Southern Hospitality

[Scott Hutchinson]

Bro.Oneaccord is in North Alabama, come to South,Alabama and we'll treat you so many ways you're bound to like some of them.

[Cindy]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

Bro.Oneaccord is in North Alabama, come to South,Alabama and we'll treat you so many ways you're bound to like some of them.

You are so funny Bro. Scott..........

[Scott Hutchinson]

I hear the folks in Texas are very friendly.

[Cindy]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

I hear the folks in Texas are very friendly.

This is true........

[Margies3]

Originally Posted by Ron

Besides that, most of the Americans around here are from the Southern US!!

Umm, excuse me? I was going to tell you to come on down and over to Ohio; my door is always unlocked.

But after that remark, I believe I'm going to start locking it.

[OneAccord]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

Bro.Oneaccord is in North Alabama, come to South,Alabama and we'll treat you so many ways you're bound to like some of them.

Spoken like a true Alabamian. I believe thats our state motto, isn't it?



Yeah, Im in North Alabama which would probably make me a Yankabamian.

I've lived in a lot of places down thru the years-

Indiana- "The Corny State" lots and lots of corn!

Florida- the Sunshine State (unless its raining, which is everytime time I go down there).

Georgia- Close to Heaven...only a bit east.

Tennessee- "You can see 7 states....NOT!"

New York- yep, been there. A good place to be from...A LONG WAY FROM!


Hey, Brother Scott, lets bridge the miles. Come north sometime and see the mountains. Or, I'll come south and you can show me red dirt and sand!

[Scott Hutchinson]

I want to go to Henegar and hear the sacred harp singing.
Borther Oneaccord there are alot of folks with your last-name around IDER.
I tried to phone you ,I don't have your number but I did talk to two folks with your lastname though.

[OneAccord]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

I want to go to Henegar and hear the sacred harp singing.
Borther Oneaccord there are alot of folks with your last-name around IDER.
I tried to phone you ,I don't have your number but I did talk to two folks with your lastname though.

Henegar? Thats right down the road from us! We'll just have to find our where and when they have sacred harp singin, and you'll just have to come up. The doors unlocked, come on in and make yourself at home. PM comin' at ya.

[pelathais]

Originally Posted by OneAccord

Southern Hospitality. I don't even know what that is...

Lets see... here in our part of Alabama, we don't lock our doors because a neighbor might need to borrow something when we're not home.

The keys to the cars (and trucks) are over the visor or under the mat for the same reason.

When we eat, everyone eats. We make every and any excuse to have a dinner or a "gatherin". Everyone eats. We had a dinner at the lake last year and at a table close by was a family who had just brought their kids to play in the playground. They had no food with them so we invited them to join us. When they wouldn't, we just took the food to them. The ate and we were rewarded with good friends. We have yard parties. Someone gets sick or just gets behind on yard work, we load up the mower and go. We don't ask if they need help- we can see that they do... we just do it.

Since I was raised in Indiana, I drink hot tea on occasion. I get some strange looks. In restaurants here, the usually don't ask what you want to drink. "Sweet" tea (people here don't know what iced tea is), is brought automatically. Is just as natural as ketchup on your pinto beans (Huh, you do put ketchup on your Pinto Beans don't ya?)

We "throw up our hand" (you don't wave in the south, you "throw up your hand") at every car you meet on the road (Admittedly, this is becoming more rare, I guess 'cause Yankees are moving south). To forget to "throw up the hand" is considered rude.

Two things are ALWAYS said when parting company:
"Y'all come see us" and "If you needs us, call us". If only one phrase is spoken "Y'all come see us", that means you don't really care for the person your speaking to (and don't really mean it). If you use both phrases, that means you are sincere, really like the person you are speaking to, and you really mean what you are sayin'.

So, to Bro. Ron and anyone other Yankees who want to venture south,

Y'all come see us"

and

"If you need us, call us"!

Where I was raised wasn't "the South" by any means, but out West we do have a mix of customs that resemble much of what you describe; except once you move into town. All bets are off in the city.

