You know you're an Islander if...

Going "coast to coast" means taking the Hannigan Road from East Side Drive to West Side Road

You can name (usually on one hand) everyone you graduated with
Going "down south" means going to Iron Ore Bay
You do anything and everyone on the island knows about it within the hour.
You never give directions by street names instead you say "turn right at the stone house" or "at the top of Tights' Hill"
You decide to walk for exercise and 5 people pull over to ask if you need a ride
Your teachers called you by our older siblings names
You can charge at all the local grocery stores
November 15th and March 17th are considered national holidays
A nun taught you how to dance
Your car won't start without a cooler of beer
Your teachers taught your parents
You don't need an invitation to go to a party
You live on a steady diet of hor d'oeuvres the month of December
You celebrate St. Paddy's Day for a week
You haven't been to the top of Mt. Pisgah since you were a kid
You'd like to see the mosquito made the state bird
If asked if you've even been on a cruise, you answer; "I rode the 'South Shore'
You go to the Post Office or the Shamrock to catch up on the latest gossip
You have a pot hole in town named after you
By the end of February, all your friends can go to hell (until the ferry starts again)

From Gearoid Sweeney of Arainn Mhor, Ireland comes:

You know you're an islander when someone insults you (Richie Gillespie) and you insult them back. Then they buy you a beer.

From Jim and JoEllen Owens comes:

You know you're part of the island family when you call Phil and Lil Gregg "my island mom and dad"

From Ceile Breann Cull comes:

You can wave to everybody on the road
You remember when the Beachcombers served ice cream
You only have to say your last name and you're automatically friend or family

From Thomas Monachino comes:

If you remember the big rope swing on Kings Highway
When you have driven the road at gull harbor and your fanny got wet
When the big event of the day was to gather at the bar after dinner for a beach kegger
Getting a ride on the American Girl
Sleeping in the Cole's back yard in a school bus

From Lynn DeGrow comes:

when everyone who remembers you moving there has passed away

From Linda Wearn comes:

You learned to pilot a boat before the training wheels came off your bicycle.
Your family breaks into violence during the MSU/U of M football game.
The trees in your yard have spigots.
You know how to play Euchre.

From Kevin Beuret comes:

You can name all the islands in the Beaver Archipelago
You know Skip McDonough's real name
You know Arlene Bailey's nickname
You've ever been overtaken in January by a terrible longing for summertime and another Beaver Island vacation
You begin to think of other tourists as "outsiders"
You've mastered the "Beaver Island wave" (or got funny looks on the mainland for waving at strangers in oncoming cars)

From Rachel Becker comes:

You recognize 9 out of 10 people you pass on the street, and 7 of them are members of your family!

From John Crouse comes:

You know how to pronounce Paideenog.

From Ann Marie Hanley comes:

You remember the White Swan, ice skating on the harbor, the mail being delivered in winter by plane and fish shanties
You remember Margaret Hanley gathering news for the Charlevoix Courier and the Allen clan (Allen's cabins)
You remember the 100 year old oak in front of the Hanley's cabin (which is no longer)
Homecoming and the August dinner/dance; movies at the Hall; Mrs. Spalding's plays
Archie bartending at the Shamrock; Minnie Pearl picking berries
Big James and Little James Gallagher
You can do the "Beaver Island Swing"

From Heidi Hansen comes:

You Know You're An Islander

At Heart if...

You recall standing at the base of MT. Pisgah and thinking..."you want me to climb that?"
You vividly recall seeing the Northern Lights for the first and only time from a beautifully starlit beach.
You think about the island it brings tears to your eyes and has you hoping that some day you'll get back and have the chance to show your own children what a wonderful place it is.

Great ones, Heidi! Thanks for sending them.

If you have anything to add to this list (that's printable) please feel free to send it to me at phyllism@biip.net