- Joined
- Nov 2, 2000
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- 452
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I moved here from the Mid-west and have the "outsider's perspective", but am slowly losing it as the longer I live here, the less weird people seem.
My Top Ten Weird Things About Maine
1) All the Mainers love it here.
In my state, people dream of living in other places. Most people think the state is boring, their hometown sucks, and can't wait to "get outta this place". In Maine, people have been here for generations, and nobody wishes they lived somewhere else. There's alot of state pride that I haven't seen anywhere else that I've been.
2) People are nice.
They are, although they may deny this point. I lost my wallet in an alley near Longfellow Square, and it was returned to me. I was short $30 at the BMV, and some lady offered to loan it to me. I had a flat tire, pulled into a gas station, and some dude who was weed-whacking helped me change my tire and refused any money or even a cold drink for his help. In my experience, so far, people don't look the other way with a "it's not my problem" attitude like they do where I'm from.
3) They think YOU have the accent
They know the accent exists, but yours is way thicker and they smell a non-Mainer from a mile away. When I first moved here, everyone was always asking where I am from. Within the first two minutes of talking, more than half of the patients I had at the hospital I worked at would ask where I was from. I thought it was just the friendly thing, but then I was informed by my co-workers that it's because of how I talk.
4) They don't like it when you make fun of Maine.
If you dont' like it, leave. Maine is still quirky and little to me, and sometimes I laugh at little things like having to drive 25 miles if I want Taco Bell, and nobody else thinks it's as amusing as I do. They don't wish they were "big city", and will defend things like how having a "marsh view" can increase a home's worth, or the smell of low tide.
5) You'll never be a true Mainer if you or your parents were "from Away"
No matter how long I live here, I'll always be a "flatlander". A friend of mine was born here, but his parents were born in MA, and he is considered "from away".
6) The state dynamics are funny.
They make fun of French Canadians, people from New Hampshire, and Massachussetts drivers (aka "Massholes").
7) Kids from Northern Maine look like big city punks
They wear baggy pants hanging low, bandanas, and some even talk like "gangstas". I saw more kids with dreadlocks in Bangor than I have the entire time I've lived in Portland.
8) There's alot of homeless people
I see a homeless person EVERY DAY. Whether I'm in Biddeford, Saco, or Portland, I've never gone a day without seeing one, and I usually see more than that. It's really sad.
9) There's a large economic gap within a block or two.
There's expensive, beautiful brownstone-like apartments only a block away from the roach-motel looking places. You can walk two blocks, and the whole look of the place changes.
10) I know where everyone works.
Even in a big city, you know who the lady at Rite Aid is. You see her everytime you go in there, but in your world, she only exists at Rite Aid. You never see her anywhere else. In Maine, you'll see her everywhere. Bars, restaurants, the grocery store - I feel like I recognize everyone everywhere. This is probably more a small town thing than a Maine thing, but if I feel like this is Portland, which is the biggest city in Maine, imagine the other places!
My Top Ten Weird Things About Maine
1) All the Mainers love it here.
In my state, people dream of living in other places. Most people think the state is boring, their hometown sucks, and can't wait to "get outta this place". In Maine, people have been here for generations, and nobody wishes they lived somewhere else. There's alot of state pride that I haven't seen anywhere else that I've been.
2) People are nice.
They are, although they may deny this point. I lost my wallet in an alley near Longfellow Square, and it was returned to me. I was short $30 at the BMV, and some lady offered to loan it to me. I had a flat tire, pulled into a gas station, and some dude who was weed-whacking helped me change my tire and refused any money or even a cold drink for his help. In my experience, so far, people don't look the other way with a "it's not my problem" attitude like they do where I'm from.
3) They think YOU have the accent
They know the accent exists, but yours is way thicker and they smell a non-Mainer from a mile away. When I first moved here, everyone was always asking where I am from. Within the first two minutes of talking, more than half of the patients I had at the hospital I worked at would ask where I was from. I thought it was just the friendly thing, but then I was informed by my co-workers that it's because of how I talk.
4) They don't like it when you make fun of Maine.
If you dont' like it, leave. Maine is still quirky and little to me, and sometimes I laugh at little things like having to drive 25 miles if I want Taco Bell, and nobody else thinks it's as amusing as I do. They don't wish they were "big city", and will defend things like how having a "marsh view" can increase a home's worth, or the smell of low tide.
5) You'll never be a true Mainer if you or your parents were "from Away"
No matter how long I live here, I'll always be a "flatlander". A friend of mine was born here, but his parents were born in MA, and he is considered "from away".
6) The state dynamics are funny.
They make fun of French Canadians, people from New Hampshire, and Massachussetts drivers (aka "Massholes").
7) Kids from Northern Maine look like big city punks
They wear baggy pants hanging low, bandanas, and some even talk like "gangstas". I saw more kids with dreadlocks in Bangor than I have the entire time I've lived in Portland.
8) There's alot of homeless people
I see a homeless person EVERY DAY. Whether I'm in Biddeford, Saco, or Portland, I've never gone a day without seeing one, and I usually see more than that. It's really sad.
9) There's a large economic gap within a block or two.
There's expensive, beautiful brownstone-like apartments only a block away from the roach-motel looking places. You can walk two blocks, and the whole look of the place changes.
10) I know where everyone works.
Even in a big city, you know who the lady at Rite Aid is. You see her everytime you go in there, but in your world, she only exists at Rite Aid. You never see her anywhere else. In Maine, you'll see her everywhere. Bars, restaurants, the grocery store - I feel like I recognize everyone everywhere. This is probably more a small town thing than a Maine thing, but if I feel like this is Portland, which is the biggest city in Maine, imagine the other places!
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