Don't Mess...

"Some folks look at me and see a certain swagger, which in Texas is called 'walking'."
---George W. Bush

My word, what is up with Texas? I can promise that it is not just George who feels the need to swagger. I have had several chance encounters with Texans recently, and I am always blown away at the amount of pride that they have for their state. I would be willing to pay money that each one of those people I met have some Texas paraphernalia in their possession, whether it be a bumper sticker, key-chain, fleece throw or worst case scenario, a poorly drawn flag on a piece of cardboard which sits proudly in their front window. Texas is a big state, I will give them that, but they aren't the biggest. I am pretty sure that you could fit two Texas' in Alaska and you don't see Alaskans claiming that everything there is bigger, even though one could argue that it is. (Bigger Fish, bigger oil reserve, bigger earthquakes, and bigger incomes.) Also, I can't quite understand what Texans mean when they say "Don't mess with Texas." Don't mess with them or what? They are going to gather the troops and the south will rise again? Maybe they missed the memo that the civil war is over and they not only lost, but are definitely still a part of the United States. I must say though, that I am awfully critical for someone who has never set foot in Texas. Who knows, maybe Texas is all that it is cracked up to be, and I just am too cynical to realize it. I will have the answer to my question when I leave to spend a week in none other than grapevine, TX at the end of march. Until then, don't mess with Utah.