I am Not Anti-Yankee. I Imported and Married One.

As I look over my recent posts, I see that I've been using the "Y" word a lot. Yes, I've been talking about Yankees. It happens.

The first time I went to Europe I was very surprised that people there said I was a Yankee. I explained to them that I certainly was not, I was from the South. We rarely made any headway in this conversation, and I was as confused as they were.

And I'm not anti-Yankee. I like them. I even went so far as to import one from New York and marry him. He's lived here longer than he's lived anywhere else. And he likes it here.

Poor fellow. Around here, when he talks, people ask what part of the North he's from. And when he goes up North, they ask him what part of the South he's from. A man without a region.

The other night we were watching some educational show on television about fiber production and I told Lily that when I was in school I was taught that textiles were South Carolina's number one product. Now it's tourism.

Then Paul said, "We used to grow cotton and that's why there were so many mills."

"We" used to grow cotton? I think he's been converted.

Excuse me if my use of the word "Yankee" is offensive. (And just what about that is offensive? I don't understand.) You can call me a redneck, though it's not really true because I don't have useful skills, such as being able to drink a whole suitcase of beer or get a car out of a ditch. Maybe I'll learn.

Comments

[lori]

just after I relocated to San Diego - one of V's colleagues said, "oh, you're from the east coast." I said of course I'm not - I'm a Southerner!