Living in Ohio is by no means a bad thing whatsoever. As a matter of fact, I personally think it’s a privilege to be from this crazy state. Only being a sophomore in high school, here is my list of things that I recognize as being exclusive to being from Ohio. From sports rivalries to strange pronunciations, there are simply undeniable trademarks of those who live in Ohio that you won’t always find in other states. People will be people and Ohioans will be Ohioans.  That’s just how life goes.

1) “O-H” essentially demands an immediate “I-O” reply.

2) “Ohio” is actually spelled best with arms rather than an individual’s voice or handwriting.

3) We can’t seem to agree on the way that “wash” is pronounced. Sometimes there’s an “r.” Sometimes there isn’t.

4) Street construction is a way of life that we don’t seem to know how to function without.

5)  You see more orange barrels than cars on the street. Not to mention potholes as well.

6) Snowfall isn’t rare but snow days are rare… though that never seems to stop everyone from rushing to the nearest grocery store or Walmart to purchase all the milk and bread. (You’d think by now snow wouldn’t scare us…You’d think.)

7) We usually give directions based on a location’s proximity to a major city and we give them in time increments, not miles. “It’s an hour outside of Cleveland” will be the sort of answers you get from us and you really can’t expect anything else.

8) Four designated seasons are a whimsical. In reality, we know that any one of them can occur at any given moment because Mother Nature knows no boundaries in Ohio.

9) You are 100 percent convinced that you don’t have an accent.

10) Flea markets are awesome.

11) Carbonated beverages are “pop” because “soda” is an old-fashioned term only used to describe fancy pop with ice cream or something in it. Right?

12) When someone refers to Athens or Oxford you don’t necessarily consider Europe right away.

13) Even if you don’t like sports you really understand the differences between universities such as Ohio University and Ohio State University (and Michigan University and Michigan State University)  because during football season it is essentially a matter of life and death and the last thing you’re going to do is risk looking stupid in front of your fellow fans.

14) You know the reality of the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry that can tear family and friends apart and it’s perfectly acceptable.

15) While driving (anywhere in the world really) your eyes scan surrounding woods and the road ahead for deer.

16) Summer days without humidity are incomprehensible.

17) Buffalo Wild Wings is “B-Dubs.” Period. Don’t ask for an explanation. That’s just the way it is.

18) Stores such as Meijer, Kroger and JC Penney are referred to in possessive form. It’s “Meijer’s,” “Kroger’s” and “JC Penney’s” here and we don’t care if that’s wrong because it just feels right to us.

19) You’re still trying to convince visitors (and haters) that the Cuyahoga River is no longer flammable.

20) You’re still trying to convince yourself that Ohio really is the best state ever in spite of its craziness.

21) You know what the GCL is.

22) No matter how hard you try, the Bengals or Reds will never win a world championship.

If you don’t realize by now, Ohio is a very “different” state, and what’s ironic about it all, is that we take pride in that. Ohio will always be the state that is doing something different because that’s what we do best. “O-H”… “I-O”.