The upper midwest is strange

[Utclmjmpr]

She also said: " Do or say anything to get into political office " >>>Dan

 

[Old_Crow]

I'm a native Californian, but live in W. AR now. The 2nd largest city in the state is Ft Smith, at 90,000 people. Everything there shuts down by 9 PM. The entire state is dry (does not sell alcohol) on Sunday, and no alcohol is sold in my end of my county at any time. I have to run 40 minutes into "the city" (Ft Smith) to do a beer run a couple times a month. In my little burg we have a population of about 1100. We have a Sonic, a Subway, a small take-out Thai place, a family-style cafe, and a small Harp's grocery store. We also have a lumber mill that employs a couple hundred people. The lumber mill runs 24/7. Nothing else is open after 8 PM, and only the Sonic, Subway, and Harp's are open on Sunday.

The 'no beer on Sunday' depends on the county. I lived in north central Arkansas (Mtn View) and we'd ride the bikes to Norfork on Sundays because the liquor stores were open. Also, in most wet counties you can get a beer with your meal in places that serve alcohol.
I find that light map interesting because I'm currently staying in a place in California that's quite a bit darker than anyplace in Arkansas.

 

[Onyrlef]

Hailing from Louisiana where a 44 oz mixed drink with extra shots can be bought at a drive thru, no really it can ( it's not an open container if the paper is left on the end of the straw), the midwest in comparison might seem a little conservative.

 

[TheBar]

The 'no beer on Sunday' depends on the county. I lived in north central Arkansas (Mtn View) and we'd ride the bikes to Norfork on Sundays because the liquor stores were open. Also, in most wet counties you can get a beer with your meal in places that serve alcohol.

I can remember when Roland was one liquor store on the OK side of the river to service Ft Smith. Walmart and other stores used to pull a curtain wall across the store so you could only buy groceries on Sunday. Illegal to even buy clothing on Sundays.

 

[Ex-Calif]

Part of the marvelous experience of RV travel is discovering the differences across this vast country. All kinds of cultural differences, often things you never even thought about at your own home. Different accents and attitudes, different cuisines, different daily life styles, different businesses on the main street, etc etc etc. Religious backgrounds often lead to numerous regional differences, even among those who don't practice the religion. Farm & ranch country is another cultural factor, leading to different priorities and patterns of living than in city life or where factories and offices are the sources of income.

Some travelers embrace the differences, while others decry them and avoid as much as possible by sticking to business chains that promise the same experience no matter where you find them.

I think it may have been Memphis Belle or one of the WWII genre. Anyway, One waist gunner was telling the other that if he survived the war his dream was to open a burger shop and then another one in another city and eventually have burger shops all over.

The second guy said something like, "That's crazy. No one wants to travel to another place to eat the same thing they get at home."

I view driving cross country via Freeways the same way. They are convenient when you "have" to get from A to B but the exits are like P&B sandwiches. The worst part is they all lead "through" American cities. I have promised myself not to visit any of our cities again unless I have to.

When we did R-66 we vowed never to eat in a chain place and were true to our word. For breakfast in every town we would google "Diners" and then cruise around until we saw one with a bunch of cars in front. We always got a few "looks" but never unfriendly and always a great place to eat.

When I lived in Asia (for like 25 years) I found it hilarious when tourists would stay at the Marriott, venture forth only on organized tours and eat nothing but McDonald's or hotel food.

We semi-jokingly referred to McDonald's as the US Embassy.

 

[Skookum]

Alcoholism is a sport in the Upper Midwest. Liquor is dirt cheap. Children are allowed in bars. You knew who the true professionals were; the state makes them put the “Whiskey plates” on their cars, at least in Minnesota.

Some of the grocery stores have full bars, and no, I’m not talking about the liquor aisle. Sit down and have a pint-sized glass of hard alcohol for $3 to take the edge off before bringing the groceries home for the little brats.

They like their pull-tabs, hockey, ice-fishing (a whole weekend of getting blitzed), their meat raffles, regular fishing (also drunk), and turning their basements at home into bars too.

The upper Midwest is an interesting place and there’s a very conservative front to all of it, until you watch what a lot of people actually do.

 

[Onyrlef]

I can remember when Roland was one liquor store on the OK side of the river to service Ft Smith. Walmart and other stores used to pull a curtain wall across the store so you could only buy groceries on Sunday. Illegal to even buy clothing on Sundays.

There was a reason for all that, if you can't get drunk or go shopping you may as well go to church and drop a few bucks in the offering plate.

 

[Tulecreeper]

The 'no beer on Sunday' depends on the county. I lived in north central Arkansas (Mtn View) and we'd ride the bikes to Norfork on Sundays because the liquor stores were open. Also, in most wet counties you can get a beer with your meal in places that serve alcohol.
I find that light map interesting because I'm currently staying in a place in California that's quite a bit darker than anyplace in Arkansas.

I've lived here for 10 years, and I have yet to find any stores that sell beer on Sunday...not counting restaurants. But I do know that my county and at least one other are split like mine and half the county doesn't sell alcohol at all any day of the week.

