Da 'Burgh!

I flew to Idaho June 20, 2002. It's been six and a half years. Incredible. I still say I am from Pittsburgh although little Idaho has taken a place in the cackles of my heart. (Mostly because of Ken.) I think about Pittsburgh everyday. I do miss it. There's a group on Facebook called "You know you're from Pittsburgh when..." I love to read that list! You outsiders won't get it but it makes me smile. There's a restaraunt there- Primanti's. They make killer sandwiches and they put the french fries and cole slaw right on top of it for ya. That's how they serve every sandwich. Why have them as a side dish? At the PPG Place they have an annual International Santa display that is amazing. In elementary we always went on field trips and had to report about our favorite Santa. La Bofana is the Italian Santa. (She's actually a Christmas Witch- I reported on her.) There is a theme park, Kennywood. If you ever meet someone from Pittsburgh ask them about Kennywood. They will go on for hours! Their favorite ride, a school picnic story, a time they got lost there... it goes on and on. Also, when someones fly is down... Pittsburghers say "Kennywood's open." And that means your zipper is down. Strange, huh? At Giant Eagle (the grocery store) if you were under 12 you could get a cookie card. And every time you went to Giant Eagle (pronounced Jiiiite Iggle) you could show the bakery your card and you got to pick a free cookie! Any cookie! For free!! In Pittsburgh everyone calls the ATM the Mac machine. I still do and it really confuses Ken. We call the ice "slippy," a thorn bush a "jagger bush," the vacuum "the sweeper." I really love Pittsburgh. I've got 2 Pittsburghers that live on my road now! It's cool. When we're out we talk about it. We talk about it like Pittsburgh died. And we talk about all the weird Idaho stuff. As time goes by, what seemed so strange at first becomes common place.

Take the following:

I landed in Idaho Falls and didn't pull up to the airport. There was no terminal. We got our own bags off the plane and walked over to "the airport."

Notice the blue neon sign: "ALL ARRIVALS." Shouldn't be too hard to find who you are picking up. Now, the IF airport has been renovated but when I came it wasn't an airport. It was a room. And this was it.
How could you talk for 1084 minutes! 18 hours! And for only $20. In PA it $20 might get you 20 minutes. MAYBE half hour. And where in SAM hill did they come up with 1084 minutes. Not exactly a nice round number.



In case you can't read it, the sign on for real estate says "PERSONALIZED DRIVE BY LIST." My mom and I couldn't get over it. Maybe because in Pittsburgh "drive by" normally refers to a shooting and a death. In Idaho it means.... what exactly. I don't know.

Fireworks are illegal. All kinds. They are illegal and they are dangerous. But, not here! Here you can buy them on every street corner all summer long.


This is my brother-in-law Nick. Standing on the back of his car. Watching as he gives someone directions. You see you can stand on the back of your car and do that here because there are no trees. And no one cares. It's not vandalizing some one's property or anything like that.

This is Nick's dad, Phillip. He made us dinner our first or second night. I thought it came off the chuck-wagon! Now, of course, I know dutch oven is some of the best cooking around.

My roommate had this bedspread. She made it. From blue jeans. I thought she didn't know you could give your jeans to Goodwill and buy a bedspread. It was so country!

You aren't allowed to swim in any body of water you want to in Pittsburgh. It's limited to pools. Here, you can swim anywhere- and wear anything while you do! I was jumping off a wooden plank here.

And who knew horns were decorations? Not I, said the Patty.

For you natives. I am not scoffing. I am not poking fun. I am pointing out differences. I love my life in Idaho. It's nothing I ever expected. And pretty much every Friday night when Ken asks what I want to do for date night... Eat n' Park comes to mind.