So True! Wife grew up in the hills of KY and WV, I grew up South Chicago. We now live in KY. Told her first time we went north to visit my family, “You have no idea of flat until we get North of Indy”…She freaked out 🙂
Those folks from the hills, gosh, they get so lost in Iowa and Illinois.
Me: “Go North until you get to 12th, go east on 12th til yu get to D, turn north and into the driveway.”
Pennsylvania Pete:North? East? North? How the FUCK DO I KNOW WHICH NORTH IS??? THERE’S NOTHING TO SEE?
Victor
“Screw it, I’ll just GPS it.” – Said by me when visiting flatland.
Compass directions are easy enough if the sun is out, and my last few cars have had built in compasses. But I still generally use terrain landmarks in day to day driving, and flatland just doesn’t have that.
Koname
I narrowly missed an opportunity to work in a rural area of NJ that is just cornfields everywhere. Instead I ended up with a job two townships over from me that is nothing but hills.
When going for interviews for the other job I got lost while using the gps twice because I forgot to turn and wound up walled in by the cornfields and cow pastures.
I don’t kinow if I still have my “Ski Terre Haute” poster from Rose Hulman. It’s probably in my basement. It’s an iconic poster from the time, just a wee bit less famous than Farrah, at least in Indiana.
Re: Alt Text – You could just turn the background of the website white, and erase large portions of the png image. When spring arrives, turn the site background green and voila, all the settings are now seasonally appropriate! 😉
Oh that is Definitely gonna depend on what part of Tennessee. Cuz on my end it’s flat as hell. Farther east you are, however. That’s where biking would be a challenge.
So I guess we can narrow down what part of Tennessee her school was at
The difference between the highest and lowest points in Indiana is roughly 900 feet. I would say that it might have some rolling hills, but it’s pretty dang flat overall, when compared to any mountainous region.
For comparison, Pennsylvania has only middling-tall Appalachian mountains (far from the heights gained at either end of the range), and its height variation is over 3000 feet from highest to lowest point.
Tennessee, on the other hand, has some of the tallest mountains in the greater Appalachian range, and has a height variation of more than 6000 feet.
Therefore, from the perspective of someone used to mountains, Indiana’s hilliest areas are still going to be pretty dang flat.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Seconded, but from someone who grew up in BC. The ‘mountains’ around Vancouver are oft considered ‘foothills’, lil’ bumps to practice on for when you want to really play. Now I live in great-lakes canuck land, and while not the prairies, it’s a joke what people call mountains and valleys around these parts. And I don’t *want* to be a snob about it. But when I want to hike a hill, I expect it to take more than 5 minutes.
foamy
I’m from Calgary. Travelling into south Sask. or Manitoba is *unsettling*. The world is not supposed to be that flat.
Roborat
Oh seriously? Calgary is pretty darn flat as well, once you get out of the foothills and go east or south.
Roborat
But yes, in Saskatchewan you can watch your dog run away for 4 days.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Yes, but even then, at least you can *see* the mountains.
“I want to see mountains again, Gandalf, mountains”
Oberlin College is so flat that, when they dug out a new swimming pool, we named the resulting pile of dirt Mt Oberlin and sledded down it on cafeteria trays.
Before the swimming pool, Mt. Oberlin was the name of the pitcher’s mound.
Sometimes I lead, sometimes I follow
This time I’ll go where she wants me to go
Maybe today, maybe tomorrow
Deep in the woods down the long Valley Road… (Bruce Hornsby & The Range)
I mean, as someone with a form of muscular dystrophy I find that the campus has plenty of hills that make bike riding hard for me, but these kids would probably handle them fine enough.
Nothing wrong with it. It’s just that the athletes and coaches for the minor sports, like golf or field hockey, don’t get anywhere near the money and influence that the “real” sports do.
Good old U.S. college athletics, where the budget for the football team is bigger than the academic budget for the entire school.
Deathjavu
And yet they can’t pay the players because that would make them professionals, instead of students. Even when EA licenses their likenesses for a video game the money still goes to the sport’s governing body and/or school.
I think that Sal is looking for a high spot where she can stand dramatically and gaze down on Bloomington. I suspect that she’s going to have to scale a building to do that.
As a former inhabitant of TN I can verify that mid and east TN have lots of wrinkles of varying depth that make bicycle riding more difficult. I now live in TX where I can ride 60 miles and not go more than 100 feet up or down.
