Thursday, March 29, 2007

You can take the girl out of the South....

Being a Southerner that lives north of the Mason-Dixon, I have to say that there are many things I miss very much about home. Having lived "up North" for much of my adult life, I still miss home as if I just left yesterday. I would move back South right now if I could. But assuming that isn't going to be on my agenda today, here are some things I love about home:

1. Southern nights. Glen Campbell had it right when he sung "have you ever felt a Southern night". Always makes me think of riding in a car with the top down and my arms in the air taking reeeeaaallllly deep breaths in the summer night.

2. The Food. Gosh, I love greens, grits and those biscuits. And don't forget sweet tea!

3. Other Southerners. Southern hospitality is no myth. Granted, the people where I live now would cut off an arm to help you in a bind, but there is something about being in the South that makes me feel I belong.

4. Open spaces. I miss having room to roam and space to be alone. Yeah, I know that doesn't happen in the big cities but otherwise, it's there.

5. Water, water everywhere. I don't know about you, but I love being close to the coast and if I can't be at the beach, being by a lake or a cool creek looking for crawdaddies will do just fine.

6. History. Everywhere you go, it's about the past, especially "The War", that is the Civil War. If you like U.S. history, the South has got it.

7. The Men. Ok, I don't want to see steam coming out of my husband's ears over this one so I'll explain myself. I miss men holding doors open for me, letting me cross in front first when walking, and the general feeling of respect men give women in the South. Sure, I sound super old fashioned. But after experiencing the other side of that treatment while living other places, I'll take southern men any day. Now I'll sit back and wait to be torn apart by all the feminists out there :)


Sweet Tea
1/2 gallon cold water, distilled or filtered if possible
13 regular size tea bags (I use decaf)
1/2 cup sugar (or more), to taste
Boil the water for at least 1 minute. Turn off heat and add tea bags. Let seep until tea is still warm enough to dissolve sugar. Take out tea bags, trying not to squeeze them out too much, and add sugar. Stir to dissolve. Put tea in gallon container, add cold water and stir.




Always forgive your enemies. Seldom does anything annoy them more.
-wisdom from a tea bag tag

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Ready, Set, Launch!

I never thought I would be writing a blog but here it is! I know, everyone says that when they start a blog. But being one that keeps things close in, this a big adventure! First things first. Why the name? No big deal there, just named after my kids who "flutter by" in real time and in my memories of their young lives so far. Don't worry, this is not a blog about my kids. I may find them endlessly fascinating and love them dearly, but no one else is going to be as enthralled as I am! So except for the occasional indulgence I ask ahead of time to be excused for, I will be sticking to other topics.

One topic I am particularly saddened by is the devastation cancer is causing everywhere. I have seen it close up in my own family, taking two of my aunts recently, one very young. Cancer also claimed one of the mothers in my neighborhood last year. She was also young, in her early 40's, and she left a husband and two little girls behind. Now the two very public illnesses of Elizabeth Edwards and Tony Snow. Facing cancer and doing it in the public eye is difficult at best. I couldn't image it myself. But even scarier seems to be the increase in how much cancer is diagnosed. That, of course, could be due to many reasons but still....it's getting to be I hear about it or know someone with it more and more frequently every year.

One inspiring, brave woman has been fighting all the odds and does it with humor and guts and shares it all on her blog. She is a natural at this blogging stuff and I am awed everytime I read her posts. This is a woman with true grit.

http://shannonmelwarrior.blogspot.com/

You go girl!

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.....You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt