I know I'm not in Kansas anymore, but...

I got called Dorothy yesterday. DOROTHY. I had to go to orientation for my internship and where I'm from came up. "Kansas City," I said. Literally his follow up question was "Your name isn't Dorothy?"

Seriously, people. I swear, anytime I say I'm from Kansas City, they hear Kansas and think this:

Or this, apparently...

First of all...look at a map. Kansas City? Barely in Kansas. And there are certainly no farms in Kansas City proper.

Second of all, most of us Mid-Western folk have all of our teeth. We don't all vote Republican. We're not all farmers. We don't all have that southern draw (I know I do...a little. But it's not bad). We're not all racist or homophobic. (Disclaimer: I know there are racists and bigots in any part of the country. I'm just sayin...)

I don't have an Auntie Em. Or an Uncle Henry. And I don't go on adventures with a Scarecrow, Tin Man or Talking Lion. I do have a little dog, but Tank is way cuter than Toto. And I'd never wear sparkly shoes.

I can't even tell you how annoying it is. It's basically the same as me saying: "Oh you're from New Jersey? Why don't you have a blow out and a tan?" Why aren't you wearing leopard print and falling down?:

I know the training guy was joking around. But after a year of that, it's enough. It's old. One time during a class exercise, we were asked "If you had to flee somewhere in an hour, what would you grab?" It was implied that I would provide the guns because ya know...KANSAS.

Guns scare me. I've never shot one.

I can't wait to move home.