Everyone knows about Indiana’s corn, weather, and construction seasons. Your life included a lot more than just that. There are dozens of towns that can lay claim to being a suburb of Indianapolis, and if you grew up in one of them, you'll recognize many of these shared sentiments.
1. The reaction you get when you say you're from Indiana, but you don't live on a farm or in Indianapolis.
We're just misunderstood.
2. But, when you had to introduce yourself to out-of-staters, you just mumbled that you were from Indianapolis.
Not quite the truth, but close enough.
3. You’ve taken a picture with the traveling “ndy” sign.
The idea is to stand like the letter "I" in front of it.
4. This place might ring a bell.
5. These are literally everywhere.
You can't drive half a mile without going through a roundabout.
6. When you were learning to drive, you grew up thinking city traffic was intimidating and required high-level skills.
7. Then you eventually realized Indianapolis is probably one of the easiest capital cities to drive through.
8. You, or someone you knew, had a family member who worked for Eli Lilly.
9. Your high school graduating class was huge, and this was you at graduation.
10. Your high school graduation might have been scheduled several weeks after you actually finished classes because all of the area high schools were competing for the Convention Center downtown.
You'd think there could be an alternative venue that would not require you to wait two weeks to cross the stage after you've finished classes.
11. Forget the Ivy League. The real question was, could you get an acceptance to Notre Dame?
The answer was no. Not even your student body president was accepted. Is anyone from Indiana even admitted to that school? Guess you’re gonna need more than just the luck of the Irish.
12. You had something to say about the Purdue-IU rivalry. Even if you didn't go to either school.
You had at least one teacher who threatened to throw your test in the trash because you dared to wear the “wrong” school’s shirt into his or her classroom.
13. You were prepared to form an angry mob if you spotted someone in a Patriots jersey.
14. Because we're all just waiting for the giant statue of Peyton Manning.
Does Indianapolis give out “keys to the city?” He would have them all.
15. You remember how offended people were when Taylor Swift came to Indianapolis for a concert and didn’t stop to visit Riley Hospital for Children.
Hey, we're big fans of Riley here. Most high schools and colleges have dance marathons to raise money and scream their support for the hospital and its families.
16. If someone offered to take you to the Indianapolis Zoo, they were your instant best friend for the day.
Your love of the zoo started during a class field trip in elementary school.
17. It wasn’t summer until there was loud country music and had a ridiculous menu of fried foods at the county fairs.
The state fair was the best of all. You might have even displayed a 4-H project there once.
18. Your house or your neighborhood probably backed up to some kind of field.
For a time, until developers bought it and put in more houses.
19. Everyone had that one friend in the country to host bonfires and parties.
Too many cars outside a house in a subdivision was a huge red flag.