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Posted By Katie On September 6, 2012 12 Comments

Living in a fly over state

Filed Under: Life in North Dakota Tagged With: prairie life 12 Comments

Tonight my friend Megan and I were outside watching our kids play. All of the sudden Miss A was shouting at the sky. Her friend Miss K immediately stopped to look up to see what Miss A spotted. In her booming 3 year old voice, Anika said, “Yook at the dah big ahplane! Big high in the sky!”

And Miss A is right. The airplanes are big. They are high in the sky. They fly over us. Sometimes at night if you look up in our prairie, star filled sky across it you see the lights of an airplane. We are near the state line of North and South Dakota. I suppose it is a direct route for many flights from the west coast to Minneapolis or Detroit. Or maybe they are Fed Ex planes.

I was never aware of the term “fly over state” until I introduced myself from North Dakota while attending the University of Georgia. I earned the nickname Dakota. And many said, “oh you’re a fly over state.” I was offended.

But today with some life experience, I own the label. Often outsiders do not know what is behind the walls of label. Ghetto. Suburbia. Uptown. Downtown. The Sticks. Fly Over State.

That’s us. We are a fly over state. Go ahead. Label us. We are thriving within the label with our business and family. And our kids seems to proudly embrace the surroundings of a fly over state.

What’s a label in your life you embrace?

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Comments

  1. Nancy Claeys says

    September 6, 2012 at 10:56 am

    Of course, I can’t think of one now, but Nebraska, like North Dakota, is the butt of many jokes and “how boring” it is. I just smile and know how great it is to live here. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  2. Winnie says

    September 6, 2012 at 12:15 pm

    This made me smile. I used to live in the path of Kennedy Airport in Queens thoughtout my childhood until graduation of highschool. The planes were so low and so frequent. Out of state guests would freak out thinking these large planes would be landing on our home. The Concord was something to see and “feel” as everything would rattle when it would fly by. Thanks for making me recall those funny times. NYC has a lot of terms that it is called, but like you say, it is home. My brother loved Fargo and would trade his life here in a moment if he could. He left NYC and moved to a more rural area upstate for now.

    Reply
  3. TexWisGirl says

    September 6, 2012 at 1:48 pm

    people try to call me Yankee, but i correct them and say northerner. i’m proud of the midwest blood in my veins. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  4. Lisa @ Two Bears Farm says

    September 6, 2012 at 2:46 pm

    I live in “the moonshine capital of the world”. That movie that’s out right now, Lawless? That’s based on the county I live in. Not sure I really own it though… ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Reply
  5. The Wife of a Dairyman says

    September 6, 2012 at 3:06 pm

    And I LOVE the song, Fly Over States by Jason Aldean! I think it would be a good thing to be a ‘fly over state’

    Reply
  6. Bobbi says

    September 6, 2012 at 6:18 pm

    I smile when anyone says “how can you live in Nebraska, it is so flat and there is nothing to see”. I just tell them that they built I-80 to fool visitors into thinking the state is not beautiful that way we can keep the beauty all to ourselves!!!!

    Reply
  7. KarenL says

    September 6, 2012 at 11:42 pm

    Whenever I hear Jason Aldean’s song about the fly over states I smile. I am proud to be from one of those states.

    Reply
  8. KathieR says

    September 7, 2012 at 11:08 pm

    I don’t claim it all but “the left coast” is common for California. I live in the central valley and live amongst quite a few conservative folks.

    Reply
  9. KathieR says

    September 7, 2012 at 11:11 pm

    ^^^ ^^^ That was supposed to be ‘don’t claim it “at” all…’

    Reply
  10. Angie says

    September 8, 2012 at 2:19 am

    I think a lot if people see us “cheeseheads” as a bunch of drunken Packer fans. I am proud to say that us cheeseheads who dairy farm work pretty hard to produce the milk that not only makes cheese for the srate of Wisconsin but we rank #1 in cheese production for the nation. So not only do we work hard, we enjoy our football too. This particular cheesehead loves University Wisconsin Badgers.

    Reply
  11. Angie says

    September 8, 2012 at 2:19 am

    I think a lot if people see us “cheeseheads” as a bunch of drunken Packer fans. I am proud to say that us cheeseheads who dairy farm work pretty hard to produce the milk that not only makes cheese for the srate of Wisconsin but we rank #1 in cheese production for the nation. So not only do we work hard, we enjoy our football too. This particular cheesehead loves University Wisconsin Badgers.

    Reply
  12. Farmchick says

    September 8, 2012 at 10:29 pm

    That’s funny…just the other day someone told me that I live in a fly over state. I just smiled….I don’t want them to know what they are missing…{if they knew they might move here!! } ๐Ÿ˜‰ As you know…I live in the same fly over state as you do!! We love the state and we love the song too!!

    Reply

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I am a mom of three kids and a wife to Nathan. Together we live on the North Dakota prairie, 97 miles from a Starbuck's. I share about family, food, farming and the prairie that I love. I used to commute 98 miles one-way to work but it required too much coffee. So now I am home, consulting, speaking, writing and primarily, juggling family life.
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