Illinois is ... (Peoria, Springfield, McLean: crime, houses, neighborhood)

[linicx]

Illinois is Americana.

Illinois is steel and the tallest skyscraper in the US. It is water from the great lake and great rivers to small streams and lakes, It is Interstate and byways and dusty county roads. It is upscale shopping, box stores and thrift stores. It is wineries, microbreweries and sports bars. It's opera, bluegrass, indie and jazz. It's Clark Street and Main Street. It's forests, city parks, zoological parks, and botanicl gardens. It is larger than life and as as small as the lowly ant. It is baseball, basketball, hockey and Little League. It is green, yellow, brown, blue, gray and white. It 's farms, ranches, backyard gardens and road side vegetable stands, It's camping, hiking, biking and fishing. It is regional fairs, parades, Oktoberfest and fresh maple syrup. It is 8 lane expressways and secondary country roads that can't be found on a map. It is quilt shows and hot rods. It is civic centers and historic movie theaters. It is barges, canoes, speed boats, Jon boats and trolling motors. It is golf clubs, country clubs, skeet clubs and health clubs, It is ice skating, roller blading, swimming, and indoor walking. It is Crappie, Bluegill, Carp and Catfish. It is eagles, pelicans, deer and rabbits. It is prairie, high bluffs, rolling hills, roads that curve and roads that lead to nowhere. It is cardinals, robins, and martin houses. It is modern and ancient and a little bit of everything else in between. It is Black Jack and Budweiser, milk and coffee. It is villages, townships mega cities and bedroom communities. It is urban, multicultural and Carnegie libraries. Illinois is our ancestors who settled before statehood and the unknown.

A good part of central and eastern Illinois is open farmland. The western edge from Wisconsin to where the great rivers meet is a mix of forested areas, farms and towns. The southern end of the state has great forests, deep rivers and wonderful lakes and hiking areas. Central Illinois claims the widest part of the Illinois river, high bluffs and rolling hills. The northern part of the state is forest preserves, great zoological parks, historic homes, ultra modern architecture, Shedd Aquarium and just about every type of convenience and product available for purchase.

Weather is the bane of the midwest. Illinois is wet, dry, cloudy, sunny, miserably hot or freezing cold And in the midst is the horrific storms mixed with the tornadoes that spawn in the prairie. Peoria, McLean and Sangamon Counties were visited by the twisters 186 times between 1950 and 2007.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by linicx

Illinois is Americana.

Illinois is steel and the tallest skyscraper in the US. It is water from the great lake and great rivers to small streams and lakes, It is Interstate and byways and dusty county roads. It is upscale shopping, box stores and thrift stores. It is wineries, microbreweries and sports bars. It's opera, bluegrass, indie and jazz. It's Clark Street and Main Street. It's forests, city parks, zoological parks, and botanicl gardens. It is larger than life and as as small as the lowly ant. It is baseball, basketball, hockey and Little League. It is green, yellow, brown, blue, gray and white. It 's farms, ranches, backyard gardens and road side vegetable stands, It's camping, hiking, biking and fishing. It is regional fairs, parades, Oktoberfest and fresh maple syrup. It is 8 lane expressways and secondary country roads that can't be found on a map. It is quilt shows and hot rods. It is civic centers and historic movie theaters. It is barges, canoes, speed boats, Jon boats and trolling motors. It is golf clubs, country clubs, skeet clubs and health clubs, It is ice skating, roller blading, swimming, and indoor walking. It is Crappie, Bluegill, Carp and Catfish. It is eagles, pelicans, deer and rabbits. It is prairie, high bluffs, rolling hills, roads that curve and roads that lead to nowhere. It is cardinals, robins, and martin houses. It is modern and ancient and a little bit of everything else in between. It is Black Jack and Budweiser, milk and coffee. It is villages, townships mega cities and bedroom communities. It is urban, multicultural and Carnegie libraries. Illinois is our ancestors who settled before statehood and the unknown.

A good part of central and eastern Illinois is open farmland. The western edge from Wisconsin to where the great rivers meet is a mix of forested areas, farms and towns. The southern end of the state has great forests, deep rivers and wonderful lakes and hiking areas. Central Illinois claims the widest part of the Illinois river, high bluffs and rolling hills. The northern part of the state is forest preserves, great zoological parks, historic homes, ultra modern architecture, Shedd Aquarium and just about every type of convenience and product available for purchase.

Weather is the bane of the midwest. Illinois is wet, dry, cloudy, sunny, miserably hot or freezing cold And in the midst is the horrific storms mixed with the tornadoes that spawn in the prairie. Peoria, McLean and Sangamon Counties were visited by the twisters 186 times between 1950 and 2007.

If you think IL's weather and tornadoes are bad, I can tell youve never been to TX, KS, NB, SD, MO, AR, OK, etc.

[linicx]

Huh? I lived in Tornado Alley.

[scoop89]

Sounds like home.

[linicx]

Originally Posted by scoop89

Sounds like home.

Yours or mine? Seriously, been there and done that. I would hate to fave a direct hit today, as I keep enough oxygen tanks in the house to blow up the neighborhood.

[djbridgeland]

This should be Illinois's new motto - The Land of NO Carry. No Concealed Carry allowed and Open Carry is severally restricted to unincorporated areas, and you may get arrested for that. Move to another state and you will notice the difference.

[linicx]

I grew up with guns. Then, adult gun owners were very responsible. It was a different era and it is not the same today. If you have a legit reason to carry you can get the license. I don't want to see my nutty neighbor with any gun, let alone one strapped on his hip. .

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by linicx

Huh? I lived in Tornado Alley.

Then you should know that IL's tornado frequency and overall potency is VERY small compared to TX, OK, KS, etc. Like I said, dont complain about our weather because there is always somewhere that has it much worse.

[linicx]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Then you should know that IL's tornado frequency and overall potency is VERY small compared to TX, OK, KS, etc. Like I said, dont complain about our weather because there is always somewhere that has it much worse.

I am not complaining about Illinois weather. I commented on three central Illinois counties. Peoria has very few twisters compared to B-N and Springfield. I watched the twister that hit Peoria in the 60s.

OK twisters normally spawn in Texas. The cross the river and hit OKC and then Tulsa. Once they get close to the MO border they may turn north or drop south on continue along 1-44. I've seen it all. Straight line winds drove a large tree limb through the bedroom wall in my house,

[Orwelleaut]

Illinois is peaceful, yet robust, little villages with "Heilman's Old Style" signs on the taverns, and miles of deep black prairie soil in every direction.

Illinois is little villages with cheese factories and residents who have Wisconsin accents with rounded "o" sounds, tucked away in the rolling hills amongst the dairy farms.

Illinois is a town with hills that rival Pittsburgh where residents once mined lead for a living.

Illinois is medium-sized cities that are frequently rated as having crime problems and as being bad places to live, but that are actually quite decent compared to cities in other states.