Rejection Can Be a Good Thing

Okay, so I didn't get the job in Grand Forks ... and I'm thrilled! I would've gone and fulfilled my contract if it was offered to me, but God made the right decision for me. In all the craziness, I learned quite a few new things on my sojourn to the Great White North. Here's a short list:

1. As bad as roads are in South Dakota, North Dakota has it worse. There's a 17 mile stretch of I-29 north of Fargo with a sign that reads "Depressed Tire Tracks", complete with 17 miles of road ruts. I won't even get started on the flashing "Bump" signs.
2. The north country isn't as desolate as previously though. Fargo is comparative in size to Sioux Falls (not exactly an urban area, I realize, but keep in mind where I live), and Grand Forks seemed to be a little smaller than Rapid City.
3. I could've been an international correspondant thanks to the sheer proximity to Canada.
4. Hockey is so valued, UND build a $100 million arena soley for the one sport.
5. The only hills you will climb on ND's I-29 are called exit ramps.
6. Tylenol Coldand Cough is worth the $10 you will pay at gas stations.
7. Canadian flags hang with almost equal frequency as American flags.
8. Grand Forks uses-successfully, I might add--a flood wall and steel gate system every spring to prevent the city from converting its streets to canals.
9. The Grand Forks area is where McDonalds gets the potatoes for their tasty french fries.
10. There are no HyVee's up north; there are Hugo's.
11. Winnipeg, a city of 3 million, is only a few short hours away.
12. The accents ARE very pronounced.
13. UND looks like the quintiscential college you see portrayed in the movies. And those lucky kids get tunnels and skywalks.
14. EconoLodge isn't a poor choice when you're searching for a hotel at midnight ... or any night, for that matter.
15. In prehistoric times, North Dakota was at the bottom of a giant lake.
16. Grand Forks has a Borrowed Bucks Roadhouse.
17. Government is much smaller up north; their legislature meets only every other year.
18. Left turns are apparently no-no's in their cities; for some reason, there's always a cement median.
19. North Dakotans seem to be a fairly normal sort of folk.
20. I actually might've been okay, after awhile, if God had wanted me to go to Grand Forks.