When my sister and I were kids (less than 10), our folks took us to Guernsey Island. The flight had a stopover in Jersey. Somewhere along the way, we were told that Jersey cows are brown and white and Guernsey cows are black and white.

A few nights ago, a friend of mine, Art, was telling us about cows for whatever reason. At one point he mentioned that Guernsey cows are brown and white. I mentioned that Jersey cows are brown and white and Guernsey cows are black and white. Art disagreed and said that the black and white cows that I was thinking of were Holsteins.

I tried to find a non-snotty way of saying that I should know because I’ve been there. Didn’t work. I sounded snotty anyway.

When I got home I checked wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guernsey_cattle) and then I checked my hardcopy of Encyclopedia Britannica and discovered the awful truth. I’d just made an a55 of myself.

I called Art’s phone and left a message: “I just checked the Encyclopedias. You were right. I was wrong. Guernseys are brown and white, just like you said. Holsteins are black and white, just like you said.”

Now I can see a  black and white cow and confidently that it’s a Holstein just like I used to confidently say that it’s a Guernsey. There’s a message in there somewhere but I don’t want to examine it too closely.