Simply Southern

We’ve been blessed to have lived in many places all over the United States.  That is just one of the many gifts that the United States Army has given to our family.  With all the travels, and all of the moves,  there has never been a place more beautiful than the home of my heart.  Beautiful is the sun coming up slowly on top of Pine Mountain.  Beautiful is driving into Atlanta just as night is getting ready to fall, and seeing all of the lights of that historic city. Beautiful is pulling into my parents driveway after being gone for far too long.  To me, home is much more than a place.  It is the people that we love, and the people that love us.  I have been truly blessed to live a life filled with people that I love, and people that love me. Some live in far off places, but most are right here in Georgia just off of I-85 South~  It’s simple.  It’s Southern.  It’s home.

        Southern women appreciate their natural assets:
Clean skin.
A winning smile.
An elegant walk.
That unforgettable Southern drawl.

Southern women know their manners:
"Yes, ma' am."
"Yes, sir."
"Why, no, Billy!"
"Thank you kindly."
"You're quite welcome."

Southern women have a distinct way with fond expressions :
"Y'all come back!"
"Well, bless your heart."
"Drop by when you can."
"How's your Momma?"


Southern women know their summer weather report:
Humidity
Humidity
Humidity

Southern women know their vacation spots:
The beach
The rivah
The crick

Southern women know the joys of June, July, and August:
Colorful hi-heel sandals
Strapless sun dresses
Iced sweet tea with mint
Broad-rimmed hats to protect their fair skin.

Southern women know everybody's first and last name:
Honey
Darlin'
Shugah

Southern women know the movies that speak to their hearts:
Birth of A Nation
Gone With The Wind
The Li'l Colonel (Shirley Temple)
The Littlest Rebel (Shirley Temple)

Southern women know their religions:
Baptist
Methodist
Football
NASCAR

Southern women know their country breakfasts:
Red-eye gravy
Hominy Grits
Eggs
Country ham
Mouth-watering homemade biscuits
Momma's homemade jelly

Southern women know their cities dripping with Southern charm:
Chawl'stn
S'vanah
Foat Wuth
N'awlins
Addlanna

Southern women know their elegant gentlemen:
Men in uniform.
Men in tuxedos
Rhett Butler

Southern girls know their prime real estate:
The Mall
The Country Club
The Beauty Salon

Southern girls know the 3 deadly sins:
Having bad hair and nails
Having bad manners
Cooking bad food


More Suthen-ism's:
Only a Southerner knows the difference between a hissie fit and a conniption fit,
and that you don't "HAVE" them, you "PITCH" them.
_____

Only a Southerner knows how many fish, collard greens, turnip greens, peas, beans,
etc., make up "a mess."
_____

Only a Southerner can show or point out to you the general direction of "yonder."
_____

Only a Southerner knows exactly how long "directly" is,
... as in: "Going to town, back directly."
_____

Even Southern babies know that "Gimme some shugah" is not a request for the white,
granular sweet substance that sits in a pretty little bowl in the middle of the
table.
_____

All Southerners know exactly when "by and by" is.
They might not use the term, but they know the concept well.
_____

Only a Southerner knows instinctively that the best gesture of solace for a neighbor
who's got trouble is a plate of hot fried chicken and a big bowl of cold potato
salad. If the neighbor's trouble is a real crisis, they also know to add a large
banana puddin!
_____

Only Southerners grow up knowing the difference between "right near" and "a right
fer piece."
They also know that "just down the road" can be 1 mile or 20.
_____



A Southerner knows that "fixin" can be used as a noun, a verb, or an adverb.
_____

Only Southerners make friends while standing in lines,
... and when we're "in line," we talk to everybody!_____

Put 100 Southerners in a room and half of them
will discover they're related, even if only by marriage.
_____

In the South, y'all is singular, all y'all is plural.
_____

Southerners know grits come from corn and how to  eat them.
_____

Every Southerner knows tomatoes with eggs, bacon, grits, and coffee are perfectly
wonderful; that red eye gravy is also a breakfast food; and that fried green
tomatoes are not a breakfast food.
_____

When you hear someone say,
"Well, I caught myself lookin', " you know you are in the presence of a genuine
Southerner!
_____

Only true Southerners say "sweet tea" and "sweet milk." Sweet tea indicates the need
for sugar and lots of it -
- we do not like our tea unsweetened.
"Sweet milk" means you don't want buttermilk.
_____

And a true Southerner knows you don't scream
obscenities at little old ladies who drive 30 MPH on the freeway. You just
say,"Bless her heart"... and go your own way.
_____
And for those that are not from the South but have   
lived here for a long time, all y'all need a sign to hang on y'alls front porch that
reads,
"I ain't from the South,
but I got here as fast as I could."