20 Signs You Grew Up In Illinois

Illinois is not the most popular state. When you tell people that’s where you are from, they mainly respond with something like “Is that the state with all the corn?” or “Oh ya Chicago!” But for anyone who grew up here, you know that there is so much more to the state than that! Keep reading for 20 relatable signs you grew up in Illinois.

1. No matter what town you actually live in, when you you’re asked, you’re from Chicago.

Whenever you go on vacation and someone asks you where you’re from, you say Chicago. This is your answer even if you live in the suburbs 45 minutes away from the city. If you were to say your actual home town, you’d lose everyone’s interest.

2. Pizza from any other state tastes like cardboard.

If you order a pizza when in any other state, it will literally taste like cardboard. Chicago has the best pizza and if you grew up eating it, you won’t be able to eat pizza from anywhere else.

3. You know what it’s like to wear an insulated coat one day and jean shorts the next.

The weather is bipolar. You’ve witnessed all four seasons in one week… sometimes even one day. Because of this, your car probably had t-shirts and jackets piling up in the back seat for your convenience.

4. You know never to ask for ketchup on a hotdog.

This is an actual rule. If you do ask for ketchup, you will not only be made fun of,  but would be insulting the entire population of Illinois.

5. You’ve been to Lollapalooza.

There isn’t much to do around summer time in Illinois, until August, when Lolla comes around. It is the weekend that every teenager looks forward to.

6. When the Cubs won the World Series, the entire state won.

Unlike the rest of the United States, you understand the real surprise and joy in the Cubs winning the World Series. It was an event that shocked the whole nation, but for true Illinoisans, this was the epitome of your life. Even bitter White Sox fans couldn’t help but celebrate. 

7. You’ve been told you have a cool accent.

“Cool accent, where are you from?” is a common question you’re asked when out of town. We don’t have the accents, you do!

8. You hate when people pronounce the ‘S’ in Illinois.

Most people’s pet peeves are nails on a chalkboard, or when people chew with their mouths open, but for anyone who lives or has lived in Illinois, yours is when people pronounce the ‘s’ in Illinois.

9. You’ve had “beach days” at North Ave.

The closest thing you’ve known to a beach is North Ave, and it is the place to be on hot summer days.

10. You’ve shopped the Magnificent Mile.

As a teenager, you took many trips to downtown with your friends just to shop the magnificent mile. Even though you could barely afford anything from half of the stores, it always made a fun girls day.

11. You’ve gone ice skating downtown.

As much as you complained about how much you hated the cold, you always went ice skating in the freezing cold. You’ve walked by and laughed at the people falling on their faces, or you’ve been that person. No matter which one you were, you’ve been to Maggie Daley.

12. You’ve taken a picture in the bean at least once.

Many middle schools take field trips to Chicago, stopping at the bean. It’s something you have to do at least once in your life.

13. You call Chicago “downtown” or “the city”.

When making plans to go to Chicago, you would ask “want to go to the city/downtown?”. Anyone from out of town would usually be confused as to where you were implying.

14. You either grew up in the city or the corn fields, there is no in between.

You know that Illinois is 99% corn fields and 1% city. You’re well aware that you can’t drive 5 miles without passing corn somewhere. So the Children of the Corn movie made you fear your entire surroundings as a kid.

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15. The go-to hang out place was McDonald’s.

Whenever your friends couldn’t find a place to hang out, you would meet up at McDonald’s. It was the place to be, and you were bound to run into people you knew.

16. The “soda” vs “pop” argument came up at least once.

For some reason, this is an argument that will never be won. You’ve experienced it at least once at one of your family parties, or at school.

17. You’ve learned to assume that all slow drivers are from Indiana.

Every state has their own stereotypes. We apologize Indiana, but we have labeled you as the slow drivers. 99% of the time you were behind a slow driver, their license plate was from Indiana. You have now become prone to assuming all slow drivers are people from Indiana.

18. Springfield is the capitol, not Chicago.

You’ve had to correct people that try to tell you Chicago is the capitol.

19. You’ve been caught in a traffic jam caused by a tractor or combine.

Being stuck behind a tractor is a valuable excuse when explaining to people why you were late. We’ve all been through it.

20. You would go to the Wisconsin Dells for family vacations.

You would pack up the car and drive however many hours to the Wisconsin Dells for the weekend. These were the best weekends of your life.

These are 20 of the most relatable signs you grew up in Illinois. Can you think of any more? Share in the comments!

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

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