Kentucky Taste Buds Are… Wrong

So… you may have heard we’re doing a Swing Vote over here? Yeah. It’s for the state of Kentucky and let me tell you, they do more than marry their cousins in the Bluegrass state.

 

When I was a little girl I went to Disneyland. Not Disneyworld – I went to the real thing, the big enchilada, DisneyLAND.

 

And it was fantastic, it was life changing, but I had no idea it was not original in its “Tomorrowland” theme. Disneyland copied Kentucky.

 

Because Kentucky was named after the Iroquois Indian word, “Ken-tah-ten,” meaning “land of tomorrow.”

 

Sorry, Walt. You and Mortimer Mouse are little copy cats. I’ve found you out!

 

Speaking of copy cats, we can’t fail to mention Kentucky Fried Chicken. That finger-lickin’ good restaurant with mashed potatoes and gravy to die for was founded in Corbin, KY by the real Colonel Sanders. It was also the first restaurant in America to be franchised!

 

Kentucky has shown itself to be an integral part of U.S. life in more ways than fried chicken. If you’ve ever used a Post-It note, you’re enjoying the brain child of Kentucky.

 

Post-It Notes are manufactured exclusively in Cynthiana. But the exact number of how many are made annually is guarded as a trade secret.

 

This is confusing. Who cares how many Post-It Notes are manufactured every year? It’s not like a small scrap of paper with sticky glue is holding the key to world peace (although I guess the answer could be written on a Post It…).

 

Bright ideas about in Kentucky (and yes, that was a pun). The public saw an electric light for the first time in Louisville when Thomas Edison introduced his incandescent light bulb to crowds at the Southern Exposition in 1883.

 

Two more claims to fame before I move on to the extremely disturbing fact I discovered about Kentucky.

 

First, the swimsuit Mark Spitz wore in the 1972 Olympic games was manufactured in Paris, Kentucky. Now, that’s a claim to fame. That swimsuit is definitely disturbing, but it doesn’t hold a candle to what you’ll learn in just a moment.

 

Second, Frederick Vinson who was born in Louisa is the only Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court known to be born in jail. The theme song from Les Miserables is playing in my mind and I can’t help but think Frederick Vinson must have a bit in common with Javert. (Javert is the fanatic police inspector born in the prisons to a convict father and a gypsy mother.)

 

{i had a dream my life would be… so different from the life i’m living… Oh, excuse me. I was having a musical interlude in my head. Glad you can join me.}

 

OK. Now for the truly, horribly disturbing fact about Kentucky.

 

I’m sorry to break the news to you.

 

Pikeville, KY annually leads the nation in per capita consumption of Pepsi-Cola.

 

Did you see that? Pepsi-Cola.

 

Up until this point I’ve been feeling pretty positive toward Kentucky as a state. But… Pepsi-Cola.

 

I just don’t know if I can get over this difference of opinion. We all know Coca-Cola is my beverage of choice, in fact my veins run blood diluted with caramel coloring and high fructose corn syrup.

 

It’s going to take me a day to get over this news. If I can get over it. Politics, religion, I can find a mutual respect in these topics that typically divide.

 

But soda choice. I just can’t comprehend anyone not loving the Coca-Cola.

 

Will you join me in extending condolences to Kentucky on their drink choices? Will you visit again tomorrow for the last installment of the Swing Vote: Kentucky adventure?