Karli Ingersoll
The next person we’re going to feature in our series of posts about people in Spokane who don’t suck is Karli Ingersoll, pictured above on the far right. Her thoughts on our fair city are inspiring (to put it mildly). If you know someone you think we should feature, let us know.
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1. How long have you lived in Spokane?
Pretty much since I was born. So, about 26 years.
2. What do you do in Spokane (for work, for place, etc.)?
I am a Designer and Illustrator, I run my own boutique style design studio and also do contract work at Ad Agencies in town. I’m married to a super cool guy and we are in a band together called, Cathedral Pearls. We also own a house and are working on starting a small business in Spokane.
3. What are your thoughts on why Spokane doesn’t suck?
I have literally never disliked Spokane. There was a short period of time in High School when I really wanted to move away for college, but it was a short phase and quickly passed once I moved from the north side to the lower south hill. It almost felt like moving to a new city. Which brings me to my first point about why Spokane doesn’t suck: it has cool neighborhoods. I’ve lived downtown, northside, south hill, north central and every neighborhood I’ve lived in has something unique about it. A coffee shop and a bar in walking/biking distance and an amazing park. And I’ve never lived in the cooler more developed neighborhoods like Brownes, Perry or GU. So, basically there’s a lot of great areas to live in with neat things to do that you can get to without a car.
Spokane also doesn’t suck because it’s a beautiful city. A gigantic river and waterfalls right downtown, beautiful lilacs in the spring, manito blvd. in the fall, the elk patio on a summer evening, snow covered pines at Christmas, old historic buildings and houses that have been restored and preserved.
All those things are pretty standard and definitely things that most people recognize about Spokane, but there’s two specific things that have really kept me here. 1) Spokane is under the national radar and 2) it’s needy. Most people see these things as negative, but they are my very favorite traits.
//UNDER THE RADAR//
Most people in the greater US have no idea where Spokane is or know anything about it. I’ve had many people tell me they thought Spokane was a truck stop or that it was on the west side of the cascades. Not only does this give Spokane a hidden charm, but it does something else that’s been very interesting to watch over my last 8 years of observation. Being a musician, I’ve found that music scenes in bigger cities usually have a tendency to stylistically fall in after the top bands in the city, the ones that are getting nationally recognized or signed to labels. This defines a kind of style for each city…like “oh that’s a portland band, or oh that band is so seattle.” Spokane doesn’t have this, AT ALL. Even the most locally successful bands don’t have that kind of influence and I think that’s because they aren’t being nationally recognized. Some might say that’s a bad thing, but I see it as awesome because it creates an amazingly unhindered creative environment. There’s no “style” you have to be to qualify you when starting a band, you can be influenced by whatever and whoever. People in Spokane will love you if you do it well and with enthusiasm. You don’t have to be jumping on board with a trending genre to contribute to the arts scene. I can’t speak to other aspects of the culture but I feel as if this might be something that applies to food culture, art, etc. People do what they are drawn to do and the result is diverse, interesting and very un-pretentious.
//SPOKANE NEEDS YOU//
I love love love that Spokane doesn’t have everything all together. Cities that display perfection are kind of annoying to me. They are fun to visit, but I love living in a city that has faults and flaws and isn’t afraid to show them. It’s like a friendship. You want to be friends with people who are transparent and open about their flaws but aren’t shying away from growth. Those are the most fruitful relationships, the ones where you feel valuable and needed. My Point is, Spokane needs us and it’s obvious. There is a place for every inhabitant of the city to take part in making it more beautiful and a better place to live. It’s a city that is for hard workers and go-getters. For people who want to invest and take root and make something. I’m definitely one of those people and I’ve found a community of other people who feel the same way. So no, Spokane definitely doesn’t suck. In fact, it’s pretty dang inspiring and a great place to be an artist, a musician and a small business owner.
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