Thursday, May 20, 2010

Are you from the SOUTH???

LOVE my new Southern-girl wall art!!! It's all about the So-uth!

Where exactly is the South???
Well, some say the South is...
Florida, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Texas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia.

I say the Old South/Deep South is The Real South...
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana

I'm proud to say that I'm American by birth, Southern by the Grace of God!
This cute little photo saying just that...graces a guestroom in my home, along with photos of my mama with her mama and of my mama and daddy...Hazlehurst, Georgia--early 1950's.


~The South is a place where tea is sweet and accents are sweeter!
Even though Southerners love Co-Cola, their hearts belong to sweet tea. We drink it all the time--whether the temperature is 32 degrees or 102 degrees...it's our go-to drink that you will be offered when you come to visit.
As a Southerner, I love to hear the sound of a sweet Southern accent--not a fake one, a real Southern drawl!!! Miss Janice speaks two languages...English and Southern. I can definitely turn on the Southern drawl when I feel like it!

The Drawl...
One has to be raised in the South to speak with a Southern drawl... We speak slowly and drop the endin' consonant; i.e., fixin', darlin', et cetera. We don't enunciate our words--that would be uppity!

~In the South, Summer starts in April.
I'm not sure about this one y'all...maybe it's because we start wearing white shoes and carrying our white pocketbooks on Easter Sunday??? Hmmmmm

~Southerners like to believe that Macaroni and Cheese is a vegetable.
Macaroni and Cheese is definitely in the vegetable food group y'all! It's right there with fried green tomatoes and butterbeans! Miss Janice's Macaroni & Cheese baked in a Paula Deen casserole dish. ~Front porches are wide and words are long.
Southerners are "porch people". When we are sitting on our porches we are welcoming visitors!

My front porch here at "The Roost" was made for me...I love to sit on the porch, relax and watch the people go by, and enjoy some sweet tea or maybe a glass of merlot!
~Pecan pie is a staple.
The "Dessert of the South" is pronounced "Pee-KHAN" pie y'all! It's a welcome dish at dinner parties, covered dish suppers, funeral receptions, and just about anywhere Southerners come together to socialize! You are a special Southerner if the pecans were picked from your own orchard!!!

My favorite pecan pie recipe is from the book by Alda Ellis, Sentimental Living.
*Recipe for Ms. Ellis' Pecan Pie
3 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup maple-flavored pancake syrup
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
1 cup pecan halves
Combine eggs, sugar, salt, butter, and syrup in a medium-sized bowl and mix well. Pour mixture into pie shell and top with pecan halves. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. Very Southern...very decadent.

~Y'all is the only proper noun.
Most of us 'etiquette people' like to tell y'all that you should greet people properly with..."Good Morning/Good Evening Sir/Ma'am," but the truth is...In the South, "Hey, how y'all doing" is a perfectly acceptable way to greet people whether you are at church, the grocery store, or at a football game. Sometimes it's just "Hee-eeey"...two syllables please! Perfectly acceptable.

What is not an acceptable form of greeting in the South? "Hey you guys!" Good Lord. Chalk on a chalkboard!!!

~Chicken is fried and biscuits come with gravy.
Now savvy Southerners try to enjoy this delicacy in moderation!!! But, we still love it y'all! It's our go-to food for picnics, tailgating, family reunions, Sunday suppers, and weeknight take-out meals.
~Everything is Darlin'.
Addressing someone as "Darlin'" is a high compliment in the South. Professionally, it's probably not a good idea to start calling everybody in the conference room "Darlin'" but in the South, it's still done!

Here's a recent conversation I had on Twitter with my friend Preppy101...

Me: Totally slept thru the (Kentucky) Derby...so un-Southern!

Preppy101: Oh, darlin', are you feverish?

That's the way we talk y'all! I promise. But don't you dare call me honey!!! Ooooh, I don't like that!

~Someone's heart is always being blessed.
We say "Bless your/his/her heart" all the time! It doesn't matter if you are sick, just graduated from college, got divorced, got a great job...whatever, we want to bless your heart!

I'm feeling real Southern tonight, I'm fixin' some good ol' comfort food for dinner and serving it Buffet Style.

Just the way Mama does it!!!
With some sliced tomatoes...
Salt & Pepper on the mac & cheese and tomatoes...butter on the biscuits (if husband passes on the gravy)
Miss Janice uses her knife and fork to eat fried chicken but husband doesn't:) To be on the safe side, we're using these cute little napkins tonight.

So, are YOU Southern? Love to hear from you!

69 comments:

Gracie Beth said...

