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I think these are written in jest, but with a gentle point. Maybe it's just a "North Idaho" thing...but it sure seems to be about right for folks around here, regardless of affluence or education....
Nah, it's merely a romanticized / nostalgic perspective thing.
Idaho is a very different place for each of us and our perspective. How you view Idaho is very different than how, say, someone that has lived here for their entire lives, or someone that has just moved here. It is also different depending on one's age, religious or political perspectives, or where they live / have lived.
I don't have a problem with the things on that list - some of them are quite funny. I just don't think they necessarily apply to Idaho for all of us. I just think it sends a strange message to some people considering moving here when a few CDF posters imply that the above is the mentality you'll find in Idaho. It's not. It's only a mentality found among some Idahoans.
Also to my list, Im adding IDAHO plates ASAP!!! ...
Trace, I got my Idaho plates the first work day I was here...on the way home I stopped by the local gun range. Put several magazines of .223 through the New York plates, took them home and hung them in the garage. It was an amazingly satisfying use of the AR! Remember the old I (heart) NY campaign? On the way out we had that on the back of the cargo trailer, with a big slash through the heart...and "Idaho or Bust" on the other side. It was good for a few conversations on the trip.
Sage, I like your list! Have you seen the Survival Idaho Style email that's been floating around???
Hey, if nothing else we still have our sense of humor!
]I'll attest that more than half of the following are true! (comments mine) You know you're from Idaho if...
Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow. (very true!)
The local paper covers national and international headlines on one page but requires 6 pages for cattle prices and sports. (Sandpoint Daily Bee)
Vacation means going to Boise (or *gasp* Seattle). (how about the woods??)
You carry jumper cables in your car. (doesn't everyone)
You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
You end your sentences with an unnecessary preposition. Example: "Where's my coat at?" or "If you go to town I wanna go with."
You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
You know all 4 seasons: Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Construction.
You know how to pronounce the entire name of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and Lake Pend Oeille. And know that there is no W in Moscow.
You know several people who have hit a deer. (been there, got the tee shirt)
You know what "cow tipping" and "snipe hunting" is. (yep)
You know which leaves make good toilet paper. (yep)
You measure distance in minutes.
You only own 3 spices: salt, pepper, and ketchup. (there are more? well, maybe garlic)
You see a car running in the parking lot at the store with no one in it no matter what time of the year.
You see people wear bib overalls at funerals.
You think ethanol makes your truck "run a lot better."
You think everyone from a bigger city has an accent.
You think of the major four food groups as beef, pork, beer, and Jell-O salad with marshmallows. (city-slickers-it's deer, elk, huckleberries and beer)
You think that salad isn't food, it's what food eats.
Raw seafood is bait, not "sushi"
Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway.
Your school classes were canceled because of cold.
Your school classes were canceled because of heat.
You've ever had to switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day.
You've never met a celebrity.
You've ridden the school bus for an hour each way.
A girls' basketball game fills the gym.
A rodeo is more popular than a rock concert.
Democrats are like salmon, they are on the endangered species list.
Every other vehicle is a 4x4.
In March your vehicle is 43% mud. (only 43%??-city slicker)
In the spring every tenth car you pass is a tractor.
Maps and gloves are kept in your vehicle's "jocky box." (yep)
People drive 200 miles to shop in a real mall.
The bumper jack in your pickup will lift a house. (hey, it's called a hi-lifter for a reason)
Your truck has a winch.
The elevation exceeds the population.
The wind is faster than your truck.
When the car in front of you is weaving you suspect a farmer instead of a drunk.
When the sun goes down you start looking for your coat.
Yellow light means "follow the car in front of you no matter what."
You can fish, golf, and go skiing all in the same day if you try hard enough.
You can see the stars at night.
You got a set of snow tires for Valentines Day.
You have to wait for a flock of sheep to pass you on the road.
You installed your new computer using a Leatherman tool. (how about a Benchmade, or a Buck?)
You leave your keys in the car and the next morning it's still there.
You slept through the night unawakened by a siren.
The train that's 3 miles away sounds like it's next door because it's soo quiet.
You talk about a combine and people don't wonder what you are putting together.
You wave to someone on the freeway because you recognize the truck.
Your great grandmother is older than the courthouse.
During a storm you check the cattle before you check the kids.
You are related to more than half the town.
You can tell the difference between a horse and a cow from a distance.
Your car breaks down outside of town and news of it gets back to town before you do.
Without thinking, you wave to all oncoming traffic.
You don't buy all your vegetables at the grocery store.
You don't put too much effort into hairstyles due to wind and weather.
