Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Outside of the three months I lived in Columbus, Ohio , the rest of my life has been spent firmly planted in the Hoosier state. I grew up in northwest Indiana, went to college in east central Indiana, lived it up in my mid-20s in central Indiana, and eventually moved back to northern Indiana in 2010.
Indiana is a state known for basketball, John Mellencamp, corn, the Indy 500, Peyton Manning, an affinity for unnecessary apologies, David Letterman, and half the state’s proximity to Chicago. We love that we’re a part of the Midwest, make fun of being a part of the Midwest, often find our identity in bordering states, and smile brightly each time we hear the theme song from Rudy. If you live in Indiana, it’s likely you were also born in Indiana and that you still live in Indiana because so do your friends and so does your family and the mortgages are generally pretty cheap.
In northern Indiana, in particular, we spend a good six to seven months indoors. As a result, Hoosiers are pretty good at playing cards and drinking beer and telling stories about that one time in high school. And although our state may not seem all that beautiful from the flyover to Chicago, Louisville, or Detroit, it actually has quite a few destination gems that we visit often when the cold air isn’t devouring our faces November through May.
During the winter and spring, it can get downright brutal here and the weather tends to vary. After weeks of frigid temperatures, you’ll suddenly stumble upon a 60-degree afternoon on a Thursday and, just as soon as you’ve set out your lawn chair and grabbed your favorite koozie, you’ll find yourself in 32 degrees with rain. Fortunately, just as we’ve become accustomed to being the butt of every other state’s jokes, we Hoosiers are also quite used to the drastic change in weather. We dress in layers, own all the jackets, invest in throw blankets, and know what groceries to buy in case of an emergency (it’s milk, bread, vodka, diet Coke, and queso in case you’re curious).
