Cute, but almost extinct

When you move to a completely different part of the country, you discover more differences than just accents. Today a screening of the new movie A Prairie Home Companion is taking place in St. Paul where it was filmed. A bunch of big stars are here (Glenn Close, Lilly Tomlin, Lindsey Lohan). During the press junket, one of the stars was asked about the difference of living in Minnesota and where ever he lives (prob NY or LA). He said that here, no one uses their horns. You could sit through 3 green lights, and no one would beep at you. Thus the term "Minnesota Nice."

When I first moved to Minnesota almost 5 years ago, I couldn' t believe that stores accepted checks. I went to dinner with about 15 ladies one night, and to pay for the bill, everyone wrote an individual check. No IDs were checked, no Driver's License numbers recorded, just a signed check was accepted....I felt sorry for the waitress who had to reconcile her total at the end of her shift. One time my husband was at McDonald's and someone wrote a check for just a few bucks...at McDonalds! There are places here that would accept checks, but NOT credit cards. The complete opposite of where we moved from.

However, in the last year or so, more and more places are coming to their senses and realizing that not everyone is so "Minnesota Nice" and trustful, and checks are more of a hassle than anything else.

And that's too bad, because I just ordered these new stylin checks. I love them so much I wish I could write a check for EVERYTHING!