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I was thinking about Wisconsin and the upper midwest for job opportunities after grad school, and I was wondering, how do you think I would be treated, being from the Southern United States?
Don't jump to early conclusions, however. I have a Southern drawl, I'm from South Mississippi, but I'm not your stereotypical media "redneck." I did not grow up in a trailer, I HATE country music, I don't wave a rebel flag or drive a truck, I dress more urbanite than farm boy...etc, etc. I still wonder, with the accent and just knowing I'm from the South, how I would be handled.
Here (I'm in Arkansas now) the problem is that I'm not Southern enough, and I just wonder if just being Southern at all would be cause for jokes and snickers at my expense in the north. I want to find a nice, round the calendar cool weather place with friendly people to spend the early years of my career, and I don't want to take a job offer and suddenly regret it.
Not only that, but if homes are very expensive, I would be losing money and respect.
Hopefully someone can give me a good idea of what it's like.
You're Southern wanting to go to WI, I'm Northern in MS
When I finished my 8th grade year in Wisconsin my parents decided to move south, to Mississippi, to be near her family. My mother was practically raised in the south and moved as soon as she was 18. I can recall when I first moved here the biggest problem I had was communication and culture shock, but that's understandable. Depending on how far south in Mississippi you are it can be over 800 miles and in some areas of the world it's another country you are in. That is kinda how I felt.
Some of the biggest word differences I had to deal with was for an example "y'all" is a word southern people say to refer to a group of people. I've not yet been able to say inless (don't be offended) I say the exact phrase of a southern person. In Wisconsin we say "you guys" even if the group of people are girls. Also all carbonated beverages as the south call "coke" is called either soda or pop, depending on the size of the town. Some words like "five" and "nine" sounded the same and in Algebra I had to get used to that.
Also, up north, people have respect, but are usually not as open to people as the south. It's not that they are rude, it's just they keep to themselves more. My elder neighbors would be respected by calling them Mr. or Ms. (name) but never did I grow up with "ma'am". I almost got a padle to my butt when I wouldn't call my 9th grade teacher "ma'am". I kept asking her what? Apparently "what" was disrespect. I didn't know! Since I moved here I can remember some people saying ma'am up north can be mistaken for sarcasm.
There are a lot more things like that, but you'll adjust. Don't expect for it to happen overnight, but I promise you'l be alright. Eventually the accent will fade, but I don't think you'll truly lose it if you don't want to. I've been told that when I get sleepy I tend to "draw" my words out.
Say "hi" to Wisconsin for me. Man I miss it! Also winters are cruel.
Ah, one more thing, finance told me to remind you, there's no sweet tea in Wisconsin.
Last edited by Kicking4JC; 06-09-2006 at 09:24 PM..
You probably could do just fine in Wisconsin, depending on what part of the state you chose. Lots of Wisconsin is very "farmy" and people seem very "redneck" (I realize you said you AREN'T that way but I think since you're from the South, these people might tend to be more accepting of you). Things like tractor/truck pulls and rodeos and outdoor country music concerts (oh and DRINKING--people LOVE to drink in excess up here) are common and popular, at least in rural areas. In less rural areas, I suppose you can expect things to be like any other place. I think you'll be ok. Kicking4JC is right about the people... less friendly than in the South, tend to keep to themselves more. People seem more aloof here, I think. Oh, and about the weather... winters will be a real shock for you if you've never lived north of Arkansas. Winters are long (start in October and usually end in April) and cold and dark, lots of snow and bad roads. And don't expect "round the calender cool weather" here either... it gets real hot in the summer. Probably not hot like what you're used to, being from Mississippi, but we have plenty of hot days here too. In fact we've already had several 90+ days this year (which is kind of unusual but seems to be becoming more and more typical). Another thing about the weather here, it changes so much-- even within a day, it can go from very hot to pretty chilly or vice versa, and from one day to the next we can experience some pretty drastic changes. Example-- on Wed. of last week, it was hot enough that we had the central air on-- but yesterday, it was cold enough that we *almost* turned the furnace back on.
You may like it here. You may not. Houses will probably be expensive compared to what you see in Arkansas (at least in most areas of WI). I'd recommend renting for at least a year to make sure you really like it here before deciding to buy. Good luck.
My problem here in Arkansas is that we're in an area that really has it out for people who are in the middle/upper class. It's a pretty poor area of the country, and instead of being made fun of for being southern, I'm catching it for my family having a little bit of money in the bank. I never act like I'm better than anyone else--nor does my family barely make 85,000 a year--in fact I'm one of the most accepting and nice people you'll meet...it's just an overreaching generalization, be it the car I drive, clothes I wear, etc, etc.
So it's getting aggrivating. Plus, after being in the heat all my life, especially being hot-natured, enough is enough.
I did live in Nebraska during my final two years of high school. It was different--50% of people loved my accent and were great, and the other half or so laughed every time I opened my mouth. The cold weather I liked, but it was terrible during the summer..110's weren't just a myth. I made it pretty well though, after people got used to me, the joke wore off, and I was treated pretty much like a normal person. You can hear a "yankee" accent or two whenever I say certain things, haha.
I kinda want to be in the middle ground...I don't really mind a comment or two, I just don't want my intelligence coming into question every time I open my mouth. Of course, people can be jerks anywhere, so it'll always be something sometime.
My problem here in Arkansas is that we're in an area that really has it out for people who are in the middle/upper class. It's a pretty poor area of the country, and instead of being made fun of for being southern, I'm catching it for my family having a little bit of money in the bank. I never act like I'm better than anyone else--nor does my family barely make 85,000 a year--in fact I'm one of the most accepting and nice people you'll meet...it's just an overreaching generalization, be it the car I drive, clothes I wear, etc, etc.
