So, um, yeah....

So it's been about two weeks since embarking on this "blogging" endeavor. And I must admit, I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping up with it. School, work, gym, life. You know the drill. But in an effort to keep it going, I'm going to blog something totally unoriginal and short! Don't worry. I've got some ideas cooking. That is if I don't forget them between now and then.

Top 10 List: Things I love about the South

1 - The Characters. You can say a lot of things about Southerners, but you can't say we're boring people. Just come to one of my family dys-functions and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

2 - The Pace of Life. Yes. It's slow. If you haven't noticed it gets really hot in the South. We move slow, we talk slow, and sometimes we drive slow. But how else can you truly appreciate the small beauties in life unless you slow down and breathe them in?

3 - The Manners. Yes ma'am. No sir. Hi there. How are you? Little pleasantries that make day-to-day living more bearable. I speak kindly to the check out lady because she speaks kindly to me. We're not "fakin' it" as some in the North would like to believe. It's just the way we are. I couldn't imagine going through life being rude to everyone. I'm sorry it makes some of you uncomfortable, but I hope Southern hospitality is something we never surrender.

4 - Sweet Tea. Real sweet tea. Not flavored tea from a can. Sweet tea brewed on the stove or out in the sun. Yum, yum, yum.

5 - The Food. It's not five-star. It's not fancy. It's not fois gras or creme brule or toad eggs. It's hardy. It's fresh. It's from the earth. Give me fresh black-eyed peas and rice on New Year's Day or collard greens and ham on Easter. Nothing beats fried okra and squash with some mac and cheese or mashed potatoes. And I can eat boiled peanuts like my life depends on it.

6 - Outdoor activities. I can't imagine my life without fishing on the Suwannee or the St. John's Rivers, spending endless summer days at the beach, camping by the springs, scuba diving in the Keys...okay so this pertains more to Florida than the South in general. But I know everybody else who grew up below the Mason-Dixon line can relate.

7 - The Thunderstorms. Wicked. Wild. Random. You haven't experienced lightening until you sit out on the porch one night and feel it in every drop of rain.

8 - SEC Football. No need to elaborate here. That would take an entire blog on its own.

9 - Southern Rock. Kind of goes along with the outdoor activities. Great memories accompanied by great music. Give me two steps...

10 - The Silence. On most nights, you can open up the windows and listen to a symphony of crickets and owls and frogs, oh my. It beats racing cars, police sirens and loud talkers. And the moon and the stars. Someone once told me they never realized the sky until they moved "down here." Cityscapes, with all the excitement that lives within, tend to block out the heavens. Maybe that's why the people living in them seem to have so little faith.

From the 2007 "White Trash Beach Bash" (Kristi & Dana)

On tomorrow's agenda: Top-1o Things I hate about the South....stay tuned.