# What are the misconceptions of your hometown? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 9, 2010, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086 "2010-07-09T12:37:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/101 "2010-07-11T03:07:53Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > The last 30 years, rubber has little to do with Akron OH. Common misconception šŸ˜‰ Goodyear is still headquartered there and recently decided to stay and build a new HQ compound. Firestone has also had engineering facilities in Akron in the past 30 years. And U. Akron is still renowned for their polymer science & engineering college that was built upon the local rubber industry. There are a number of polymer companies in the area that make rubber products other than tires. ---
**Author:** ![moejoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@moejoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejoe)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/102 "2010-07-11T05:31:27Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > Seattle has a maritime climate, much like England. In general, the winters there are very mild. It does snow very occasionally, but only maybe once or twice a winter typically. Winter days tend to be around 40 F and gray/overcast. The summer is similarly temperate, with highs in the 70s and 80s. > > I understand that this is changing somewhat recently, with snowier/colder winters and hotter summers (we moved away in 2003) but thatā€™s the basic idea. I had no idea. Thanks šŸ™‚ Hereā€™s another Seattle question: is it true people in Seattle hate Californians? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/103 "2010-07-11T13:09:29Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I still donā€™t know my way around the city after all this time and never will. You have to be born here, know the history of the city back to the 1800ā€™s block by block, and think like they do with decades of road education. Yesterday I was out with a friend who has lived here her entire life. She drove from Cleveland Circle to Central Square. I donā€™t know what sort of devilry she used to know how to do that, but I was prett impressed. Then we had to go from Central Square to the Kendall Square movie theatre. This is a distance of about a mile, and it took us 45 minutes, mostly going in circles. When we actually got there, the theatre was closed. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/104 "2010-07-11T13:12:16Z")
Misconception about New York ā€“ everyone there is rude. I found them all to be really friendly. Then again, the interesting thing about New York, much like San Francisco, is that nobody there is actually from there. Itā€™s all tourists. ---
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/105 "2010-07-11T13:24:06Z")
That itā€™s a town and not a village. Niantic is a village of East Lyme. Niantic is considered the waterfront part of town but it is just a village of East Lyme, Ct. It is named after a Indian tribe that once resided there. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/106 "2010-07-11T15:12:51Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Misconception about New York ā€“ everyone there is rude. I found them all to be really friendly. Then again, the interesting thing about New York, much like San Francisco, is that nobody there is actually from there. Itā€™s all tourists. Iā€™ve found New Yorkers to be \*much \*friendlier than people in SF or LA. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/107 "2010-07-11T15:39:59Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Misconception about New York ā€“ everyone there is rude. I found them all to be really friendly. Then again, the interesting thing about New York, much like San Francisco, is that nobody there is actually from there. Itā€™s all tourists. Well, in the rougher areas, you will find plenty of Natives. But I completely agree that they are some of the nicest people I have ever met. Friendly and helpful. I think maybe the misconception comes from their quick and to the point demeanor. Some people find that rude. Not me. If you are in a rush, and you take a minute out to give me directions, I donā€™t mind a bit if you talk fast and are brusque. I am giving you friendly points. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/108 "2010-07-11T18:53:07Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Iā€™ve found New Yorkers to be \*much \*friendlier than people in SF or LA. I found the people in SF to be quite friendly, too. But once again, they were all tourists. The above compliment does not apply to the German tourists. šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/109 "2010-07-11T22:45:33Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Then again, the interesting thing about New York, much like San Francisco, is that nobody there is actually from there. Itā€™s all tourists. Hey, Iā€™m right here in this thread! Of course, I live in Michigan. