If you have read my earlier posts, you know that ever since I meandered down the Mississippi River,
in a Turn of the Century Paddlewheel Boat,
I’ve been mesmerized by anything and everything
Southern……….
…from glorious Antebellum Mansions,
whose wooden plank floors
are pitted from the spurs of Civil War Soldiers…
…billowing lace curtains,
flirting with a warm summer breeze…..
……Majestic Oak Trees dripping with moss……
“Can’t no Teflon fry no fried chicken”~ Vertamae Grosvenor
Sippin’ Sweet Tea on the front porch….
screen doors a- squeakin’…lightnin’ bugs a-twinklin’..
Mama’s down-home,
oven-hot Buttermilk Biscuits
and Skillet Cornbread….
…butterbeans…sweet peas….
sweet Magnolias…Honeysuckle vines…Fiddle-dee-dee…gracious hospitality…
Have I made y’all hungry yet? Me too!
I wasn’t born in the south,
but I got here as fast as I could!
And I need to know your secrets!
Pretty please with a cherry on top?
So here are some things I want to know…
- What are your favorite southern sayings or quotes?
- Beauty secrets?
- Home remedies?
- Word of advice?
- Homemaking tips?
- Gracious hospitality tips?
- How do you stay so genteel, charming and ladylike?
- The food that says “home” to you.
- What did your Mama or Grandma always tell you never to forget?
- Advice on how to age gracefully.
- Family Traditions.
- I also need some real deep-south southern names,
first names and common last names. ( Bobby-jo, Jim-Ed, etc…)
Or anything else, regarding the ways of a proper Southern woman. Just a few words will do! You may submit as many comments as you would like. The last day to post a comment will be Monday,February 25. If you leave a comment, I will regard it as your permission for me to use in my project.
Thanks for your help!
“Even children of my generation were made sharply aware of the importance of manners…and as we grew older, and began holding our own in social settings like school and church, we came to recognize the practical value of manners. If you knew how to be courteous and considerate, it became apparent, you could enter into any social situation with confidence–and you were much more likely to get what you wanted. A charming manner, in other words, could often get you that second helping of pie.” ~Sela Ward –from her book Homesick.
So glad you stopped by for some pie…y’all!
Hugs!
Ruthann
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Well shucks, I am a girl from Colorado so I guess I can’t advise on anything southern! I hope y’all will share your writing with us someday!
Your friend,
Shan
Honey Hill Farm
darlin this book will be famous!
i love everything southern too.
the secret to beautiful skin, “buttermilk” baths. scented with vanila or almond. yum
oxoxox,
jessi
Oh dear, I’m no help at all in this forum. (I was born in Virginia, does that count?)
Hi Ruthann! Well, one of the sayings you mentioned is a little different to me…”that’s so good it’ll make you slap yo’ mama” and another that my husband and I tell our boys is, “Having no manners is worse than having no money!”
My husband mentioned this the other day when her couldn’t find his reading glasses, “well, I guess they just healed up!” I have so many little sayings from his family and mine that this post could go on and on and on! Being polite and having good manners and especially when addressing your elders, it truly Southern and expected!
Take care now, ya hear?
xxoo,
Dawn
my mother always said there is absolutely no reason for you or your home not to be clean. “soap is cheap!”
….hahaha! good luck!
I’m not from the south but I look forward to reading responses!
bless you.
oh, I am from Oklahoma where southern hospitality reigned. Sweet tea is a favorite. And something cooking on the stove is always house warming. A crockpot full of beans and ham with a castiron skillet full of cornbread. Fried okra, sliced tomatoes, a bowl of onions and cucumber covered in vinegar water with salt and pepper. Fresh black eyed peas…and they always tasted better if you shelled them yourself.
Rachael
living in Africa missing home after reading this post..haha!
Well I am in Indiana but my dad is from Virginia and my mom is from Kentucky. Having all four gtandparents from the south also helped mold who I am today. I could talk about this for hours but just a few things for now that I remember…Pancakes were called flapjacks. Corn bread was always “pone bread”. A skunk was a “polecat” My grandparents house was located in a “holler”, which I think must be a valley between mountains. My mom’s daily advice to me was “If nothing else, never leave the house without lipstick.” My grandmother would read her bible like we read novels today. Everyday she would read in her bible and some of my best memories of her are watching her read and listening to her hum church hymns while preparing dinner. Grandma also cooked everything in lard. No Crisco for her! These may not be what you are looking for but I sure have had fun thinking about them. I just discovered your blog this week and went back and read all the archives in one day. I love your home and your style!! I can’t wait to read more from you. Good Luck on your project!!!
Wow! I love these ideas and southern memories! Keep’em comin”!!Bless your hearts!!
Hugs,
Ruthann
I suppose it’s southern because people up north laugh at me for saying it but we’re always “fixing” to do something. I’m fixing to get off the computer and fix lunch!
Another thing we say when we’re too busy to do something is “I’m up to my eyeballs in alligators right now!”
The other day we got over 3 inches of rain in one afternoon; it was a real “frog strangler.” Oh, and grits are a good southern staple food item.
Ruthann,
I moved to the south (NC)26 years ago when I was 16 and had to learn the language fast. Some of the phrases (words) I had to learn are
-everything and everybody is pitiful. “Her hair looks pitiful, bless her heart.”
-not tender as in “You shouldn’t say that, that’s not tender.”
-a knit hat is called a toboggan
-if you make a comment about someone’s child, they will say call the child a mess.
“She is so cute.”
“Oh, this one, she’s a mess”
You MUST always say yesum and nosum and yesur and nosur. That means yes mam ans no mam, and yes sir and no sir. You MUST say it and no sassing (back talking) We always said if something was unusually extra good that it was “Larapin” good. I think that means lapping good! and tea as sweet as syrup, I want some now. And honey, they ain’t no body as southern as this ole gal. I can’t wait to see yor finished writing.
Hello Ruthann~ Well lets see….my favorite foods to make here in the south would be…..Fried Buttermilk Chicken, lemon pie, key lime pie,creamy mashed potato,oh honey the list can go on.
My favorite word to use is, “Oh Honey” and “Ya’ll come in”. We teach our kiddos to say Yes Mam and Sir. Church is what keeps us grounded. I play allot of hymn songs at home.
this was fun!!! I’ll keep my fingers crossed. Have a Blessed Day~ Nicole
You girls are the best! I’m loving everything! and I’m learning a lot too!
hugs!
Ruthann
It ain’t the South you live in, it is how the South lives in you. It ain’t Buttermilk Pie, but “Shut Yor Mouth Buttermilk Pie.