They want to make a challenge together. How cute♡! Surviving peer/parents pressure after they find out they’re together will be their challenge. It will be hard and tiring. I hope their relationship survives.
82 thoughts on “Follower”
Ana Chronistic
yeah, my first college roommate commented on that (from Florida, not sure how she decided on Tennessee)
Paul Grant
So True! Wife grew up in the hills of KY and WV, I grew up South Chicago. We now live in KY. Told her first time we went north to visit my family, “You have no idea of flat until we get North of Indy”…She freaked out 🙂
Geneseepaws
Those folks from the hills, gosh, they get so lost in Iowa and Illinois.
Me: “Go North until you get to 12th, go east on 12th til yu get to D, turn north and into the driveway.”
Pennsylvania Pete:North? East? North? How the FUCK DO I KNOW WHICH NORTH IS??? THERE’S NOTHING TO SEE?
Victor
“Screw it, I’ll just GPS it.” – Said by me when visiting flatland.
Compass directions are easy enough if the sun is out, and my last few cars have had built in compasses. But I still generally use terrain landmarks in day to day driving, and flatland just doesn’t have that.
Koname
I narrowly missed an opportunity to work in a rural area of NJ that is just cornfields everywhere. Instead I ended up with a job two townships over from me that is nothing but hills.
When going for interviews for the other job I got lost while using the gps twice because I forgot to turn and wound up walled in by the cornfields and cow pastures.
WikiDreamer
Floridian hear, and lemme tell you Midwesterners are OBSESSED with beaches and shorelines.
Dang Fool
I don’t kinow if I still have my “Ski Terre Haute” poster from Rose Hulman. It’s probably in my basement. It’s an iconic poster from the time, just a wee bit less famous than Farrah, at least in Indiana.
Sirksome
The spirit of Indiana is the spirit of America, the spirit of what’s boring and what’s flat!
Eldritchy
Jaghatai Khan whooping as he speeds off into the horizon over a nice flat road.
Doctor_Who
Re: Alt Text – You could just turn the background of the website white, and erase large portions of the png image. When spring arrives, turn the site background green and voila, all the settings are now seasonally appropriate! 😉
Hopey
There’s always the mighty mountain of snow by McNutt. Heh, McNutt.
Keulen
Sadly, I don’t think it’d be very easy to ride a bike up that snow mountain.
mrnoidea
It’d be super fun riding down, though.
Prince Mech
These two play off one another really well. How sweet. 😉
Prince Mech
This was meant to be a regular non winky smile.
Smooti
Oh that is Definitely gonna depend on what part of Tennessee. Cuz on my end it’s flat as hell. Farther east you are, however. That’s where biking would be a challenge.
So I guess we can narrow down what part of Tennessee her school was at
Doctor_Who
She just went to that school that everyone’s grandparents attended, so it was uphill both ways.
Wizard
Depends on what part of Indiana, too. The northern part is pretty flat, but the southern part is noth but hills.
Mano308gts
The difference between the highest and lowest points in Indiana is roughly 900 feet. I would say that it might have some rolling hills, but it’s pretty dang flat overall, when compared to any mountainous region.
For comparison, Pennsylvania has only middling-tall Appalachian mountains (far from the heights gained at either end of the range), and its height variation is over 3000 feet from highest to lowest point.
Tennessee, on the other hand, has some of the tallest mountains in the greater Appalachian range, and has a height variation of more than 6000 feet.
Therefore, from the perspective of someone used to mountains, Indiana’s hilliest areas are still going to be pretty dang flat.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Seconded, but from someone who grew up in BC. The ‘mountains’ around Vancouver are oft considered ‘foothills’, lil’ bumps to practice on for when you want to really play. Now I live in great-lakes canuck land, and while not the prairies, it’s a joke what people call mountains and valleys around these parts. And I don’t *want* to be a snob about it. But when I want to hike a hill, I expect it to take more than 5 minutes.
foamy
I’m from Calgary. Travelling into south Sask. or Manitoba is *unsettling*. The world is not supposed to be that flat.
Roborat
Oh seriously? Calgary is pretty darn flat as well, once you get out of the foothills and go east or south.
Roborat
But yes, in Saskatchewan you can watch your dog run away for 4 days.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Yes, but even then, at least you can *see* the mountains.
