Border weirdness

I was on a work call recently with a gentleman from Minnesota. Somehow the conversation turned to topography (duh ... don't all of your conversations turn to this topic?) and he mentioned the Northwest Angle in Minnesota .. which is kinda-not-really even IN Minnesota.

To wit:

Except for minor surveying errors, it is the only place in the contiguous United States north of the 49th parallel ... The land area of the Angle is separated from the rest of Minnesota by Lake of the Woods, but shares a land border with Canada.

In other words, if you want to get to the "Angle" from Minnesota, you can either drive through Canada or cross the Lake of the Woods ... when it's not iced over.

This got me thinking about other border abnormalities that exist (or could) ... and there are PLENTY of them. A decade ago, my wife and I were driving along the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia. We crossed into Bosnia for several miles before entering ... Croatia again. 

North Carolina even has its fair share of odd border things. On Ocracoke Island, for instance, there is a spit of land that is technically British. And Our State magazine researched the "bump" along the N.C.-Virginia border.

Even on a large foldout map, the sharp change in the boundary line doesn’t even make a centimeter’s difference. We’re talking about less than a mile here.

(Long story short: it's complicated.)

I have heard that several islands along the Outer Banks are shared with either Virginia or South Carolina. And I'm still waiting for us to officially annex Bermuda, but that's for another time. 

There HAS to be other border abnormalities that impact or impacted the Old North State. Are you aware of any?

Happy birthday, South of the Border

South of the Border, that Interstate 95 "icon for motorists," has turned 60. So happy birthday, SOB!

The brightly lighted facility features more than a dozen shops, six restaurants, a small amusement park and a motel with 300 rooms, but travelers and employees acknowledge that it's not the same place it used to be [says the Associated Press].

Suzanne Pelt, head of public relations and personnel and a 25-year employee of South of the Border, offered an explanation for that change. "We have lots of competition now that we didn't have in years past. It used to be that we were the only motel between New York and Miami," she said.

I've stated it multiple times: as a young North Carolinian, I was devastated when I finally discovered that Pedro's home was not in my home state but was instead in one of the two "mountains of conceit," South Carolina. I quickly got over it, thinking that N.C. was better off not being associated with the tackiness that is South of the Border. However, I've proven wishy-washy in recent years; there's something so quintessentially iconic and Southern about the place. Though I probably wouldn't stop there in a million years, I'm glad it's still around.
(Photo from MSJE.org)

Yeah, N.C. beaches!

North Carolina's beaches can boast clean beach waters, according to a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council. The states' beaches with the cleanest beach-water samples were Delaware, New Hampshire and Virginia, with N.C. and Georgia tying for fourth. South Carolina's came in 19th among the 30 states reviewed. Louisiana came in last.

North Carolina (and Georgia) can boast just 2 percent of her beach-water samples "failing to pass muster," according to McClatchy Newspapers.

Nationwide, the total number of beach-closing days due to water pollution topped 20,000 in 2008 for the fourth straight year.

"Pollution from dirty storm-water runoff and sewage overflows continues to make its way to our beaches," said Nancy Stoner, a water analyst with the environmental group. "From contracting the flu or pink eye to jeopardizing millions of jobs and billions of dollars that rely on clean coasts, there are serious costs to inaction." ...

A third list in the report uses a five-star rating system to assess 200 popular beaches across the country. ...

In North Carolina ... seven of 10 rated beaches get four stars, and none receive fewer than two. ...

This 'Vale of Humility'

With all due respect to our neighbors to the north and south of us, one of my favorite quotes about North Carolina is this one, that our fair state is "A vale of humility between two mountains of conceit."

This quote has been attributed to Civil War-era Gov. Zebulon Vance as well as Alexander Hamilton and John Andrew Rice; however, sources also think it goes back further. (It's also the name of a literary compilation that explores the "lives of plain folk in contemporary North Carolina fiction.")

The meaning of the quote, in this instance, at least, is that -- particularly "back in the day" -- poor old North Carolina was sandwiched between the plantation aristocracy of South Carolina to the south and the "Birthplace of Presidents" (and the most powerful of the young states) Virginia to the north -- the two "mountains of conceit," so to speak.

But in 21st Century North Carolina, does this quote still have meaning?

Charlotte Observer political expert Jack Betts pondered this last year. Wrote Betts:

It's worth remembering that North Carolina until fairly recently was regarded as a poor state, especially in comparison to wealthier plantation-culture states to our north and south. North Carolina was in such a somnolent state at one point that it was derided as "The Rip Van Winkle State" before it began making serious improvements that would boost its fortunes. The prosperity that came in the latter half of the 20th century came as a result of significant investments in higher education, the Research Triangle and a great many other areas.

As to whether the state is still a vale of humility, I dunno. We were often said to be mighty proud of not being proud, but in the modern era I think humility has taken a back seat.