It is where etiquette classes are still taught to our young’uns
so they will know how to act and plain be polite. It is where you always say “Yes, Ma’am” and “Yes, Sir” everyday of your life. It is where I still make soap out of goats milk, lard, and lye. I also make soap with finer oils as well. It is a life where no one, I mean on one gets in a hurry. Where we stop and listen to the lone sound
of the whisle blows, as the train travels thru our town. Where we make Watermelon Rind Pickles in the summer, after we’ve eaten the watermelon. And have Tomato (Mater)Sandwich dinners after church on Sundays. It is where there’s always a party, whether it be a garden club party, a tea party, a Sunday getogether or just for the sake of friends havin’ lunch together. It is the love we have for God, that makes us family, and I mean everyone is family. It is where Iced Tea and Lemonade go hand in hand with breathin’. It is where we cook and eat at every and any occasion. Where whatcha eat is whatcha are and we’s thank we’s mighty special. It is where we always send “thank-ya cards” and “thinking of you” cards. Where callin’ on someone to see how there feelin’ is a daily thang. It is where fried taters and corn pone is a meal and cornbread and milk is a midnight snack. It is where elders are respected and takin’ care of. Where love, laughter and friends are what makes us stronger than an oak. Where someone is always fixin’ somethin’ for supper and always havin’ you’ns over to eat. Where
“Please” and “Thank-ya” are etched in our minds. It is where lawns, gardens and our homes are more important than what we wear, what we drive or the money we have. And where fine china and beautiful linens are all it takes to make us southern ladies happy. And there’s always fresh flowers on the table. Where we go to church everytime the door is open and we pick-up the elderly on our way. Where us southern ladies are always dressed, refreshed and made up for our husbands. And the smell of our homes are of lavendar, roses, apple pies, fried sweet tators, starched linens, waxed hardwood floors, rosemary, buttermilk biscuits, tomato gravy and fried chicken, pecan pie, collard greens, and ham hocks.
There is so much to tell, but I must stop, ‘for I’s use all your comment page. Ya’ll have a wonderful day. RoseMarie
Oh Ruthann, what fun!
I was born and raised in Tennessee; in the South it’s about Faith, Family and Food!
Fried chicken, fried okra, and fried green tomatoes, fixed in an iron skillet, please! Oh, and the skillet cornbread and buttermilk biscuits, made with Martha White cornmeal and flour (with Hot Rize plus). For those biscuits you need homemade blackberry jam, made from blackberries picked last July. Pecan pie, of course, but also chocolate pie with merangue or better still, caramel pie- the fillings cooked in that iron skillet, which was passed down from grandma to mama to daughter; mine came from my Mama’s twin sister. Those skillets are seasoned to perfection.
The only beauty secret passed down by Mama was “pretty is as pretty does.” And the most important, you never-Never- wear white before Easter of after Labor Day–the same goes for anything patent leather!
Words? “fixin'” is a favorite: “I’m fixin’ to cook up a mess of turnip greens…”
A storm bringing in a lot of rain is a “gully washer.”
“Darlin’,” “precious” and “honey” are terms of endearment used as often as possible! My precious granddaughter has taken to calling her dolls, “My Darlin'” which is what I call her.
You will love this one! Dolly told me herself…
Backstory- In high school I dated her nephew. I was around Dolly quite a bit.
She used to say, “Honey, I’m busier than a one legged man in a butt kickin’ contest.”
I still say it to this day.
I’m sorry to be so longwinded, just thought of something I wanted to add…..
it’s always “ma’am” and “sir” “please” and “thank you!”
On Saturday night it’s the Grand Ol’ Opry on the radio, and on Sunday, Sunday School and church dressed in your best. Then church that evening and prayer meeting on Wednesday night. When there’s a gospel meeting, there will be a dinner on the ground with more food than you can shake a stick at. When someone is sick or dies (“passes away”), food is prepared for the family. As Will D. Campbell wrote, “….food is always the first thought of neighbors when there is trouble…”
Hi Ruthann! I’m from Tennesse, and now I live in Georgia (Jaw-juh, that is)!
-First and foremost, it is simply impossible (!) to make sweet tea out of cold unsweetened tea. I don’t care how many sugar packets you hand me. Now, sweet tea is serious business in the South.
– If you are “ill” that means your mad, not sick.
– It’s not just moonpies, it’s an RC cola and a moonpie.
-Rise and Shine, and give God the glory every mornin’.
– If something is bad, it’s “uglier than seven miles of bad road.”
– Yes, the family cast iron is a HUGE deal…we all want it!
– “Yes ma’am, no ma’am, yes sir, no sir, please, thank you, may …” are just ground into our brains…we can’t NOT say it. So if anyone asks us to, we’ll have to go ahead and apologize…it just comes out! We all learned, like someone else said: “Having no manners is worse than having no money.”
-Goin’ honkey-tonkin’.
-If some food isn’t very good, but still edible, “it’d beat a snowball.”
-If there’s tale of snow coming, we are all at the store getting the milk and bread. (Yes, we go to Piggly Wiggly!)
– Corn bread is corn pone or johnny cakes, depending on how you make it.
-Giving somebody down the road, means you’re tellin’ them like it is.
-Some folks “cuss up a blue streak,” but of course us Southern ladies, we don’t cuss! :o)
– “Bless your little pea-pickin’ heart.”
– “Bless his heart.”
-“Y’all” (of course)
– “Darlin’ and Honey Child, or really Honey Chile.”
– “…cute as Christmas.”
– “Can’t swing a dead cat by the tail without hitting (whatever there’s a lot of).”
-“I’m fixin’ to (whatever it is your fixin’ to do.)”
-Sometimes, we put peanuts in our cokes.
– We save the lard or bacon grease in old coffee cans or jars.
-We make our green beans with onions and fatback. And we cook them all day long.
-Fried green “tomatahs”
-Pecan (that’s PEE-CAN, not CAHN) pie
-When we sleep, we lay our heads on “pillahs” not pillows.
-If you do gossip about somebody, you can say “Bless her heart” afterwards, and then it’s not like you are really gossipping.
I guess I best stop! I could keep going. Have a good day, y’all!
Love, Katie
Uh…oh…now you did it…I’m extremely homesick now!
Good thing I’m going South for Easter!
I love the Sela Ward book and have it in my own collection of Southern books, which I’ll need to post my collection one day…
One thing that comes to mind that we have a sort of tradition of and I think it is a Southern thing too…
When someone has been to your house for a visit…you see them off…standing and waving bye until you no longer see them. My Mama does this and so do I when my kids come to see me and sometimes with company if the weather is not to bad…it has been simply atrocious here lately…sigh!
Loved this post!!!
I am from Oklahoma and I worked with a girl who told me “my husband is finer than a frog hair split three ways” that was the first time I had heard that one but it sure sounds southern.God Bless
Paula
I am from Oklahoma and I worked with a girl who told me “my husband is finer than a frog hair split three ways” that was the first time I had heard that one but it sure sounds southern.God Bless
Paula
I am from Oklahoma and I worked with a girl who told me “my husband is finer than a frog hair split three ways” that was the first time I had heard that one but it sure sounds southern.God Bless
Paula
I am from Oklahoma and I worked with a girl who told me “my husband is finer than a frog hair split three ways” that was the first time I had heard that one but it sure sounds southern.God Bless
Paula
Oh my goodness! I do declare,you girls are awesome!!!! I love this southern-tawk so much I want to marry it!! Thank you all for being so forth coming with all this good stuff! Bless your hearts some-more! Keep it coming!
Hugs!
Ruthann
I just love all the comments so far! This is such fun!
I just finished watching “the” Southern cook of the Food Network…Miz Paula Deen!
As she stood at the stove it made me think of my stint of living in Texas. Now I had always thought Texas was Southern but from time to time I would throw them for a loop with my little ways of talkin’.
For instance…I was tellin’ some story or another and I said something about the stove “eye” being on or off…the girls I worked with had no idea what I meant and questioned me…I explained it was the stove burner…you know the thing you cook on?? The eye…there are
4 of them!!!
