In just about every class at FSU, there have been at least two people from Jacksonville that I hadn’t met up until that point. Isn’t that crazy to think about? You’ve been living in the same town as this person and you probably have never seen them before this moment. But all of us Duval-ians can bond over some pretty unique things.
For example, you know you’re from DUUUVAL when…
1. Let’s begin with the obvious… you feel the need to yell DUUUVAL in any situation, whether it is appropriate or not.
2. You wistfully reminisce on that ONE time the Jags were actually good for a hot second.
3. You have participated in Minshew Mania, and nearly worship his glorious mustache and insanely good fashion sense.
4. You expect just about every road to be under construction while driving through town.
5. You grew up being a News4Jax (THE LOCAL STATION!) or First Coast News type of family. John Gaughn v.s. Tim Deegan – may the best weatherman win!
6. You’re still in mourning of the Landing. #RIP
7. The answer to “Who you gonna call?” will always be Mike Shad. Not Ghostbusters, and most definitely not Auto Nation.
8. You love Doc Tony for “Keeping it Real, Jacksonville” even though you can’t really tell what he does from his commercials.
9. When you try to explain how big Jacksonville is to your friends, but you know they will never understand. (We’re the largest city in the Continental U.S., It takes over 30 minutes to drive across town, Our shopping mall, Town Center, is probably bigger than most towns, etc.)
10. You’re willing to sit in an hour (or longer) of traffic just to see the canopy of twinkling Christmas lights in Blackhawk Bluff on Girvin because at this point it’s a tradition.
11. You’ve spent at least one summer night downtown cheering on your local baseball team because baseball’s never been hotter than the Jacksonville Suns …er… Jumbo Shrimp!
12. You’ve attended at least one birthday party at Adventure Landing.
13. You’ve had at least one elementary school field trip to the Jacksonville Zoo and/or the MOSH Museum.
Courtesy: Folio Weekly
14. You claim to have spotted the last known wild t-rex on the earth, which resides on Beach Blvd with his ominous glowing red eyes.
15. You can still smell the coffee aroma (or as I liked to call it, burnt toast) coming from the Maxwell House factory whenever you were downtown.
16. You’ve taken (or have a friend that’s taken) at least one #ThirstTrap picture at that one specific beach access boardwalk in Neptune Beach.
17. You’ve attended or been to at least one of the following events/places: Riverside Arts Market, Art Walk, the various art museums on their free days, Five Points – and you felt like an artsy Tumblr girl.
18. You’ve eaten at one, or all, of the following: Beach Road Chicken Dinner, Safe Harbor, Metro Diner, Maple Street Biscuit Company, Singletons, Clarks Fish Camp or Poe’s Tavern. (honorable mention: Sweet Pete’s)
19. You wonder what it’d be like if Jacksonville was still called Cowford.
20. The excitement/terror that occurs during the Florida – Georgia game A.K.A. the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
21. You remember learning about the Timucuan Indians in middle school, and how Jacksonville was actually settled before Plymouth because of Fort Caroline, hence “The First Coast.” Sorry to the Pilgrims, no tea no shade.
22. You spent endless summer days at one of our many beaches because, Let’s face it, what else is there to do?
23. Pretty much any high schooler had the same sh*tty experience, no matter the public school.
24. You and your friends mainly just drove around for fun.
25. You’ve been lowkey creeped out by that weird open-mouthed statue in Hemming Park downtown.
Courtesy: WJCT
26. You remember the strong Chlorine smell of the crab fountain in Regency Square Mall while making a wish with a penny before it turned into a ghost town.
27. Lynard Skynard.
28. You used to attend concerts at Freebird at the beach before it turned into Surfer The Bar.
29. You’ve heard the song “Duval Ditty” by Angel Angelfire or “Duval” by Flawda Water.
30. You still feel the need to defend your city when someone from out of town is bad-mouthing Jax, even though it’s okay for you to throw around insults.
Even though the 904 is commonly known as dirty Duval, and we are extremely quick to make fun of our home town, you can’t deny the slightest feeling of pride when shouting our county name as obnoxiously as possible, or how pretty Downtown’s skyline looks right at dusk with the city lights reflecting off the St. John’s River.
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