Fun in Fargo....seriously....no joke!
SPJ has taken me to a lot of
cool places: North and South Korea, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Atlanta,
Chicago...I could go on, but you get the picture.
But when people ask me, “where’s
the coolest place you have been?” the answer is simple: Fargo!
Ya, You Betcha!
Seriously!
I’m not kidding!
I visited the city in early
December for one of our newsroom training programs. We were hosted by The Forum
of Fargo-Moorhead – one of the neatest newsrooms I’ve been in. I explain why in
another post.
No doubt, Fargo isn’t for
everyone. There’s not a lot to do. And eating out seems to be the entertainment
of choice for most. But unlike other cities I have been in, I got the sense
that people actually lived there.
In my travels to places such as D.C.,
L.A., and Chicago, I always get the feeling that people parachute in to work
for the day, then fly away when the sun goes down. If there are houses and
apartments in these downtown areas, they are tucked away behind skyscrapers,
museums and trendy eateries – never to be seen by outsiders.
Fargo was different.
From the 11th floor
of my hotel, I could see the top of every building in town. And beyond the
downtown area, I could see houses…and factories…and a university…and elementary
schools. You know, the places real people go.
At the end of the work day, when
residents choose to go out, they spend their paycheck at eateries owned by
their neighbors. Sure, there are a few chain restaurants, but not like most
cities. I doubt there is a Duane’s House of Pizza (voted best pizza in Fargo)
in D.C. And if there is, I’m sure it doesn’t have a wood panel interior or
serve Coke by the can. I dare you. Find me a restaurant in any big city that serves
Coke by the can and wins “best” of anything.
Fargo was quaint, and it felt
like home.
I’m old enough now that I can
comfortably admit this: I prefer bologna and cheese on Wonder Bread over French
cuisine and Chilean Sea Bass. I’ll take a cooler of beer over any wine and
given my choice, I’ll take a day of fishing over an evening at the theater.
In the spirit of fair and
balanced reporting, however, there are some downsides to Fargo -- namely, the
weather.
During my December trip, 10
degrees was the “high.” Locals talked about how soon, 0 degrees will feel warm.
I was told by Forum editor Matthew Von Pinnon that the second floor of my hotel
was one of the best spots to “watch the blizzards come in.”
I would have assumed that the
best place would have been in his home…next to his heater…with a fridge and
pantry stocked full of food.
But, apparently, blizzard
watching is somewhat of a spectator sport in Fargo.
With all of the great things in
Fargo, I’m not sure I could get used to that.
Everything else, I’d take in a
heartbeat.