Being from Ky, they all thought we were barefoot and buxom like on the old show HeeHaw…I am buxom but Mama raised me right and nobody sees that cleavage…teehee! Also I do not have and never have owned a horse…they are pretty and all but dangerous too as I watched my sister get thrown from one that had been stung by a bee and missed an open well but just inches…
I do love the Ky Derby and now am so “into” big hats that I think I could attend and fit right in…
*wink*
After living there and now living here in the “frozen” North, I’ve found I’ve had to drop back on humor when questioned about these things and not to take offence…bless their hearts they just don’t know no better….
*smile*
Books I will recommend are:
What Southern Women Know (that every woman should)
by Ronda Rich
Real Magnolia’s by Becky Freeman
The Grits Guide to Life
and
Grits Friends are Forevah
by Deborah Ford
Paula Deen~It Ain’t All About the Cookin’
and anything by the fabulous Fannie Flagg
And to really get into the Southern Spirit, I also highly recomend “Gone With the Wind” by Margaret Mitchell.
Dear Ruthann, I just had to add more because I love this place I call home. I live in the lower south of Mississippi about 80 miles from the coast. Southern ladies know a wonderful dish does not have to be fancy, just prepared with love, served with a welcoming heart and warm generous hands, and always with a smile. We serve three meals a day and must have a fried food with each meal. Fresh field peas and fried corn are better than a T-bone steak. You can buy FRESH shrimp, directly from the coast, beside the road, in the bed of a pick-up truck. Where we have craw-fish boils on Friday nights. Craw-fish to the South is what minnows are to the North, just adults. You can still buy RC Cola’s here to eat with your snowball cakes. In the summer we don’t buy our vegtables, we go out and pick a mess (a family servin’) Where no one starts eatin’ until everyone is seated and the food is blessed. Where livin’ “high on the hog” means your weathy and “as useless as tit es on a bore hog” means your lazy. Where people aren’t nosey, they just care and when a someone needs something we give all we have, without a second thought. There’s always somethin’ in bloom here and we take the time to appreciate the beauty. We don’t work in our gardens, we play. We know adding a sugar lump to greens helps them keep their color and you cook yourn vegtables that grow above the ground without a cover. We add a bit of vinegar when washing linens to make them whiter. We polish our wood furniture with linseed oil, White vinegar and turpentine. Where we make any meal special with china and linens, we don’t save things for later we use them everyday. We southern women know that pearls and lipstick are always in style, and must be worn anywhere, all the time. Cornstarch is used to cook with and on our bodies to help deal with high humidity. A brush of a gardenia is wonderful perfume. We use boiled whiskey, lemon and honey for coughs, colds, colic,and nerves. Sassafras tea is a cure for what ails you and Vicks rub is a miracle salve for burns, cuts, congestion, foot fungus, stuffy nose, poison ivy and whatever. We love adding a lemon drop or mint to our hot tea. Where Chitterlin’s are fried and eaten, bless their hearts, I couldn’t touch one with a ten foot pole. I do have the recipe though.
We Southern Ladies give ourselves and our homes, so all that visit will feel warm and welcomed. Wish everyone could come and sit a spell. RoseMarie
Howdy… I was born and raised in Oklahoma even though I don’t live there now. I miss home so much. There’s many things I can think of that makes a person “southern”…my list would go on and on.
Some of the sayings my daddy in particular used was “I’d like to buy him for what he’s worth and sell him for what he thinks he’s worth… I’d be a rich man”. When I would ask daddy “what cha up to?” He’d say “up to my neck” How do you feel? “with my fingers”…When someone would call, we always asked “what did they allow?”
Being truthful and respectful were always at the top of the list…we wave at anybody and everybody when passing them down the road…everybody is equal..
We love to eat:
cornbread and buttermilk
fried okra, pickled okra, okra gumbo… Okra okra okra
fried chicken and smashed potatoes
we drink “pop” …this could be coke, dr pepper, sprite, root beer but it was all called “pop”
What are your favorite southern sayings or quotes?
“You’all come back ya hear!”
“faster than tumbleweed in a hurricane!”
Beauty secrets?
Wash face with goat milk soap!
Home remedies?
Soak t-shirt in a bowl filled with lipton ice tea bags – then place on back or wherever a bad sunburn is.
hot tea with lemon and honey and shot of brandy – for a bad chest cold.
Word of advice?
Measure twice cut once!
Homemaking tips?
Don’t ever wash a cast iron skillet
Gracious hospitality tips?
Always make sure you make more dessert than what you will serve, so you can box up some the treats for your guests to take home with them as a thank you.
How do you stay so genteel, charming and ladylike?
Hmmm….always have pedi/mani’s done. Always look nice for my hubby. And try not to cuss like a sailor. :)
The food that says “home” to you.
Any comfort food that my Grandma Sara made – also her chocolate topping!
What did your Mama or Grandma always tell you never to forget?
Never to forget to say thank you and please and no thank you and Bless you!
Advice on how to age gracefully.
Do it without regrets!
Family Traditions.
Always celebrate our birthdays! This is with out fail no matter how old we are!
I also need some real deep-south southern names
Mary-Jo
Elizabeth Anne
Mary-Kate
Hope that helps you out Ruthann! Loved doing this.
Hugs,
Robyn
P.S. Come visit me when you get a chance.
The use of leftovers is very important to us Southerners. Whenever my Mother made a pot of pinto beans, the leftovers were always used for hoecakes. She would take the leftover pintos, add a little water and oil, cornmeal, cut up onion, (and sometimes a tomato) and fry in a skillet pancake-style. Lordy that’s good eatin.
As far as Southern names- EVERYBODY has a nickname. Period. You may not know what it is yourself, but if you know somebody Southern, they have already given you a name other than your real one. And nobody says grandmother, it’s Mammaw. And your father is not “father”- it’s Daddy. And you’re supposed to say that real fast. Daddy. Some other examples are: Sissy, Bad-eye, Shorty, Greenhorn, and Crash. And you call the preacher man, Brother Smith or Brother Jones, NOT Reverend Smith, or Dr. Jones.
Southern Hospitality- NOBODY comes to your house and leaves without eating or drinking something. Before company ever comes through the door, you don’t say a word; you go straight to the kitchen and put a pot of coffee on. Then, as they find them a seat, you get out the cake, dishes and silverware. (A true Southern woman will ALWAYS have a cake in her cake plate for this very reason- you never know when company’s coming.)
I think sometimes Southern sayings are really blown out of proportion- I am Southern and have never said “well, shut my mouth.” But one thing Southerners DO say, even after they make fun of somebody, is “Bless their heart, they can’t help it.”
Hope this helps, Ruthann!
Okay…really…this information is fabulous!! I had no idea about some of this stuff! I love it all!!This is exactly what I am talking about, the real scoop from real southern women! I’m getting ready for a weddin’ cuz I really do love this stuff so much I want to marry it! A million thank-you’s to you all!!!!!!!
hugs!
Ruthann
Ruthann..
