With it being a bye week I thought I would ask my fellow 11wers about their experiences dealing with the perception of the Midwest. I think everyone has at least one story of being out of the area and saying "I'm from Ohio (or I went to school there etc...)" and getting a reaction. I said this to some people in Seattle while I was visiting a friend and the response was basically "Wow...that must suck. Ohio seems like hell on earth". It was upsetting to me because I have so much pride in being from this place, but outside of the area people seem to have a negative view about the region and the people who live here.
I know we have 11wers from all over the country/world and I was wondering a few things:
- What have been your experiences in telling people where you are from, or that you went to school here? Were they negative/positive or indifferent?
- Is this a bad place to live compared to the rest of the country?
- What are the problems (real or perceived) and how do we change them for the better?
- Would you ever come back?
And for people who have lived here for a long time
- Has the area changed in your lifetime? Is it better or worse?
- And the main thing, what can we all do to make this region better?
I know people will have a lot of stories and opinions so I don't want to limit what anyone says with that list, but these are just a few things I was wondering about.