southern living

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by the South. Southern movies, Southern food, Southern towns, cities and countrysides. It has always appealed to me.

(Out of my deep respect for the South, and perhaps more importantly, my weakness in the area of capitalization rules, I am making the executive decision to capitalize South and Southern. After Googling the rules, I am further entrenched in my capitalization confusion, and decided to err on the side of over capitalization. If I stew over it any more, this post will never see the light of day. Please send capitalization help.)


While I've been to Mississippi to help out after Hurricane Katrina, and Fort Jackson, SC for my son's boot camp graduation, this was my first true Southern vacation.


It lived up to all my expectations.


Beautiful scenery.


Gorgeous weather just perfect for strolls down flower lined walkways.


Tree lined avenues.


Live oaks.


Spanish moss.


The South dressed in all its finery. What could be better.

In a week, I only saw one drawback.

One potential downside to Southern living.

Do you see it?

Or should I say do you see him? (Could be a her, but it seems like it should be a him.)


How about here?




That's right.

Now this may be a normal sight for you Southern girls, but to me, it's kind of a big deal. I'm used to being on the lookout for bears/moose/wolves/mountain lions when I'm in the woods, but these slithery ankle biters quickly topped my list of animals I don't want participating in my demise. Being eaten by a wild animal is one of my biggest fears. Just going on a hike in the Montana mountains is an act of courage and bravery for me. My hubby once pointed out bear grass on a hike, saying "Oh look, bear grass", and in the time between the word BEAR and the word grass, I managed to scream and jump and my heart rate sky-rocketed. We now have a list of words that are banned while hiking. He promises if he spies a real bear or other threat to my existence, he will get between us, be my protector, and if need be, sacrifice himself and take one for the team. That scenario doesn't really appeal to me a whole lot either. Besides, what if he's walking in front of me, and the wild beast sneaks up behind me? What then? Or, what if..... Needless to say, he hikes by himself a lot.

Wow, I really didn't mean to go down the wild animal carnage rabbit trail.

Back to the trip.

It was amazing, truly perfect. Many more photos to come, but in the mean time, I will be watching Fried Green Tomatoes, Steel Magnolias, and Gone With the Wind.

(Pictures taken in the Charleston, South Carolina area. For specifics, click the highlighted links throughout the post.)

Have a great weekend, y'all!

p.s. For those who asked questions on the last post, I answered in the comments there.