Living in the Midwest

Today’s the day I’ve chosen to talk about my views of the Midwest. I personally live 200 miles South of Chicago right off the main interstate for Illinois, Interstate 74. You could look for me on Google Earth and even track my street to the small cul de sac that is part woods, part city and see my sweet little one story ranch home. In the neighborhood we live in our home is modest. I am surrounded by kept lawns, landscaping, waterfalls, special lighting and various flora and fauna the likes of which only are rivaled at Disneyworld!

The term “Will it play in Peoria” was coined for the area within 10 miles of my home. We are a stones throw away from the Illinois River where Asian Carp will fly into your motorboat and the water looks as brown as gravy. There are semblances of high rise apartments across the river, old buildings that have been transformed into lofts and offices in an effort to revitalize downtown Peoria. There are no longer movie theaters in downtown Peoria. One must travel to the far reaches of Peoria or go to the rural multiplex theater outside of Pekin in order to view a movie for $7 and popcorn for about $3.50. A bottled water is $2.50.

One of the finest golf courses in Illinois is in Peoria, I’ve been told. I see it from the road. Never took up playing golf. It always seemed too elitist for me, and I always had viewed myself as a quiet country girl. No need to really learn about the “finer” things like golf. We have fairgrounds in Peoria. We have a large newly renovated Civic Center that supplies us with hockey, indoor football, orchestra’s, ballet, and assorted musicians passing through on their way to larger venues. My last venture to the Civic Center featured Alison Krauss and Union Station, where Alison was happy to say that Peoria was full of “her people.” She grew up in Decatur, IL which is just a few miles from here. So we all clapped and yelled appropriately when Alison used the phrase, appreciating the fact that one of our own had escaped this area and made it to the “Big Time!”

There’s a rich mix of Republicans and Democrats here. Truly it feels pretty equal to me, although at times we bend more conservatively in our views. We view Chicago and St. Louis as foreign countries, set apart from the reality of true Midwest ethics and values. But when we need to explain to someone where we live, we will always say halfway between Chicago and St. Louis. Come to think about it, that’s pretty accurate. Chicago has always felt more Democratic while St. Louis always seems more Republican driven in attitudes.

Women in the Midwest when I was growing up here, chose to be either Nurses, Secretaries, or Teachers. Not that any one of the three is a terrible profession, it’s just that Computers didn’t get here as quickly as we would have wanted. It would have opened the eyes to so many women and girls as to the real job opportunities that are out there in the world to experience.

It’s true we are behind the times a bit here. We get in on fashion trends well after LA or New York. We watch a lot of news in the Midwest. We crave information on Hollywood and celebrities. We embrace the bigger than life men and women as surrogates for the lives we all wish we had. We work hard in Illinois. Caterpillar is one of the main companies here along with State Farm Insurance. State Farm is actually in Bloomington, Illinois, about 30 miles east of here.

We celebrated the opening of Crispy Creme with great pomp and circumstance as we did when Starbucks first opened it’s doors here. Schwan’s still goes door to door to sell frozen foodsicles to the masses. Our rural homes and barns are mostly in need of repair. I’ve seen structures disappear over the past five years. The grand barns that once dotted the landscape have given way to metal buildings. Snowmobiles are seen in most rural areas. You don’t see guys with guns in the back window of their pickup trucks, but you do see lot’s of pickup trucks. SUV’s are the thing in Central Illinois. We have a plethora of Soccer Moms with assorted bumper stickers praising Bush, bashing Bush, Backing Obama, Backing McCain. Many times beany babies are still in the back windows of cars.

It’s no wonder we are thought of as unnecessary at election time. Illinois will back Obama. He’s our native son, we MUST support anyone that is trying to better themselves from the state of Illinois, and so few people become celebrities from here that it is imperative that we support someone about to break the Illinois glass ceiling and surpass expectations.

I’ve watched news nightly, hoping for some spark from either candidate that will ignite my passion for them. I haven’t seen it yet. My husband and I discuss politics in depth. We sometimes agree, and sometimes he will play the devil’s advocate or I will just to spice up our conversations. One thing we do agree on is the coverage of the elections. Most of McCain’s coverage is discussions about his age, his lack of coverage due to Obama, or his experience in Washington. Obama is for change. He is for taxing big Oil companies, and he wants to play nice with foreign countries to restore our image around the world.

People of Illinois are in danger of becoming sheep. We have so few things that truly set our souls on fire (except for a strong religious base) that we will fall into place behind our neighbor who puts a sign up in the yard to show support for his/her candidate.

If the tone of this post is boring to you, it’s to make a point. The people in Illinois need to WAKE UP PEOPLE! Complacency is the key to years of mundane things for ourselves. I am working for the day when I will be moving from Illinois to California. It’s not the end all be all by any means. It’s just that it seems so much more ALIVE in California. People form opinions, try new things, and go to places other than Wal-Mart and Church. It’s not nirvana but it’s not Illinois. We put up with corrupt governments here. Chicago has had one for years, Springfield, our capital, houses some of the most inept legislators in the country. President Bush came here to Peoria a few weeks ago. Just for Peoria, you could get your photo taken with the President for $5,000. A STEAL since the going rate for Presidential Photographs is usually $10,000 per shot. I couldn’t believe it. Because we are Illinois and considered a “Depressed” fiscal area, we got the bargain basement prices to be with the President. How embarrassing is that? Sigh…

Illinois, Iowa, Indiana. Three Midwest states that I will bet you find Boring. So do we!

Muslims Should Vote Progressive?

I recently decided to update my subscriptions to a website called Beliefnet.com. I try to be a good Christian, and thought by subscribing to assorted “religious” perspectives I can help myself grow. Imagine my surprise when the mixing of Church and state again raises it’s ugly head with the following post from Shahed Amanullah.

Seeing that our community is in a state of poltiical flux, I see a great opportunity to make the case that Muslims belong firmly in the progressive camp in US politics. First of all, Muslims now more than ever need to cast their lot with the group of people most likely to respect their uniqueness and resist the prevailing urge to restrict their rights (or worse, lump them in with the “evil-doers”). Second, Muslims seeking to serve society through political involvement will find it easier to participate in progressive organizations and the Democratic Party (the vast majority of Muslims holding elected office are Democrats) rather than their right-leaning equivalents.

And Muslims need not leave their personal moral views at the door when entering the progressive camp. Unlike conservative tendencies to make society abide by a particular moral code, progressives (despite a scattered few who are anti-religion in general) seek not to impose their morality on others but to allow people to live their lives as they see fit. That’s not just good for Muslim Americans – it’s good for everyone.

I’ve been a Midwest housewife for many years. I tell you this because I’ve realized lately that I fell into step with many other women in my area. We basically watched news channels that gave us their perspective on things and we, sitting side by side with a glass of lemonade and a fan would nod our heads in unison. I know I’m overly exaggerating but the premise is still correct. I basically had blinders on that prevented me from truly listening to or seeing the world around me. I’ve been opinionated, but in private. No more! I’m not going to tell you whether I am a Republican or a Democrat because it really doesn’t matter. What matters is truly listening to the influential people we have contact with, watch on television or read their blogs online. And then we must form our own opinions, not fall goosestep in line and just go along with these self-important people because it’s the popular way to be at the moment. We as citizens of this great country must disregard the opinions and spoutings of any individual that says we as a people should vote this way or that way because it’s best for us a group of people! Our own common sense tells us that true freedom means listening to all the pundits, formulating our own opinions and when the need arises, stand individually with our own beliefs. I implore those who would read this article to truly see and understand the enormity of this person’s opinion. We should vote this way or that way because we are a specific religion? Are we sheep? I hope to God not!