Have you ever wondered what Michigan is like? From its amazing coastlines on the Great Lakes and the city life, to country living and the lifestyle. Find it all here, Stay tuned
What is Michigan like?
The way I think of Michigan is that dad that is well-equipped to do your plumbing, roofing, electrical and build you anything you want. Michigan is that jack-of-all-trades, it has an atmosphere catered to everyone’s needs to a certain extent.
Anyone could tell you by looking at a map that the state’s main cities are in the southern or lower-middle region of the lower peninsula, which includes but isn’t limited to: Grand Rapids, Detroit, Lansing, Ann Arbor, etc. The great state of Michigan is made up of the upper peninsula and the lower peninsula.
As funny as it sounds, the upper and lower peninsula could be two different states just based on nature, food, slang, accent, hobbies, and tourist attractions alone. In Grand Rapids you’re spending time at the breweries, in Frankenmuth you’re dolphin diving into some chicken, and in Detroit, you're picking up a pizza or 6. Whereas in the upper peninsula, you’ll eat pasties, homemade jam, and amazingly fresh fish.
As far as other differences, The yoopers (or people from the upper peninsula) tend to be more outdoorsy and resilient to the cold weather. Out of staters applaud all Michiganders for their commitment in the cold, but like I said, the U.P could be a different state based on snowfall.
In the lower peninsula we could see 50-70 inches of snowfall a year, whereas in the U.P it’s more like 120+ inches. As far as the accent, the lower peninsula folks like myself are more nasally and tend to have emphasis on the plural meaning even if it isn’t so plural. In the U.P it has more of a Canadian ring to it. Without making this video into the differences between the upper peninsula and the lower peninsula, I’ll just say this state offers the geographical diversity that very few states offer.
According to stats from the World Population Review, Michigan is ranked #7 for the lowest cost of living based on grocery, housing, utilities, transportation, healthcare and other miscellaneous. Yes, Michigan is known to have higher insurance, and taxes, but that’s the tradeoff unfortunately, but fortunately depending on how you look at it.
Some other little habits and mannerisms you’ll see from Michiganders is the use of our hands to show where we are from, the hatred for all things Ohio, the passion for the greatest card game euchre, the love for better made potato chips, our unit of measurement being in minutes instead of miles, and the diehard spirit to not let any of Michigan's 100 seasons affect what’s going on, and the chance that the person you talk to works for Ford, General Motors or Chrysler is higher than you think being as Michigan’s economy was built on manufacturing and the automobile industry.
We are a goofy breed to say the least, but we offer diversity in everything we do and offer and that’s something I can preach with confidence.
Since Michigan has 384 seasons every year, our active outdoor lifestyles have given the ability to experience numerous outdoor adventures from hiking and biking on trails, laying on one of the great lakes beaches to snowmobiling in the winter and experiencing city life across the state year round.
Maybe you’re not looking for the active outdoor lifestyle, that’s fine because Michigan puts their sports at the forefront. Some people go to church on Sundays, while others just throw the home team jersey on, maybe even some of that face paint if you’re that committed, then start yelling at their TV while consuming a lot of food and beverages that can’t be the greatest for your health.
A prime example, every Sunday I have a neighbor who sits outside on his deck watching the TV through his window, screaming until he turns purple watching the lions play. I don’t even have to take the time to look up the score, because I know loud and clear, along with the rest of my neighborhood who got the touch down. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t the Lions.
As far as commuting and navigating the mitten, Michigan is fairly good at saving you time. According to USA Today reports, the average commute in Michigan is about 25 minutes each way (there I go talking in terms of time instead of miles, I must be from Michigan).
If you’re from Michigan watching this, I know for a fact I missed a lot of our habits and mannerisms, So if you know a few that I missed, be sure to throw them down in the comment section below.
Cheers,
Andrew
Andrew McManamon is a Michigan REALTOR® with Signature Sotheby’s International Realty and provides real estate services to Buyers, Sellers and Investors throughout SE Michigan including Livingston County, Oakland County, Washtenaw County, Genesee County & beyond. Andrew has become one of the rising stars of Michigan real estate agents. Prior to his real estate career Andrew was responsible for managing a senior living facility in Brighton, Michigan as a dining supervisor and an activities assistant. Andrew’s passion to help people is unlike any other, and he continues to strive to be best resource he can be. Andrew graduated from Cleary University in Howell, Michigan with a double major and currently resides in White Lake, Michigan.