It's a common joke/point of contention/useful social lubricant in St Louis to greet strangers with the question of where they went to school. For those not native to the River City, this question is often perplexing, due mainly because the answer to the question is supposed to be what high school you went to.
That may seem quaint (and often annoying) to people from outside of St Louis, but it's a local question with a purpose. With one question, the questioner can determine your religion, socio-economic status and political beliefs.
How you answer the question matters as much as the question itself. Your tone, your reaction, and your promptness in answering what high school you went to says volumes about who you are, even when the answer, is "out of state."
This piece should explain some of it. St Louis is a town of neighborhoods. It's always been that way. But for those nose in the air types from around the country, perhaps you ought to take a look at your own ways of branding strangers.
Los Angeles: What's your area code? (and what kind of car do you drive). Having a 626 phone number is like having a cold - no one wants to shake your hand until you've improved your situation. 310? Nice. 818? Ewww.
If you live further South, say in Orange County - you can tell where you live by how you answer. Newport, Costa Mesa and you say Newport or Costa Mesa. If it's Anaheim or Santa Ana, the correct answer is Orange County.
New York: Are you a bridge and tunnel guy, or one of those yuppies in Greenwich? When you say you live in NYC, do you mean Manhattan? What number? The 60's? The 80's? Are you in the Bronx or Brooklyn?
Tampa, Florida: Tampa, or Clearwater? Pinellas or St Pete, or Indian Rocks? Brandon, or Hyde Park?
D.C.: Republican or Democrat. What kind of Republican? Fiscal or Social? Hawk or Religious? Blue Dog or Union?
The truth is that human beings label each other. In St Louis, for many years, they high school you went to was a convenient way of ascertaining what someone was like without coming out and saying, "How rich were your parents and do you like a Pope or a preacher?
Same questions as anywhere else, just a little less direct.
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