"I don't want to fight or carry a gun. I want to work, have some fun, and sleep. That's my dream, and I can do that here," said Ali, a Somali immigrant living in Minneapolis, MN, and currently working as an Uber driver.

I met Ali while he was driving me from Minneapolis to Hudson, WI, so I could check in on my soon-to-be van/home. I always find the immigrant experience fascinating and important, so I couldn't help asking questions. He said he loves his job and actually counts it as part of the fun in his day—which makes sense because he loves to chat. Plus, it allows him some flexibility to spend time with his four children.

Ali came to the US in 2000 and lived first in California, but he joined some of his family in Minnesota in 2003. He loves the area, except on days like the one when I met him, when the temperature got to a "high" of -3 degrees Fahrenheit. He generously said that anything over 20 degrees works for him. (I prefer over 50!) He said the first time he saw snow all those years ago, he started crying because his hands were so cold after playing with it. Now he almost always has gloves.

On our journey, we drove across the bridge over the Mississippi River, which was beautiful in its rare frozen stillness. Ali said when he was a child in Somalia, he remembered studying about this great river, but he never could've imagined he would be living so close.