Image by Tatiana Craine -- photo from jimw's Flickr

If Movoto's study can be believed, Minneapolis is the nerd capital of the Midwest.

A new study by Movoto concludes that Minneapolis is one of the nerdiest cities in the country.

SEE ALSO: Mpls still third-most literate city; St. Paul re-emerges from stone age

That's well and good, but here's the real question: Is that something to be proud of?

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the Twin Cities Facebook page

Enjoy solo late-night strolls? You've come to the right city.

A new Gallup Wellbeing study finds that Twin Cities residents feel safer walking alone at night than residents of any other large metro.

SEE ALSO: Whatever happened to the downtown Minneapolis mobs that beat people senselessly?

Throughout 2012, Gallup called residents of the nation's 50 largest metros and asked them whether they "feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live?" Eighty percent of MSPers said they do feel safe. The second most safe-feeling city was Denver, with 78 percent of folks they aren't worried about anything going amiss when out and on foot at night.

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borman818 via Flickr

College students are used to this (just messier). Who needs a swank one-bedroom?

According to the listings site Rent.com, the best place for a recent college graduate in search of a decent paycheck and an affordable place to live isn't one of the much-buzzed about cities for bright young things, like Austin or San Francisco.

Per the website's numbers crunching, top cities actually include Denver, Houston, and -- like last year -- us.

See Also:
- Minneapolis is one of the best cities for 20-somethings, says PayScale
- 43 percent of Minneapolis lives alone (that's 16 percent higher than the national average)

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Image by Tatiana Craine

Minneapolis: Where "market rate" means "you can't afford it."

A new study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition concludes that 55 percent of renters in the state can't afford a market-rate two-bedroom apartment, making Minnesota the most unaffordable state in the Midwest for renters for the third year in a row.

FROM LAST YEAR: Minnesota has the most unaffordable rent in the Midwest

But if you don't want to take it from them, take it from me -- it's frickin' hard to find an affordable apartment these days, especially in the Twin Cities. (By the way, I'm still looking, so if you know of anything...)

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USA Today -- click to enlarge

In the Midwest, Minnesota is the place to be... and it's not even close, according to the study.

You can say this about Minnesotans -- in general, we don't think our lives suck.

SEE ALSO: Minneapolis sixth-horniest city; St. Paul considerably less aroused, study finds

This year's version of Gallup-Healthways' Well-Being Index pegs Minnesota at third for the second consecutive year. Last year, we came in behind Hawaii and North Dakota. But this year, Colorado comes in behind Hawaii, with NoDak experiencing a precipitous fall all the way to 19th, possibly because of all the sexually frustrated dudes up there.

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Most people shudder at the thought of living with one of these things, let alone 300 of them!

I'm not particularly creeped out by rats, but this still sounds likes hell on earth.

SEE ALSO: Humane officers find cat feces oozing out of Minnesota cat hoarder's front door

A Plover, Wisconsin woman named Darlene Flatoff has been evicted from her trailer home after she found to be living with more than 300 loose rats.

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Tatiana Craine, via potzuyoko, reckless_sniper, emagineart on Flickr

People tend to think, or at least hope, that most kids have trauma-free childhoods. But a Minnesota Department of Health survey released yesterday afternoon shows that the opposite is more common.

See Also:
- Minnesotans have a lot of STDs
- Erin Brockovich investigating Fridley's elevated cancer ratesMore »

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Severson isn't allowed on SA property for a year. Where will he get his breakfast tornados in the meantime?

Here's an idea for a reality show -- Uptown Bros: Drunk Suburban Men Wild Out in the City. And the story of Andrew C. Severson, a 25-year-old Rosemount resident, would've made for a great first episode.

SEE ALSO: Edina drunk driver refuses to put down burrito, offers bribe, blows .284, flips bird during mug

According to his Facebook page, Severson headed Downtown last Saturday night to party with friends. After bar close, he found himself at the SuperAmerica off Nicollet Avenue South and 35th Street. It was there that he let his inner bro run wild.

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Will Staehle

Spiros Zorbalas on the cover of City Pages in January 2008.

On Wednesday, Minneapolis City Council Member Gary Schiff announced that Spiros Zorbalas, better known as "The Slumlord of South Minneapolis," will no longer be the landlord of broken boilers, rodents and roaches, and overflowing dumpsters. Not because he's changed his ways, but because, following a legal battle with the city, Zorbalas finally sold his local properties.

Zorbalas and his company, UPI apartments, owned 38 buildings with 752 units and over 2,000 mostly low-income tenants, according to Schiff. Since he bought his first buildings in the late 1990s, 2,131 violations and more than 200 lawsuits have been filed against him, and at least three city laws have been directly inspired by him.

A Zorbalas timeline:
- 2008: The Slumlord of South Minneapolis: Rodent and roach infestations. Overflowing dumpsters. Frigid heating vents. Meet Spiros Zorbalas... [Cover]
- 2010: Spiros Zorbalas update: Are notorious properties getting cleaned up?
- 2011: Spiros Zorbalas faces rental license revocation hearing
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Photo courtesy of Alex Nordenson.

John Heggestuen and Alex Nordenson created a wedding registry to help Sandy relief efforts.

In the midst of the damage and chaos left in Hurricane Sandy's wake, two native Minnesotans found an ingenious way of establishing a little bit of order: a wedding registry.

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