.............
I just don't want my intelligence coming into question every time I open my mouth. Of course, people can be jerks anywhere, so it'll always be something sometime.
Both of these issues, I think, are things you probably won't need to worry about here. I hope this is not an incorrect assumption on my part, but I doubt you're going to feel that anyone "has it out for you" simply because of the amount of money you make. Especially since 85k is not considered extraordinary in this area. I can understand how it could be that way in a place like Arkansas though... feeling a lot of resentment from people who have less than you, especially when the majority of the population has less than you. But here, there will be plenty of people in your income tax bracket and above. There will also be plenty of people below, but I think people, for the most part, accept that. Does that make sense?
About your accent, I don't think people will judge you for it, and if they do, I doubt they'd say anything. Most people would keep their comments to themselves, I think. I hope! A Southern accent is a pretty uncommon thing to hear around here, so I think people might be interested, but I don't think they'd be a$$holes about it.
P.S. 110* is very uncommon here. It doesn't get up to 100* very often--maybe a couple times a year, at the very most.
Both of these issues, I think, are things you probably won't need to worry about here. I hope this is not an incorrect assumption on my part, but I doubt you're going to feel that anyone "has it out for you" simply because of the amount of money you make. Especially since 85k is not considered extraordinary in this area. I can understand how it could be that way in a place like Arkansas though... feeling a lot of resentment from people who have less than you, especially when the majority of the population has less than you. But here, there will be plenty of people in your income tax bracket and above. There will also be plenty of people below, but I think people, for the most part, accept that. Does that make sense?
About your accent, I don't think people will judge you for it, and if they do, I doubt they'd say anything. Most people would keep their comments to themselves, I think. I hope! A Southern accent is a pretty uncommon thing to hear around here, so I think people might be interested, but I don't think they'd be a$$holes about it.
P.S. 110* is very uncommon here. It doesn't get up to 100* very often--maybe a couple times a year, at the very most.
That's good news. Honestly, 85K in this area is akin to maybe 100K in another area...it's kinda like you're disliked for basically breathing air, haha, and I hate that. It makes you feel nervous, especially in a very small town (only has around 7500 people)
Like I said, in Nebraska, people were either interested or had a few comments. After a while it died down, and my accent is a lot more "tame" these days, so it shouldn't be that big of a problem. The majority of women I met there thought it was attractive, so maybe that'll carry over to Wisconsin, hahah...I just want to find a place where I've got some snow again, housing isn't OUTRAGEOUS, and where I can feel safe to have a home and take the dog for a walk.
I was thinking about Wisconsin and the upper midwest for job opportunities after grad school, and I was wondering, how do you think I would be treated, being from the Southern United States?
Don't jump to early conclusions, however. I have a Southern drawl, I'm from South Mississippi, but I'm not your stereotypical media "redneck." I did not grow up in a trailer, I HATE country music, I don't wave a rebel flag or drive a truck, I dress more urbanite than farm boy...etc, etc. I still wonder, with the accent and just knowing I'm from the South, how I would be handled.
Here (I'm in Arkansas now) the problem is that I'm not Southern enough, and I just wonder if just being Southern at all would be cause for jokes and snickers at my expense in the north. I want to find a nice, round the calendar cool weather place with friendly people to spend the early years of my career, and I don't want to take a job offer and suddenly regret it.
Not only that, but if homes are very expensive, I would be losing money and respect.
Hopefully someone can give me a good idea of what it's like.
HA, we were just talking about this today. I believe you will be just fine. You see a lot of people from all over (including other countries) coming to Wisconsin. As long as you are not from Ill-annoy (Just Kidding) you will be fine.
Housing can be expensive, but the homes are usually built very well. What area are you looking for?
Hiya fellow southern kid right here. I was born and bred in Kentucky until I turned 18 - moved up here to go to college at Marquette. Haha it's really nice of the people here to say you won't be judged by your accent but honestly if you want to be taken seriously you'll have to work to tame it - at least in a professional setting. A big common theme in mindset is that because you are southern you are automatically mentally handicapped - not in a down syndrome way, but you automatically have to "prove" your capacity as an educated individual unlike the equal ground everyone else seems to start on here. Something else you'll need to brace yourself for is the level of segregation you'll find here that we honestly just don't have in the south. It's still foreign to me, but the city refers to itself as a melting pot of cultures, which technically it is. But they are all segregated into their own little corner of the world in this city. And prejudice is much higher than I've ever been exposed to, including my years in the south. It's very different to say the least on a cultural aspect. Housing is fair unless you are looking to buy and depending on the neighborhood that can get costly. I'd honestly suggest renting for a while. The east side and downtown area of Milwaukee has a lot to offer in a way of life and culture esp. to those with youth on their side. Overall it's a good city, and I love living here but there a few of the cons I wish someone would've informed me of before coming here so I wouldn't have been so suprised.
The Wisconsin stereotype is friendly but somewhat standoffish. I've found this tends to be the case, but overall I think the people here are great and very accepting of people from other places. Being from the South shouldn't be a hinderance at all if you're open-minded and adaptable.
It's a true statement that Milwaukee is segregated. If you need proof a drive from the lake westward will make that point clear to you. But there are great spots in Milwaukee and in other towns across the state. Madison is a teriffic city, and I'm also a big fan of the Appleton area.
If you must work on climatizing your accent, just remember that "hat" is pronounced "hyeaht" and "bag" is pronounced "bage". You'll do great.
Magpies
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You're Southern wanting to go to WI, I'm Northern in MS
Wisconsin nice