When I lived in Miss-ssippi (they didn’t pronounce the middle “I”) I learned that the plural of Y’all is You’in’s… pronounced Yuh’ins. I never knew that there was a plural of Y’all, but I learned real quick! And also, when dinner is at 5:00, you’d better be sittin’ down at 4:45~!!
oooh my goodness sugg-(like sugar)granny a true down south gal would yell with glee, kinda like your i wanna marry it saying!! my darlin’ ruthanne how i miss you!!i am happy to hear you puttin’that pencil on the ol’ oak tree!!yippy you’ll be blessing this lil’darlin!okay honey for my entry… this lil’ saying comes from the most handsome feller in my life… ” if the barn needs painting… paint the barn!! This is in reference to a not so purdy woman!! For sure never to this lil’ darlin. i luv ya catiena-
I’m from Nashville, TN, & that’s very southern! Always use white cornmeal-yellow is for yankees! Also we make cornbread dressing with the turkey, never bread-yuck! Children are taught to always say yes, ma’mam and no ma’mam. I was shocked when I heard folks from up north think it’s insulting to say that. Why? One more: we say: we’re gonna carry you to the store, which means take or drive. I am proud to be southern. good luck with your book.
We never have dinner. We have supper. And we drink cokes, no matter what brand or flavor. Want a coke? What kind?
Oh, and we get raised around here. Not brought up. Where were you raised?
Please excuse this loooong post! There is soo much to say about my beloved South! I hope one day to finally be able to move back there!!
This was written by Robert St. John, executive chef and owner
of the Purple Parrot Cafe, Crescent City Grill and Mahogany Bar of
Hattiesburg, MS.
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
insisted 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, my region, 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, 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 BB King, Muddy Waters, the
Allman brothers, Emmylou Harris and Elvis.
My South is hot. My South smells of newly mowed grass. My South
was kick the can, creek swimming, cane-pole fishing and bird hunting.
In my South, football is king, and the Southeastern Conference
and the Atlantic Coast Conference is the kingdom.
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 cornbread, butter beans,
fried chicken, grits and catfish.
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, so big
that we call it dinner (supper comes later).
In my South, family matters, deeply.
My South is 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.’
….How’s that?
oh yeah…I’m a ‘Grit’ G.irls R.aised I.n T.he S.outh
I just looove what everyone else has posted! Sorry if mine is a repeat…
Xo
~Christine
http://www.mybellacolle.typepad.com
Hey!!
I just wanted to add the link I found what I wrote..and it also has a fun poem as to what Southern Belles are!!
I’m soo pround to be a Belle..
http://www.bayou.com/~suelynn/special/grits.html
Hey Ruthann…I was inspired today by you[ NO NEW NEWS!!!]…I did it I have a blog…I’m just getting started but check it out!! I LOVE YOU! Catiena
The Vintage Housewife
hi ruthy.you ya’ll should come to my house.I love your writing.
Ruthann…great idea…this has been so fun reading all Ya’lls stuff.
I must say after reading Christine/bellacole’s comment…well that just about sums up the south for me…HOWEVER, being the true southern gal that I am…I had to add a couple or twenty things, ya know!…I live in Texas…sometimes I think folks just don’t think we are southerners…but I must say…I am true blue southern and darn proud of it…when I am in another part of this great ole US of A…I always, always have folks approach me and want to know where I’m from? They always guess Georgia (which is quite the compliment to me)…I guess they think I taaawwlk like a real “Jowwwga Peach”…I think it actually came from my mother; who spent some time in Miss*ssippi or the fact that my dads family were German and they really talked funny!
I am reminded of an episode from Designing Women…you know the true “Desperate Housewives”…and one thing Miss Julia Sugarbaker always said, “you know we gals here in the south just love our “crazies”…I mean ever family has one or two…and we sure do love em’!” I think that is so true…we’re not really crazy as in C-R-A-Z-Y…but we are a quirky, lively and oh! so honest group of folks that I think at times it just scares the hay-doodle out of some folks.
I also remembering a sayin’ or was it a Bible verse??…my grandmother always lived by…”idle hands are the devils workshop” I might just take that a step further and say “idle minds do the same thing”…we southerners always have a project going on…we call it “piddlin”…I know others think that has a whole other meaning…but down south…we are master piddlers…or at least in my home! I’ve also noticed that in the south we don’t have houses…we have homes…we don’t have kids we have children…and we know that “mama is always right!” She is the queen of her castle and daddy takes care of the rest! Roles seemed to be well defined or at least they were in my generation. I was always taught to respect my elders, to say “yes mam/sir and no mam/sir…please and thank you…not to mention…God Bless you! We southerners make sure our children remember that as well…we call our parents friends Mr. or Mrs. So & So…UNTIL they give us their permission to do otherwise…and we are God fearing, fun lovin’, flag waving honest folks. I remember always waving at oncoming traffic (in the smaller cities and rural roads) when I was young…and you always received a wave back. Things are changing in the south…but I believe goodness, hard work, and the love of God and country that each of us learned as children…will always rise to the top! Yes, that is another thing about the south…we are eternal optimist!
Oh! and one more thing…I think a true Southern lady knows when another person is going on and on about this or that…bragging about all they have…the true Southern lady remembers to say…”That’s nice…that’s very, very nice!”…instead of saying what they really think! Yes, charm school does wonders!
Blessings…
Teresa
BIG hair never goes out of style!
And I knew a lady once from Kentucky, they chose her granddaughter’s name to be:
“Heaven Lee”
I never forgot that!
Oh you need to watch the movie Steel Magnolias. It stars Dolly Parton and Sally Field. It was filmed about 50 miles from where I live in a beautiful little town called Natchitoches Louisiana. Famous for the Christmas festival and the Fried Meat Pies. Also Clementine Hunter was from The Cane River/Natchitoches area. Oprah went to Natchitoches, she was invited by a lady on the show so she just showed up and the town folks just threw a parade and gave her the southern welcome. I love Louisiana and really love Natchitoches. We have our craft shows there. If you watch the movie, everyone of those characters are very common, I have known them all more than once and I may even be one. Oh your name is southern too! You just need to make sure you call someone by the first and second name as if it were just one name.
Ruthann…
One of my Oklahoma friends sent this to me today. After reading it, I immediately thought of you. So many of these are true not only about “Okies” but southerners as well…Enjoy
You know you’re from Oklahoma if:
*You think that people who complain about the wind in their states are sissies.
*A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel.
*Your idea of a traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway.
*You have ever had to switch from “heat” to “A/C” in the same day.
*You know that the true value of a parking space is not determined by the distance to the door, but by the availability of shade.
*Stores don’t have bags, they have sacks.
*You see people wear bib overalls at funerals.
*You think everyone from a bigger a city has an accent.
*You measure distance in minutes.
*Little smokies are something you serve only for special occasions.
*You go to the lake because you think it is like going to the ocean.
*You listen to the weather forecast before picking out an outfit.
*You know cowpies are not made of beef.
*Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date.
*You have known someone who has had one belt buckle bigger that your fist.
*A bad traffic jam involves two cars staring each other down at a four-way stop, each determined to be the most polite and let the other go first.
*You aren’t surprised to find movie rental, ammunition, and bait all in the same store.
*Your “place at the lake” has wheels under it.
*A Mercedes Benz is not a status symbol. A Ford F350 4×4 is.
*You know everything goes better with Ranch.
*Your learned how to shoot a gun before you learned to multiply.
From the Oklahoma Observer, Jan. 10, 2008
De mentioned “Steel Magnolias;” it is Dolly Parton’s character, Truvey who says that the Sweet Tea is the “house wine” of the South. How true!
Ruthann, although I am not from the south, there are some things I love about the south. The ladies are ladies, very feminine. I love sweet tea and deep fried okra. I love the way they say “Y’all”. The gardens are so beautiful. I will be looking forward to reading your writing!! Gail
(I promise this is my last comment) When we see someone we know in public the first thing you say is “Hous ye momma n nim? ” that means how is your mother and your family doing? And in the fall at the VERY first hint of cool weather you head to “The Store” (your favorite super market)to get the fixins for gumbo. This may just be a luziannie thing.