I am a GA girl but I think ATL is losing its southern charm. I go to school in TN and I think the accents are much thicker and the hospitality is much more noticeable there than in ATL.

Gwendolen Elaine said...

You bet I'm Southern...from North Carolina and proud of it! I have to tell you,dear, this was just THE cutest post.Now, you have a good evenin' ;)

Anonymous said...

Great post! A little disappointed that I'm not in the deep south, but this TN girl will take it. {haha} Hope your having a wonderful week! xoxo

Mrs.Grits said...

I was born in GA and grew up in SC and GA. Nothing makes me happier than mac and cheese and some sliced tomatoes straight from the garden! Also, sweet tea is amazing!

BAH said...

Miss Janice, all those pictures of that delicious Southern food made me hungry! And your home is absolutely darling :)

Lexilooo said...

Your porch is gorgeous!

I'm from NH...not so southern at all...but I am living in DC now, which may or may not be in the south :)

Katie Rudder said...

I'm working on becoming southern! Since going to school in the South (the REAL USC) I'm becoming southern by every day!! I was just called darlin' by someone and I LOVED it!! And I already say "bless your heart" too!!

Cathy~Mille Fleur said...

Darlin...this is just the cutest post! I'm from Texas...yes ma'am I'm southern and I adore anything having to do with the south!

I love all of your signs and all of the yummy accessories you used in your pics! The mac and cheese and the sliced tomatoes are making my mouth water...yummy...I need a glass of sweet tea...I'm feeling a little parched;)!

I am so happy I found your wonderful site...I am having the best time visiting here!

Enjoy!
Cathy

augustvows said...

Not Southern (here in Canada), but I'd like to be! You can just adopt me, no?

Tammy B said...

I'm from Alabama where mac & cheese is a vegetable and iced tea is called just "tea". When the weatherman predicts snow and ice, I'm in the kitchen brewing tea so that I will be sure to have plenty of iced tea if the power goes out. I don't know how many times a day I say either, "Bless your heart" or "Bless her heart".

Anonymous said...

Your supper looks fabulous! I am not from the South, but I have lived in the South for 12 years. I am raising a little Southern Gentleman and Southern Belle. I certainly consider the South my home! Have a great evening darlin!

Joanne Kennedy said...

Oh darlin'! Pass me a plate. I may have been born and raised here in CA but, bless your heart, you just fixed my favorit meal so tonight I'm a Southern girl at heart.

Now if you make some cobbler it would make me weak in the knees!

Hugs,
Joanne

Lori said...

I was born up North, but my formative years were in the deep south in Louisiana. And darlin' your sliced tomato's and sweet tea have me yearnin' for home. Ya'll have a good night and come back again you hear.

Leelee said...

Hey from a Roswell, GA girl....sweet tea on the porch y'all....and a Go Dawgs every fall....

Sweet Southern Prep said...

Oh my goodness, Miss Janice, you're killing me. First, the sweet tea, then the mac and cheese and then the pecan pie. I want it all right now!

So I was born in GA, lived in SC, and now live in NC. I think the Carolinas can be lumped together as the Deep South. Right? :)

Jennifer said...

This is just the cutest post! You know I'm a Southern Girl! My Daddy is from South Carolina, my Mama from Tennessee, and I am from good ole Savannah, GA! They moved here when I was 2! I had to laugh because that is truly how it is here! We are so Southern we don't even realize it sometimes that people are different than that in other places! I had a lady from Canada say something very direct to me the other day on a work call and I got my feelings hurt, then my friend told me I had to remember that we are different in the South! haha! It is so true!

By the way, the perfect groom's cake for my future hubby? PECAN PIE! That's what we are planning to serve!

Suburban Princess said...

What a fun foray into Southerness! I am a 100% Northern girl but I always enjoy my trip to the South!

In Scotland we have a similar way of 'blessing someone's heart'...we would say 'Awwww bless!' :O)

Kristin said...

Oh how I love the south! I have to say I'm guilty of saying "you guys" because I'm really a yankee transplant, but Virginia blood runs through my veins...I'm learning! Maybe I need to drink more sweet tea :-)

WSU Laura said...

I wish I was from the South lived in Virginia in the summers but just not deep enough. Still trying to make iced tea like I had at "Jestine's" in Charleston. But I do find myself blessing someone's heart on a regular basis. Wonderful post! I also wanted to thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a lovely comment.

Nanette said...

Hi Miss Janice,
I am from the west, Wyoming, and extremely proud of being a second generation Wyomingite. I really enjoy southerners and the beautiful accents and warm hospitality.

It is fun to be able to be proud of where you come from and love the land of your birth, I can sure understand why you love yours! Very fun post, just had to smile the whole way through!
Valerie

Petunia said...

