#better made chips

[spookthelilguy]

I love Better Made chips so much I feel so bad for everyone outside Michigan

[indietroit]

Cheryl Oz Designs- Detroit, MI

[jessalexander]

AH MAH GAH TY I LOVE TEEN MAHM.

"Teen Mom" is on. Midnight. Both of us are brushing our teeth and attempting to talk.

ME: "Stick ahround fer more teen mahm!" Oh no, mom & Butch are comin.

MIKE: Yeah her mom sold her out for lots of money!

ME: Oh yeah like $1000! Lots!

MIKE: In Michigan that's a lot!

ME: Yeah just think of how much Better Mades that'll buy!

MIKE: Gatorade? No way, too classy. Those are Mountains Dew people.

ME: No BETTER MADE CHIPS.

MIKE: Ohh! Yeah you're totally right then.

[emmyquins]

Better Made chips are heaven in a bag.

A greasy, salty, yummy heaven.

Are they really only sold in Michigan and Ohio?

[dudetroit-blog]

Transplant #1 - Mike S.

When I decided to leave my job in Michigan and venture to the windy city for greener grass and a slightly more inhabited, less indigenous concrete jungle than I was accustomed to, I didn't just part ways with my employer. I left behind my family, friends and Better Made chips, abandoning the only thing I'd known for 25 years - granted, I've spent a good amount of time in Los Angeles with family, and traveling to different parts of the U.S. and it's surrounding countries, but I'd never really lived anywhere else. After terminating my lease and contributing to the real estate crisis (editor's note - I used the term "crisis" for lack of better term. I hate the word. If Michigan was facing as many crises as we hear about through local media, Michael Bay would have taken advantage of the Michigan film tax incentives and already have a script written for Independence Day ll), I sold my car and packed 25 years of memories (and a 2-liter of Faygo Orange) into a U-HAUL truck and hit the road.

This wasn't a case of rebellion against the D.A.R.E. program by giving into peer pressure and joining the "brain drain." It was me doing what I had to do, and that was rewarding myself with some of what Obama offered us during his thus far unfulfilled presidency - change. I knew that if I was going to succeed, and if my voice was going to be heard, I needed to make a big move. Christopher Columbus would have never discovered the new land (and sparked American Indian genocide) had he never sailed the ocean blue. Neil Armstrong would have never been the first to walk on the moon had he not taken the risk. And, if Kid CuDi never left his mom in Cleveland, he probably wouldn't be recognized worldwide as the best rapper ever (yes, that's a fact - I read it in a book). Based on all of this, I was able to justify accepting a high-level position with a reputable agency in exchange for my Michigan residence. I mean, Chicago is beautiful, still has the Midwest charm and it's only a short drive from home.

Yes, I said it. Home. As I tell everyone while holding my right hand up and pointing out where I'm from (strangely, the people of Chicago don't have the mental capacity to put two and two together to realize Michigan looks like a mitten), I'm not a Chicagoan; I'm a Michigan transplant working in Chicago. Much like people "work from home" instead of commuting, I'm just working from Chicago (that sort of makes me sound like a full-time blogger...). That being said, despite a big move and a tremendous hike in rent, my home has never changed - it is, was and always will be the beautiful state of Michigan. Instead of thinking about it from the perspective that I'm taking my knowledge elsewhere, consider this a case of me stealing experience from another state with complete intentions to bring it back to Michigan - maybe I'm just Michigan's present day Robin Hood?

I still blog about all things Michigan at Royal Joke, still bleed green for my Michigan State Spartans, still walk the city streets in a flat bill Detroit Tigers hat, and have maintained an email chain between my 10 closest friends (all of which are scattered throughout the states) in which all of us talk about the good past we had in Michigan, and future times we'll share together BACK HOME. Yep, that's me. Still rock my khakis with a cuff and a crease; still got love for the streets reppin' 313. 

While I do single-handedly keep the MegaBus in business with my frequent trips back to Michigan to visit friends and family, I have a feeling that it won't be long before my career path takes me back home for good, and it's that day that I look forward to. Until then, I'll be stealing experience from the wealthy and bringing this knowledge back to Michigan bus trip by bus trip.

See you soon, HOME.