Possumblog

International STATE Visitor Day!

OH, I tried. Tried to give all the worldly visitors who happen upon Possumblog a chance to be honored and lauded and praised--first the Brits, then the Franks, then the Canucks. But would anyone say hello? NOOOOOOO! SO, as promised, the International Visitor Day feature is now officially STRICKEN from the list of things about which we will spend time.

IN ITS PLACE, as suggested by the lovely and fecund Jordana Adams, will be U.S. State Visitor Day! Hooray for America! I asked Jordana how she thought I should pick which state should be first to be honored--date of admission to the Union, size, weight? She suggested alphabetical, which seems quite straightforward, so to kick things off, we begin our salute with the great state of

MONTANA!

I've never been to Montana, but I've always like the idea of it. Montana, that is. I'm not sure how many visitors we receive each day from this grand state, but if you are one of them, please be sure to stop and leave a comment below so we can properly salute you and your fine state.

Now, for the rest of us, a bit of information about Montana.

The name of the state, Montana is French, and means "My Tana." The meaning of the word tana is losts to the mists of time.

The flag of Montana is designed to look like a porthole, which is the first view that was seen of it when Columbus discovered it by looking out the window of his boat.

Montana has a population of 452,715 females, and every single one of them can kick your butt.

Famous Montanavians include Gary Cooper, Chet Huntley, Evel Knievel, and Myrna Loy.

Fields of grain cover much of Montana's plains. It ranks high among the states in wheat and barley, with rye, oats, flaxseed, sugar beets, and potatoes as other important crops. Sheep and cattle raising make significant contributions to the economy.

If Montana invaded Canada, Montana would win, but it has never done it because it would mean having to figure out something to do with Quebec.

The state motto of Montana is Oro y Plata, derived from Montanarians favorite snack food, a plate full of Oreos.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Montana is 117 degrees, set on July 5, 1937 at Medicine Lake. The lowest recorded temperature is –70 degrees, set on January 20, 1954 at Rogers Pass, which is, let's be honest, just ridiculous.

There are several universities in Montana, notably the eponymous University of Montana.

Montana truly is a marvelous state, and so we salute you and again, if you are a visitor to Possumblog from Montana, spend a minute or two to let us know a bit about you.

Posted by Terry Oglesby at May 8, 2006 11:19 AM