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/110 "2010-07-11T23:05:30Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Well, in the rougher areas, you will find plenty of Natives. Right! Always thinking what Iā€™m thinking. Sometimes I think youā€™re me in an alternate universe in which I am much, much cooler. I grew up in a poor neighborhood, and after getting a bit older, moving out, and interacting with different folks, Iā€™d hear the same ā€œcomplaintā€ about LA over and over: ā€œNobody is from here.ā€ Okay, go to the hood right fast, and Iā€™ll bet you $10 everyone you meet is from there. I know star-fuckers come out west with diamonds in their eyes, but if you ever go to where the folks live, the actual people, you will find that native Los Angelinos are not a rarity. > [@](#): > > Friendly and helpful. I think maybe the misconception comes from their quick and to the point demeanor. Some people find that rude. Not me. If you are in a rush, and you take a minute out to give me directions, I donā€™t mind a bit if you talk fast and are brusque. I am giving you friendly points. Indeed. Iā€™ve found that New Yorkers (and this is true of most big city people, I think) are short if youā€™re wasting their time with bullshit. Now if you ever just chat them up at the bar, or ask them directions in a non-stupid, time-wasting way (and hereā€™s where theyā€™re not like most big city people), they are friendly, helpful and affable as fuck. Yes, fuck is very affable. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/111 "2010-07-11T23:37:38Z")
> [@moejoe](#): > > Hereā€™s another Seattle question: is it true people in Seattle hate Californians? When I lived in Oregon, it was the long-standing joke \ that there were signs at the border, for Californians coming into Oregon, that said ā€œWelcome to Oregon! Leave your money here, and then please go home!ā€ When I was living in Idaho, there was a time period in the 90ā€™s-mid 2000ā€™s where it seemed all the available housing was being sold to Californians for investment purposes, after which nobody who actually LIVED there could afford to buy any housing themselves. I think a LOT of people hate the idea of people making money in one place and then using that to change the way things are somewhere else, soā€¦yeah. I lot of people hate Californians in general. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/112 "2010-07-12T15:05:26Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > What? Your ā€œpolisā€ is different than their ā€œpolisā€? From the nature of the complaint, Iā€™m guessing the mispronunciation is something along the lines of ā€œMinnienapolis.ā€ > [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Yes, fuck is very affable. Mmmmmmn, affable fucks. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/113 "2010-07-12T15:28:21Z")
I knew about Zanesvilleā€™s Y-bridge because I had a jigsaw puzzle of Ohio when I was little and it had a picture of the bridge where Zanesville is. Pictures of everything representing the different places: a tire for Akron, of course, a carnation for Alliance, an airplane for Dayton. I think there was a little picture of Annie Oakley for where she was from in Darke County. Then many years later Akron built its Y-bridge and called it the All-America Bridge, but nobody calls it that. Itā€™s just the Y-Bridge, to distinguish it from the high-level bridge or the 8 bridge or the State Road Bridge, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/114 "2010-07-12T15:32:47Z")
I have been whipping up some outrage about this Y-bridge thing on my Facebook page, with the ultimate goal of an eventual Akron-Zanesville holy war. Two bridges enter: one survives! ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/115 "2010-07-12T16:17:34Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > From the nature of the complaint, Iā€™m guessing the mispronunciation is something along the lines of ā€œMinnienapolis.ā€ spot on. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/116 "2010-07-12T16:19:27Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > I have been whipping up some outrage about this Y-bridge thing on my Facebook page, with the ultimate goal of an eventual Akron-Zanesville holy war. Two bridges enter: one survives! Sounds like fun! Just observe the speed limit in Akron; the one and only speeding ticket I ever got was waiting for me at the north end. