Durty Durty

I was at dinner in the City the other day at Chinatown Brasserie (great food, by the way) and found myself paying $45 dollars for a meal including tax and tip, NOT including dessert. And I was a little hungry when I was done too. This triggered off a string of emotions within me and made me realise something - I miss the South. A lot. Why? I'll tell you why...oh i'll tell you:

1. The server at the restaurant was feisty and mean and acted like she was doing us a favour rather than doing her job. Not to sound arrogant or anything but if I'm paying to eat at a fairly up-market restaurant, decent service is the least I expect. I'm not saying I want someone to carry me from my table to the bathroom when I so wish, but a pleasant demeanour would be a good start. Peeps in the south make you feel at home and ask you about your day and whatnot. I like.

2. I like being called sir. I'm not saying that I like people to refer to me with a title or anything but for the most part, males are called sir and females are called ma'am in the south. Respect is a good thing and in general, the people in the south show a lot more of it than do people in the north. I like.

3. Going out to dinner in the south will not only leave you satisfied but will also leave your wallet/bank account pretty similar to what it was before you paid for the meal. Only in the south could I get a piece of french toast bigger than my face, a huge biscuit with sausage gravy and a tall glass of freshly squeezed orange juice for about $6. I like.

4. This might be something that's unique to Atlanta, where I spent 4 years, but almost every street corner has a person just standing there, hanging out. Are they selling stuff? Don't ever ask me questions. But when you're driving around and you see a chap standing at a street corner (daytime and/or after-dark) and he's talking to himself or dancing to a beat in his head, you can't help but smile. I like.

5. Package stores. If you think I'm talking about UPS, you're wrong and haven't ever lived in the south. I know what brown can do for you and that is not one of the reasons I like the south. Look it up. I'm not a big drinker or anything but "package store" has a good ring to it and sounds better than other words for it. I like.

6. Publix. I don't know why, but I miss Publix a lot. Like, a lot a lot. It's always been a happy place for me. A place where in the middle of the day old women make little samples for you to try. A place to get good cake (vanilla cake with butter cream icing). A place to buy eggs to throw off balconies. The list goes on. I like.

7. Nobody in the north will ever say "Y'all come back now, ya hear?" Southern accents are awesome. I like.

I'm sure there'll be another list of reasons why I like the South. But this is all for now.