Mom I'm Bored....Again

Growing up in coastal North Carolina, there was never any shortage of beaches.Topsail beach, Carolina beach, Wrightsville Beach, Kure beach and all the major islands, were a mere 10-25 minutes away from my house.In the spring to summer months that's where most of the local kids hung out on the weekdays as well as the weekends. If you were bored you went to the beach and spent the next 4 hours wake boarding,kayaking, or paddle boarding. If the currents were too intense, the different pools in town were the next best option. But once it started getting chilly outside and you couldn't enter the water without a wet-suit, the options to stay busy were slim.

See, Wilmington N.C. is a relatively large sized town with around 120,000 people and continually growing(that's one reason why it takes 40 minutes to cross town). You would think that there would be a plethora of hang out spots to satisfy both the locals and tourists. But sadly, once you've done it once you've done it enough.

There's plenty of shopping centers, but it doesn't take long to visit all the stores in one afternoon. We have a movie theater, only one, and it gets expensive to spend 8.00 on a movie every weekend. Everything seems to be catered to the younger generation, so as I became a teenager there wasn't much going on to take up all the excess time.So as I grew up in participated in every activity possible-chorus, orchestra,dance,tennis, etc.You name it, I probably did it for some time.Though dance wasn't the best hobby for someone with two left feet. But even those activities weren't enough to keep me occupied in this beach town.

Many times after school in High School, my friends and I would keep ourselves busy by speeding through the school's parking lot trying to stay conspicuous to the police officers who were always guarding the front of the school. Sometimes my friends would do something stupid like get their car stuck in the mud and then we'd get yelled at by our JROTC teacher. If we got too bored wreaking havoc on our school's property, we'd head to the park. The Northchase park was the closest but Greenfield Lake had more space. We would go outside and blast music while playing basketball and eventually end up at McDonald's or Chick-Fil-A. We'd go to the local Mexican restaurant or hang out at Ian's house who just happened to have a hammock and a really awesome dad. One weekend a grew of about 12 of us were at his house, one thing led to another, and my friend wound up getting a second degree burn. That was the talk of the class for the rest of the school year.

Wilmington is one of the most beautiful places you'll ever visit if you decide to stay for a vacation, and if you're a tourist there's plenty of activities to fill your weekend.I'll even give you a complimentary tour for free.But, for us locals, it can get very monotonous and dull.There's only so many lifeguard towers you can climb in a day. Let's just say you had to learn to get creative with the free time you had during the week.

Can you Monogram that?

The southern lifestyle is very much slow and casual.That is especially true if you grew up in a coastal town.Therefore, the fashion must be suitable to the environment.

In the town where I grew up in, it wasn't uncommon for the outfit of choice between the months of March and October to be shorts and a tshirt, more specifically a tshirt of the Salt Life or Calutta variety.Oh, and don't forget the rainbow flip flops, or Sperry's are also a personal preference. From late Spring to the beginning of fall the weather is nonstop blazing heat, so wearing jeans is very uncommon unless you're willing to die of heat exhaustion like the heap of earth worms that always seem to gather on the concrete.

During the colder months the only thing that changes in the way people dress, is that they upgrade to jeans and instead of short sleeve shirts, Salt Life and Calcutta just happen to sell long sleeve shirts as well. It usually doesn't get extremely cold, but during the winter North Face coats can be seen on every 9 out of 10 people you pass by in the mall. If you're feeling extra fancy, a monogrammed pullover or winter jacket would also suffice. A ball cap that either says NC State or Duke might be added for extra head warmth.