Hello there. This post is “right up my alley!”
I am a 42-year-old southern belle. I’ve lived in the same town in Tennessee all my life!
While we don’t go around in our overalls and barefooted (well, I go barefoot at home but NO where else!!) we do have some fun, colorful words and sayings!
So here goes:
No amount of sugar you put in cold unsweetened tea, is ever going to taste right!
An iron skillet is a MUST for fried chicken, fried okra, and cornbread/hoe cakes!! And fried okra doesn’t get that batter-dipped stuff on it! You need flour and cornmeal!
“Fixin'” means you are about to do something. i.e. I’m fixin’ to go to the store.
“I Reckon” means I guess so.
Your relatives are called your “kinfolk”.
You always mind your manners by saying Yes Ma’am, No Ma’am (Sir), Please and Thank You and you are never sassy!
“Bless Her Heart” This can be added to anything you say about someone.
You could say,”She’s as ugly as homemade sin, Bless Her Heart”–by adding that to the end of what you say somehow makes it better and ok. :) ???
Soft drinks are referred to as “Coke” (all of them). Such as “Would you like a coke? What kind? We have Sprite, Mountain Dew, Sundrop, or Dr. Pepper.”
And speaking of that, Sundrop is mostly a Tennessee thing but we have found some as we traveled through Florida and N. Carolina at times. OMGosh, one drink and you will slap your granny with a big ol’ stick! hee hee Sundrop has been compared to Mountain Dew by some, but there is NO comparison! It’s addictive, I tell ya. hee hee
My grandma alway made Watermelon preserves–made from the rind, and they really were good! Whew, haven’t had those in YEARS!!
Don’t act above your raisin’ meaning don’t forget where you came from.
Girls don’t call a boy on the phone or you are “chasing him”.
If we are really busy, we are “running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off!!”
A “doo-hickey”, “thing-a-ma-jig”, or “whatcha-muh, call it” is anything you can’t remember the name for. I always worn a “thing-a-ma-jig” in my hair (ponytail holder) hee hee
If you can’t remember someone’s name you call her, “Miss Doololly”.
When I got older, my Mom said she wasn’t going to “wait on me hand and foot anymore” meaning she wasn’t going to do everything for me.
Sometimes we lollygag or piddle (waste time).
If you just want a sip of something, you take a swig.
And always we invite you back. All of you! Y’all come back now, ya hear?
If I think of more, I’ll be d’rectly. For now, I’ll just be over “Yonder”. hee hee
Hugs and Blessings,
Rebecca
I want to be southern too!
*U*
That’s different than redneck, I know. But we’re close!
Overheard in a Cracker Barrel parking lot one Sunday afternoon as we were departing “No mama, I want to go to Nanny Boo Boo’s!”
How funny is that? lol
I had a friend once, she was very southern, her name, Zula, her mama’s name, Bula…
In the south Grandparents are not Grandma and Grandpa but Memaw and PawPaw…
At the world famous Beacon Restaurant in Spartanburg SC the man doing the order calling said to my son who at the time was about 7 years old, “Boy chicken ain’t got no fingers…”
Around here on menu’s sandwiches are often listed as “a-plenty’s” as in “give me a chili cheeseburger a-plenty”. Translation: with heaping sides of coleslaw and french fries. Half and half is half french fries and half onion rings. I’ve never seen this on menu’s anywhere else but here.
Good luck with your book!
a transplanted Praire raised girl whom everyone says upon hearing her speak “you ain’t from around here are you darlin?”
Hi Ruthann,
I’m from Mississippi, born and raised!
* My favorite Southern saying is: Bless your heart. It can be used in a multitude of situations!
* My favorite home remedy is: My daddy calls it a poultice, sugar and flour mixed with enough water to make a paste. We’ve used as a treatment for anything from bee stings, ant bites, to acne.
* Favorite word of advice: Always listen to your mama’s advice, you might not can use it now but it can come in handy the older you get!
* Favorite gracious hospitality tip: Always and I repeat always keep a fresh pitcher of sweet tea ready for company, expected of unexpected.
* How do you stay so genteel, charming and ladylike? I’m 40+ and still say ma’am and sir to my elders and to people in authority over me.
* The food that says “home” to you. This one is so easy: Mama’s cornbread dressing and fried okra
* What did your Mama or Grandma always tell you never to forget? My manners and clean underwear!
* Advice on how to age gracefully: Loreal hair dye!
* Family Traditions. We read the True Christmas story before opening Christmas gifts at Mama’s and Daddy’s house Christmas day.
* I also need some real deep-south southern names: Beulah Mae or Lola Mae, these were my grandmothers names. Bobbie Ruth is my aunts name. Or Ammye Mae is another aunt.
Karen
Well, let’s see…I’m a half breed, having grown up half in the deep deep south and the rest in sunny Southern California. My heart will always stay there, near my bayou. Better pronounced as Ba-oo Barthalamew. I miss catfish and hushpuppies, sweet tea and fire flies, shelling beans with my Mamaw…reading your post made me so homesick I could spit. Sayings that come to mind for me…well for starters, everything serious starts with “I’ll tell you what” even if there’s nothing added behind it…you don’t go for a drive, you “go riding” or you are “carried to” And last, but not least (being a transplant this is a favorite) When something is funny, it doesn’t “crack you up”, it makes you “die out laughing” and you would say that like this: “I liked about died out laughing” Oh thanks for carryin’ me home, if even for a brief moment.
Hugs,
Dena a.k.a. Dena Marie
Well, I’m not a southern belle but my daddy was born and raised in Kentucky and his favorite saying was, “Hang on to your Confederate money for the South may rise again!”
I had a cousin Mary Charles.
I can go from “you guys” to “ya’ll” in the blink of an eye.
My Georgia cousins think the best fun is having a “pile burn” on Saturday night.
Lord, have mercy…..
Oh my, I was raised in Memphis, and live outside of Dallas now. It’s funny how things can be different depending on what part of the south you live in. Y’all and fixin’ to are staples, but it is funny to see how many people in Dallas tell me I have an accent. Texas has more of a twang, while Memphis has a drawl. I grew up where BBQ was pork, pulled pork mind you, and you always had cole slaw on your BBQ sandwiches. In Texas, BBQ is beef, baby. The sauces are differnt, too. At Christmastime in Memphis, we alwasy had boiled custard, which is unflavored egg nog. Folks here in TX don’t know what I’m talking about. One of my favorite expressions is for a woman who looks like she’s been through a lot is: “She looks like she’s been rode hard and put up wet.” Good luck on your book, dahlin!
Carole B
caroleboatright@msn.com
Another thing I thought of…when Hollywood thinks of Southern names, it’s usually something like Joe Bob Billy or Rhett and Scarlett. Now, there may be some Joe Bobs around now, but most of the people with double names like that were from an earlier generation. My mama has plenty of friends like Peggy Sue, Betty Anne, etc. I don’t know anyone with a name like Rhett or Scarlett. In my family we would honor our ancestors by using their names as middle names. My Mama is Jo Anne, I’m Carole Anne and my oldest daughter is Blaire Anne. One of my twins is Paige Kendrick–the Kendrick after her Daddy and grandfather. Had to keep this name going, even though we didn’t have any boys! :) When I go back to Memphis, my cousins and aunts and uncles still call me Carole Anne, even though nobody else does! So I guess there is still a tradition of double names, they just don’t sound as silly as those in the movies!
