You are probably wondering where in the world this post came from, so here goes. I was reading several of the Kentucky blogs I follow. They mentioned an article by Pat Forde talking about Coach call-in shows and a reference he made to UK. You can read the article here. Here is what he said about UK.
Not surprisingly, given the over-the-top ardor of its fans, Kentucky has a history of sanity-challenging call-in shows. Tubby Smith (8) probably deserves some kind of humanitarian award for 10 years of enduring them. Tubby isn't a gifted orator -- he starts and stops and hems and haws and will employ the confusing thematic jump-switch in mid-sentence -- but he was a true diplomat during his days in the Bluegrass.
A lot of the calls to Tubby went like this:
"Coach Smith? This is Orville from Monkey's Eyebrow (9)*. I just want to know what it's going to take for us to play more up-tempo, like we used to, and when you're going to put Josh Carrier in the starting lineup. He's a Kentucky boy and I think he deserves a shot."
Translation: When are you going to resign?
Tubby's response: "Well, Orville, you certainly bring up some good points. We'll have to take a look at that."
Translation: You have absolutely no clue. Fifty-five minutes until we're off the air.
*Monkey's Eyebrow is a real town in Kentucky.
Of course, I had to respond..
stuartyancy (1/28/2011 at 6:54 AM)Mr. Forde, I seriously doubt you've ever been to Monkey's Eyebrow. I live in the same county - Ballard so here is some info for you.
I can't vouch for Orville, but I can tell you a little more about Monkey's Eyebrow (since I live in the same county - Ballard).
It's just a wide spot in the road. It's not an incorporated city, it doesn't even have a post office. It's claim to fame it is the location of the TV tower for the local NBC affliate WPSD-TV. I'll tell you I'm a bit skeptical that you heard an actual caller say "he's from Monkey's Eyebrow".
We love the Wildcats in Ballard County just like the rest of the state. We've always especially pulled for Kentucky kids who play for UK. Often, they turn down scholarships at other schools where they could start to just be a member of the UK team. As Adolph Rupp once said "When a baby is born in Kentucky, the parent's first wish is for him to be President like the Kentucky born Abraham Lincoln. The second is that he can play for the University of Kentucky Wildcats".
So, I decided I'd go to Monkeys Eyebrow. I haven't been there in years and years. When I mentioned my plan, Jonathan enthuiastically agreed to go with me. I knew the WPSD TV tower(our local NBC affiliate) was there, so I traced out directions to that.
We went through Bandana to get there. About 20 years ago, I had a "Twilight Zone" moment in Bandana. The congregation I was a member of then (Heath church of Christ) was part of a nationwide evangelistic effort called "One Nation Under God". For four straight weekends, we knocked doors in Western McCracken County and Ballard County. The last place we had to canvass was Bandana. Larry Davis, Keith Anderson and I set out to do that on a Sunday afternoon. We finished and headed out of town (or so we thought). After driving a few miles, we saw a green sign saying we were approaching another small town. Imagine my surprise when it said "Bandana"!. We left again and followed another road. We drove a while (making several turns) and were overjoyed to see another green sign. It said "Bandana". We tried following the sun and moss on the trees and every other sign we could think of and ended up back in Bandana again. Finally I said "Let's go against every logic we can think of and go that way". After several turns, I saw another green sign that said "Ingleside". We were relieved. I made sure I brought a GPS on this trip, just to be safe.
We got to the TV tower with little trouble. You could see it from miles away. We pulled up to its gate and all it had was a block letter sign saying "WPSD" with a phone number and FCC license number. I expected a bigger sign with at least a colorful station logo and "News Channel 6". If it weren't for the tower, the whole place looked non-descript. We drove down Monkeys Eyebrow road. We drove along the outskirts of the Ballard Wildlife Management Area seeing numerous ducks. I'd hoped to see something anyhing with "Monkeys Eyebrow" on it. My understand is the state gave up years ago putting up signs only to have them stolen every time. Finally, I remembered a web site about the area I'd seen. It had a sign in it with the name on it. I called Donna who gave me the address. It's the picture you saw above.
I loaded up the GPS and plotted our course home. Jonathan said "Oh, I know a much better way back to Kevil". I started having Bandana flashbacks. But true to his word, he got us right back. I should have taken him on that trip 20 years ago. He was only one and a half though.
Why is it called Monkeys Eyebrow? I've found several explanations. They range from the brush on hills around the area looking like a "monkey's eyebrow" to the fact that on a county map, the area looks like the eyebrow of a monkey to "this place is only fit for a bunch of monkeys".
Mr Forde, my guess is a Northeastern guy like yourself can't possibly understand the charm and tradition of places like Monkeys Eyebrow, Woodville, Boaz, Freemont, Hardmoney and my namesake Hendron. But we Kentuckians love those places and cherish them in our minds and hearts just like we do our Kentucky Wildcat basketball.
If you want more info about Monkey's Eyebrow, check out this excellent website
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