Deep South girl here....Louisiana!
And that picture of fried chicken gave me goosebumps--haha! Soooo yummy!

Karen said...

I am from Texas and one thing I have to remember when talking to people who are not Southern is that they are very direct... as someone mentioned earlier. I too get my feelings and also think the questions non-Southerners sometimes ask are rude and intrusive.
It's sort of like asking a rancher how many head of cattle he owns... rude, rude, rude! That's almost like asking how much money you have in your bank account.
Anyhow, loved your posting!
Karen
Ladybug Creek

Barb said...

I have to say as a Lady born in Texas, and raised by women from Arkansas and Georgia, I do consider myself Southern. I bless hearts, and I don't ever give out my deviled eggs recipe. And you better believe the only thing sweeter than the tea is ME!
Loud and Proud, A-MEN!

Thank you Miss Janice, this post was fantastic.

dreaming in pink and green said...

Where did you get that sign about the south? I love it!!!

JDB said...

I'm from a small town in East Texas and if I'm not Southern, I'm not sure what is.

Unknown said...

Oh, Miss Janice! This may be my most favorite of all your posts!

Being raised in Richmond, Virginia, I'd say we DEFINITELY qualify as the Old South/Real South, being home to the Capital of the Confederacy and having preserved Mr. Davis' White House right in the middle of downtown!

Your porch is darlin' and I'm working on my own all day to get it ready for the Summer!

Anonymous said...

Hey there Miss Janice!
How are you today? I adore this post! Yes, I'm very Southern. My Mama and Daddy are from Kentucky, which is where I was born and raised. I moved to Georgia to go to college, married, and have stayed! I don't know if I could make it a day without sweet tea. I've even gotten my Yankee in-laws drinking it when I go to visit them in Ohio. Big hugs Miss Janice! Have a nice day!

Mid-Atlantic Martha said...

Yes Ma'am! Here in Richmond, VA we're known as "The gateway to the South"! And, of course, the Capital of the Confederacy and home to the beloved Robert E. Lee!

Nancy Rosalina said...

OOOH Miss Janice...This post was just darlin'!!!! I love it all!!! Gotta add fried chicken to my grocery list, now!!!! ;)

Nancy

the pink prep said...

yes ma'am, i AM! what a wonderful post! and makes me miss home! I grew up in AL, but the folks moved "north" to TN...and then I went and married a yankee and am in Boston! I was just talking to two co-workers yesterday about someone, paused, and said "bless her heart", and they said, WHAT?!? and then I had to explain. I've had to do a LOT of translating...sometimes even to my husband! And when I moved north to go to college, there was a group of people who actually thought i was a foreign exchange student because of my drawl!! I even had a boss tell me that no one would take me seriously with "an accent like that" so I worked very hard to soften it. WHAT WAS I THINKING?!? Let me tell you, Miss Muffy can conjure up a pretty good accent when she needs to -- or wants something -- from Mimi and Pamp down south. You're the best, Miss Janice -- have a happy wkend!

Kathie Truitt said...

Thank you, AMI. Yes, Virginia is the real south. HOme of the Capital of the Confederacy, and Robert E. Lee, and yes we still speak with a southern drawl. By the way, you ever been to Oklahoma? People speak with a very strong southern accent there, as well, just as they do in Southern Missouri - the Ozarks.

By the way, the first land war in the War Between the States was fought in Manassas, VA. A confederate state.

AngelaV said...

I thought I was. But I'm from Virginia. Ironically, everything you posted, we do in Virginia too.

Joan said...

Darlin'
Lord, honey child! The last two ladies beat me to it, but ya'll must remember that Generals Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson were sons of the great state of Virginia-yes I know Stonewall came from what is now West Virginia , but in his day, it was VIRGINIA! Hush my mouth, but macaroni and cheese must be the national food of the South!

Miss Janice said...

Y'all,
The sign "The South" is available at www.MagnoliaLane
Miss Janice

The 5 Bickies said...

I'm not from the South but I sure do appreciate all of the Southern qualities you listed. Some of my favorite family members live in the south and I love every minute we are together!

Needles Everywhere said...

I'm a transplanted Texas, raised by Southerners with roots in NC and TN. I consider myself a Texas Southerner. The only real difference is that the tea in Texas isn't usually sweet tea, bacon grease is a condiment, ya'll is a plural pronoun, and manners are more important than any other single trait.

LC said...

Love this post! I was born & raised, and have lived in GA my whole life but NEVER had a southern accent! How weird? lol

Your photos make me hungry! ;)

Anonymous said...