Carole
caroleboatright@msn.com
Well, here’s my list. For sayins: “be sweet” “hug my neck” or “let me hug your neck”. Sometimes when we’re explaining something we’ll trail off by saying “. . . and do” For example, I might be describing a baby shower by saying, “the decorations were gorgeous, the food was to die for, MickeySue was completely surprised, and do.” I guess it means there was more to it. “tight as a tick” meaning I’ve eaten so much I’m about to bust.
My 3 southern remedies are sleeping with crisco and white gloves on your hands for extra soft skin, turpentine (used externally) for just about any other ailment. Hit your thumb with a hammer, put turpentine on it. Get a bee sting, put turpentine on it. Also, the old-timers would use stove ash for cuts to stop bleeding. My dad got a nasty cut on his hand as a youngster. My grandma took stove ash out of the chimney and packed the cut. He still has the mark on his hand to this day and he’s 76.
My southern names are ElizaRose, MickeySue, Wanda, Eula, Lurlene, LidaJo, Waverly, Schuyler, Carter, JohnBurton, JohnPeyton. The names Jackson, Lee, and Ray/Rae are also very popular. Some male nicknames are Puddin, Dinky, BooBoo, Turkey, Scootie, Floogie, Buzzer.
Well, Sweet Home Alabama! I am from Georgia first, and I think I’m qualified on this one. Oh, there are SO many wonderful things about the South. I haven’t read any of the others, but one thing that comes to mind is how we say “Bless Your heart” down here…it can be used in so many ways. If someone has done something rather stupid or just don’t have brains to come in out of the rain, we can get away with a little insult by ending it with “bless her heart”. that’s definitely a Southern-ism. A back-handed compliment/insult as long as that is tacked on at the end.
Can’t wait to hear more about your project! I could go on & on, but I’ll stop with that one since today is the deadline.
Rhoda
I’m originally from Louisiana.
Something I thought of the other day is when you see a crowded place, such as the parking lot at Walmart, you say, “Wow! Everybody and their brother is here!.” The first time I said that my daughter asked me, “How do you know, Mom?”
Hi Ruthann,
I’m glad you commented my blog so that I can visit yours….I just love it!
Too late for your contest BUT I was born in raised in GA..my folks were pioneers of Douglas County and you will find them in the history books there…
Grits–NOT instant, NOT quick. The kind that take almost 20 minutes to make. It is hard to find them even in the south anymore!
My grandmothers biscuits with white gravy and sweet tea that could “run a car” (it is so strong )…I can make the tea but not the biscuits. No instant tea or canned tea-EVER!
She always said “we’ll do that dreckly (directly)”
And I agree, it is “pie so good, make you SLAP yo mama”
Peach clobbler… mmmmmm!
My husband’s family made “cathead” biscuits–biscuits as big as a cats head! And his dad was from the GA mountains (a little different than us “city slickers”) so he always said “you’uns” instead of “y’all”
And Southern hospitality–you say “hey” to everybody..if they don’t say “hey” back, they are Yankees.
We say “poor” and “pitiful”. “She wore the most pitiful dress. It was poor. Bless her heart.”
I forgot “gimme some sugar” which seems to amuse Yankees…That means give me a kiss!
And I have to agree with Christine! My Atlanta, GA will never be the same after the migration of the people from the north after the Olympics. We don’t mind you visiting, but your superior attitude is for the birds when you want to live here…Oh, yeah, “We don’t give a damn how they do it up North!”
Oh how cute, I loved reading all the comments. I am from the Pacific Northwest and married a Kentuckian Southern gentlemen. We are like Daniel Boone meets Pocahontis!:)
But his mama taught me a few southern tricks. There is always, always sweet tea in the fridge, with a little pinch of baking soda to take out that bitterness. When I went back to Kentucky to visit, each meal was a big spread of food; breakfast, dinner & supper, no lunch in this family. I always get that confused. Biscuits are plentiful for every, and I mean every meal! No bread or toast. It’s been fun learning all the different traditions and daily living differences.
((Hugs))
Teresa
Hello Ruthanne,
I grew up in Chatham Virginia, a small town in the foothills of Virginia. I had a wonderful childhood and was blessed because my Momma was a wonderful cook and so were all her sisters. Every Sunday was the day to beat, we always had the best vegetables picked fresh from the garden, corn on the cob, black eyed peas, butterbeans, homemade sweet pickles, hot buttered biscuits and fresh tomatoes. There’s nothing that makes me think of my Momma more than hot little apple turnovers that she would fry and you could just taste those fresh apples from the tree out back. Now my Momma was a cake lady so we always had the best cakes to eat but she could make a mean pie too. Oh what I’d give to sit and have pie with my Momma again, she went home to be with the Lord 8 years ago. But she lives in my heart and eating the foods that she taught me to cook brings me a little bit of her everyday.
I don’t get much time to read blogs, so I’m behind, and I haven’t had time to read every comment (sorry!). I know I’m overdue, but I enjoyed including my comment. Favorite southern sayings, “We’re fixin’ to” instead of “We’re getting ready to.” If something’s funny we say, “That’s a knee-slapper.” If we’re surprised we say, “Whoa Nellie!”
Beauty secrets, Mary Kay anything, bought at a Mary Kay, party of course.
Food that says home, mashed potatoes with lots of butter, pot roast with brown gravy, green beans with bacon and bacon grease, sweet tea made on the back porch in a big jar in the sun. My parents always had “tomato jack” which was tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and onions with vinegar and salt and pepper. They call it “tomotuh-jack”
Family traditions, cutting down the Christmas tree at the Christmas Tree Farm, chocolate coffee cake on Christmas mornin’.
We went to school with a Joe-Bob. Also, B.J, J.T., and J.D. Also went to college with a girl by the last name of Journeycakes! Seriously.
Also, when you graduate from high school you have to go through formal sorority rush, buy all new clothes, the works! It’s a big deal! Have you seen the book, “A Southern Belle Primer”. It’s pretty cute. I’ve had it for quite a long time! Blessings. Can’t wait to see what you are up to with all this. Blessings!
Some southern names:
Sara Jackson (my neice)
Liza Jane
Mary Jane (May-ree)
Sue Ann
Martha Ann (Ma-tha)
Carrie Ann
Lucy Lu
LuAnn
Betty Sue
Betty Ann
Margaret Ann (Ma-gret)
Ann Margaret
Ruthie Bell
Idabell
Irene
Merle
Hattie
Blanche
Juanita Jo
Mary Ruth
Merrill Ray
Charlotte Ann
Jane Aire
Rose
Lilly
Pearl
Lillian
Preston
Gail/Abigail (Abbie-gail-strong pronounciation on the Abbie)
Katie Sue
Lurleen
Darleen
Maereen
Irene
D’wayne
D’wight
Darrell
Bobby Tom
Ricky
Micky
Bobby Jack
Jack Griffin
Michael Paul
Annalee
Anna Grace
LeighAnn
Mary Grace
These are the names I came up with…and all of them are either names of family of mine or close friends. Both names are always used. Another biggie in the south is to use a maiden name as a middle name and always use it as a double name or it is rude, for that’s the name yer momma gave you.