 

[Oldgator73]

My first assignment out of tech school was Barksdale AFB, Bossier City, LA. This was 1975. Back they had Blue laws. Certain things could not be sold on Sundays; paper products, underwear and alcohol. But just around the corner from our house on base was the enlisted club. The casual bar opened at 0700 on Saturday and Sunday and used to go and drink red beer (tomato juice and beer) for breakfast). We were stationed at Eglin AFB in Ft Walton Beach, FL where you could drive through a barn like structure and order draft beer and margaritas. When we lived in Las Vegas you could drink 24 hours a day downtown and on the strip. You could walk down the sidewalk with an open container. In Alaska drinking was a necessity. In the UK it’s hard to find a place that served breakfast But most farm stores did. Don’t expect a refill on your coffee though. Some of the best Tex/Mex food we ever had was in back woods Arkansas and lived in San Antonio and visited Mexico several times. We live in Delaware where you have to purchase alcohol at state liquor stores.

 

[Tulecreeper]

My first assignment out of tech school was Barksdale AFB, Bossier City, LA. This was 1975. Back they had Blue laws. Certain things could not be sold on Sundays; paper products, underwear and alcohol. But just around the corner from our house on base was the enlisted club. The casual bar opened at 0700 on Saturday and Sunday and used to go and drink red beer (tomato juice and beer) for breakfast). We were stationed at Eglin AFB in Ft Walton Beach, FL where you could drive through a barn like structure and order draft beer and margaritas. When we lived in Las Vegas you could drink 24 hours a day downtown and on the strip. You could walk down the sidewalk with an open container. In Alaska drinking was a necessity. In the UK it’s hard to find a place that served breakfast But most farm stores did. Don’t expect a refill on your coffee though. Some of the best Tex/Mex food we ever had was in back woods Arkansas and lived in San Antonio and visited Mexico several times. We live in Delaware where you have to purchase alcohol at state liquor stores.

When I was in 'A' School (Navy tech school) in Charleston, SC, the entire state was dry on Sunday. Coming from CA, I had never heard of that. But, you could buy it on base. I wasn't aware of that until:

A few of us took off on a Sunday morning to head out into the back country for a little catfishing. About 10 miles from the base, we stopped at a little corner market and while the other guys were getting ice and food, I went to the back to get the beer. There was a big chain running through the handles of all the coolers. I looked at my watch and it was a little before 0900, so I went up front and asked the guy, "Do you not open the beer section until 9, or something?" He looked at me and asked, "Y'all ain't from 'round these parts, are ya? No alcohol on Sunday." I said, "You mean, like, at all?" He replied, "Yep."

So, we all had to go all the way back to base to get it, then turn around and go all the way back out into the sticks again. And none of us caught a damn fish that afternoon.

 

[Oldgator73]

We were living in Louisiana when Coors wasn’t sold east of Texas. We would drive across the border just to buy Coors. You couldn’t give me a Coors free now. I drink either coffee or chocolate stouts or Guinness. If I’m going to have more than two beers I’ll drink Genesee Cream Ale.

 

[Old_Crow]

I've lived here for 10 years, and I have yet to find any stores that sell beer on Sunday...not counting restaurants. But I do know that my county and at least one other are split like mine and half the county doesn't sell alcohol at all any day of the week.

In the Norfork/Salesville area of Baxter county there are at least 3 liquor stores that are open on Sunday. It's not the whole county because the stores in Mountain Home remain closed. Not sure why, just know they are.
When we first moved to Mountain View there was a great steakhouse that kept applying for a private club license so they could serve a beer and wine (no hard alcohol) with their steaks. Apparently, an individual is only allowed to apply a certain number of times. The owner exhausted his applications, so his wife applied. After she exhausted her applications, one of the employees started applying. When it finally came to a point where it looked like the application would be approved, the steakhouse mysteriously burned to the ground in the middle of the night. 2 years later an established resort right down the road applied for a license and got it on the first try.

 

[TheBar]

Many liquor stores in MS are still closed on Sundays. No longer by law, just because everyone is too hung over to work on Sunday

When we moved here 23 years ago dancing wasn't allowed inside city limits. There was a popular dance hall in the county. It closed because everyone quit dancing after the city made dancing legal. Still isn't anyplace to dance 20 years later. But since I'm married I'm not complaining

 

[Jayflight]

Many liquor stores in MS are still closed on Sundays. No longer by law, just because everyone is too hung over to work on Sunday

When we moved here 23 years ago dancing wasn't allowed inside city limits. There was a popular dance hall in the county. It closed because everyone quit dancing after the city made dancing legal. Still isn't anyplace to dance 20 years later. But since I'm married I'm not complaining

The entire world would ban dancing if I was attempting to display the proper steps.

 

[Wasillaguy]

Last time I tried dancing they put a towel in my mouth so I didn't swallow my tongue.

 

[Oldgator73]

When we moved here 23 years ago dancing wasn't allowed inside city limits.

There’s a movie about that. Didn’t realize it was a documentary.