I've always been proud to call Kentucky my home but it wasn't until I lived outside of the state that I truly came to appreciate my roots. I spent a year going to school in Wisconsin and came under a bit of scrutiny and speculation when I told people where I was from. I faced the typical questions--"Do you walk around barefoot all the time?", "Do you ride horses?", "How many times a week do you eat KFC?", "You're from Kentucky? What the heck is there to do in Kentucky anyway?". As anyone from Kentucky who has ever ventured out of the state knows, these stereotypical questions get old pretty quickly, but at the end of the day they remind you of the love you have for your home and how proud you are to be from "the Bluegrass State".
1. Bluegrass isn't really blue.
The grass Kentucky is famous for is said to have a tinge of blue, but its definitely not the "Smurf" blue that out of state people might be imagining. It is in fact green just like the grass in the rest of the country.
2. The biggest rivalry in the country.
Even if you're not a sports fan you most likely still pick sides based on where you are from or where your parents went to college.
3. Pronunciation matters.
A native Louisvillian/Kentuckian will be able to dissect your pronunciation of words and pinpoint where you grew up or if you're from out of state.
4. Bourbon = whiskey but whiskey ≠ bourbon
5. Hot browns are the best sandwich known to man.
You also probably learned the history of the sandwich in grade-school and know that it was invented and first served at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky.
6. The true way to start a conversation with someone you just met.
Six degrees of separation is not just a theory, its very real and everyone in Kentucky (especially Louisville) knows it. If you meet someone new from Louisville the first question you probably ask is "Where did you go to high school?" and the follow up to that one would be "Do you know so and so..?". Before you know it you find out you have at least 5 mutual friends and might even be distantly related.
7. Cicadas are the spawn of Satan.
There are several varieties of cicadas that pester us Kentuckians. Lucky for us though, they only rear their ugly racket-making heads every 13-17 years.
While you might have to endure the barrage of stereotypical questions when you travel out of state, you know its all because Kentucky is the greatest state there is and people are just curious (or just jealous) about what actually goes on here.
