Why do YOU live in Duluth and how do you like it? (Rochester: home, neighborhood)

[Radical_Car]

Simple question, why do you live in Duluth and how do you like it. Is it because of a job offer? college? chose to live there? It will be fun to hear from people why they live in Duluth.

[demtion35]

The outdoors and nature powerful water, being able to see the stars with the slower pace of less hectic life.
Everything Duluth area has to offer, so its easy for us, if we left we would miss this wonderful place.
Born and raised northern Minnesota and planning to stay
Thanks

[tvdxer]

I live in Duluth because my mother lives here (my father died in 2006, and was married to my mom). After graduating high school, I took a year off to travel (which I did not do during that time) and was pressured to go to the College of St. Scholastica, which I did, and graduated with a B.A. in 2010. I lived at home in the meantime, figuring that was the best place for me to do my radio hobbies (mainly amateur radio and DXing) and also a way for me to save money. The first I did some of, but never in my college years did I make use of my expensive ham radio transceiver, due to my lack of effort in getting antennas up; the second I did, but I did not make much money to start with, only working part-time and irregular hours at my family's business. A grand-mal seizure led to the finding of a brain tumor in the fall of 2009, which was partially removed. Now I'm on treatment, which uninsured, would cost about $55,000 for this year. Thankfully, I'm on MinnesotaCare, and no other insurer would accept me now that I have the tumor, so I don't plan on leaving Minnesota permanently, at least not until the Obama healthcare plan goes into effect.

I have a real love - hate relationship with the city. On one hand, I enjoy the beauty of summer and fall in Duluth. I love the view of the lake from Mesaba, the sloping terrain, the summer and early fall weather, the Superior Hiking Trail, the relatively uncrowded radio dial, and the like. On the other hand, I despise the lack of neighborhood vitality, the length and severity of the winters, and the lack of diversity and worldliness (people don't even know what "hummus" or "curry" is!). I also miss the lack of big city amenities, e.g. restaurants serving all kinds of different cuisines, lots of scanner activity, and expansive museums.

[Kid Cann]

I came to Duluth in 2008 for a job offer. I initially wanted to just stay temporarily (6-12 mo.s) but have been here since. I have developed a real love-hate for Duluth as well. The great things, are just that, great. So awesome seeing the hills, the lake, the parks. Just the other day I woke up, walked to the boardwalk, then walked down the the rocks on the shore of the lake and sat and looked out into the vast horizon of the Great Lake. I can walk to chester park which is right in the center of the city, but feels like you're in a rain forest. I simply cannot and could not do this anywhere else in MN, at least without having that 'big city' feel to it

[aluminumpork]

Originally Posted by tvdxer

lack of diversity and worldliness (people don't even know what "hummus" or "curry" is!)

It really depends on which groups you're a part of. Most of my co-workers and friends would smack me if I told them I didn't know what curry or hummus is.

[Radical_Car]

Originally Posted by tvdxer

the lack of diversity and worldliness (people don't even know what "hummus" or "curry" is!).

Funny, I know what both hummus and curry is and have eaten both many times, and im only 17. They've had hummus as a free sample at Sams club here in St. Cloud before.
I'm also familiar with some other foods not really all that popular in Minnesota such as Grits.

[tvdxer]

Originally Posted by aluminumpork

It really depends on which groups you're a part of. Most of my co-workers and friends would smack me if I told them I didn't know what curry or hummus is.

True. I mostly represent working-class Duluth, even though I have a B.A. and plan on getting my M.A., as those are my roots. Duluth's working class is gastronomically still "meat and potatoes" territory.

[aluminumpork]

Originally Posted by tvdxer

"meat and potatoes"

There's no doubt that I love my meat and potatoes. Generally my family represents classic Minnesotan working class, but the majority of my friends and co-workers represent more of a mix between West Coast tastes/interests and Minnesotan sensibilities.

[Beenaroundabit]

I have been here about a year and came for a job.

I grew up in New England and have lived in major cities on both coasts, as well as in rural parts of the south and in Alaska. I like that fact that Duluth has a lot of what ALL of these areas seem to have going for them: the outdoor activities and nature found in the rural areas have, but also the ability to buy just about anything most people will ever need that's found in the more populated areas.

While there is certainly less cultural diversity here than in other parts of the country, I think that cultural diversity is far more common in larger metropolitan areas than in smaller ones, so I can't really blame Duluth for it's lack of it. And even with less of that diversity, I have found most Duluthians (and Minnesotans) far more accepting of different kinds of people than I've found in some other parts of the country. So in my mind, if Duluth isn't "culturally diverse", it's not so much because of intolerance as it is because of Duluth's location and size.

If I had to point to something negative, I guess I could say the road construction - not that it exists at all (because it's a necessary evil), but because the way they do it makes less sense to me. As an example, in other parts of the country, road construction is universally recognized for the inconvenience that it is and it seems that those performing it try to get it over with as quickly as possible, working nights, weekends, etc. Here, it seems like it only occurs as a M-F, 9-5 job and, for that reason, goes on forever - or at least is stretched out long enough to cover the entire season when the companies have the weather in which to do it. In fairness, it could be a lack of funding for overtime more than anything else, so that could be understandable.

One other small thing would be the fact that pedestrians in Duluth seem to behave a lot like deer - jumping into the street at random test a driver's reaction times .

But my complaints are pretty small. We've been fortunate in that we were able to find a nice home and my wife has found work that she enjoys, so it's probably fair to say that we're happier here than in any of the other places we've lived.

[pcwerk]

I'm kind of stuck down here in Rochester and wish I was in Duluth! We had a couple of acres near Cotton and went in to Duluth a few times
and it is just a beautiful town. I dream of getting back up there but not
sure if the winters are worth it ;-)
Jim