I thought I'd get in the mood tonight with a Delaware-inspired film festival. So, imagine my surprise upon a quick Googling to find out that virtually NO movies are set in the First State.
Except Fight Club.
Hmm. While Chuck Palahniuk's debut is engrossing -- and educational -- a secret, after-hours, underground boxing club where aggressive soap salesmen beat the piss out of each other isn't exactly the blueprint I had in mind for our weekend. Jodi, on the other hand... well, let's just say you don't want to run into HER in a dark alley.
I kid! Mostly.
So instead, I ate a Purdue chicken, which I charged to my Chase Visa. I washed it down with some Newcastle Brown Ale, only to find out a) I do not like brown ale, and b) it's from someplace in the UK, NOT New Castle, DE, so a FAIL on both counts. I then popped some Nexium (the little purple pill from AstraZeneca) to combat my stomach upset.
Why? Because all these companies are located in DE! Except for the Newcastle.
Jerks.
Anyway, let's learn what makes Delaware so swell:
- It was the first state to ratify the US constitution, hence the nickname
- The Blue Hen Chicken is the official state bird. They are known for their fighting abilities. The Lady Bug is the official state insect -- not particularly known for their aggression, but quite well-known as a popular Halloween costume for little girls.
- The Mason-Dixon Line forms the state's western border
- University of Delaware's main campus is located in New-ARK. New-ERK is in my beloved New Jersey. They are spelled the same, but said differently.
- It is the only state without any national parks, seashores, historic sites, battlefields, memorials, or monuments
- Delaware is the only state in the US without commercial air service
- There are no network broadcast television stations operating solely in the state
- The 1st time the famous flag sewn by Betsy Ross (Jodi's great, great, great, great, great, great maybe grandma) was flown was over DE's Battle of Cooch's Bridge. Horrible name for a bridge, and a battle.
- In 1880, the 1st US beauty contest was held in Rehoboth Beach. Thomas Edison (?!?) was 1 of the 3 judges in this contest, called "Miss United States," which is considered to be the forerunner to the Miss America pageant.
- Du Pont Laboratories first produced nylon at its plant in Seaford, which now has the distinction of being the Nylon Capital of the World
- Due to its favorable laws, over 50% of US publicly traded corporations and 60% of the Fortune 500 are incorporated in DE
- It is 1 of only 5 states having no sales tax. The others are: Alaska, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon.
- Horseshoe crabs are everywhere in May. They can go for a year without eating and have remained basically the same since the days of the dinosaur.
- Locals enjoy eating "scrapple," also called, "everything but the oink." The dish is made from cornmeal mixed with pig heart, liver, face, snout, ear, tail, and other parts too disgusting to be knowingly eaten.
- The state is home to Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), which hosts the annual Tournament of Death
- The giant frying pan built in 1950 for the Delmarva Chicken Festival is 10 feet in diameter, holds 180 gallons of oil, and up to 800 chickens
- The weekend after Halloween, Sussex County hosts their annual Punkin Chunkin, where pumpkins are fired from catapults, cannons, slingshots, and various other medieval devices
So, to sum up, really good thing we're taking Amtrak cause you can't fly there, it's probably still a smart idea to start a corporation, and we should unequivocally avoid the consumption of "scrapple." I love my bacon and all, but that's just nasty.
Oh and we do NOT plan to throw down while we're in town. Or... do we? After all, the first rule about Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club.
Know anything we must do in Wilmington that won't leave a mark? Share it below!
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