BS: My South

Subject: My South
From: GUEST,Ma'am
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 10:03 AM

Robert St. John, executive chef and owner of the Purple Parrot Cafe, Crescent City Grill and Mahogany Bar of Hattiesburg, MS wrote this.

Thirty years ago I visited my first cousin in Virginia. While hanging out with his friend, the discussion turned to popular movies of the day. When I offered my two-cents on the authenticity and social relevance of the movie Billy Jack, one of the boys asked, in all seriousness; "Do you guys have movie theaters down there?" To which I replied, "Yep. We wear shoes too."

Just three years ago, my wife and I were attending a food and wine seminar in Aspen, Colo. We were seated with two couples from Las Vegas. One of the Glitter Gulch gals was amused and downright rude when I described our restaurant as a fine-dining restaurant.

"Mississippi doesn't have fine-dining restaurants!" she demanded and nudged her companion.

I fought back the strong desire to mention that she lived in the land that invented the 99-cent breakfast buffet.

I wanted badly to defend my state and my restaurant with a 15-minute soliloquy and public relations rant that would surely change her mind. It was at that precise moment that I was hit with a blinding jolt of enlightenment, and in a moment of complete and absolute clarity it dawned on me -- my South is the best-kept secret in the country. Why would I try to win this woman over? She might move down here.

I am always amused by Hollywood's interpretation of the South. We are still, on occasion, depicted as a collective group of sweaty, stupid, backwards-minded and racist rednecks. The south of movies and TV, the Hollywood south, is not my south.

This is my south:

My south is full of honest, hardworking people. My south is the birthplace of blues and jazz, and rock n' roll. It has banjo pickers and fiddle players, but it also has B.B. King, Muddy Waters, the Allman Brothers, Emmylou Harris and Elvis.

My South is hot. My South smells of newly mowed grass. My South was the South of The Partridge Family, Hawaii 5-0 and kick the can.

My South was creek swimming, cane-pole fishing and bird hunting.

In my South, football is king.

My South is home to the most beautiful women on the planet.

In my South, soul food and country cooking are the same thing.

My South is full of fig preserves, cornbread, butter beans, fried chicken, grits and catfish. In my South we eat fois gras, caviar and truffles.

In my South, our transistor radios introduced us to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones at the same time they were introduced to the rest of the country.

In my South, grandmothers cook a big lunch every Sunday.

In my South, family matters, deeply.

My South is boiled shrimp, blackberry cobbler, peach ice cream, banana pudding and oatmeal cream pies.

In my South people put peanuts in bottles of Coca Cola and hot sauce on almost everything.

In my South the tea is iced and almost as sweet as the women.

My South has air-conditioning.

My South is camellias, azaleas, wisteria and hydrangeas.

In my South, the only person that has to sit on the back of the bus is the last person that got on the bus.

In my South, people still say, "yes, ma'am," "no ma'am," "please" and "thank you."

In my South, we all wear shoes.... most of the time.

My South is the best-kept secret in the country. Please continue to keep the secret.... it keeps the idiots away.

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: catspaw49
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 11:05 AM

My friend Khandu will be disappointed that I don't make some disparaging remarks here, but I am glad you have pride in where you live and the state you live in.....We all should. For every state and region in this country there is a history.......A history of the great and glorious as well as a history of the more lamentable of the past. What we can't afford to do as a region, state, or nation, is close our eyes to the dark side of the past and dwell only on the sweetness and light.

The southern U.S. has taken a beating for many years and it is an unfair beating. At one point or another, history must remain just that.....history. We need to remember it but we can't let it dictate the opinions of others who know nothing else. Stereotypical images abound, and not just of the south, but of many places. It never hurts to remind the rest of the world that things are not always the same as they once were and that the Hollywood stereotype is rarely accurate. When I joke with Khandu (a native Mississippian) on this forum he knows it is with no malice and indeed a respect and love for both himself and his state.

