20 Things I Miss About The South

I miss the south.  Dearly.  Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love the central coast region of California, and Michigan wasn't so bad either.

Maybe this recent “south-sickness” is a result of my trip to Florida two weeks ago.  Or perhaps because I just made shrimp ‘n grits for dinner accompanied by a nice, tall glass of sweet tea and I am now sipping on muscadine wine while listening to bluegrass music (y'all, that is about as southern as a gal can be out here in SLO!).  Or it could be because I’m making banana puddin’ for dessert for a beach cookout tomorrow.  

Whatever the reason for this recent withdrawal, and even though I haven’t lived in the south for a few years, it still completely has my heart.

Here are 20 things that I love/miss about the south:

1.  Fireflies on a warm summer night (there aren’t any out here!?)

2.  Banana puddin’ milkshakes from Chick-fil-a .  Please note that I am completely aware that there are 1,010 calories and 31g of fat in one of these bad boys…..and they are totally worth it!  I treat myself to one once every year (and then am sick to my stomach for about a day and half…ha), and I got pretty stoked about having one whilst in FL.  Unfortunately, I forgot about it until Sunday….and they are closed….why does that always happen!?!?

3.   Southern accents.  I hear “hey bra” (like “hey bro” in surfer language) and “dude” when I would prefer to hear “y’all.”  I hear “that bites” instead of “bless your heart.”  Californians tend to say “stoked” when they are excited about something.  If someone said “I’m happier ‘n a new puppy with two peters” instead, I’d be overcome with joy.  Also, on a side note, Californian’s say “the” in front of every interstate when giving directions and I find that remarkably annoying (example: take the 101 N until you hit the 5).

4.   Hudson Belk.

5.  Watching ACC sports on TV.  I have had to watch almost every single ACC game over the past 3 years on my computer because my cheap cable package doesn't have extra channels and local channels don’t play them.   MI wasn't so bad (at least Big 10 stuff was on), but I swear if I flip the channel to find one more Laker’s game on, I’m gonna lose it.

6.  Cook-Out and Bojangle’s.  Filet biscuit combo, french fries, iced tea please!

7.  Gumball trees.  I’m oddly nostalgic about these, and I’m unsure why.

8.  Sweet tea that is made by someone other than myself.

9.  The North Carolina State Fair.

10.   Chivalry.  OK, CA guys aren't too bad about this actually, but for those “gentlemen” in MI, as a general rule y’all need to take some notes on how to open a freaking door for a girl.  (The previous statement does not apply to my boyfriend, who is an excellent door-opener J ).

11.  The Blue Ridge Mountains.  MI was flat as a pancake (thanks a lot, glaciers!), and the Sierras are pretty sweet, but nothing beats the good ‘ol Blue Ridge mts.  I absolutely LOVED watching the Hunger Games and feeling like I was in western NC (which,technically, I was).

Photo credit to the amazingly talented Nick Sikorski

12.  The Atlantic Ocean and sand dunes.  The Pacific is awesome, and the waves are killer for surfing out here, and the rocks and cliffs are beautiful, but would it be so terrible if the water could be like TEN DEGREES WARMER so I didn't have to get into a wetsuit every single time I wanted to even stick my toe in it??

13.   Small town activities.  Like watching high school football on Friday night, even if you don’t have a kid that plays.  And classic southern 4^th of July celebrations on old school town lawns in front of some classic southern style home with white columns.  My small town activity here consists of a farmer’s market that attracts 44,000 people every week.  I love it, but it’s not exactly “quaint."

14.   Magnolia trees.

15.  Old southern men.  The cute "grandpa" type, not the creepy ones who hit on you awkwardly at the waterfront in Beaufort.

16.  Cheerwine.

17.  The smell of rain when a summer storm approaches (1.  It doesn't rain here.  2.  I think most of these people have never heard thunder before in their lives).

18.  Old civil war era architecture and buildings with big front porches.

19.  Concerts at Walnut Creek.

 20.  Beaufort, NC.

There are, however, a few things that I do not miss in the slightest, including humidity, mosquitos, and Duke fans.  But if you are from the south, let this serve as a reminder of how awesome you have it.  

Miss all ya'll who are down there!  Somebody eat some bbq and fry up some okra in my honor!

AP

Food for thought:

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