Happy birthday, Ashley Judd!

Happy birthday to one of Kentucky's most famous fans, Ashley Judd. In a time when Kentucky basketball is on trend with celebrities, it's always good to take time to honor the fans that were there for the Cats when things weren't so rosy (remember her stubbornly cheering from the middle of the UNC student section in 2008 despite a double-digit deficit?). Things are going pretty well for Ashley these days. She's starring in a successful network TV show, and recently garnered praise for lashing back at the media for their criticism of her "puffy face," which they blamed on a plastic surgery mishap, but she says was due to an adverse reaction to sinus medication. I won't rave on and on about this here as I have done with my friends, but Ashley's diatribe against the image-driven media was incredibly refreshing and long-overdue by someone of her stature. In a society full of insecure girls tortured by almost-impossible standards seen in magazines, TV shows and films, Judd has started the conversation about the media's unfair objectification of women. For that, "you go, girl." All of that aside, Judd is a great ambassador for the Big Blue Nation. She attended a ton of games this season, and during her press tour for "Missing," proudly sported her UK blue on several network talk shows. On Anderson Cooper's daytime show, she even sang along to the UK fight song, and not surprisingly, knew every word. Some may find her love for the players a bit much (especially Terrence Jones, whose phone she accidentally snagged after a home game a few months ago), but I believe her love for the team is genuine. Every time I find myself rolling my eyes at some of her tweets, I think back to the story of her on a cold movie set, in which an extra offered her a UNC jacket, to which she responded "I'd just as soon freeze to death." Rock on, Ashley. Happy birthday.