Every state has its quirks but Maryland may just take the cake. Often referred to as "Small-timore" instead of Baltimore because everyone seems to know each other somehow, there are many behaviors unique to our state, not recognizable until you leave it. A lot of people's first long period of time out of state, or exposed to people from different states, comes in college. It is during this exposure that we begin to recognize that what we thought were normal habits and behaviors are actually odd in other parts of the country. Here are five things that most Marylanders probably came to realize aren't exactly normal lessons to other people.
1. Old Bay goes on everything.
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Popcorn? Yeah. Bagels? Yep. Corn? Definitely. So it probably comes as a shock the first time you hear that girl in the dining hall go "Why are you putting chicken seasoning on your food?"
2. It's normal to wear your state flag as clothing.
Whether it be a headband, shorts or a sweatshirt, it comes in Maryland flag print and you probably own a piece of it. But, don't be surprised when other people can't even tell you what their state flag looks like.
3. Expecting any body of water to be "clean" compared to the Inner Harbor.
When the body of water you're used to hanging around has dead bodies pulled out of it on the reg, pretty much anything is cleaner. So, when you see people calling the river with the old tire at the bottom of it "disgusting water," you simply will not be phased.
4. Identifying with people later in life by which high schools you went to.
Everywhere else in this country the standard answer to the question "Where did you go to school?" is the name of your college. In Small-timore people want to know which high school you went to because chances are they've heard of it or know someone who did.
5. Assuming everyone played lacrosse at some point in their life.
Even though our state sport is actually jousting and not lacrosse, lacrosse is lived and breathed by people in Baltimore. It's pretty standard to have played even if it was just a year in elementary school. In every other part of the country, however, they may not have even had teams.