The local gas station sells live bait.
You go to the State Fair for your family vacation.
You get up at 5:30 am and go down to the coffee shop.
You're on a first name basis with the county sheriff.
When little smokies are something you serve on special occasions.
You have the number of the Co-op on speed dial.
All your radio-preset buttons are country.
You try to find the cheapest room rates when going out of town.
Using the elevator involves a grain truck.
Your mayor is also your garbage hauler, barber, and insurance salesman.
You know you should listen to the weather forecast before picking out an outfit.
You call the wrong number and talk to the person for an hour anyway.
Your excuse for getting out of school is that the cows got out.
You know cow pies aren't made of beef.
You wake up when it's dark and go to bed when it's still light.
You listen to "Paul Harvey" every day at noon.
You can tell it's a farmer working late in his field and not a UFO.
Your nearest neighbor is in the next area code.
You know the difference between field corn and sweet corn when they are still on the stalk.
You know the code names for everyone on the CB.
You can eat an ear of corn with no utensils in under 20 seconds.
You wear your boots to church.
It takes 30 seconds to reach your destination and it's clear across town.
You can tell the smell of a skunk and the smell of feedlot apart.
The meaning of true love is that you'll ride in the tractor with him.
You go to Wal-Mart for your Saturday shopping.
Your main drag in town is two blocks long.
Anyone has ever not believed you about why there are 8-foot tall poles with reflectors along the side of the road.
The local Daily Paper is a weekly.
The newspaper's 'Around Town' section is the headline.
The term "logging truck" makes you jumpy.
When the magazine mentions in trivia that only one state capital can be written in upside down numbers on a calculator, you get it right the first time: 35108.
You commonly pronounce French terms and names in a manner that would make a Parisian declare war (Dubois: Dew Boysss)(Cour-de-Lane: Core-Dah-Layne)
You've driven anything that was wider than the road you were on...and it was a paved road.
You've ever driven a car on the freeway at age 14...legally.
You've ever seen a rodeo bull clear a six-foot fence.
You've ever used the idiom 'sittin' there' to describe activity: 'I was just sittin' there, runnin' down the road....'
You've ever written 'rodeo clown' on any form containing the words: Work History; Previous Employment; Educational Background; Personal Fitness Plan or Business Loan Application.
You've caught 'rainbow' trout that were all one color.
You've ever yielded right of way to one of the following: a horseback rider, sheep, cattle, a brush fire, a logging truck or a windblown grain silo.
You've had to remove skunk smell from a: pet, vehicle, relative, sleeping bag (or any other camping equipment) or body part more than once in your life.
You've been in states that are smaller than the county you grew up in.
You've golfed where the hazards include wagon wheel ruts from the Oregon Trail.
You've ever received skis for Christmas, and used them Christmas morning skiing off of the roof.
You've ever flown commercially and at least once seen grazing cattle higher than the flying plane.
You know what a finger steak is. (and no, it's not obscene)
You've ever given a snow shovel or an ice scraper as a gift...and not as a joke.
You've seen snow in every month of the year.
You've shoveled snow in anything you would not consider to be 'winter' conditions.
You prefer to ski at the place it takes chains on snowtires to get to because anyplace the snowplows can reach is as crowded as the beer tent at the rodeo.
You have ever used the 'Above 3500 feet' directions in cooking instuctions.
You've ever checked the barometer before deciding to use the "+3500 ft" instructions.
The name "Galena Summit" makes you worry about the state of your brakes.
When you see or hear the words 'Logging Road' you automatically drive on the shoulder.
Considers the description, "Excessive annual rainfall" to be impossible, no matter where.
Knows 591 hunting and fishing stories, but when conversation turns to the office humor, must resort to quoting Dilbert. (Hey, that's ME! And Dilbert is my home page)
Knows the difference between a jack rabbit and a jackalope and will gladly take an out-of-stater hunting for either.
The rattling sound of a dried seed pod along the trail will produce olympic class broad jumps on a moment's notice.
Can correctly pronounce Basque names such as Egusquiza or Acarregui, but never gets the chance to show off said talent upon leaving the West.
Knows where sugar comes from ......... but is a little bewildered by the term "cane sugar."
You can name everyone you graduated with
You know what 4-H is
You went to parties at a pasture, barn, or in the middle of a dirt road.
You used to drag or lap "main"
You said the "F" word and your parents knew within the hour
You scheduled parties around the schedule of different police officers, since you know which ones would bust you and which ones wouldn't.
