Letters

Wednesday, April 29, 1998

Letters

Feeling Minnesota

In reading Trinh Bui’s article "Semisonic’s sonorous but short
show charms fans" (April 27), my feelings of joy for the success
and exposure of a band that I’ve followed since the days when they
were known as Trip Shakespeare quickly turned to anger at her
ill-pondered remark, "Semisonic’s gig captured their Minnesota
charm – if there is such a thing."

I was born and raised in Minneapolis, but never really
understood why people spoke of "Minnesota nice" until I moved to
Los Angeles last August. On my second day in town I went to Savon
Drug to buy some flea killer spray. Frustrated from having searched
futilely for the spray, I decided to ask an employee where I could
find it. Much to my surprise, he merely shrugged his shoulders,
muttered "I dunno" and then went back to doing nothing.

It’s not that I fault him for not knowing – but back home, the
guy would have been embarrassed by his own response and would have
found out where the spray was as quickly as possible. Sadly enough,
I’ve learned now that this type of "customer service" is the rule
rather than the exception.

Take last week, for example, when I called a dentist’s office
and asked a few questions about x-rays and insurance co-payments.
The woman with whom I spoke lost her temper with me after literally
30 seconds, snapping, "Do you want to make an appointment or
not?"

Certain individuals would like to have me believe that the
"charm" of Los Angeles stems from the fact that, out here, people
leave you alone (especially the homeless I see on every street
corner – they rarely hassle me). But to these persons, I would like
to respond that there is a difference between leaving someone alone
and being completely cold-hearted and nasty to the world. But then
again, judging from the contempt I seem to elicit from L.A. women
every time I go to a bar, maybe Bui is right in questioning the
idea of "Minnesota charm." Maybe we are nothing more than the
hilariously naive characters in "Fargo," undignified as such to the
sophisticated Angelenos.

P.S. To any of you who like the song "Closing Time," I strongly
recommend "Great Divide," the second album by Semisonic. They
actually did a 40-minute album titled "The Pleasure E.P." which
contains a dozen or so tracks far superior to their horrendous new
"big single."

Daniel Johnson

Graduate student

Department of French