So we went up to the Twin Cities last Saturday, and spent Sunday scooping up newspaper listings and apartment guides and casing the areas. In the end, we found our place Monday morning by employing the time-honored technique of driving around aimlessly while frustrated. The frustration came from the elderly office manager at the previous place we visited, who took one look at the two of us and said, "You know we conduct criminal background and credit checks." Sure, we were wearing jeans, have varying hair lengths and an obvious age difference, but that hardly equals criminal appearances. It's not like I showed her my tattoo or gave her the Secret Satanic Sign when we walked in the door. Too bad she never got to find out about our spotless backgrounds.

Anyway, what eventually happened was we came up over a rise and said, "What about that place over there?" It turned out to have everything we wanted plus new carpet and appliances. It's a three-bedroom, and the rent is slightly less than most of the two-bedrooms we looked at. Close to campus, close to a park, library, and coffee shop, extremely close to a decent supermarket. Freeway access that's not too close and not too far away. Bike lanes and sidewalks everywhere. And a plant window in the kitchen, which makes me inordinately happy.

We spent the rest of the week waiting for approval, wondering about the effects of hot water heat on books, and driving around to get a sense of the city and suburbs. Mister Boyfriend has been commenting on the Minnesota accents, but I don't really notice them, surprisingly. What I do notice is the Minnesota Nice thing, which I'm not sure what to think about. Here in the South, we're a different sort of nice. Maybe a better word for it is polite or the more old-fashioned mannerly. We step out of people's way and say "Hello" out of sheer habit. I rarely bother to notice if anyone says "Hello" back. And if someone says "Ya'll come back, now" in a business, you're not really required to reply. I found out that if you don't reply in Minnesota, they keep after you:

Cashier: "Take care."
Me: smiles and proceeds toward door
Cashier: "You come back soon."
Me: continues toward door
Cashier: "You have a good day!"
Me: "Oh. You too."

I'm not sure what to do with this. Learn to be nice, I guess. That'll be a struggle.