Wisconsin

Good Old Wisconsin. I love Wisconsin, I really do. Going to College there was eye opening at times. For example, I never knew the dislike Wisconsinites felt for Illinoisans nor had I ever heard all the affectionate nicknames they had for us. And I still remember my first deer hunting season in the great state.

I was driving in the car with a Wisconsin native (Stacer) and a New Yorker (Liz) when we saw a deer that had gone to deer heaven on top of moving vehicle. Being the sheltered 18 year old that I was, I figured the driver must have hit Bambi with his car, picked her up off the road and was taking her somewhere to bury it. The New Yorker hung her head out the window with a camera taking pictures, she also had never seen anything like it. While the Wisconsinite looked at me, laughed, and said, 'you can't be serious?!" It was the start of something new to me, deer hunting season.

And then I met my favorite Wisconsin boy, Kyle and he taught me much more about being from the northwoods, like Packer days, cheese heads and what a FIB really was (Friendly, Illinois Babe).

Kyle bleeds Wisconsin pride. Whenever and where ever he has the opportunity to share his Wisconsin roots, his love for the green and gold, he does. And above are photographs Kyle sent me of the Wisconsin pride shared by other soldiers in Iraq. He was driving through Baghdad when he saw the Wisconsin flag flying high.

And although Kyle has now lived in Illinois for over two years, I know he will always be a Wisconsin boy at heart.