belle/country/redneck/yankee

what do these things mean to y'all?

awhile back, i was asking friends' opinions on this on facebook.

i got a good bit of feedback, from southerners and yankees alike. the more i read, the more i realized:
people are people, and we are all different. no two people are exactly alike, even if you are from the same region of the country.

sure, there are certain characteristics that are stereotypical to a certain region, but can we use them to define people?

i was born and raised in NC. i have also lived in VA and SC. to me, lynchburg was not as 'southern' as NC and SC - the food, the accents, the pace of life, etc. some people loved my accent. some people made fun of it. did i think people in lynchburg were from another planet? no.

i do not consider myself to be a 'belle'.
i rarely wear dresses.
i hate heels.
i was not in a sorority.
i wear nail polish maybe twice a year.
it will be a rare ass occasion when my children are in outfits that are comprised of bows, smocking, and knee socks.
i love sweet tea, but that shit is loaded with sugar and i'm diabetic.
i wore pearls once - on my wedding day (although i do have a pearl ring from andrew that i love.)
do i have a "real" southern accent? yes. am i ashamed of it? no.

to stereotype the whole south and say that everyone in it is the same, is simply stupid. (it's stupid to do this for people from any region.) there are plenty of southern people who are pricks, just like there are pricks up north.

while the southern stereotype means always minding your manners, for some southerners that means minding their manners to your face and talking shit about you behind your back. some southerners find it very difficult to stand up for themselves or for something they believe in. some southerners gossip like hell behind your back, because they don't feel comfortable just saying it. just voicing their opinion.

i am very proud of the southern women that i grew up around. they were not the prissy kind. we didn't have little tea parties and wear dresses. most of their hands were dirty and callused, and they were often overworked and under appreciated. they drank and used cuss words and didn't care if the people at the baptist church were talkin shit about them.

but, i'm sure many "yankee" or "midwestern" or whatever region of women could say the same. they are just as proud of their heritage as i am of my 'southern upbringing'.

i'm glad i was born and raised in the south.
the end.
i'm sure everybody's proud of where they're from. people move. people come back. whatever.

just be yourself, people.
if you are a southern belle, be a southern belle.
if you have a potty mouth and drink beer and happen to be southern, but not a belle, fine, be that.
if you grew up in philadelphia, and are a wino who hates sports. whatever. be that.

just be you.

i'm sick of these cliques and shit in blog world. grow up. this is not high school.
just write your shit. hit publish. people who like it will read it. if they don't they either won't read it or they'll leave you immature ass comments. who gives a shit?

write anyway.
if you want to be a priss and wear dresses and keep your nails painted and write about your reunion with your sorority sisters, do it.
if you want to ride four wheelers and wear perfume at the same time, good for you, do it.
if you want to move south from michigan and discover that you actually like sweet tea, who gives a shit? drink it!

just be you.
and let everybody else be them.
and if you don't like it, don't hang out with them, and don't read their blog.
know that some people won't like you. some people will leave snarky comments. not everyone will agree.
oh effin' well.

no matter where you're from ...