- the people are fiercely loyal wisconsinites
- everyone is very industrious
- is this a sports town or what?
- it's a small town that thinks it's a big city
- it's REALLY hard to get a job
- the food is a big disappointment
- absolutely gorgeous
- outdoorsy
- environmentally conscious
i must get my car registered...
2. the people here are very industrious. this must come out of necessity. after city living for seven years, five years in the desert, and apartment living before that, i had no idea lawn maintenance took so much time and care. everywhere you look people are out mowing, weeding, cleaning their yards while ours is almost to the point of disarray in comparison. i hang my head in shame until we finally get out to mow the grass. sometimes you can see people have taken great pride in mowing patterns in their grass. it may be a diagonal grid pattern, straight and very uniform lines, horizontal or vertical, but none will look like my mish-mash horizontal here vertical there lawn.
i think people here have to work hard. i saw a man applying tar to his driveway the other day and i thought "now this takes the cake, here!" but i was told that we have to do this here or the drive will crack and ruin in the snowfall. and speaking of snowfall, drives must be shoveled and walkways have to be cleared. it's necessity. as is mowing or your yard or it will be overcome by grass and weeds.
so, it is out of necessity that the people here have to work so hard. now i know what northerners and midwesterners meant when they would tell me they moved to california or nevada because they were tired of shoveling snow. i'm tired of mowing the lawn!
3. go packers! and badgers! do you believe that the house across the street will fly a packers flag on packers game days and a badgers flag on badgers game days? and every other day it is of course an american flag. the sports following is true patriotism here.
4. to me, at about 250,000 people, madison is a small town. the area is small, the population is small, everything is small here. yet, people here seem to think it's big city living. i think this may be because many people here come from small wisconsin towns or villages. i'm stunned into silence when a madisonian makes the comment that this is a big city as in, "traffic is just a fact in a big city..." i just smile silently and must look like i've been caught in the headlights. traffic? big city? have these people never been to san francisco? even las vegas, which i used to think of in these same terms after living in san francisco and before moving here, has higher traffic volume and way more people. even if it is only a fake city (don't get me started on this topic. for another blog entirely). i shake my head in wonder, i tell you.
5. i would love to know the per capita ration of graduate degrees in the town. i mean, come on! what does it take to be an admin assistant in this town? a Ph.D. and ten years of experience? I have applied to so many jobs that i am very qualified for, but will get rejection letters back telling me that there were 100 candidates that were all "highly qualified" and with advanced degrees. this is for jobs that pay about $30k a year. or less. i must have applied to about 100 jobs now and i have had two interviews. i am not counting the two interviews i have had for serving positions in restaurants. one of which i am definitely going to take (well, ALMOST definitely) and will be sure to write about those experiences when they happen. this must be the only city in the country where a teacher has a hard time finding a job because it is so competitive. i'll have to research this a bit more.
6. ok, we have been out to eat many times here, and yes, the local food is good if you're into steak, burgers, brats, potatoes and the like, but any nouveau cuisine you're looking for misses its mark most of the time. i'm used to california food (even in vegas) which consists of fresh, light fish dishes, salads, even pizza is gourmet there. locals will rave about a restaurant, or i will read local reviews of restaurants, and get there to find very limited menu items which consist of steak or some other beef dish, of which i rarely eat; pork - again, hardly ever eat; chicken, which i almost abhor; or freshwater fish which, for some reason, makes me nauseous to think of. i should try it, though. and when they do have the one ocean fish dish that sounds fresh and lovely with a nice sauce, it's disgusting and almost inedible. the best places i have found so far to eat are 1. marigolds breakfast - oh yummy! 2. cafe du soleil breakfast or treat - heaven! 3. great dane's (in fitchburg) sunday brunch buffet - hard to beat even by vegas buffet standards. 4. the continental - very lovely pasta and wines. 5. dardanelle's - light, healthy, local, awesome!
i do have a lot more places to try, but honestly, please don't rave about a place when it really is only mediocre.
i have to say though, a lot of restaurants here, and i am including the ones that meat lovers swarm to (and this includes my husband, by the way. this food is very reminiscent of the grub he grew up with in england), take pride in serving local and fresh ingredients. very commendable.
7. i have to be honest, i didn't expect the beauty here. no wonder everyone is so proud. green as green can be. rolling hills and corn fields. tree after lovely tree. clean streets and walking and bike paths abound. we can't wait to explore the entire state for it's natural resources. it really is a lovely town.
8. which must be why people are so outdoorsy. biking, walking, running, canoeing - people here are outside and doing it. will this all change in the winter. watch this space to find out.
9. maybe it's only because i just left vegas - not the most eco-conscious place in the world - or maybe because the people are so proud of the state and the land, but i think this town is on par with california when it comes to being environmentally aware. the people here truly care about recycling and keeping it clean. i love it!
it has so far been quite an experience moving to and living in madison. and so it is whenever one moves to a different city that is completely foreign to anything one has ever known. i have been in this situation before and i love learning new places and new people. the town is gorgeous and extremely unique, the people are friendly and genuine, they're hard workers and warm people. i think we'll stay a while!