I expect if Winston Churchill were around, he might say, as he did in another context, that North Carolina has much to be humble about.

So what do you think? Does modern North Carolina enjoy or even suffer from any since of humility? Have we, as a state, read our own press clippings and drank the proverbial Kool-Aid about how great we are? Or should we just enjoy this time in the spotlight -- because you don't know how fleeting it can be.

(Monticello image from howstuffworks.com; Charleston image from Dannonline.com; Rip Van Winkle from Elfwood.com)

The South is phat, er fat

Here's a top 10 list that North Carolina doesn't make.

And that's a good thing.

Unfortunately, many of our Southern neighbors have wound up on the list of the most obese states in the Union.

"The South tips the scales again as the nation's fattest region, according to a new government survey," says the AP.

"More than 30 percent of adults in each of the states tipped the scales enough to ensure that the South remains the nation's fattest region.

"Colorado was the least obese, with about 19 percent fitting that category in a random telephone survey last year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"The 2007 findings are similar to results from the same survey the three previous years. Mississippi has had the highest obesity rate every year since 2004. But Alabama, Tennessee, West Virginia and Louisiana have also clustered near the top of the list, often so close that the difference between their rates and Mississippi's may not be statistically significant. ..."

These are the 10 states with the highest levels of adult obesity, according to a 2007 survey by the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention.
1. Mississippi, 32.0 percent
2. Alabama, 30.3
3. Tennessee, 30.1
4. Louisiana, 29.8
5. West Virginia, 29.5
6. Arkansas, 28.7
7. South Carolina, 28.4
8. Georgia, 28.2
9. Oklahoma, 28.1
10. Texas, 28.1

The article goes on to suggest fat-heavy and fried foods (you think?) may have something to do with it, in addition to the South having a "large concentration of rural residents and black women -- two groups that tend to have higher obesity rates."

North Carolina has its share of fatty, fried foods as well, no doubt. It's interesting that Virginia and North Carolina are not on the top 10 list. (Haven't seen the whole list; we could be No. 11 for all I know.) But perhaps a slightly higher-educated population, along with a migration to urban, metro areas may play into North Carolina not winding up on this top 10 list?

'When I think of N.C., I think of ...'

With all due respect to my Sandlapper friends, I must concede one thing: As a North Carolinian, I almost never find myself feeling jealous of South Carolina -- save for the fact that Charleston is perhaps my favorite U.S. city and, I have to admit, I really do like Hootie & the Blowfish. (And, of course, our neighbors to the south are among the nicest anywhere. So there.)

Having said that, I do have to give credit where credit is due. And in this instance, I'm jealous of the fact that South Carolina has produced one of the most iconic symbols anywhere in the world. I'm talking, naturally, about the S.C. flag. And more importantly, I'm referring to the palmetto tree and crescent that adorns the flag.

Simply put, it's a very cool symbol. You see it everywhere, even here in the Old North State. I imagine it's for three reasons that it's so popular: 1) People really love South Carolina; 2) It's just a really neat, unique symbol; and 3) it's become a defacto symbol of the South (not unlike the Bonnie Blue). I may be wrong about that last one, but that's the feeling I get, at least.

So, I'm jealous. Jealous that South Carolina has such a cool symbol. It looks good on hats, shirts, belts, stickers, etc. Our grand state doesn't quite have anything like that.

But could it?

S.C.'s symbol has reached a status not unlike "I (HEART) NY" or the slogan, "What happens in Las Vegas, stays in Las Vegas." I'm not saying that N.C. can approach those. But it's worth a discussion.

Here are some potential options:
-The flag: North Carolina's flag is not as unique as S.C.'s or even Maryland's, but it's a ready-made symbol. One proposal would be to use the the star with the N on the left and the C on the right, as opposed to the whole flag. But stars as symbols are kinda overdone. (Go Cowboys!)

(By the way, did you know there was an official salute to the state flag? It's kinda new: "I salute the flag of North Carolina and pledge to the Old North State love, loyalty, and faith.")

-State symbols: Nothing really stands out here, save for the Cardinal (boring, in my opinion) or the Pine tree. But S.C. has the tree symbol monopoly.

Folks could use the Carolina Tartan more -- but that's available, I believe, to both Carolinas.

I think Ohio would be even more upset if we tauted the whole "First in Flight" that much more.

Any other state symbol ideas? The Venus Fly Trap? The Plott Hound? The Emerald? All cool things, but, again, I think they would be hard to translate to non-North Carolinians.

-One "dark horse" suggestion: The pig. While we may disagree on what kind of barbecue we prefer, we can all agree that N.C. BBQ is better than anywhere else in the world.

Do you have an idea for what could be the absolute best symbol for the state of North Carolina? The winning choice will receive some N.C.-related prize.

(Oh, and as a Wolfpacker, I refuse to accept a tar heel as a widely-used symbol for ALL of North Carolina.)

(S.C. flag courtesy of Wikipedia.)