Your rendition of the south? (American South))

I grew up on the West Coast but have done all my higher education in the South. People are honest, friendly, welcoming, and helpful. I just try not to discuss politics, religion, or my sexual orientation with them. Honestly, my least-favorite thing about the South is the humidity.

EDIT: There are certain parts of the South and certain people in the South that are far more open-minded and tolerant than they get credit for. For every lunatic politician or televangelist that goes off on a public rant about The Homosexual Agenda there's a gay couple opening up a Bed & Breakfast or a parent realizing what it means to truly love their child unconditionally.

 

Howdy y'all. We gon get sum 52 ounce steaks and fry dem up on the bar be que

 

My cousin said because I had double piercings that I am a lesbian. And they hunt, sorry but no I do not appreciate the south.

 

Lived in Texas my whole life, not really "The South" but more like "The South" meets "The Southwest." People are very nice and friendly, much more so than in other places I've been (at first instance). Time does tick a bit slower; I have a friend who was surprised how much time I "wasted" at the grocery store perusing items (apparently, spending two hours in a grocery store is too much for a New Yorker). Some people may be a bit more homophobic and/or racist, but it stems more from a culture where the status quo is revered and anything that changes it puts the fear of God in many a heart.

One thing that the South has spoiled me is the belief that at any restaurant I go (Chinese/Asians excepted), if I say I want to drink "tea," it will be freshly brewed (not powder, yuk), sweet enough to induce a diabetic coma, and served in a glass filled with ice and a wedge of lemon.

 

Sweet tea Yuckkkkkk. Haha.
I'm thankful to live far enough north that they at least check to see if I want sweetened or unsweetened.

I'm incredibly guilty of stereotyping southerners.
I mostly assume they're more homophobic and close-minded, but I know it's wrong to think that so nothing ever comes of it.

 

How can you drink iced unsweet tea?

Remember, not all southerners are homophobic; some southerners are gay :eek:.

:roflmao:

 

The south is a very interesting place, and it's different from the North in several ways, good and bad.

I'll say right out that one of my favorite things about the South is that you tend to find people who are a lot friendlier, humbler and much more polite (A lot more extroverts, too). New Orleans is a prime example of this. Lots of them seem to have a "live and let live" kind of mindset. It seems to me that despite the stereotypes, most people in the South actually have morals that lie in a more personal relationship between two people and they seem to strive for a strong friendship more than people in the North.

Now with that being said, those same people aren't going to give you an easy hand up if you dig yourself into a hole. they're going to watch you struggle because they want to see you fight and win. And if you're a total ass to someone, they'll be right out and be even more of an ass to you. The game works differently in the South than in the North, but I think that comes from generations of lots of agriculture and having to fight for yourself. It's true that similar things are about in the North, but the main difference is that if you sat around with a change cup in the North, you'd find something, maybe enough for a sandwich by the end of the day. In the south, you're working. And someone will find you a job if you can't find one yourself.

That's how The South seems to me.

 

Ah yes tea...where I lived, heaps of sugar in it. Go just an hour or so north up near Pittsburgh and they give you some gross unsweetened stuff. You have to ask for "southern sweet tea". I've lived in West Virginia, Tennessee, and briefly visited Georgia and Texas. The people are generally and GENUINELY friendly, though a little suspicious of "outsiders" (especially in WV). I don't think they are as backward as people make them out to be. And the ones I've known usually shy away from politics because they like things to go smoothly. West Virginia, at least the part I was in, is not NEARLY as religious as other parts of the south and middle parts of the country.

I kept seeing people say of Phil Robderpson, "oh what do you expect he's a redneck hilljack of course he's a bigot" which is in and of itself kind of bigoted. The rednecks I knew just liked to ride four-wheelers and party and stuff. They just don't get a lot of opportunity to meet other people so, they just have an ignorance about them, but not necessarily the ill-will most people assume. My relatives who live in the sticks might refer to a black person as "that little colored fella from down the road" or a gay man as being "a little light in the loafers" or "a little funny that way" but I'm sure they'd offer their house for you to visit and send you off with lots of food no matter who you were.

 

Family friends in Sugarland.
Bayous
Nutria (and their eyes...)
The Alamo
Houston Aeros (even though they aren't in Houston anymore)
and
SWEET TEA.

 

For living in the southernmost state in the USA, this place isn't really rednecky.. It's got more northern influence than anything, mainly because of all the snow birds though :dry:

 

I usually think of the south being very redneck and they like their booze and guns, but then I remember that I'm from Kentucky lol XD (or so i've heard it been called Kinfucky e-e Not a good impression for me)

 

My father says the south has both the best food in the world (Louisiana)and the worst (Texas) . Other than that, I know it is warm, traditionally reluctant to give people rights, and they talk funny. That last bit only applies to a few areas of the south, but it is objective. When it's raining and sunny you you say "The Devil is beating his wife"? Seriously?

 

I'm a northerner and grew up with a very different lifestyle then many of the folks in the south. My work has brought me to quite a few locations in the south and the experiences for the most part have been positive. People were generally friendly, the food was pretty good.

The only place that I didn't really care for was Nashville - I was there for a week and didn't experience anything but the nightlife. I was stuck at a conference the rest of the time. I can see why it has its appeal but that scene is just not for me.

---------- Post added 21st Jan 2014 at 05:51 AM ----------

And Wisconsin. Gun Deer season is almost a holiday. I would say about 1/3 of work is gone for the week of Thanksgiving to go out hunting.

 

HAHAHAHAH!

The South can unfortunately live up to the stereotypes. I will say, however, that the places that are truly like "I hear banjos. Paddle faster." have 6 people in them and tend to be economically stunted. I find that people can be friendly but sometimes they can be fake friendly(i.e. "bless your heart"=dumbass) while other parts of the country just come out and say it. The large cities in the south though are more liberal than the stereotypes would leave one to believe. Correlation never equals causation in all cases but these larger, more liberal cities tend to have better economic status and more people desiring to live there. Basically what I'm saying is there are places that there are stereotypical but the majority of Southerners don't live there.

---------- Post added 21st Jan 2014 at 08:56 AM ----------

Haha, yup. My favorites are "why are you grinning like a mule eating briers through a barbered-wire fence?" and "you look as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs."

 

The constant stereotype that I have heard about the south of the USA are hillbilly farmers

 

Your stereotype is off but only so slightly.. Only the ghetto speak with that "strong?" wait, rewind that a bit please and thank you.... gnorts taht kaeps ottehg~ ghetto speak with "an extremely heavy" accent!

 

In the South certain things are placed at a higher value it seems which is both good and bad. Southern families would do anything to protect their own. Its all about the home style cooking (grits, sweet tea, hush puppies, pecan pie, fried chicken, ect.) and church on Sunday isn't just about meeting God its a social event. You know all the college football coaches even if you don't follow football because you still have to kind of follow football, because so often talked about.

Southerners aren't all hillbilly farmers. That would be like saying all Northerners live in the city and can't drive a car.