Things Only Southerners Understand
45 Things Only People Who Grew Up in the South Will Understand
Image Source: Flickr user fakelvis
Sometimes the South feels like its own little country. I was born and raised in North Carolina, where I spent Summers scraping clay off the sides of a creek to make pretend pottery and catching lightning bugs in mason jars when the sweltering sun finally set. I've been living on the West Coast for years now, but every time I go back home, the unique things about the South stand out to me even more. Why are all of these strangers talking to me at the grocery store? You really expect me to say yes ma'am and yes sir? And for the love of god, WHY IS IT SO HUMID? Here are some things — good, bad, and sometimes just plain weird — that only true Southerners can relate to.
1 You understand the peace and serenity that only the rustling branches of a Weeping Willow can bring.
Image Source: Unsplash / Gabby Orcutt
2 You know the feeling of peeling your sticky skin bit by bit from the boiling leather seats of a car in July.
Image Source: Unsplash / saif el ouarti
3 You know, with absolute certainty, that anything can be fried, eaten, and enjoyed.
Image Source: Unsplash / Brian Chan
4 Honey, sugar, dumpling, pumpkin, and sweetie pie are usually not referring to food.
Image Source: Unsplash / Jonathan Farber
5 You understand the feeling of complete and utter satisfaction when successfully getting a big drop off the end of a honeysuckle.
Image Source: Unsplash / Annie Spratt
6 You know that good food is even better when combined with other good food to make a casserole.
Image Source: Unsplash / Jonathan Pielmayer
7 Talking to complete strangers in public is not weird — in fact, it's just good manners
Image Source: Unsplash / Matthew Henry
8 Speaking of manners, you were grounded multiple times as a kid for forgetting your "yes ma'am"s and "yes sir"s.
Image Source: Unsplash / Michał Parzuchowski
9 Just because you asked for a Coke doesn't mean that you want an actual Coca-Cola. We meant Sprite, damn it!
Image Source: Unsplash / Marc Fulgar
10 You've felt like you were actually suffocating from humidity. Is death by mugginess a real thing?
Image Source: Unsplash / Zugr
11 "You guys" and "you all" are just incorrect ways of saying "y'all."
Image Source: Unsplash / Melissa Askew
12 You feel completely OK talking sh*t about someone, as long as you follow it with a heartfelt "bless their heart."
Image Source: Unsplash / Priscilla Du Preez
13 The squeak of a porch swing and the slam of a screen door will always make you feel at home.
Image Source: Unsplash / Cat Mapper (Max Ogden)
14 It is nearly impossible to tell the difference between a snow day and the apocalypse.
Image Source: Unsplash / Tuula Pekkala
15 You've tried (and maybe even successfully) fried an egg on asphalt.
Image Source: Unsplash / Hello I'm Nik
16 Sweet tea is the only kind of tea. Get out of here with your unsweetened crap.
Image Source: Unsplash / Wade Austin Ellis
17 You're able to orient yourself based on which church is on what corner.
Image Source: Unsplash / Aaron Burden
18 Telling off other people's kids when they're pitching a fit is acceptable.
Image Source: Unsplash / Arwan Sutanto
19 Summer nights as kid were spent catching lightning bugs (fireflies to the non-Southerner) in mason jars.
Image Source: Flickr user Tarah
20 You or someone you know reached true Southern belle status when they got dolled up for a debutante ball.
Image Source: Unsplash / Celia Michon
21 Nowhere else in the country does biscuits better. And don't even get us started on chicken biscuits.
Image Source: Unsplash / Jodie Morgan
22 You know that all BBQ is not created equal.
Image Source: Unsplash / Paul Hermann
23 "Red on black, venom lack; red on yellow, kill a fellow" has saved the life of someone you know.
Image Source: Flickr user David Jahn
24 You've used monogrammed towels, napkins, bags, pillows, wallets, and pens too many times to count.
Image Source: Flickr user Personal Creations
25 It's not a purse, it's a pocketbook.
Image Source: Unsplash / Pete Bellis
26 You call anyone from above the Virginia line a Yankee, or when they come down for the Summer or to go to Duke, a "damn Yankee."
Image Source: Unsplash / BICAD MEDIA
27 You never, ever forget to write a thank-you note after attending a social gathering or receiving a gift.
Image Source: Unsplash / Aaron Burden
28 What the hell is a remote control? Pass me the clicker or the changer, or don't pass me anything at all.
Image Source: Unsplash / JESHOOTS.COM
29 Taylor Swift ain't real country music (but we love her anyway).
Image Source: Unsplash / Facundo Aranda
30 The struggle of craving Chick-fil-A on a Sunday is so real.
Image Source: Flickr user Mr. Blue MauMau
31 You don't leave the local pool when a Summer thunderstorm rolls in.
Image Source: Unsplash / Max Rovensky
32 You take your whiskey and bourbon very seriously.
Image Source: Unsplash / Adam Jaime
33 It's not a shopping cart, it's a buggy.
Image Source: Unsplash / Laura Marques
34 You can't see a bottle of pink wine without singing Deana Carter's "Strawberry Wine" in your head . . .
Image Source: Unsplash / John Canelis
35 College sports rivalries are a religion to you. You're a Tarheel or you're a Blue Devil.
Image Source: Unsplash / Ben Hershey
36 You feel like it's only proper to dress up when flying or going to the doctor's office.
Image Source: Unsplash / ALP STUDIO
37 You're still not sure what Alan Jackson meant when he sang that "way down yonder on the Chattahoochee . . . "
Image Source: Flickr user Sarah Brookshire
38 You know that sororities and fraternities mean something completely different in the South than anywhere else in the country.
Image Source: Unsplash / Fernand De Canne
39 You've caught a crawdaddy with your bare hands.
Image Source: Unsplash / Sidney Pearce
40 You know someone of nearly every Christian denomination.
Image Source: Unsplash / Allen Taylor
41 The music from a banjo, acoustic guitar, and fiddle playing all together is a sweet and perfect fusion of your favorite sounds.
Image Source: Unsplash / William Recinos
42 Backyard bonfires are your idea of a perfect nighttime get together.
Image Source: Unsplash / Courtney Prather
43 You don't realize how strong Southern accents are until you move somewhere else. Sorry, was that darn? Dern? Dernit?
Image Source: Unsplash / Alex Holyoake
44 Fried chicken and waffles were sent from heaven straight to the South.
Image Source: Unsplash / Nelly Jerobon
45 You know that no matter where you are in the world, if you run into a fellow Southerner, you've got a true friend in them.
Image Source: Unsplash / Greg Raines
45 Things Only People Who Grew Up in the South Will Understand
originally posted on POPSUGAR Smart Living