You could never buy cigarettes because all the store clerks knew how old you were (and if you were old enough they'd tell your parents anyhow)
When you did find somebody old enough and brave enough to buy cigarettes for you, you still had to go out into the country and drive on back roads to smoke them
The only way to date someone from another school was to date someone from out of town
It was cool to date somebody from the neighboring town
The whole school went to the same party after graduation
You don't give directions by street names or numbers ("Turn by Nelson's house, go to 2 blocks east to Anderson's, and it's four houses left of the track")
You give directions by buildings that burned down (...left at Nelson's Old Barn...)
....esp. if they burned down before you were born
The golf course had only 9 holes
You can't help but date a friend's ex-boyfriend or girlfriend
Your car stays filthy because of the dirt roads and you will never own a dark vehicle for this reason
The town next to you is considered "trashy" or "snooty", but is actually just like your town.
You refer to anyone with a house newer than 1970 as the "rich people"
The people in the "big city" or on TV dress funny, then you pick up the trend 2 years later
Anyone you want can be found at the local gas station, cafe or the town pub
You see at least one friend a week driving a tractor through town or one of your friends drives a grain truck to school occasionally
The gym teacher suggest you bail hay for the summer to get stronger
Directions are given using THE stop light as a reference
You decide to walk somewhere for exercise and 5 people pull over and ask you if you want a ride somewhere
Your teachers call you by your older sibling's names
Your teachers remember when they taught your parents
You can charge at all the local stores or write checks without any ID
The closest McDonalds is 45 miles away (or more)
The closest mall is over an hour away
You've peed in a hayfield.
You have more than one story that involves an electric fence.
The electrical plug coming out of your engine compartment is there for a purpose and not a practical joke.
If you can say "Grand Tetons" (French for "big boobs") with a straight face.
If "just down the road a bit" means an 80-mile drive - one way.
If mailbox vandalism makes the front page of the newspaper. (well, maybe not the paper...but I'm thinking about building a mailbox from 6 x 6 x 3/8 wall steel)
Anyone has ever not believed you about where Rocky Mountain Oysters come from.
The guy flashing his highbeams at you to slow down so you don't get a ticket turns out to be the cop at the speed trap.
edited to add (these are mine!)-
You ever had to shovel snow off your roof so it wouldn't collapse
Work places close on the first day of elk season.
You put more miles on your ATV/dirt bike than your car.
You recognize people by the ATV/snowmobile they drive (or rifle they carry) but have no idea what their name is.
You know what Danner's are
You've ever slid backwards down a road with your brakes on (all 4 locked)
You routinely drive 60mph on a dirt road.
You know someone that's hit a moose.
You have moose/elk/bear tracks in the yard.
You have installed tire chains in the last year.
You find a road closed due to snow...in July.
You sit on your front porch and watch the planes flying by down below you.
There are more miles of dirt road in your county than paved.
Last edited by Toyman at Jewel Lake; 01-19-2009 at 12:43 PM..
LOL!!! Thats a great list!! Its missing one thing though or I missed it.. Pump your gas first, and THEN pay.. In Cali and other states people cant be trusted to do that, and in Idaho they get mad at us for not knowing..Ha!!
Also thats a great idea for the Lic. plates... I think I'll tack all of ours to a dead tree near the shop and give em the 45 caliber swiss cheese treatment..HA!!
LOL!!! Thats a great list!! Its missing one thing though or I missed it.. Pump your gas first, and THEN pay.. In Cali and other states people cant be trusted to do that, and in Idaho they get mad at us for not knowing..Ha!!
Also thats a great idea for the Lic. plates... I think I'll tack all of ours to a dead tree near the shop and give em the 45 caliber swiss cheese treatment..HA!!
The gas one is funny!
As to the plates, it IS satisfying!!! I moved here from one of those commie states where you jump through lots of hoops to buy a handgun, I didn't have one when I moved. I corrected that pretty quickly, lots to be said for a free state.
As to the plates, it IS satisfying!!! I moved here from one of those commie states where you jump through lots of hoops to buy a handgun, I didn't have one when I moved. I corrected that pretty quickly, lots to be said for a free state.
Oh yeah, yer gonna stick alot of hits with an AR, and I love my AR's, but the holes from the 45 will make a BIGGER statment I think..LOL..
BTW, we'll get you squared away on your pistol skillz when I get there!
Sage you are so right. That's a big reason why Arizona is having such a difficult time right now.
Especially when Phoenix has no business being there to begin with-i mean, it's a city in the middle of the desert-a planned freakin' city in the desert!!! Not surprising that fast growth in an already short term planning mindset, created the phx of today. ):
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