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/117 "2010-07-12T16:39:59Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > There is the misconception that Austin is a funky weird little high-tech college town. It is not. Not anymore. So many non-funky, non-weird malcontents moved here that it is now just like the crappy places they all came from. > > ā€œKeep Austin Weirdā€ is not so much a motto anymore. Itā€™s more like a distant fantasy. Yeah. If I hear one more, ā€œTexas sucks, but Austinā€™s a liberal wonderland,ā€ Iā€™m going to puke. There are pockets of weirdness and liberal kookinessā€¦ like in Montrose in Houston, and parts of every metropolitan area in America, Iā€™d expect. But as **UR** notes, itā€™s becoming the Atlanta of the Southwest. Nobodyā€™s from here, and there is considerable tension between the affluent newcomers that bike and jog on Town Lake, and the rest of us schmoes who spend hours in traffic trying to get to work and downtown. Actually, the definition of Boulder in the OP seems to match Austin. We also have poor folks, struggling schools in East Austin, and the _worst_ drivers in America. And yes, I lived in Boston for seven years. Everyone in Boston drives like a Bostonian. Austin drivers drive in no predictable manner. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/118 "2010-07-12T16:59:31Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Seriously? Maybe itā€™s because you still live there. Iā€™ve got a few: I canā€™t think of many, but the accent and the driving come to mind. I guess thereā€™s also that weā€™re stuck up and snooty, but since Iā€™ve lived here all of my adult life, I really donā€™t have anything to compare it to. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/119 "2010-07-12T16:59:34Z")
> [@Hippy\_Hollow](#): > > Yeah. If I hear one more, ā€œTexas sucks, but Austinā€™s a liberal wonderland,ā€ Iā€™m going to puke. > > There are pockets of weirdness and liberal kookinessā€¦ like in Montrose in Houston, and parts of every metropolitan area in America, Iā€™d expect. But as **UR** notes, itā€™s becoming the Atlanta of the Southwest. Nobodyā€™s from here, and there is considerable tension between the affluent newcomers that bike and jog on Town Lake, and the rest of us schmoes who spend hours in traffic trying to get to work and downtown. > > Actually, the definition of Boulder in the OP seems to match Austin. We also have poor folks, struggling schools in East Austin, and the _worst_ drivers in America. And yes, I lived in Boston for seven years. Everyone in Boston drives like a Bostonian. Austin drivers drive in no predictable manner. Heh. I live in the Greater Heights area of Houstonā€“another ā€œunlikelyā€ pocket of liberalism in our Red State. In fact, all the Texas cities tend to vote Democraticā€“even Dallas! But things get weird in the 'burbs & in the countryside. (And not the good kind of weird.) I visited Austin recently &, while itā€™s certainly changed, itā€™s still awfully cute. I believe you about all the problems, but it was a nice change from Big Houston. Whatā€™s the occupancy rate in [this monstrosity](http://www.theaustonian.com/)? ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086/120 "2010-07-12T17:24:40Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > People still think that Pittsburgh is dirty, because back in the day all of the smoke and dust from the steel mills was so heavy the street lamps would come on at _noon_. (My great-aunt told me about when she would go shopping and her coat would be pitch black) Men would have to have a separate suit at the office, etc. > > It hasnā€™t been like that since the 1960s, and the steel mills closed down in the 80s, but people STILL come here and say, ā€œwow, itā€™s so CLEAN and everyoneā€™s so nice and friendly! I thought you guys were all a bunch of drunks!ā€ > > :rolleyes: This is precisely what I came in here to say. My parents are too young to remember it being smokey and pitch-black. Check out [these](http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07059/765524-53.stm)photos of U. Pittā€™s famous [Cathedral of Learning](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://fatherpitt.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/cathedral-of-learning-03.jpg&imgrefurl=http://fatherpitt.wordpress.com/2007/11/28/the-dirty-old-cathedral-of-learning/&usg=__vYBWfkdTYaFYjY4NYka5zPtXRiU=&h=504&w=352&sz=31&hl=en&start=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=o9R564Lu3buEaM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=91&prev=/images%3Fq%3D%2522cathedral%2Bof%2Blearning%2522%2Bcleaning%2Bbefore%2Bafter%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:*%26tbs%3Disch:1) before it was scrubbed down a few years ago. It hasnā€™t been that bad for nearly two generations. The steel mills are gone. Most heavy industry is. Today, Pittsburgh is a hub of [medical](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Pittsburgh_Medical_Center)research and [banking](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pnc_bank). Perhaps surprisingly, due to the urban feel but low cost of living, itā€™s also a popular location for [movie shoots](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0858479/). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-misconceptions-of-your-hometown/546086.md?page=7)