Hello, Miss Janice. Why, darlin', you know I'm southern. I was born and raised in Fort Payne, Alabama and then we transplanted to Texas! My relatives had different southern accents according to where they lived. When we moved to Texas I was in the 7th grade. I used to love to read and my English teacher would ask me almost every day to read out loud. I thought it was because I was a wonderful reader. At the end of the school year she told me the kids had asked her to have me read - they liked to hear my accent! Oh, Lordy! I did my best to try and change it. Now I'm a mix of Southern and Texas! :)
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)

bevy said...

Never lived a minute outside of South Carolina! And I love it...

KDC Events said...

Oh my...I'm hungry now! I am a HUGE fan of mac and cheese as are the kiddos!! YUMMMMMMY~

DisneyCosmo said...

Being from the South we also know the proper use of y'all and all y'all.

Angela

Anonymous said...

I live in Richmond..and have for years....although I didn't grow up here. Yes, it is Southern.....but there are some "deep South" elements missing. Sweet tea is on the rise, but 15 years ago, you couldn't find it in many places. Also, the lack of "beach music" in the summer just puts it in a different category. If you say "The Embers" up here, they think you mean the fire place. You say "The Embers" in the deep south and folks want to know where they're "playin'" and when should they be there....shagging shoes on!

Great post, Miss Janice!!

linda said...

Not a Southerner, but so wish I were!
Love your sweet blog!

annie said...

Miss Janice! You just put 10 lbs on me from just looking at that delicious food.
I am so hungry now I could eat a bear.
I really enjoyed this post.
Now please excuse me while I go raid the kitchen.

pve design said...

I just did the math, and I have now lived more years up North than down South, where I was born...my old Kentucky Home. All my sisters and brothers live there so when I go "home" - the accent comes back quicker than I can say fried chicken.
I learned to make the best fried chicken from my Mama. Any left-overs - your supper looks mighty fine.
pve

M. L. said...

Oh Miss Janice thank you for that Southern blog posting. I needed that. I'm soooo homesick for Tennessee right now- hoping to make a trip in July. It certainly helps to read a post like that one!

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Well I was born a Yankee....spent 17 years of my life living in Michigan. But....I have spent the rest of my many years in Florida, Tennessee and North Carolina, so I have some southern in me....

Your chicken looks amazing! See, that's how you tell a true southerner. They can make GREAT fried chicken!
Hugs,
Penny

Mary Bergfeld said...

Janice, I'm not from the South but your food makes me wish I were. I found your blog by chance, but I plan to visit as often as I can from this point forward. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings...Mary

From the Kitchen said...

Miss Janice, I was born, raised and educated in Virginia. I lived in southern California (La Jolla), Texas (Lubbock) and South Carolina (Charleston). I suppose I could be considered from the "mid" south rather than the "deep south". I think that's o.k., don't you? I have thoroughly enjoyed your post and would like to be sitting down, knife and fork in hand, to that chicken dinner.

Now, I have an etiquette question. I detest being referred to as a "guy". I am not a guy. How can we encourage a gender neutral term?

Best,
Bonie

Patti @ Pandoras Box said...

Love the comment about Mac and cheese being a vegetable - made me laugh. I'm a new visitor and saw your M-C cookie jar and thought you might like to see what I made a few months ago :
http://ppandorasbox.blogspot.com/2010/03/another-mackenzie-childs-knock-off.html

Anonymous said...

Oh Miss Janice darlin ~ I was born and raised in PA but Mac & Cheese is a vegetable @ my house...I wait patiently for those tomatoes to rippen on the vine AND I do like my tea SWEET :D
I am so glad we are efriends darlin, because, bless your heart (and Paula Deen's), I enjoy your hospitality soooo much...I would love to sit on that beautiful porch with y'all and chat the day away.I think the stork dropped me in the wrong state...
~Victoria~

Anonymous said...

LOVE the wall signs! Also your traditional Southern food looks scrumpppptious! I'm not Southern (unless you count California) but love my annual trips to SC and Georgia. I feel like I'm a Southern gal at heart because I just love the culture (and I say y'all all the time! haha!)
PS. EEEEP I'm pretty sure I've called you 'honey' as I say it quite a bit... my apologies, you don't want to get on Miss Janice's bad side ;)
xoxo

midnight macaroons said...

Believe it or not....I was not born/raised in the South. I'm a California gal. Family started off in Huntington Beach and ended up in San Francisco. My parents retired up in northern Cal. I married a Southern Gent and I've lived in the South for 10 years. Love it! Lived in New Orleans, Austin, and now Houston. We own a farm in Hazelhurst, Mississippi. Do you know where Hazelhurst, MS is? It's small but it has a Piggly Wiggly.