Instead of "throwing up a hand" you were expected to make a smaller gesture when passing someone on the road. Raising your index finger or all four fingers on the hand at the top of the steering wheel means "I see ya, we're cool." And on those roads you always had your hands on the steering wheel.

In the city it is customary to see folks raise another finger when passing a stranger on the road.

And we kept all the keys in the ignition of all the vehicles. It just made better sense. Of course out on a nearly treeless prairie the feelings of isolation, and thus security, were probably greater than what folks might feel in other places. The only sign of other hiuman beings was the old hermit that lived on the property next to my grandparent. His house was maybe 5 miles from ours but you could see the windmill and his small orchard.

The only other human beings other than the mailman was the periodic arrival US Air Force people to service and swap shifts with the guys in the ICBM silo that was a little more than 5 miles from the house and to the Northeast. They could come and go I wouldn't even notice. When my grandfather said something at dinner about it I remember feeling a little disappointed that I missed all the "action." A couple of pick up trucks off in the distance was some real "action" for me back then.

[OneAccord]

We don't have ICBM silos, but plenty of grain and silage silos. I guess our silos serve a different purpose, ya think? When I first moved to Alabama, I felt like I was going back in time. The people were so different. No rush. It seemed that time stood still. The Holiness churches of this area still handled snakes and drank the poison. People wore overalls to church. Churches had 6/2 airconditioning (6 windows/2 doors opened). I vowed I would never move to a place where you could take all 1o "cities" on upper Sand Mountain, combine them all together, and you still wouldn't have a full city block. But, I came down one too many times. And fell in love with the place.

It takes less than 3 minutes to drive from city limit sign to city limit sign in our town. Henegar Alabama, population about 500 is the largest town (area wise) in our county. Its known for its annual Potato (or is it Potatoe?) Festival where, yes, they always crown the Potato Queen. Ft. Payne is our County Seat. Its known as "The Sock Capital of the World". Chances are the socks on your feet were made in Ft. Payne. Randy Owens, Teddy Gentry and Jeff Cook of the group Alabama live here. (Well, I heard they use to sing or somethin', Teddy is best known around here for making the best sausage you can buy.)

Food. "tater fritters is a staple. So is Apple Fritters. Or peach fritters. or just about any kind of fritter you can name. We don't have dirt. Its chert here. Rocky, sandy soil that is good for growing nothing but more rocks and more sand. We do have a drive-in movie close by. But, watch where ya step. Its a pasture by day, drive in theatre by night. Better yet, stay in your car, the pop corn is stale anyway.

Roads aren't named, they're numbered. the lower the number (Co. Rd 123), the better chance it is a paved road. Higher numbers (999), gravel. No. Chert. And when it rains...mud. Rocky, sandy mud. 4 digit roads 1000 are more than likely dead ends. Probably because the bridge washed out years ago.

But, numbered county roads don't really matter. You go by landmarks... existent and non existent. Ask directions, you get, "Well, you go down this road, and you keep goin til you come to where the Thompsons use to live. Ya turn left there. If you get to the Jackson place, then you done went to far. Turn left 'bout 5 miles back this side of Ider".

Speaking of county roads,(Co.Rd.), I was amazed when I first came here at the number of people who had the name Cord. There the name was on a lot of mail boxes. Or so I thought. Until I realized that CORD meant County Road and wasn't a name at all.

Most towns are named after the first mayors wife. Geraldine, Rosalie, The town of Henegar, it is rumored, was so named to warn off people of color. Use your imagination and think of an ugly, racist phrase that sounds similar to Henegar. Better yet, let that dead dog lie. But, the ugly fact is, there are no people of color on the Upper end of Sand Mountain.

Ider used to be named Ida it is said. Years ago the town charter had to be renewed to get a post office. Problem was someone forgot (or didn't know how) to write in the name of the town and left it blank. The State Capitol called to ask the name of the town and somone pronounced it Ider, like "I have no idear". So the name was changed, by accident. Or, so goes the story.

Strange place. But I love it just the same.