So Guest Ma'am......Welcome to the 'Cat. Hope you decide to join us here. And BTW, if you're around Yazoo City, see if there is a sale going on at "Big Bubba's Used Bedsheets." Nice stuff except for the holes in the pillowcases and the vague smell of kerosene......That does wash out pretty well though...........(:<))

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: mack/misophist
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 11:16 AM

One thing Ma'am left unsaid; about that banana pudding - it has to have vanilla wafers in it. Then you eat a little and put the rest back in the ice box til it starts to turn black. Oh, yeah!

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Kim C
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 11:31 AM

Yep, that's the South I've known and loved all my life. I don't have what you'd call an accent, but I do call people Sir and Ma'am; and while some will complain that it makes them "feel old," well, that's how I was brought up, thank you very much, and it don't matter how old you are, everyone is Sir and Ma'am to me.

While doing a little family research this week, I discovered that most of my ancestors have been in the Southern US for better than 350 years. Those Dutch, they came through New York and New Jersey, but they ended up in Virginia and Kentucky, where they remain to this day.

Sure, the South has its share of morons, just like every other part of the country.

And while a lot of us Down Here like to bemoan the loss of our culture, it dawned on me awhile back that it's not just us. Starbucks & McDonald's & Wal-Mart are encroaching on everyone, everywhere. I'm sure there are a lot of local traditions around the country that are in danger of being lost as every landscape seems to look alike anymore.

Spaw, remember, next time y'all are down here, it's my place for a pot of blackeyed peas, ham hocks, and homemade cornbread. :-)

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Dicho (Frank Staplin)
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 02:13 PM

Ham hocks add to any bean dish. I like them with pintos and some good red chile powder (such as Chimayo). Yep, ham hocks are universal.
Even in the old days, good food was available most places in the South. Everyone should have a good Southern cookbook (or several- for the regional variations).

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: michaelr
Date: 25 Apr 02 - 04:54 PM

Well, I lived in Georgia for 4 years, and I certainly met lots of wonderful people and enjoyed the famed Southern hospitatlity. But I also sensed a permanent undercurrent of menace, the implicit threat of violence, toward outsiders or nonconformists, or those of non-white skin color. It was quite unsettling. I haven't felt that way since I moved to California.

For what it's worth,
Michael

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: RangerSteve
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 06:38 AM

Those folks in Las Vegas probably never have been out of their city in their lives. Anyone who has traveled knows that the south of the movies is nothing like the real place. But Hollywood isn't kind to anyone really. I live in farm country in New Jersey. There's lots of rural areas here, but you'd never know it from films and lame jokes on the Jay Leno show. I'm not in the Mafia, and I don't know anyone who is. NJ (and New York) are great places, and we aren't made up entirely of cities, and the air is no dirtier than any where else. So when I'm down south, don't assume that I must be some tenement-dwelling criminal, or that I'm looking down on you. I've never heard of any southerner being run off the road up north because of his southern license plate. But I've been run off the road down south because of my NJ plate. I do, however, have the sense to realize that the idiots down south are few and far between. Most of us do.

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: gnu
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 07:27 AM

That's quite a secret. Sounds like God's country. Most anywhere, I have found, people are people, no better, no worse, except, around here, "south" means Albert County, New Brunswick. Where you can get your vehicle's tires flattened if you fish or hunt in the wrong area, which can be easy to do because the young locals cut all the place signs down away from the main highway. Many are members of the "Albert County Liquor Pigs" and each member has an uniquely painted white t-shirt - some of the artistry is quite exquisite and equally disgusting. At every gathering, the anthem "Sweet Home Albert County" (yup, except the words are changed) is played to death. Home to the clubhouse of Baccus Motorcycle Club, where only the members, RCMP and stupid fear to tread. Where the Forest Rangers are nocturnal. Where you stay on the hiking trail proper because trip wires have unpleasant consequences if the crop is a source of income. Where you can buy lobster, moose, and deer cheap, after dark. Where you can get a new chainsaw just as cheap fer puttin in that new piture winda ma wants or so's yew kin widen the kitchen door so's yer skidoo can be closer to the beer fridge when yer workin on er.

Don't get me wrong, if you stay on the path, it's scenery and people are wonderful. Fundy National Park is amazing. And so is The Rocks Provincial Park, which you have seen pictures of if you ever saw a Tourism New Brunswick advertisement. There's lots to see and do, but, bring a sandwich cuze ther ain't no fine dinin fer miles and miles.