“I want to see mountains again, Gandalf, mountains”
Ana Chronistic
Definitely not this one
RassilonTDavros
Follow me
Set me free
Indiana’s flatter than Tennessee-ee…
Needfuldoer
To the tune of ‘Dance With Me‘ by Orleans
Schpoonman
I think this is City Escape from Sonic Adventure 2.
butts
flatness sure is the spirit of indiana, yeah
Leorale
Oberlin College is so flat that, when they dug out a new swimming pool, we named the resulting pile of dirt Mt Oberlin and sledded down it on cafeteria trays.
Before the swimming pool, Mt. Oberlin was the name of the pitcher’s mound.
Doctor_Who
I used to work down the street from that place.
Or up the street. Hard to tell without a level. 😉
Geneseepaws
Damn, that made me laugh. Except it is sad, but it’s true, and that makes it funny!
khn0
I used to live across Oberlin’s editions.
Down or up the other continent?
Stephen Bierce
Sometimes I lead, sometimes I follow
This time I’ll go where she wants me to go
Maybe today, maybe tomorrow
Deep in the woods down the long Valley Road… (Bruce Hornsby & The Range)
woobie
Fitting.
As usual from you.
BBCC
Sal’s true mortal enemy – Geography.
Kyrik Michalowski
An interesting choice of enemy, because how does one defeat geography?
milu
with LASERS
Thag Simmons
With water and time
Keulen
With a Death Star
Vukodlak
Bulldozer
mrnoidea
With maps.
Fëanen
To Jason’s great sorrow, none of those 24 sports is cricket.
Reltzik
And football’s been demoted to soccer.
Dr. T
I mean, as someone with a form of muscular dystrophy I find that the campus has plenty of hills that make bike riding hard for me, but these kids would probably handle them fine enough.
Dr. T
Of course, even I would be fine with the parking lot of the two sports stadiums.
Bryy
I forget if it’s Indiana or Kansas that is scientifically flatter than a pancake.
Dr. T
Actually, Bloomington is right about where the glaciers stopped so further south in Indiana is actually hilly.
He Who Abides
You might be thinking of Head East.
Spencer
Sal’s plan:
Follow me
Set me free
Trust me
Escape from the city
Kyrik Michalowski
I may loathe all of the games but even I have to admit that it’s a good song.
ktbear
“Lead me, follow me or get out of the way.” General Patton. (No relation.)
brionl
24 Sports, one team?
So they are pretending that ladies golf is as important as, say, basketball?
Reltzik
When the pretense is convenient for them? Yes.
milu
no they’re saying that the same people play all the sports. it’s a thing.
also what is wrong with ladies’ golf? except for the golf part
brionl
Nothing wrong with it. It’s just that the athletes and coaches for the minor sports, like golf or field hockey, don’t get anywhere near the money and influence that the “real” sports do.
Decidedly Orthogonal
I’d guess they’re “one team” when the big budget teams /still/ manage to run out of funds and need to ‘borrow’ from the lower-profile teams.
Roborat
Good old U.S. college athletics, where the budget for the football team is bigger than the academic budget for the entire school.
Deathjavu
And yet they can’t pay the players because that would make them professionals, instead of students. Even when EA licenses their likenesses for a video game the money still goes to the sport’s governing body and/or school.
Nope, no corruption to see here, move along.
Kravis
Well, Sal, it would seem that your plans of showing off to Danny…
*puts sunglasses on*
…Just fell FLAT!
*YEEEAAAAAHHH!!!*
Reltzik
Flattery will get her nowhere.
Bagge
It was a cool line, though
BenRG
I think that Sal is looking for a high spot where she can stand dramatically and gaze down on Bloomington. I suspect that she’s going to have to scale a building to do that.
Bicycle Bill
Garbage Roof!
Thag Simmons
Well there was a big old snow hill just yesterday, but I guess Walky was hanging out there which makes it less cool
Dr. T
I think that view would be from the top of Ballantine Hall, but she won’t have a key for that.
Opus the Poet
As a former inhabitant of TN I can verify that mid and east TN have lots of wrinkles of varying depth that make bicycle riding more difficult. I now live in TX where I can ride 60 miles and not go more than 100 feet up or down.
Rabisch
They want to make a challenge together. How cute♡! Surviving peer/parents pressure after they find out they’re together will be their challenge. It will be hard and tiring. I hope their relationship survives.
Alex
People have mentioned Linda will be a point of contention, but Sal doesn’t seem like the type to share details of her personal life with Linda.
Needfuldoer
Linda will find out. Narcissistic parents always find out.
darkoneko