Impressions of Minnesota

Minnesota is where I am from. I was born here and lived in the same house through college until I went off to Marine Corp OCS. Memories are all over the place. Streets, buildings, schools, rivers, hills. It’s still the same, but yet it’s very different. What was once the area that we kids in the neighborhood called the “War Path”, a vacant half block with a sand path through it, is now has modern houses sporting grassy back yards with swing sets and wading pools.

My house is still there. It is different. The current owner has remodeled, changed the roofline and made the second floor larger. What was once a fairly decent sized backyard with a tall swing is now small due to the new large double garage that sits behind the house.[ The backyard next door that once had two apple trees, one for eating and a crabapple for throwing, also has a double car garage that has replaced them. The spruce tree on the north side of my house that was six feet tall when I was a kid now towers over it. I would like to drive by and stop and see if I can go inside.

The neighborhood looks much the same; an addition here, a garage there but otherwise just a modest, but well kept place to live. In walking and driving around Mankato and also Fairmont, MN I have found the houses to be well kept with moderately landscaped but neat and well mowed yards. One thing that is noticeable about this area, and I think the Midwest in general, is the lack of fenced back yards. In the west it seems like the first thing that is built when a house goes up is the six foot backyard fence. I wonder if it is to keep “others” out or “ours” in. Perhaps people here are less worried about marking their territory.

What are the things that I have noticed now that we’ve been here for more than a week? Lots of grass, lawns are mostly grass with few flowers and bushes. Even many farms have huge lawns that all seem to be well-mown. There are more mini-vans and not as many SUVs. You will see rust on older cars, but the percentage of infected ones is less now than twenty years ago. Bike lanes do not exist. Most residential areas lack sidewalks requiring you to walk on boulevards or on the street.

So as I walk the girls or drive to and fro, I am enjoying the area. If I were to come here for the first time right now, I would think, “Not a bad place to live.” But I know that this is not normal summer weather. Where’s the 90 degree temps? Where’s the humidity? And, I know that from at least November to February, winter has its grip on this area and you are just happy if your car will start.

So am I happy to be here? You bet! Would I move back? No way. Probably not even if you gave me a house, but I have seen some colonial and Tudor style two story places in Fairmont and Mankato that would be tempting.