For a girl who has never been up North, crossing the Mason-Dixon Line is a very scary thought. I have only seen snow three times in my whole life, and I hear the North has snow, like, all the time. The symbolic line is the demarcation between the North and the South, it even comes with a controversial past. It first helped solve a border dispute between Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia during Colonial times; then, after Pennsylvania abolished slavery, it was the line that marked the legality of slavery. It is now the cultural divide between North and South. Like I said, I have never been above the invisible line, but I know how different the two regions can be, and these are the reasons why I could never leave the South.
1. “Bless your heart"
It even has two meanings, which are the complete opposite of each other.
2. Sweet tea
Unsweet tea with sugar packets is NOT the same thing. I would rather drink bleach. Same thing with Pepsi. When I order coke, I want a coke.
3. Our seafood
The best seafood comes from the South, and everyone knows it is best served up fried.
4. Fried food
In fact, everything is great fried, like fried okra. Have you ever had fried Oreos from the street fair? They will change your life.5. Friday night lights
Small town high school football games are the places to be on Friday nights in the South.
6. SEC tailgates
Along the same lines is tailgating for SEC football games. The Grove at Ole Miss will always be the best, I do not care what you other SEC schools have to say about that.
7. The Southern accent
We say “y'all," and "'round here." "You guys" is like nails on a chalkboard to our ears.
8. Mac and Cheese
Mac and Cheese is considered a vegetable at every Mom and Pop restaurant you visit.
Most importantly, Southern Charm.
We were raised to say “Yes Ma'am", “No Ma'am", “Yes Sir", “No Sir", “please", and “thank you", and nowhere else can you find people who will wave and say hello to strangers.
There are probably many more differences between the North and the South that I am missing, but these are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Even if we only have two seasons, summer and kind-of-winter, I would not want to live anywhere else. And as they say, “If you can't stand the [humidity], get out of the [South]".
P.S. Coke will always win in the Coke versus Pepsi debate.
