I have all my teeth, thank you.

Having been a military brat for 16 years, I’ve been to many places. I have been settled in West Virginia for years now, though and often hear many misconceptions about this great state. Often people think we are a part of Virginia which hasn’t been true since 1863. I have actually talked to people who didn’t even know West Virginia existed. People that live in America mind you.

Pepperoni Roll

 Has anyone ever had a pepperoni roll? A pepperoni roll is a delicious pepperoni and cheese filled piece of baked dough and is very popular around here. When I lived in Georgia, you couldn’t buy pepperoni rolls anywhere and my mom would make them and send them to my dad’s work where they were a huge hit. Apparently it is illegal in most states to sell pepperoni rolls because the meat actually sits on the counter until someone buys it.

Anyways, the actual point of this post is to talk about common misconceptions and myths of WV. I’ve pretty much heard it all, so allow me to clarify.

Myth- We all inbreed

Truth- You’ve all seen this shirt right? This is probably the biggest misconception about WV. Yeah well we don’t inbreed anymore than the rest of the world. We don’t meet our future spouses at family reunions and our kids don’t come out with feet growing out of their head. Now even in the county I live in people make fun of the people in the county right next to ours for inbreeding. Maybe it was common back in the day? I don’t know. But I've never heard of someone who reproduced with their kin.

Myth- We don't have paved roads

Truth- I assure you, our roads are paved. Sure, you will find the occasional dirt road here and there, but for the most part, they are paved.

 Myth-We don't have running water and use outhouses.

Truth- I’ve never seen an outhouse before in my life. We have running water. We shower. We have toilets. I do however know quite a few people that don’t have city water and must use well water. But still, it’s running water.

 Myth- Most men in WV have sexual relations with their farm animals.

Truth- I’ve actually heard of people doing this. I’ve never seen it with my own eyes and don’t care to, but apparently is has happened. Does it happen often? I don’t think so. Someone once told me that in WV it is legal to have sex with animals as long as it doesn’t exceed 40 pounds. Safety issue maybe? Who knows. While researching, I couldn’t find any actual truth in that.

Myth- We eat road kill.

Truth- While it is legal to take home road kill, I don’t think many people do so because there is a lot of it on the roads. Animals are suicidal around here.

 Myth- We always walk around barefoot.

Truth- I walk barefoot ANYTIME I get the chance. Flip flops are my best friends, too. So do we walk barefoot? Sure why the hell not? Do we because we can’t afford shoes? No. We do it because the grass feels nice between the toes and because a majority of West Virginians work on their feet 40+ hours a week. When we can take the work boots off, we are glad to do it.

Myth- We are missing most, if not all of our teeth.

Truth- {Checks mirror} Yep, still got ‘em all. So does everyone I know. We also have one of the best dental education programs in the country. And maybe because of that very misconception, a lot of us are a bit anal about keeping our teeth cleaned.

 Myth-We are all poor white trash

Truth- Eh, most of us are poor. White trash? Some, but I can’t imagine anymore than any other part of the world. We don’t have hookers on the streets... I guess that’s a plus. But there are mansions, castle like houses , huge houses with elevators and tons of bedrooms. You get the idea right? Like most of the world, West Virginia has a lower, middle and upper class.

Now here are some truths that I found pretty interesting.

• Mother’s Day was founded in WV in 1908.
• The first state sales tax in the United States went into effect in West Virginia on July 1, 1921.
• The first federal prison exclusively for women in the United States was opened in 1926 in West Virginia.
• Nearly 75% of West Virginia is covered by forests.
• The first brick street in the world was laid in Charleston, West Virginia, on October 23, 1870, on Summers Street, between Kanawha and Virginia Streets.
• West Virginia University has been named #1 Party School by the Princeton Review 7 times in 15 years.

 Know any of these West Virginians?

• Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson
• Jennifer Garner
• Brad Paisley
• Don Knotts (his niece was my English teacher in school)
• Mary Lou Retton
• Jerry West
• Randy Moss
• Steve Harvey

The list of athletes that hailed from WV is pretty extensive.

I know this post was long, but I love my state and hate people talking shit on it. I’m sure all of you have heard misconceptions about where you live, too. So let’s hear ‘em! Comment about it. Blog about it. Whatever. I’d like to hear some!