Sucky Kentucky.

First, allow me to say what a pleasure it was to see some great friends in Nashville this weekend. I got all nostalgic after last year's Homecoming, so I'll spare you that -- but it was great to spend some time with everyone. Hopefully we'll all be able to do this for basketball season!

That said; God, that trip sucked. Not the trip down, and not the stay in Nashville, but the trip back home. Meagan and I got stuck in traffic in her lovely new car. That wouldn't have been so bad had it happened in Tennessee, or even Indiana. No, it happened in Kentucky, the Bluegrass State. Says something about a state when they can't even get the color of grass right.

Anyway, Meagan and I are sitting there and notice a young lady yanking her arm up and down for the big truck behind her to honk his big ol' semi horn. Cute? Woulda been, if the young lady hadn't been SEVEN YEARS OLD. What's wrong with that? She was in the bed. Yes, there was a seven-year girl in the back of a truck with no seat belt on a road where the speed limit was SEVENTY MILES AN HOUR. Argh. (And, yes, I checked. Kentucky plates.). I'm telling you, we need to start giving parents a tests once the baby pops out. The first question?

"You think about putting your seven-year old child in the back of a pick-up truck and driving down the highway while he/she is there. This is:

A) A good idea.
B) A bad idea.
C) A REALLY bad idea.
D) A good sign you're from Kentucky and married your cousin."

Sigh.

So that ticked me off. While boring Meagan about exactly how stupid people from Kentucky are (let's not forget -- they idolize Ashley Judd!), a truck drives by with an American flag flying from his window. Now, I'm all for being patriotic, and the American flag is a glorious thing to display.

But.

This wasn't the whole flag. No, this was half the flag, tattered and torn and literally hanging by strings. As patriotic as flying the flag can be, abusing the flag by not taking care of it and not treating it with respect is one of the most inappropriate and least patriotic things that any American can do. I know that it's a way to show support for our troops, but if you're going to do that, do it right and take care of the flag!!! Otherwise, you're just saying "I want people to see that I support the troops, but I don't want to put any effort into it, because I'm a lazy American. Besides it matches the magnetic ribbon I have on my car that also shows my support of the troops. What? You ask why we are fighting? Um, I've got to go put gas in my SUV while drinking my $6 coffee."

Ok, so that's a little stereotypical, but you get my point. Want to have fun with a redneck? If you see one with a "I/We support our troops" magnetic ribbon/bumper sticker, ask them how they support them aside from showing that they do. Especially fun if you like embarrassed silences.

Yeah, digressing again, but I was on a roll. My point is Kentucky sucks, and the country would be better out if it weren't around. That, and our drive to Nashville would only be three hours instead of five, and would make for an even more fantastic Homecoming.