Ok I lied. I’m not from Chicago, I’m from a suburb 30 minutes outside the city called Winnetka. But before you’re quick to judge, let me explain. While yes, I don’t physically live in the city, I identify with it. I consistently watch Chicago sporting events (Go Hawks!). I often drive down to the city with friends or family. I know the good places to eat and the sites to see. I even have cousins that live there. So, calm down “true chicagoans,” I’m not trying to steal your city. I’m just trying to start a conversation.
College is all about meeting new people, and one of the first questions anyone always asks is “Where are you from?”And when I answer with “Winnetka”, I get blank stares. Not only do people not know what that is (a town? A city? Another planet?), they don’t even know what state it’s in. But when I say Chicago, I get “oohs” and “ahhs” as people tell me about the time they visited, the stories they’ve heard, or their family that lives there. They make a comment about the Cubs, or the Blackhawks, or the Sears Tower, sorry “Willis Tower”... or about deep dish pizza. It sparks a conversation, and creates common ground. While yes, not every conversation you have with someone is going to turn into a long lasting friendship. I mean it’s college, you meet a lot of people. It doesn’t hurt anyone to fib, and say you’re from Chicago when first introduced to someone. In fact it creates a better chance at having a successful conversation (rather than awkward silence as both people try to figure out something to say to break the tension). In my 19 years, I’ve introduced myself thousands of times, saying I’m both from Chicago, and from Winnetka. With exception of those introductions where the people knew Winnetka, the only successful conversation I can think of when I said I was from Winnetka was when the girl I was meeting ended up being from Winnetka, California (yes, it is a real place). Okay, I’ll admit that was pretty cool, I mean I met someone from the other Winnetka! And yes, I probably wouldn’t have made the connection if I’d introduced myself as being from Chicago. But, for all the other times that I said I was from Winnetka, I got bombarded with questions. Where is that? What is that? Is it a city? Someone even once told me they thought it was a rural farm in the middle of nowhere after I said it was in Illinois. And as much as I love questions, I’d rather have a conversation about the Blackhawks and deep dish pizza rather than answering questions about my apparently rural farm town in the middle of nowhere (for the record it is not a rural farm town in the middle of nowhere).
So instead of yelling at me for not actually living in the city, have a conversation with me. Ask me my favorite places to go or if I watched the Bears game last night. Or even ask where I’m actually from. I’m not ashamed to say that I don’t truly live in the city itself. I love where I live. But is it really that important for the two minute conversation that I’m having with someone that I may never see again to explain that while I say I’m from Chicago, I’m really not?