Mary Ann said...

what a hearty meal, yummy! regarding your special etiquette class for the young girls, i so approve of that! have a great week ahead! verbena cottage

Unknown said...

I'm so proud to be a southern girl!

Henley on the Horn said...

I love this! Your dinner plate looks just like something my Mama would serve for Sunday dinner. And we all know that Sunday dinner is served right after morning church, not in the evening!

Tonya said...

Love this post, Miss Janice! I always take pride in my southern-ness. The southern drawl is always a dead giveaway of where I have been raised, and even while I was in Costa Rica, they could tell that I just didn't talk like all the other Americans. It was the southern drawl somehow comin' out in my Spanish! And don't even get me started on my macaroni and cheese and sweet tea! I just don't know how my family would survive without it!

Kara said...

Absolutely Darlin' even though born in Kentucky and now living in Mississippi, I am born and bread Southern..just ask any of my extended family. They all say I was born with a silver Southern spoon in my mouth....Can anything beat the South??? And PS: Just LoVe that front porch..makes me want to come by and read a book!
Miss Kara

AngelaV said...

One more in defense of Virginia. A quote:

"From Virginia sprung the Southern Mind, a mind which favoured the local community, Burkean conservatism, the folkways of ancestors, an unwavering orthodox Christian faith."

~ Alphonse Vinh

Kathleen said...

Oh dear, I think I am the only Northerner here..A New Yawker no less:)
I agree with the comment about the term, YOU GUYS..ugh! And even supposedly educated people use it!
Hard to teach the children not to say it when such a bad example is being set by powerful people.

Unknown said...

The accent thing is sooo true! I'm from a small town and GA so my accent is pretty thick! But, I went to college in FLA! My sisters used to tease that they could always tell if someone from home had called (or I had had more than one glass of wine ;-)) bc my accent would get real thick again! Too funny!

Jenny said...

May I say, "sort of?" My family is from Georgia and Alabama, but I was born and raised in Miami (definitely not The South!). Being surrounded by family, I grew up on sweet tea, fried chicken and grits. And my friends tease me for dropin' my endin' consonant!

caknitter said...

I love this post. I was aware of a few southern customs, but it was great to see a few new ones, at least for me. I completely agree with you on the states that are considered the REAL south. Maryland, Delaware, and Texas considered southern? Really? Hmm

Sandra said...

Well, yes, Darlin'!! :-) Love that you referenced me. Thank you! I've been such a bad blogger that I figure everyone has forgotten about me! Love. xoxo

Laur said...

I am so glad that Maryland was in your list of southern states!!! Even though it's not that southern, I feel I have learned so much about the south after going to college in Tennessee and try to incorporate the southern hospitality up here!

Virginia Girl said...

Defnitely Southern here. I am an 11th generation Virginian from northern Virginia. My ancestors fought in Civil War and some were in the Army of Northern Virginia, led by nine other than Virginia native R.E.Lee(who grew up in Alexandria-Northern Virginia and settled in Arlington(Arlington Nat. Cemetery).
I now live on MD's Eastern Shore and it is definitely set back in Southern time-Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman both managed to escape slavery here and there are still direct descendants of slaves and slave owners alike living here. We also are the home of Perdue chicken (Frank Perdue). I recommend Jean Anderson's book. "Love Affair with Southern Cooking", she is a Southern Culinary Historian who hails fom the great state of NC.
Love your blog!
Have a blessed day!
Steph

The Old Line Belle said...

Yes! And I am so glad that you included Maryland! I live in Southern, MD and was raised on the staples you listed. I have a southern accent and I get tired of having to defend my upbringing. I love your site Miss Janice and your biscuits look so good...

~*~Mrz.Cornwell~*~ said...

Yes Ma'am, I am from the South! :)) I'm a hardcore Southern Belle! I do everything a hardcore Southern woman does (Including hunting, fishing, farming, processing, making AWESOME tea, such and so on :)) I was born in Los Angeles California, but my parents divorced and we moved in with my mother's grandparents who were from the South. I learned that both sides, even from my daddy's side (Who is mexican with a French Basque/Cajun last name), that my bloodline is indeed from the South.
I'm from a sleepy town in West Tennessee, an hour and a half away from Memphis. My sister says she wants to move back to California, but as for me... I know my heart belongs to the South. I'm a Southern woman at heart and nothing is going to change that! I believe that I'm here for a reason and that reason is that I TRULY belong here and here is where I shall stay!

~*~Mrz.Cornwell~*~ said...

Oh yeah, I can do all those things and still look purty while doing it! Oh, and a lady. ;-)