There's a big difference here, y'all

It's becoming one of the great mysteries of life. Why are we here? What is the meaning of life? What is the difference between a hick and a hillbilly?The last question has stirred some debate in The Press-Tribune offices in recent weeks as I've tried to educate my non-hillbilly coworkers there is indeed a difference between the two.I have no qualms about calling myself a hillbilly. I take great pride in the moniker. I come from a long line of people who were born and raised in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia.I don't mind a bit when people poke fun at me for using terms and phrases like "y'all" and "He's as dumb as a box of hair."I've been referred to as a ridge-runner and a bushwhacker. Those of us from south of the Mason-Dixon Line have been dubbed as bubbas and rednecks. That's just fine.But I do take offense to being called a hick. Big offense.A hick is someone who is gullible or unsophisticated. A hillbilly is someone who comes from the backwoods or a remote mountain area. They are not the same thing, and not interchangeable in my mind. Not all hicks are hillbillies, and not all hillbillies are hicks, though sometimes the twain shall meet.Now I may have kin who don't wear shoes unless it's a life-or-death situation, but at least we all know not to wear tennis shoes with a dressy outfit to a wedding.I do not consider myself unsophisticated. I graduated from college, have a fairly extensive vocabulary and possess at least my share of grace, poise and social skills.I lay the blame for the confusion squarely on the shoulders of Hollywood moguls. Movies and TV shows consistently portray hillbillies as uneducated, impoverished, toothless, shoeless, unstylish, inbred, etc.It's a cross we have learned to bear, but that doesn't mean we are happy with it. The Beverly Hillbillies, Ma and Pa Kettle and the cast of "The Andy Griffith Show" are popular and amusing, but not always true depictions of hillbillies. If ignorance is funny and makes for great TV, then I know some people in Washington, D.C., who should have their own reality shows come this spring.So the next time you hear someone refer to a hillbilly as a hick, please help to set the record straight.Who knows, maybe we will appoint you an honorary hillbilly.That is, as long as we don't find out you're a hick.- Sherri L. Shaulis is a reporter for The Press-Tribune. She can be reached at sherris@goldcountrymedia.com.