Lewis W. Diuguid: This Kansas City Is Not In Kansas an It Gets No Global Love (Jackson: credit, living)

[kcmo]

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[rwiksell]

Originally Posted by shindig

Or just print up your own t-shirt that says "Kansas City-less Kansas, more City"

That's pretty great. It reminds me of a shirt I saw in Vancouver, WA. (Now there's a city with a naming problem. Many of them just say they're from Portland, otherwise people think they're in a different country!) The shirt says: "Vancouver (not BC), Washington (not DC)".

But to add some perspective, try to imagine what percentage of people in the world can say where they're from in one or three words, and achieve any kind of accuracy in the mind of the listener. Everyone has associations and stereotypes and assumptions about every place in the world, which will be untrue for the majority of people who live there. "You're from Los Angeles? You must be a struggling entertainer, or a surfer. You're from Minnesota? You must be a Lutheran. You're from Kenya? You must be a track star. You're from Australia? You must be a Wallaby rancher throwing shrimps on the barbie with one hand and protecting your baby from the dingos with the other."

Sorry KC, you're not unique. Everybody has the same problem.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by rwiksell

That's pretty great. It reminds me of a shirt I saw in Vancouver, WA. (Now there's a city with a naming problem. Many of them just say they're from Portland, otherwise people think they're in a different country!) The shirt says: "Vancouver (not BC), Washington (not DC)".

But to add some perspective, try to imagine what percentage of people in the world can say where they're from in one or three words, and achieve any kind of accuracy in the mind of the listener. Everyone has associations and stereotypes and assumptions about every place in the world, which will be untrue for the majority of people who live there. "You're from Los Angeles? You must be a struggling entertainer, or a surfer. You're from Minnesota? You must be a Lutheran. You're from Kenya? You must be a track star. You're from Australia? You must be a Wallaby rancher throwing shrimps on the barbie with one hand and protecting your baby from the dingos with the other."

Sorry KC, you're not unique. Everybody has the same problem.

We do love our stereotypes Never thought about Vancouver... must be confusing if you're in Seattle and tell someone you're going to Vancouver. Which direction are you going??

[rwiksell]

Originally Posted by denverian

We do love our stereotypes Never thought about Vancouver... must be confusing if you're in Seattle and tell someone you're going to Vancouver. Which direction are you going??

We have a similar issue when we visit family in St. Louis, and we meet someone new and they ask where we're from.

"Springfield" we're tempted to say, since most people in Missouri would assume you're referring to the one in their own state. However, in St. Louis they reply...

"Missouri or Illinois?" It's a fair question, since St. Louis is about halfway between the two.

For those traveling from Seattle to Vancouver Washington, they probably just say they're going to Portland, much like you would if you were traveling to a suburb of any major city. (Although to be fair, Vancouver is a small city in its own right, with its own identity and rich history. Not to the extent of St. Paul or Fort Worth, but perhaps like Oakland, Tacoma or Independence, MO. As opposed to the motto "Keep Portland Weird" you tend to see "Keep Vancouver Normal".)

[xenokc]

Originally Posted by Truly Missouri

Kansas City Star columnists Lewis W. Diuguid's post about how Kansas City, MISSOURI gets no love globally. It's a little old, but I just read it for the first time.

Is why KC is often considered a 'best kept secret' - relatively few know much about KC.

[rwiksell]

Originally Posted by xenokc

Is why KC is often considered a 'best kept secret' - relatively few know much about KC.

It's true. But I don't think it has anything to do with the name, or with the Kansas associations. I think it's just because KC is smack in the middle of the country. And no matter what Missouri-boosters (including myself) might say to distance ourselves from the Great Plains, KC's has a cow-town legacy and a huge footprint in agribusiness.

So we can't really blame people for making the association between Kansas City and America's "heartland". It just means we need to focus on promoting the more cultural and cosmopolitan features of the city that make it a place that really has something for everybody.

[kcmo]

My link didn't work. My son has this shirt and wears it all the time out here

[Truly Missouri]

Nice shirt. Nice son. Nice house.

Hmm. You said visitors would guess your pictures. I'd say west coast for sure, perhaps, San Francisco? The one in the staircase.

If I'm wrong, don't tell me. Clue me in if you will.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by Truly Missouri

Nice shirt. Nice son. Nice house.

Hmm. You said visitors would guess your pictures. I'd say west coast for sure, perhaps, San Francisco? The one in the staircase.

If I'm wrong, don't tell me. Clue me in if you will.

There are two in the lower staircase. Both are of cities in Maryland

Our whole house is a gallery of urban cityscapes even though there is one room that is a dedicated gallery. several of the photos I use on my website are from my house.

Such as:



I'll have to post some pics of all the skyline photos in my home someday

[Truly Missouri]

Baltimore seems to be too obvious with a clue of Maryland. I'm saying Annapolis. That other one looks like Charlotte, except for the stadium seating is red instead of blue. And then there's New York City.