I have very smart friends. Way smarter than I am. I’m reminded of the old business mantra that says, if you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room. Well, folks, I’m usually in the right room, and I love it. When I talk with my smarty McSmart smart friends, I always … Continue reading Say it with sotto voce
Category: All About the South
Take Me to the Mardi Gras
It’s Mardi Gras! Fat Tuesday! The final day of Carnival season excesses before we start the long haul through forty days of penance and denial on our way to Easter Sunday. As many of you know, I’m from Citronelle, Alabama, which is just north of Mobile, where the very first Mardi Gras was celebrated in … Continue reading Take Me to the Mardi Gras
A Southern Solstice Celebration
“Today is the shortest day of the year.” I remember Daddy telling me that when I was about four or five as we were leaving Granny’s house where we had been opening presents and celebrating Christmas with the family. It was probably only about 4 o’clock in the afternoon, but it was already getting dark … Continue reading A Southern Solstice Celebration
The Good, the Bad, and the Greasy
One of my favorite words is "greasy." It must be pronounced gree´- zee, with long drawn out e's and a definite z. Not gree´- SEE. Say it with me: Greeee-zy. Greasy comes up a lot in my life. During these last vestiges of a hot and humid summer, which has, as it often does in … Continue reading The Good, the Bad, and the Greasy
Saturday Down South
Sometimes you find yourself in a moment that seems cinematic, as if you've been somehow dropped into a movie. But you're not the ingenue. You're the observant extra on the bus stop bench. The one around whom all the activity swirls while you suck on a Big Gulp and try not to stand out. You … Continue reading Saturday Down South
Southern hospitality – or – How are your Mama and ’em?
If there is one thing that sets Southerners apart from the rest of the country, it has to be our hospitality. Over and over people who are not from here tell me just how nice everyone is, how downright friendly. So much so that it’s almost…well, weird. Drive down any country road and you will … Continue reading Southern hospitality – or – How are your Mama and ’em?
A Southern Belle chimes in on the Jersey Belle
"Jersey" and "belle." Not two words one usually hears together. That is until Bravo smashed them together into a hot reality mess set right here in, well, let's just say the Birmingham area (Mountain Brook, Cahaba Heights — they can't seem to decide which). I haven't watched the show. For the record, I don't watch … Continue reading A Southern Belle chimes in on the Jersey Belle