Now I can't say that 365 days out of the year we live in denim and tshirts.On Sundays many of the people in my town are in their boats at Masonboro Island or Bald Head Island enjoying the sun rays, but for the other half, Sunday means church. Church is where the real southern lady dresses up. This is where the Vera Bradley or Belk dresses are in copious amounts, and pearls are needed to complete every outfit.The only establishment where hats the size of a watermelon are allowed, even though they block the view of the whole congregation. Monogrammed earrings and necklaces might even earn you extra brownie points.My grandmother always has her color coordinated pantsuit or skirt with the matching shoes.And even though we don't go to the same church, I'd have to get my outfit inspected by my grandmother before leaving for Sunday School just to make sure everything matched,because she claims I am colorblind, and to ensure that my skirt was suitable length. And never, ever, walk into church looking like a "bum on the street"(my mother's words, not mine) because people will talk.

We may not be on the list of most fashionable town in Style Magazine but at least we could be voted for having the fashion with the most Southern charm.

Webster's Southern Dictionary

There are some terms that have a totally different meaning in the South...



1.Ya'll
In most places up North, the term ya'll is not a very common occurrence. Down South, it's a word used in almost every sentence."What are ya'll doin tonight" or " Did ya'll see the Panthers game?" "Did ya'll know this milk was expired." In fact, it's used so much where i'm from, you'll get looked at like you have four eyes if you by mistake say "you guys" instead.

2.Football
If I were listing this terms in order of importance, football would be number 1. It doesn't matter whether it's high school football, college football, the NFL, or even peewee, During the fall months, football is life, Every other car on in my town, sport their team flag of choice, on their cars(hopefully it's the Panthers). During church you'll see the guys,and even the ladies, looking down and checking the stats of the game while the Preacher is preaching his sermon. Matter of fact, I know of churches who even go as far as close their doors on football Sundays.High School football is such a huge deal that many of the players I knew growing up, never had to make up missing assignments or were given A's if they had to travel during school for games.Yep, football is pretty much it's own religion.

3.Manners
Down South you better use the words yes ma'am and yes sir or you'll feel a swift hit to the side of your face. Open the door for everyone and smile when someone walks by.No slurping at the dinner table and guests always eat first.When mama or grandma say sit up straight, you sight up straight.It's as if the Queen of England was about to walk in at any minute. It was a common occurrence when I was younger, to be told to act more ladylike at least 3 times a day,

4. BBQ
There's not just one type of BBQ. The most common are Texas barbecue, Kansas city barbecue, Memphis barbecue, South Carolina and North Carolina barbecue, If anyone ever ask you who has the best kind say North Carolina, even if you've never even tasted it before. There hasn't been one cookout or gathering that i've been to that has not served BBQ.

5,Fixin
When using the word fixin, it means two things. You primarily use the term when talking about what you're going to do or about to do.Such as, "i'm fixin to clean the garage." It could also be used to refer to side dishes in meals like vegetables, rice,etc.Those are considered fixins.

6.Humidity/AC
If humidity was what the devil invented to punish  us in the South. A.C. was a device sent by God. Seriously, there is nothing worse then living in 90 percent humidity 7 months out of the year. You battle with yourself internally over whether to go outside and enjoy the sunny weather or if you should stay inside and keep your sanity. It's so bad, that the humidity many times  feels like thick fog on your skin.

7.Country Music
You either love it or you hate it.But if you live down South you better learn how to tolerate it cause you'll hear it everywhere. And I truly mean EVERYWHERE. Grocery stores, malls, car dealerships, and restaurants play the radio station 101.3 on repeat. There's no better place to live at either, if you want to hear some of the biggest names in country music.

8.Bless Your Heart
There has never been a better insult ever invented.Most people would believe it to be a term of sincerity or caring.WRONG. It's just a very nice way of calling someone an idiot.

9.The South
To many individuals, the South is just a southern part of the United States with backwards thinking.But to us who have grown up there, the South is the best place on Earth. No other place will you find some of the sweetest most loving individuals. A place where you can walk down the street,smile, and start up a conversation with a complete stranger. A place where taking it slow and easy is a way of life.A place where manners are held to a standard and where you learn most of your life lessons from the elders in your family.It's not just a word, it's a way of life.