When I first started My Midwest Is Showing, my plan was to kick things off with a little feature on myself so my readers would have a chance to learn a bit about the person talking to them. I became so focused on my site not being about me though, that I never got around to it. So one year later, here it is. A little bit of info about me.

My Midwest Is Showing: When did you launch My Midwest Is Showing? Why did you decide to start it?

Sammy Walsh: I launched MMWIS about a year ago shortly after moving back to Wisconsin from New York City. I was simultaneously looking for a creative outlet and rediscovering just how cool the Midwest is. It became my mission to create a community for smart and talented Midwesterners and to shed a light on just how cool the Midwest is. I can't understand why the media never talks about the Midwest! So now I am.

MMWIS: What's your favorite part of working on your website? Your least favorite part?

SW: I love coming up with ideas. I have a million ideas for people I want to feature, new categories, redesigns, features, events, etc. It's so fun to put the different elements together in my mind. My least favorite part is not having enough time. It's frustrating, and I become discouraged when I can't work on my site as much as I would like to.

MMWIS: What's the coolest opportunity you've had because of your website?

SW: Honestly, all of it has been so cool. I started MMWIS by only talking to people I already knew, and I was afraid it would fizzle out after that. People have been so receptive to talking to me and inviting me into their homes and offices. I can't believe all the people I've met and the fun events I've gone to! Having the opportunity to feature Tracy Porter was surreal. Being on the front page of the Waukesha Freeman was so funny. And being featured on Glamour.com was crazy.

MMWIS: What is your day job?

SW: I am a copywriter on the marketing team at Kohl's Corporate.

MMWIS: What are you currently reading? Watching? Listening to?

SW: I am reading A Wrinkle in Time before the movie comes out – I never read it as a kid! I'm watching the new season of Divorce, and my husband and I are rewatching season one of Survivor – it's pure gold. I'm listening to "All Night" by Big Boi on repeat – it's my 2018 vibes in a song.

MMWIS: If someone was visiting Wisconsin for the first time, what would you tell them to do first?

SW: Get some cheese curds and custard from Culver's, then go hang out at the Memorial Union Terrace in Madison.

MMWIS: Favorite thing about the Midwest?

SW: It's home.

MMWIS: How does your Midwest show through your personality and/or what you do?

SW: The funny thing is that I never think I'm that Midwestern – I don't drink, I don't like sports, I can do without a brat – but when I lived in New York, my Midwest showed all the time. I carried baked goods covered in tinfoil throughout the city, I made dinner in my slowcooker at home, and I truthfully answered that my purse was a "vintage fake" when someone asked. You don't realize just how different people can be until you go somewhere else. Now that I'm back, I appreciate that people here focus on their families more than their careers and they let themselves be a little vulnerable.

Thanks for reading along and meeting really cool Midwesterners with me.