Some sayings:
MY great grandpa would always say, “There are plates and places” (meaning there was enough room)
After any family get together, cept funerals we say, “A good time wuz had by all”. (Big to say at reunions and holidays)
Another by my grandpa: “I dont eat to live I live to eat”.
FUN!
Ya’ll be good, now.
Leigh
I love outside of “Burmin-ham” (Birmingham, AL).
Remedies: Bury a potato under a spigot, when the potato is rotted away your wart should be gone.
Corn Huskers’ lotion for the worst cracked hands.
Tobacco juice for stings and bites.
Duct tape also for warts.
Actually, duct tape fixes just about everything in the South!
Sayings: More lost than a short necked goose in tall weeds.
Cuter than a speckled pup in a new red wagon.
Handier than a latch on an outhouse door.
Uglier than sin.
A whistling woman and a crowing hen never come to a good end.
Either fish or cut bait.
Crooked as a dogs hind leg.
Busier than a short tailed cow in swarm of flies.
Look like you been rode hard and put up wet.
Like white on rice.
Shut my mouth!
Well I’ll be a monkey’s uncle…
Flip my wig!
Dont count yer chickens for they’re hatched.
Its hotter out here then two goats in a pepper patch.
And finally…..
Y’all come back now, ya hear?!
Hi Ruthie! I love your site. I am a true southern lady born in Jonesboro, Georgia! I know live in Griffin, Georgia. To add to some of the other southern “sayings”, here are some things my great grandmother “Nanny Ruby” used to say: Raise that winder(window) down! when she wanted the window closed. If she didn’t want anyone to bother her things she would say “now don’t yall go meddlin(meddling) in my stuff! if she was mad at you she would say” you better stop what yer doing or I’ll be on you like a duck on junebug! She made the most wonderful buttermilk buscuits, you were only to use Whtie Lily Flower. She would make her own laundry detergent because she said she “didn’t have no use for fancy washin powders” She alwasy told me a girl could never go wrong with a pretty dress and a tube of red lipstick. She would say “everything seems uglier when youre ugly too, so put your lipstick on everyday. She always saved the bacon greese from frying bacon in a glass jar and scrambled her eggs with it and it was delicious. When my cousins and I were small if we “sassed” her(talked back) she say yall better stop all that or “ill mash your mouth”. She was a true southern lady, who sewed beautiful cloth napkins from old bed sheets and added a little lace and used them with her wedding china. She was always baking, sewing, or crocheting and you never saw her without her red lipstick and her mama’s pearls. Hope this helps. Keep up the great work!
i would like to say that i m…arried a man from california who just loved my accent that i didn’t really know i had…lol…i will add my 2cents here…the south is about god , family and hardworkin people..we have lots of different ways of sayin somethin that sometimes i have to interpret for hubby…like pert near (sp) means almost like r u ready yet…pert near….lol as kids we entertained ourselves with june bugs flying from momma’s sewin thread that we got from momma’s treadle sewin machine, we used green onion tops popped them open and sucked koolaid thru them…lol …we had music parties at the house on saturday night, my daddy played the fiddle mandolin and momma the guitar, and friends and family brought their fiddles and guitars and what fun…we used to shivery newlyweds…that means that after a couple got married later on when they didn’t expect it, we all showed up and shot a gun off in the air and made them give us candy…then the groom had to push the new bride in a wheelbarrow and then they usually threw the groom in the pond or creek….all in good fun.. no one ever got hurt… my momma always picked out a chicken from our chicken pen and we had him for sunday dinner….always cooked in mommas cast iron skillet, we always went ot church on sunday, and sunday afternoon we always went to grandmas. all the cousins…had such fun in the old barn…. playin ….we never sassed momma …we all went to bed at the same time and 9 pm was late……we never locked our houses or our cars,,, still don’t we say yes mam no mam and we have dinner and supper…we love our clotheslines…sheets flappin in the breeze…..we know everybody in town lessin ur from “somewhere else”…. most here have names like mary jo , jim bob, sammy jo, jon-scott….we love the flag and don’t know what to think about people who dont…. if someone “passes away” we git to the kitchen and make fried chicken and potato salad and hurry on over to show our respect….i could go on and on…i love bein from the south, and never want to leave to go anywhere else, cause we got it made her….
Great day’n a mornin!
Notice I used my maiden name too!!!
No southern girl wants to give up her Daddy’s name!Then we are likely to name our first child that name too! And subsequent children get the blessing of our grandmother’s maiden name or just maybe even our husband’s mother’s maiden name…In my town I know of quite a few examples of this. My daughter is Stewart. Then I know of a Ryan, a Barnett, a Givens, and a Reno. Those are just the ones I can think of quickly (or as we say “right off the top of my head”)
My grandma said never leave the house without your face. That means the it best be on to go get the mailbox. And sweet tea is the house wine of the south.
Love ya’ll
From texas
I know this is very late, but this post is so much fun I couldn’t resist posting anyhow!
Now, I just skimmed the comments…but I’m shocked I didn’t see anybody say anything about one of my favorite words, “tump!” Maybe it’s just where I’m from (Arkansas), but I use that word nearly every day when something is fixing to fall/topple over.
I noticed a bunch about saying “thank you” but nothing about actual thank you notes! These are extremely serious business in my family. If you don’t send a note, you best not expect a gift next year. :) This goes for anything…I send at least one thank you note a week! And every woman in my family has monogrammed notecards. They are kind of a right of passage for us; we get them as gifts for graduations and weddings. And we always take our maidens names as middle names after we get married. Family is really important down here and I could never give up my name (but would never dare think about keeping it as my last name after marriage–or hyphenating!) In fact, I could tell you the names of all of my grandparents back at least 5 generations.
Again, maybe this is just being from Arkansas…but Wal-Mart is serious business, too! (My hometown is pretty proud of having the world’s busiest Wal-Mart in the world). :) In the small towns, you’ll even go, in your good clothes, on the night of prom or homecoming (either because there’s nothing else to do or you need last-minute supplies).
One of my husband’s favorite phrases is “covered up” for when a place is really busy.
Whew! Sorry for the rambling!
I know I’m also very late, but I have to add my 2 cents! Like any southern girl would! Born and raised in NC and spent a little time in SC, just right over the NC line, so does it really count? Anyhoo, it’s still southern! Here’s my contributions:
Pond’s cold cream, to take off your make up, it’s fabulous.
Some family names: EmmaJean, Garland, Flint, Betty Jo, Cletus, Lucille, and Cleo.
Good Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise. That means, if nothing goes wrong. Like someone wrote in my yearbook once, they would be coming back to my school next year, Good Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise.
We use spickets, not faucets.
Buggy’s, not shopping carts.
My husbands grandparents always say “it’s gone to the bad” rather than, it broke.
And they don’t call the police, they call the law.
Any good southern girl knows how to use a shotgun, and your daddy will be cleaning his when you bring a boy home.
We pitch hissy fits sometimes too.
Everyone sits on their porch or out in the yard under a tree in the summertime. Especially as the sun is going down.
That’s all I can think of right now, mostly everything has been covered!
Sending southern love your way!
Lauren.
I came upon this while browsing the web. Do you still need help? I’m from the Mississippi coast and we are a rare breed of southern down here!
Talk about late to the “southern sayins party,” uh, that would be little old mud eater me! Anyway, I’m just gonna enlighten you all on one thang. It ain’t “okra” honey child, it’s “okreee.” That’s what it’s always been called round here anyway…..Arkansaw, y’all. When I was old enough to read and realized the spelling was o-k-r-a, I was confused, to say the least.
