mall, and the names they came to know. Here’s a look back at the ones that didn’t make it. 1. Higbee’s If you shopped at Higbee’s in 1986, your store was…
A visitor to Louisiana can hear a perfectly normal English word and still have no idea what it means. Louisianans use these words every day, and a dictionary may not back them up. Here’s a guide to what these words really mean, and why. Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Louisiana statutes and…
When the leaves turn, several small Indiana towns fill their streets with festivals. Some have been going for generations, and plenty of Hoosiers plan their autumn weekends around them. Read on for the traditions that keep these towns on the calendar year after year. 1. Versailles Pumpkin Show The Versailles Pumpkin Show began on Saturday,…
New Jersey isn’t big, but you would hardly know it from the arguments. People in the north and the south often answer the same everyday questions differently. Neither side backs down easily. Here’s where the two ends of the state tend to split. 1. Pork Roll or Taylor Ham Pork roll and Taylor Ham are…
Show up hungry to a Minnesota potluck, and you’ll soon learn that everyone has a say in how things are made. Anyone who grew up around those long tables knows some recipes come with firm rules. Here’s what belongs on that table, and why Minnesotans say outsiders miss the mark. 1. Hotdish Hotdish is the…
Anyone who grew up back East has a picture of what fall is supposed to look like. Arizonans know it can look and feel totally different. Here’s what can throw off a transplant once the season turns in the Grand Canyon State. 1. First-Freeze Dates Arizona’s first freeze of fall depends on where you’re standing,…
Reading a map of Ohio out loud can earn you a few strange looks. The spelling on the sign isn’t always a reliable guide. If you’re an out-of-stater, these are Ohio’s town names worth practicing before your next road trip chat with a local. 1. Versailles Versailles, Ohio, started out as Jacksonville in 1819, and…
You’ve lived through enough Wisconsin winters to think you’ve got this one figured out. Maybe you do. Or maybe a few things you take for granted are only half true. Here’s what the records say about some of them. 1. Equal Snow Statewide Out-of-state visitors may picture the same winter snow from Kenosha to Bayfield….
