V ings andimajor—ngaik‘et‘a;h1et.il¢[ -7.‘.l*9ugh." I was born a!'1élvr=iis:¢d.iIi. e y p E ‘That’s all well and good,” a former col- league opined, in a meeting to consider a quirky new commercial campaign. “But will it play with the fly-over people?” The so-called fly-over people are, literally, flown over by airplanes jetting from one cultural capital to the other. They’ve been the focus of much discussion and derision among the pseudo-sophis- ticated, creative movers and shak- ‘ ers on the East and West coasts. Those urbane types have little appreciation for anyone who does- n’t live in either New York or Los v Angeles — with occasional excep- » tions made for residents of San » Francisco and Chicago. The fly- over folks, it’s bel-i_e,‘v_ed, are merely pitiful pawnswhosereason for ' cxistenceis to buy the things the product pushers and show business pimps are selling. , V I have been among the . We’ife"i'fIade friends ' where you’d expect that , an interracial homosexual couple would get more , ‘ glaring than caring. ' l "Y-¢Yeri5sopl7¢.i ’ .":' Mani“ .- avi- a three-week, epic Vrn torcylcl adventure..We’ve_trai/eled m,ore.__ ‘ _" ’ V than 5,000 miles, crisscrossing _ .tw_elv_e states. Whiljé our -itinerary _ included stops in major metropoli- 3 tan affilasl-ilge‘V(3hicago_and ~ ' 0 V: _ -Minneapolis, we?vV_e-'spent_far more _ V 0 1im§in‘smaller cities and rural‘ V f I 'are_as.; ~ v , i For ’mostbf;my adult life, I've lived iii'big’cities. I value the"_ dynamic energy and ready ‘avaiIi~ ~ 3 ability of cosmopolitan'aits: offer . . I’m_an u}ban.imrnig[;a;it Smallgtowh _but“neve‘r appreciated . the folksy lifestyle or slurr'1l$V5<=V’i’ring"v‘ _ V pace. I couldn’t wait» to n_1ove't__o theig big city where I felt a sense *ortme= 1, . . , _ _ V . V - sfipreme‘Coult knocked down thfi ; I Texas sodomy "law, it made the belonging. Ilimmediately bought ‘ into the superior, center-of-the- world mind-set. On my calendar, I referenced trips back to my home- town as visits to .‘,‘the provinces.” In no time, I was dripping with the same uppity, condescend- ing, cultural superiority as my friends" ' d_ collea‘gues.'...i was a V 4 s'nobVV_ V,m”Vong snobs. ’ g; _ I .Then, I’d spend-a day with my dear friend‘, Susan, at her home in a lovely rural‘ area. We’d . sit on the upstairs porch sip iced cofiee and chat for hours. ‘ " I We’d enjoy excel- lent meals at local . restaurants and ’ ' take drives through the beauti- Vful countryside. Granted, much of the credit for V ‘the glioriousness of ‘ .’,t1ios_e days can be ‘ attributedgto the fa\ct that Susan" and ._._V;a»_ ‘ matter where __ or what-Welre doing". But I denysthe power of the peace- Lexington, N§bT,:a_i5.l_:(a-I V ' ,1 have-_lf_u,n"t.oget,her V local morning paper but was far less important than a story and photo about a record-setting piece of hail. A radio show we happened to catch focused on the ruling but more than one local Nebraska caller denounced the hate-monger- ing host and provided perspectives that were articulate and compas- sionate. Hail that! I- lost my glasses some- where in Colorado. The first chance we had to get a replacement pair was in Des Moines, Iowa. The Lenscrafters at a suburban mall turned out to be the source for much more than new frames and lenses. Julie, the retail manager, and Ibonded like old friends. We were laughing and exchanging life stories in a matter of minutes. In 0 addition to a marvelous new pair of glasses, the married and pregnant Julie recommended a gay dance club for our evening’s entertain- ment. When she and her co-work- ers want‘ a fun night out, they head to the gay disco because “they have the best and we can just dance and have a great time without being hit on.” ~ A We’ve been warmly wel- comed in places that are usually assumed to be bastions of anti-gay acrimony. We’ve made friends _ where it’s expected that_an interra- . cial homosexual couple would get .more.g'laring than caring. _ Visiting gay rneccas and , exciting cities can be fun, but don’t V pass up‘ a chance to see parts ofthe ~ country; where there are wonderful- peoplewhose minds and hearts are ' moreopen than we ofien assume. 0‘ .. Don’t make condescending-corn-. ‘ . Vparisons~ between your own little V _world and placeswhere the corn" grows,‘ straight but not all the peo- Viple do: ; .. . ‘_ “Play with the fly-over 7 people; It’s all wellland good. V "H .)..i-Seoit-Bushklwlorlt appears A" _ lrfrrgughoitt Ihe country. VE-_rrrai_I,'in_a_VVy_ . _ V ' - 'b_‘eV di‘_re‘eteVd to NakeriCuriosity. com. Colorado We’velearned";f .7 I - ' Nancy Ellen Brownsword, MA _ I Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor COUNSELING AND PSYCHOTHERAPY g8o2§8e3.2o84 2 CHURCH ST|iEET, BURLIVNG-TVON VT 05401 mans | ADULTS | INDWIDUALS I COUPLES RVMPX North Professionals ]ac/ez'e_Marz'no REALTOR 802-655-3377 X23 800-639-4520 X23 7 e-mail iockie@logelher.nel website: www.iocl