God love DD’s fried okreee…….oh, and the Razorbacks, too!
We carry (not take) people to town. Pineapple sandwiches! whitebread slathered with mayo and a pinapple ring are sold at the local gas station for lunch. everything green is cooked with back fat. children are babies nearly til their men. when my daughter was sick at school i got a call saying ” miss jan, ya better cum git yo-r baby, she needs her mama”
I know this is way late for any project you’re working on but I read all of the comments and just loved it all. There were just two sayings I’d like to add that my grandma “Nenaw” always said. When you knocked on her door she’d holler “come in if ya nose is clean” and when she was talkin’ about her grandbabies she’d say “their ain’t a throw back in the bunch”…meaning they were all keepers. I agree with most every comment especially about the sweet tea, okree, buttermilk cornbread, buttermilk biscuits and fresh hulled peas. Oh the south…it just don’t get no better than this.
Do yall please have that iced tea recipe of the lady that was on Oprah? I used to have the recipe, and I can’t find it anymore. I moved from Texas to Oklahoma, and I guess that I misplaced the wonderful recipe. Please, please let me know the recipe. I will be waiting in m uch expectations !! Love, Luke
Haha sweet. This is years after the post was made, but as much fun as I had reading it now, perhaps others will find this one amusing too. When we lived in East Tennessee we had a friend over, and apparently he had some nephews that were sometimes out of line. He said, sometimes he thought they needed to have ‘their butts tore up’. It is kinda hard not to laugh when you hear something like that for the first time in life!
You’uns have a great day!
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HowdyYa’ll,
I recond ya’ll jumped over sum. Back yonder where I cum from, ‘ya’ll il-git yor cottin-pic’in hide tanned if’n ya plum forgot and sassed your Daddy or Mama. Folks says Mary had the yung’ins, her sister Maggie raised ’em ’cause of her be’n an ole maid. Granpa says ‘quit yor cring, it’ll be well for ya married twice’. IF they catch you ‘fit-in with yor sis, then yo’ll git a switching. Anything ending with an A gets replaced with ‘er’ leave out any unnecessary syllables. ‘ Linder Faye, git up an go ovr yoner ‘n shut that winder, its a-fix’n th rain.’ ‘ Hav’in maters and taters fur supper, go on outher ‘n pick us a mess of collardgreens. Dig ’em sweet taters to go wid-it. ‘Jr’s aplay-in at tha hoedown over yoder an down the rode apiece’. ‘Recon we aught to meander on down ther. …anearly fergot ’bout it. Yor mama is over yoder asnapping peas. ‘Ole Lord and durn-it’ is profanity. ‘If ya miss heaven, by that far, ya split hell wide open’,Mama told me as I was swatting flies with a fly swatter.’ Move o’re, act like ya got a family.’ Go git thoes yong’ins fur supper.’ Advise; ya only one reputation-when it’s gone-it’s gone for good.’ Let yor conscience be yer guide.’
CIRCA ’50s,SC,piedmont area
Hey Darlin,
I read this and fell in love! I am a southern woman, and I have a long rich (the important stuff, not money) southern heritage. People that are southern are just people that are from the south, it is a way of life, how someone is not just who they are. It is something more than a place. The south can almost be personified into a being that influences decisions and choices made everyday. If someone is truly southern they see the faults and the scars that the South has, but still loves it with all their hearts. Being a southern woman, you grow up around strong southern women who are just are strong as men, and just as capable as doing a man’s job, but they do not, because they are woman and men need to feel important. As a southern woman you are taught to voice your opinion and beliefs without being overbearing, and rude. Manners are the second most important thing, the first being your Mama. We have the ability to accept change example, my Grandmother has a facebook, but still keep our traditions and heritage example, my son is named after my Great Grandmother’s Grand Father, his name is Drayton. We allow things to shape the way the south looks, but not the south is. The heart of Dixie never changes, just like Southern woman, it doesn’t matter where we live or what we do, were always southern. “We are Southern born, Southern breed, and when we die, We’ll be Dixie died.” Hopefully this will give you an essence of the South rather than an explanation.
My favourite Southern saying is something my grandma always used to tell me when I’d misbehave.
She’d say, “Myra Anne, what are Southern ladies?”
And I’d say, “As strong as oak trees, and as sweet as honeysuckle.” And she’d say, “Myra Anne, are you bein’ sweet?”
And I’d reply, “No ma’am.”
And she’d say, “Are you a Southern lady?”
And I’d say, “Yes ma’am.”
And she’d reply, as smile on her face, “Then you better act like one.”
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Dear Southern Belles,
I accidentally stumbled upon your website and think it’s such fun, even though I am a Northerner through and through!
Have you ever heard of a saying to the effect that in the South, the wealthy wear linen? I know that there is more to it, but I don’t remember the quote.
I am born and raised in a small town in Texas. I married a man from Mississippi family, and I have never met anyone as country as they are! My mother-in-law has always tended a garden, washed the greens in the bathtub and had all the boys help her shell peas It was a family affair. To this day, my husband won’t let me have a garden because of all the work he had to do as a child! She burnt him out on it! I remember as a child my grandmother calling me “doll baby” and my poppy calling me “darlin”. In my youth group in a little country church I went to, we had a Joe don Bobbitt and I went to high school with a boy named Joe Bob. I love the name Lauralynn! My mother-in-law‘s name is Wilma. She was named after her mother, Wilma! LOL. She was born in her childhood home, where she wasn’t breathing so they dunked her in a tub of Coldwater a few times and she turned out fine. She’s told me stories of raising rabbits for eating, and given detailed descriptions of how to cook squirrel, possum and even turtle! My husband reminds me of these childhood memories of his often! It’s kind of a joke between us! They drank water from their well on their land, wash dishes by hand to this day use a clothesline, have a wood-burning stove for cooking and heat. They pretty much still live like Pioneers! They do have indoor plumbing now, so that’s good! To me, southern living is more about being kind to your neighbor and bringing them a plate of dinner when you cook too much. Or cleaning out your closet and calling your neighbor to see if she wants anything. Yes ma’am, no ma’am, please and thank you are a big deal here! We put huge bows on our daughters! It’s a sign of a good mom! The men and many women can hunt. My husband and his entire family are avid hunters. Mostly hogs and deer. And yes, we process and eat them. I grew up with many deer heads in my living room as a child! When you kill a big buck, tradition is to have your children hold the antlers up and take a picture with your prize… Friday night football is another southern way of life.. as well as going for a walk after dinner with the family. We also love Sunday afternoon drives around the country. It is so beautiful & there so many horses and cows & pasture land to enjoy. One of my husband and my favorite activities is, after a big rain we drive down to the river bottom to see how deep the River flooded. He loves old country music so of course that is what we listen to! As teenagers we went “muddin“ for fun… After a rain you and your friends load up and some buddies truck or jeep and drive through a field as fast and crazy as he can, slinging mud everywhere! Also, I have memories on the playground of us picking “ sour weed “& chewing on it. It tasted sour to me! And I didn’t kill us! These are just a few of the things I love about living in the south… I know this is an old post but I sure enjoyed sharing what I had to share! God bless you… Absolutely love and am so thankful for your blog! As a young mother of three Littles, one with special needs, this book has been a lifeline for me! Keep doing what you’re doing!