Kentucky charges a steeper tax on wine than any other state in the country, according to the Tax Foundation’s 2026 excise tax rankings. Tennessee’s tax on that same bottle runs a fraction of it. Wine isn’t alone. Other everyday costs look different once a shopper crosses the state line too. These are the everyday costs…
Pennsylvania’s 911 centers field more than 14.5 million calls a year, according to the Commonwealth’s emergency management agency. At that volume, every word costs precious seconds. These are the details Pennsylvania 911 dispatchers need callers to say first. 1. Your Township or Borough A Pennsylvania 911 address, the term county centers use for where your…
Ask a Wyoming rancher for directions outside Pinedale, and get ready to nod like every word made sense. These are the things Wyomingites say that baffle out-of-staters who visit. 1. Rocky Mountain Oysters Ranch cooks fry up Rocky Mountain oysters every spring at branding time, and the name gives a visitor no useful information about…
Montana had nearly two cattle for every resident, according to a recent Montana Free Press analysis of the state’s cattle population. Out-of-staters hear a number like that and think they’ve already got the state figured out. They don’t. These are the things out-of-staters get wrong about Montana. Note: This is general information, not legal or…
Wisconsin has more than 250 supper clubs, and Friday is fish fry night. A newcomer who walks into one without knowing Wisconsin’s supper club customs can get that wrong fast. These are the Wisconsin fish fry rules out-of-staters break without realizing it. 1. Ordering by the Fish A fish fry isn’t ordered by asking for…
St. Louis and Kansas City rarely agree on barbecue. Don’t expect either area to settle which Missouri city does barbecue right. These are the Missouri barbecue arguments that never end. 1. Sweet Sauce or Tangy? Kansas City’s classic barbecue sauce is thick, sweet, and dark with molasses, the kind that clings to a rib and…
If you were cooking for a Texas ranch crew, you couldn’t always choose your ingredients. You could choose what to do with them, though. Ranch cooks turned that challenge into dishes people still eat, even when they no longer have to. These are the Texas ranch dishes that exist because nothing got thrown out. 1….
Spencer’s Clay County Fair wrapped up its nine-day run on September 20. Many of the foods attendees ate that week won’t turn up at an Iowa restaurant or grocery store between now and next September. These are the Iowa county fair foods that vanish the rest of the year. 1. Pigtail Sundae Clay County Fair,…
Renting a storage unit is simple: Pick a size, sign the paperwork, and start unloading. But while you’re sizing up the unit, the person behind the counter is sizing you up. These are the things Arizona storage managers judge about a renter. Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Arizona’s self-storage lien and auction…
A Baton Rouge shopper reaching for anything stamped “natural” is leaning on a word with surprisingly few rules behind it. These are the things the word “natural” doesn’t guarantee Louisianans, or anyone reaching for that same word on a label across the United States. 1. Pesticide-Free Produce Lettuce, strawberries, or a bag of green beans…