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Kim C
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 10:50 AM

Well, Michael, like I said, there are pockets of ignorance just about everywhere. What happens sometimes is people get tired of "outsiders" moving to their area, then complaining that "it's not like it was at home," and that can result in the undercurrent of hostility toward anyone who "ain't from around here" even if they want to fit in and all that. But there again, that isn't just here. It happens everywhere when people feel like their space is being threatened.

I believe that most people, everywhere, are accommodating to strangers. All of my friends, I know, would certainly go out of their way to make someone feel at home, regardless of where they came from.

And there's one more thing - in my South we also have opera. Not OPRY, OPERA. Mister and I are going to see Rigoletto in a couple of weeks. :-)

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: GUEST,Owain
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 11:43 AM

My roots in this country go back to Jamestown on both sides of my parentage. Though I was raised in the North I've always had an affinity for 'things Southern'. Have always felt the South has been unfairly portrayed. Every summer I'd go visit my 'Southern relations' and over the years came to understand a little of why the 'Bubba' stereotype exists. 'Up north' we're taught to have a good vocabulary and to use it in daily conversation. In the south while you can be educated to use big words in daily conversation is considered 'puttin' on airs'. There's, also a slight tilt to the head forward while speaking as opposed to back slightly as in the north. This makes northerners appear arrogant to those raised in the south. Also, we're taught in the north to 'look directly into the eyes' while speaking. In the south keeping your eyes averted is more respectful, especially in black southern culture. There's more certainly, but these are a few things I noticed while growing up.

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: DougR
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 02:23 PM

Ma'Mam, thank you for a refreshing positive post. You certainly describe beautifully the South I know.

DougR

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Kim C
Date: 26 Apr 02 - 03:39 PM

Owain, you're right about the vocabulary thing. It's one thing to have an education and another quite entirely to show it off! ;-) I admit, I'm way guilty on that one. But I figure that since I know the rules of grammar pretty well, I'm qualified to break 'em.

A friend of mine joined the Air Force years ago and they sent him to the Dakotas. One day he called me, and he said, man, I wish I could just meet a nice Southern girl...

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Bert
Date: 27 Apr 02 - 02:53 AM

Yes Ma'am, there are a lot of good things about the South, and as Gnu says people are people.

One of the best folk clubs ever is in Huntsville Alabama. And the catfish and hushpuppies (sorry hu-uu-ush puppies) are out of this world.

But there are still a few things that could be changed. In the town (village) we lived in, you couldn't buy a beer. Now that's downright uncivilized! And we had a segregated cab service in our town. It just happened that one of the first of my neigbors that I met down there was a black cab driver. So when I needed a cab I gave him a call. The white cab driver (also a nice guy) turns up and says Tom told me you needed a cab.

Subject: RE: BS: My South
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 27 Apr 02 - 10:40 AM

Shhhhhhh...let's keep it a secret!

All of my ancestors are from the South. Even though I live in Kentucky (and YES, we wear shoes), I have close ties all over the South. When I lived in Alabama for a few years it was the first time in my life I felt like a "Yankee." Mind you, that's a state of mind, not an absolute. I was treated wonderfully and loved living there.

All the talk of food made me hungry. In Alabama I had mature fig trees. Since I knew nothing about figs, my next door neighbor taught me all about them. I loved her "ginger figs" (pronounced gin-juh). And the banana pudding...try making it with Eagle Brand Milk...to die for. A friend of mine makes it with miniature marshmallows...also to die for.

The yes ma'am and no ma'am...I was 28 years old and an adjunct instructor at a college...the freshmen said yes ma'am and no ma'am to me...culture shock, (especially when I was competing against them in the intramural track meet). And my first day there, in a hardware store buying paint..."Hi, how're yew?....y'all come back, heah." And the pine trees...I can still smell them.

Mary (from Kentucky where the horses are beautiful and the women are fast) ;>)

(PS to Kim...here in KY we have one of the finest operas in the country. I'll see/hear The Marriage of Figaro next month...Voi che sapete is a favorite. In Rigoletto I love the quartet!)