It's that time of year again- I'm off to Louisville!

Regular readers of this blog- and those who know me personally- are already aware that every year I spend the first week of June in Louisville, Kentucky with 1200 other history teachers from all over the United States, grading Advanced Placement US History Exams within the spacious confines of the Kentucky Convention Center.

It's just about my favorite week of the year- a week I get to spend in a wonderful little city with great museums, hiking trails, and a AAA baseball team which for four straight days while I'm in town will be playing the Durham Bulls.  All this comes after 8 hours per day of grading essays, of course- but the factory whistle blows at 5 PM and then it's time to hit the town.   And when I'm ready to turn in, it's in a luxury hotel where they treat you like royalty.

Because I really, really like Louisville, I'm not going to trash this commercial too harshly.  It's kind of a cute take-off on those Viagra ads we all know and love so very much.  Louisville is so fun, with it's views of the Ohio River and the opportunity to eat dinner on a real Steamboat and the Muhammad Ali Cultural Center and the Louisville Bats Museum and an awesome fossil bed hidden right over the bridge in Indiana, you may experience "over excitement" and unfamiliar feelings of contentment and something that you used to recognize as "happiness."  In other words, being in Louisville is like having sex- I get it.  Like I said, I really enjoy my week in Louisville.  But this is overselling it just a tad.

I would like to point out one unintentionally funny part of this commercial, where the narrator suggests that potential visitors ask their doctors if their hearts are strong enough for Louisville.  Considering the staple foods I see at the convention center*-- biscuits with sausage gravy, fried chicken, chicken fried steak, etc.- this is actually a pretty good idea.  And considering that the average Louisville resident seems to be about fifty pounds overweight, it's advice not taken by the locals.

So that's as close as I'm going to come to knocking this wonderful little city.   The only reason I even used this ad for a blog post was to remind my regular readers that I'll be away for awhile, and I'm not sure if I'll be able to post until I return on June 8-- depends on the internet connection in the Computer Lab in the basement of the Convention Center.  I'll give it a shot, though.  If it doesn't work out, see you in a week!

*the first year I graded APs, I gained 4 lbs in six days.  For the past few years I've taken the Vegetarian option each meal which, along with a lot of walking and using the hotel gym, has really helped.   :>)