A few of the things I’ll take away from my trip to Huntington, WV:

- West Virginia is not the cracked-out slum I thought it was. It’s actually quite nice.

- That being said, you don’t want to drink whatever is in the water. Years ago, they noticed that one of the rivers wasn’t icing over in the winter. The reason? Chemicals from a nearby factory had spilled into it. The result? Antifreeze.

- You can’t go wrong with a Taco Dog. You can, however, go very wrong with a Home Wrecker.

- Even if it’s 20º outside, it’s never too cold to play football in the snow.

- If it’s 0º outside, it’s probably too cold to go skiing.

- The bowling alley is a breeding ground for unusual characters.

- Huntington knows food.

- Small towns are the very best.

I leave tomorrow for Houston. More thoughts to come.