Let me preface this by saying, I am going against everything I have EVER been taught by "becoming southern." It all started about 20 years ago in a little hospital in St.Louis, Missouri. I was born and raised in STL, with a few pit stops in Baltimore, MD, and now, finally Memphis, TN. This is my story. This is my transformation, HAHA.
I was perfectly content with living in STL the rest of my life. What could be better than Cardinals games, the arch, Six Flags & not to mention, my amazing family & friends... evidently my mom was not so content.
Then, one day, my mom fell in love. You see, my parents are and have been divorced for quite some time. Long story short- I hate my sperm donor of a father. Back to my mother. She fell in love with a man who lived in Memphis. SAY WHAT? If you know me, you know that I am not one to stay quiet and not speak my opinion. As soon as she even mentioned moving to the freakin', stinkin' SOUTH, I went off... so much to the point I refused to even walk to the car, I had to be dragged out. So, we eventually did end up moving to Memphis in the middle of my 6th grade year. Buddy, was I in for the shock of my life...
Shadowlawn Middle School. Boy, was I dealing with MAJOR culture shock. Everyone spoke with such a draw, it was hard for me to understand at first. The words they used cracked me up.
* They all drink sweet tea- I hate the stuff.
* Fried chicken- GROSS.
* What the heck is "FIXIN' TO?"
* They all wear camo & boots.
* What in the world are "wallabees?"
Those are just some of the things that boggled my mind at first. I made friends fast. I caught on to the lingo pretty quick to. I started in the middle of the school year, like I said, so I had to adapt to their teaching methods. The teachers all taught really slow compared to what I was used to. I would give my reports in the front of the class & would get marks off for speaking too fast. I read really fast. These kids lived such a laid back life compared to what I was used to. And the worst part was- they all knew each other...
Bolton High School surely came fast for me. Let me begin this section of my little southern life by saying BHS is an agricultural high school. Yep, MORE culture shock. You would assume that by this time, I would be pretty knee deep into the southern ways, but to tell you the truth, I HATED it. These guys all drove HUGE redneck trucks, with rebel flags flyin'. And don't even get me started with these little girls. It was my sophomore year, 2006, when we tried out the HUNDREDTH church. Sunday came, and we sat in Easthill Baptist Church. GAG ME. These people are beyond fake, they shout and some even dance [haha] up and down the aisles. Their choir leaves much to be desired & don't even get me started about their youth group. I didn't even try to hide the fact that my mom basically did everything but pull teeth to get me to sit in the pew. I eventually settled in... this took a few years, actually. I then befriended Tiffany Keith, and then Emily Turpin & many others. I'll never forget the first night I spent the night with Tiffany. Never had I ever felt like I fit in before in the south. Her family made me feel like I fit in there. That summer, I pretty much lived at the Keith residence. Me & Tiffany became inseperable. We had kind of a falling out, and then I found Emily Turpin. I began hanging out with her, because her husband was deployed to Iraq. I knew emily before she married Michael, but we really weren't too terribly close. This time, it was like, woah, we are going to be best friends. Her family took me in And we were, and we are. Between the Turpins/Evans & the Keiths, I got PLENTY of southern education! But I still wasn't havin' it. I hated the southern culture. Mud, deer, boots, camo, fried EVERYTHING, ma'am, sir... that's not how I was raised.
The other night, me & Tiffany were riding around, and it just clicked. I have been in the south. now, the majority of my 20 years. I might as well soak up all of the southern ways that I can. I am surrounded by it, and I am going to be for AWHILE. I might as well embrace it. I know, I know, I was so stubborn to begin with, but something inside of me just feels like it wants to be southern. I still have a long way to go, but this ride should be fun. We stopped by Brittany Arnold's house, to ask if she had any southern tips for me... Boy, did I learn more than just a few tips :] Here is what I learned that lovely Sunday night in January:
I was perfectly content with living in STL the rest of my life. What could be better than Cardinals games, the arch, Six Flags & not to mention, my amazing family & friends... evidently my mom was not so content.
