10 things Springfield Illinois teens understand

Even 7 years later, other Springfields still resent Springfield, Vermont being picked to premiere The Simpsons Movie.
http://www.sj-r.com/article/20150112/BLOGS/150119905

10 things Springfield teens understand About this blog The best, worst and everything in between related to Springfield Recent Posts 10 things Springfield teens understand Jan. 12, 2015 10:30 p.m. Comedian and talk show host Conan O'Brien walks down the north stairs of the Old State Capitol in Springfield along with four Abraham Lincoln presenters while a filming segment on Thursday, May 31, 2012. File/SJ-R Comedian and talk show host Conan O'Brien walks down the north stairs of the Old State Capitol in Springfield along with four Abraham Lincoln presenters while a filming segment on Thursday, May 31, 2012. File/SJ-R By The Voice staff Jan. 12, 2015 10:30 p.m. Springfield is a city of contradictions. We’re the capital, but we’re far from the biggest or even most famous city in Illinois, and no one can really tell if we’re a small city or a big town. But one thing’s for sure: If you’re a teen from Springfield, you’re bound to understand most (if not all) of this list. So here’s our list of things only a true Springfield townie will get. 1. You know all there is to know about Abe Anyone who’s from here or anyone who’s even lived here for two seconds knows that Springfield is one giant Lincoln museum. Everything is named after him. His face is everywhere. Every historic landmark he touched or sneezed on is preserved for future generations to marvel at its historicalness. And, if you’ve gone to school here, you’ve probably been to the Lincoln home at least three times on a field trip. *** 2. You’re still angry “The Simpsons” picked Springfield, Vermont We totally deserved it. Who’s ever heard of Springfield, Vermont, anyway? Everyone knows the most famous Springfield (outside of the TV show itself) is right here in Illinois. We’re the capital. We’re Lincoln’s hometown. We even have our own power plant. “The Simpsons” should have picked us, and they know it. Good luck trying to point out Springfield, Vermont, on a map. *** 3. “City” means more than a conglomeration of buildings It’s a full three nights of basketball, rivalries, and sometimes not-so-civil cheers at the Boys City Tournament. You’ve been ready for this all winter; this is the year. You’re winning the spirit award and you know it. If you don’t get disqualified first, that is. The event rolls around again Jan. 22-24 at the Prairie Capital Convention Center, Ninth and Adams streets. *** 4. Hy-Vee opening was 2014’s greatest event For years, we did our grocery shopping at boring places, like Shop 'n' Save and County Market. But then the heavenly gates of Hy-Vee opened and with it, so did our eyes. Complete with all the food you could ever need, want or crave, Hy-Vee also has an extensive prepared food section and an attached Market Grille restaurant. It even has an entire aisle of color-coded candy. Necessary? Maybe not. But that’s not going to stop us from buying some. *** 5. Craving a horseshoe isn’t weird If you go to any restaurant outside of Illinois and ask for a horseshoe, you’ll probably get weird looks and/or directions to the nearest blacksmith. But here, you can pop into almost any eatery and get the delicious open-faced sandwich covered in fries and smothered in cheese sauce that’s known as a Springfield signature. It’s hard to find outside central Illinois and neighboring towns. *** 6. Spotting the Chili Bowl Mullet Man You might have seen him around town: the man sporting the glorious, blond chili bowl mullet. He can often be found along Chatham Road, at Best Buy or at the movie theater where kids clamor to take a photo with him and post on social media, “LOOK WHO I FOUND!” People offer him rides everywhere when they see him walking around. He’s even got his own Facebook fan page with more than 2,000 likes. He’s known here as a local celebrity. *** 7. You must explain to non-Illinoisans that Springfield is the capital Look, Chicago may be the third biggest city in the country, but that doesn’t make it the capital. We are the home of the General Assembly, the governor’s mansion and most statewide governmental operations. In fact, the State of Illinois is the largest employer in the city, and we have a huge tourism industry. So stop thinking Chicago’s the capital. We’ve got dibs. *** 8. You dread June because of political ads But being the capital of Illinois comes with costs — including the political ads that start far ahead of Election Day. The minute we turn on the TV, we’re bombarded with candidates shouting at us, trying to convince us we should vote for them over that one guy who was friends with the other guy who went to jail. (And let’s be honest: Most of them went to jail.) In what many consider the most corrupt state in the union, it’s hard to get away from. *** 9. It’s worth the wait for a Vose corndog You’ve held out on eating for hours now, unwilling to risk losing your meal on the Illinois State Fair rides. Everyone knows it’s the best corndog stand around. But really, a 15-minute line? You could just go get a funnel cake at the stand across the way. Is it really worth it? Yes. *** 10. You look forward to the unveiling of the butter cow You’re at the state fair and still getting over the fact that you’re too old to play the kids games. You have officially become a young adult. Instead of winning free ice cream, you have nothing to do but to stare at the cow and concur with your mom that yes, that is a lot of butter. Comment or View Comments »