This one is for all my fellow region rats out there. We all face the same things everyday living in northwest Indiana. Moving away to college really showed me how different we do things different here in the 219.

1. You measure distance by minutes.

No one actually knows how far way anything is in terms of miles. But we're able to tell you how many minutes away it is.

"How far is Chicago?"

"Oh about less than an hour."

2. You understand "lake-effect."

Two inches or two feet of snow? No worries, you'll still have school, and it probably won't be delayed either. Perks of living in the Region -- every other person you know owns a snow plow and a snowmobile.

3. "There was a train" is a valid excuse for being late.

Late for a meeting, appointment, or school because you got stopped by a train (or three)? Don't stress, everyone understands that struggle.

If you're really lucky and get to live next to railroad tracks, then you find the sound of trains soothing and the shaking of your house comforting.

4. You go to the beach in the summer.

Who needs the ocean when you got a huge lake twenty minutes away? It's basically the same thing... right? Well, it's all we got, and the truth is told, it's not that bad. With a little imagination, you can pretend you're laying on some Florida beach (with some smoke towers and Chicago sky liners in the distance).

5. You use the Snapchat geo filter when you come home.

Yes, we have our own Snapchat filter. And yes, we use it frequently. It's most commonly used in people's stories to let everyone know that they are back from college.

6. You use the word "ope."

You didn't realize you said this until you moved away and all your friends pointed it out, but you can't stop saying it because you've been saying it your whole life.

7. Everyone insists on taking the "back way."

County roads or gravel roads, it doesn't matter because there is always a back way to get to where you need to go. Everyone claims it's quicker, but I'll let you be the judge of that.

8. Your favorite gas station is Family Express.

Need I say more?!

9. You rarely trust what the weatherman says.

You know the phrase: "If you don't like the weather, give it 10 minutes." That basically summarizes northwest Indiana. Probably the Midwest in general. You can't rely on any weather forecast because 95% of the time it's wrong.

I'll never forget the day I played in a softball game when it started snowing. Two innings later it began to pour rain, and by the end of the game, the sun was out and there was a rainbow. If that doesn't explain how bipolar the weather is, then I don't know what does.

10. You're in a different time zone than the rest of the state.

It's super annoying driving 20-30 minutes west or south and suddenly time fast forwards an hour. Your cell phone constanly changes depending on what tower they are picking up service from.