Then, one day, my mom fell in love. You see, my parents are and have been divorced for quite some time. Long story short- I hate my sperm donor of a father. Back to my mother. She fell in love with a man who lived in Memphis. SAY WHAT? If you know me, you know that I am not one to stay quiet and not speak my opinion. As soon as she even mentioned moving to the freakin', stinkin' SOUTH, I went off... so much to the point I refused to even walk to the car, I had to be dragged out. So, we eventually did end up moving to Memphis in the middle of my 6th grade year. Buddy, was I in for the shock of my life...
Shadowlawn Middle School. Boy, was I dealing with MAJOR culture shock. Everyone spoke with such a draw, it was hard for me to understand at first. The words they used cracked me up.
* They all drink sweet tea- I hate the stuff.
* Fried chicken- GROSS.
* What the heck is "FIXIN' TO?"
* They all wear camo & boots.
* What in the world are "wallabees?"
Those are just some of the things that boggled my mind at first. I made friends fast. I caught on to the lingo pretty quick to. I started in the middle of the school year, like I said, so I had to adapt to their teaching methods. The teachers all taught really slow compared to what I was used to. I would give my reports in the front of the class & would get marks off for speaking too fast. I read really fast. These kids lived such a laid back life compared to what I was used to. And the worst part was- they all knew each other...
Bolton High School surely came fast for me. Let me begin this section of my little southern life by saying BHS is an agricultural high school. Yep, MORE culture shock. You would assume that by this time, I would be pretty knee deep into the southern ways, but to tell you the truth, I HATED it. These guys all drove HUGE redneck trucks, with rebel flags flyin'. And don't even get me started with these little girls. It was my sophomore year, 2006, when we tried out the HUNDREDTH church. Sunday came, and we sat in Easthill Baptist Church. GAG ME. These people are beyond fake, they shout and some even dance [haha] up and down the aisles. Their choir leaves much to be desired & don't even get me started about their youth group. I didn't even try to hide the fact that my mom basically did everything but pull teeth to get me to sit in the pew. I eventually settled in... this took a few years, actually. I then befriended Tiffany Keith, and then Emily Turpin & many others. I'll never forget the first night I spent the night with Tiffany. Never had I ever felt like I fit in before in the south. Her family made me feel like I fit in there. That summer, I pretty much lived at the Keith residence. Me & Tiffany became inseperable. We had kind of a falling out, and then I found Emily Turpin. I began hanging out with her, because her husband was deployed to Iraq. I knew emily before she married Michael, but we really weren't too terribly close. This time, it was like, woah, we are going to be best friends. Her family took me in And we were, and we are. Between the Turpins/Evans & the Keiths, I got PLENTY of southern education! But I still wasn't havin' it. I hated the southern culture. Mud, deer, boots, camo, fried EVERYTHING, ma'am, sir... that's not how I was raised.
The other night, me & Tiffany were riding around, and it just clicked. I have been in the south. now, the majority of my 20 years. I might as well soak up all of the southern ways that I can. I am surrounded by it, and I am going to be for AWHILE. I might as well embrace it. I know, I know, I was so stubborn to begin with, but something inside of me just feels like it wants to be southern. I still have a long way to go, but this ride should be fun. We stopped by Brittany Arnold's house, to ask if she had any southern tips for me... Boy, did I learn more than just a few tips :] Here is what I learned that lovely Sunday night in January:
- You have to drop the "g" to any word ending with it.
- Take the "a" out of all of the days of the week.
- Britches.
- Say Ya'll & Fixin' To.
- ANALOGIES. ANALOGIES. ANALOGIES.
- How to call the hogs.. and how to call the hogs willbo-style.
- Give everybody nicknames.
- Say hey to everyone you meet.
- Yes ma'am and sir... this one is gonna be a hard one.
- I need some boots & some camo in my closet.
- We don't like dodges, HAHA.
- We only root for SEC, but more specifically: Arkansas, Tennessee & Memphis.
- We hate: BAMA. LSWHO & KENSUCKY.
- I should like sweet tea, even though that will NEVER happen :]
- Draw out all of my words.
- Don't say you guys or ma.
There is much more, but I am drawing a blank right now. I promised Tiff and BA that I would blog about this, so here it is. My story so far. We'll see how long this last, or better yet, we'll see how well this goes :]. If you had asked me 2 years ago, even 2 months ago, if this would all be happening, I would have laughed in your face. Now, I feel like I just need to embrace the southern culture. What tips would YOU give me about living in the south?
Hogs, huntin' & sweet tea wishes, B.
