Ohio Pride

It's pride weekend. That refers to something my illusive African readers might find shocking, so I'm scaling this up to encompass my general sense of Ohio pride.

I'm from Ohio. I've probably mentioned that a few times on this blog. In my experience, Ohio usually only surfaces as our coastal brethren complain about "flyover states," whenever an election comes around, or as the butt of jokes. I'll admit one thing though, they're often good jokes. (Thank you, Drew Carey, and the guy who made this video and then this video.)*

In response, we humble Ohioans have developed a fierce pride (re: defensiveness) that sometimes manifests itself in the unifying hatred of our neighbor to the North.

*Woman of Questionable Character.
Come on, internet, this is a family-friendly blog.
Still, you see what I mean?

When we're not hating on Michigan for their audacity of having a football rivalry with... someone else (those jerks!), we're representing our more endearing pride whenever we go... anywhere.

But when I say "anywhere,"  I really mean anywhere.

Whoa.

But still, I'm a Columbus kid, and so I can't really avoid it. It's the same reason I have no shame about my life-long devotion to Leonardo DiCaprio in his Titanic days of glory or the fact that I still own both Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync albums. When you're a 12-year-old girl in 1997, there are some things that are simply outside your sphere of influence.

So I'm proud.  And I thought I'd share a few of the reasons why with all of you:

1. Ohio matters - when you're wondering about whether or not to cast a ballot, you're probably justified. There's no real reason to do it because, unless you're from a swing state like me, it probably won't matter.
2. Ohio is the mother of the Presidents. Eight American presidents call the Buckeye State home. So, for history nerds, our state is a veritable playground of presidential libraries and historical sites.
3. Speaking of famous Ohioans, we are also the home of (yes, North Carolina) flight. The Wright Brothers, Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, and Eddie Rickenbacker all hail from Ohio... as do their inventions (Get out of here, NC!)
4. Let's keep going shall we: How about Thomas Edison, Annie Oakley, Bob Hope, Pete Rose, Steven Spielberg, Dave Chappelle?  Impressed yet?  (I tried to hit a variety of interests there.)
5. But our people aren't our only talent. Goodness, no. We've also got a ton of fun things to do:

• The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• Pro Football Hall of Fame
• Cedar Point
• Rails to Trails all over the place (my fave!)
• Lake Erie
• Outdoor Dramas
• Cleveland in general (30 Rock, anyone?)

There are lots of other reasons to like Ohio - the Buckeye songs, the retail (so many things are from here!), the test market food, the hot-but-not-too-hot summers, but this post is getting a bit long and, as you might guess, the thing I love the most about Ohio is that it's home.**

*Go watch now. I'll wait.
**Too sappy? I can see that.

Hey! Hey!  Why do they say West Virginia is almost heaven?  Because it's next door to Ohio!