Everyone knows culture shock is a real thing when you are going from one country to another. Being thrown into a complete mess of customs and diplomacies you are not accustomed to can really surprise and catch you off guard. But what about within the same country? It’s true; The North and The South have always had their differences and their modern day cultures are still individual to each other.
Here’s what it’s like being a Northerner in a Southern world:
1. College Football
Okay…so it’s pre-professional.College students who are not getting paid to sport, but have thousands of people watching them (talk about pressure). I am used to cheering on the Bengals (Who dey!) but I have never seen a college game. I understand the rivalry thing since the Pittsburg Steelers, so the Alabama vs Auburn makes sense…but it is still so hard to believe college football is bigger than the NFL.Normally I would go into a Buffalo Wild Wings and watch pro sports, instead of the entire bar watching, screaming, and cheering for one game. Buffalo WILD wings for sure.
2. ROLL TIDE!
Going along with the football thing…why is this a common phrase? People say this to the most random of things.“I got a good grade on a test” “Roll tide!”“I am going to Walmart” “Roll Tide!”“Be right back, going to the bathroom” “ROLL TIDE!!” Maybe I am missing out on the random celebratory yelling of saying Roll tide to random things but even so half the time people say it, it doesn’t make sense! Why are we yelling “Roll tide” for basic human functions??? If you understand, please explain it to me.
3. Southern Food
Butter is not meant to be on everything. I get it makes some things taste good but putting a stick on every vegetable is quite shocking. Also fried foods?? ALL THE FRIED FOODS!! I have no doubt that I could literally find anything I want fried at a little shack next to a gas station. One thing a friend brought up to me the other day was canned foods (apparently not the tin cans you buy at the grocery store that are almost ready made veggies and soup). Canning is growing your own fruits and veggies and preserving it a mason jar for late good eatin’. Don’t get me wrong tho—no matter what southern food, it is all delicious. #godblessSouthernBiscuts
4. Asking for a Coke
“What do you want to drink?” “A coke please” “What kind” “……..the coke kind…?” Living anywhere near Atlanta means you are in the Coca-Cola capital of the world. So what does that mean for the South? Every drink is a coke. You then specify what kind. Asking for a soda is the same as a coke. Easy as pie.
5. Weather
65 degrees for a Northerner means shorts and a t-shirt.65 degrees for a Southerner means ten layers of long sleeve shirts, a winter coat, and mittens ( I have to admit I fit more in the Southern category for this…I get cold really easily.In fact I am the type of person to wear a sweatshirt in 80 degree heat). Recently I’ve been hearing a lot about a past event nicknamed “Snowpocalypse”. The two inches of snow that brought the end of the world—similar if NYC had tornados rip through it, the South simply just was unprepared for, well, any type of snow.I am not complaining though. Call the snow, or lack thereof, one of the reasons I moved down here.Give me a hot fall, and mild winter over negative temperatures any day of the week!
I was truly amazed after moving down here… It really is a whole new world. Even if it was just a few hundred miles south, culture is completely different. Hopefully I will get to witness more of these divergences between places as I continue my journey as a Northern Girl in a Southern World.
