Why come to Minnesota for the holidays?
As a native Minnesotan, I have a long-standing love/hate relationship with this great state. As so many people say, I love the seasons. Well, three of them at least. Even after 23 years in Minnesota (plus 4 “south of the border” in Iowa), I’m still just not really a fan of the bitter cold or the piles of snow! As a kid, yes, the snow could be fun. Snowmen, forts, snowball fights, skiing, bla bla bla. I get it, snow is cool. But now, I’m an adult and the winters here are just a pain!
This time of year, there are so many things that are “special” about this great state though. So, as we approach the holidays, here are some signs you may be in Minnesota in the winter!
You might be driving in Minnesota if…
- You realize that you look like the hunchback of Notre Dame, and you haven’t blinked for at least 30 minutes
- Your knuckles hurt from gripping the steering wheel like it’s the last life preserver on the Titanic and you are NOT going down with the ship.
- Your car decides that brakes are for decoration. Press ’em all you want, you’re just gonna keep sliding!
- There are more cars in the ditch than on the road.
- You are getting passed by pedestrians that look like the kid from A Christmas Story. It’s freezing out there, but they’ll probably get there faster than you because traffic just STOPS when it’s icy or snowy!
Signs you’re at a Minnesota holiday gathering
- There are at least 2 kinds of jello salad to choose from.
- Lefse. (not from around here?)
- At the end of the party, there is just slightly less than one serving of each food left. Because nobody wants to take the last of it.
- The Minnesota goodbye. When “It’s time to go” means “we may actually leave at some point in the next 4 days, after saying goodbye approx. 14,000 times in 200 different locations.”
But while I wouldn’t wish the winter driving on ANYONE, there is something about the holidays that makes it almost worth the hassle. From the ever-present cookies, candy, and bars, to the friendly people who chat you up at the store about the weather. Minnesota just feels like HOME for the holidays.
For more Minnesota-isms, check out our post on strange things Minnesotans do!