Dear Readers I am pretty sure that only a few of you know this, so I will enlighten you. There is no such thing as a stranger in the South. Seriously, every native (we are not natives, BTW) you meet is pretty much going to tell you their life story, for real. Grammy, Gramper, Evie and I went to dinner tonight. Evelyn was exceptionally well behaved, so much so that I almost forgot she was there (don't worry I caught her before she ordered a margarita ;).
At the end of our meal this older guy that had been sitting next to us, but out of my eyeline came up to our table. And the craziest question came out of his mouth. He looked at Grammy (who is a young looking Grammy BTW) and asked her if he could hold her baby. Her baby would be me, all 5'8" 150lbs of me. Needless to say he thought Evie was her daughter. That was great for Grammy, of course, but she corrected him and then I looked at him and made it clear to him that I am Evie's Mom.
So then he asked me if he could hold Evie. I have to admit it was the oddest request I have gotten in a long time. I am used to women of all ages asking to hold Evie, that never surprises me. But a guy? An older guy that looked like he could have grandkids of his own? It was very strange. Oh but it gets better, because though he was strange he was no stranger (at least in his mind). I replied that he could hold Evie. Now don't freak out Dear Readers, I don't let just anybody hold my daughter, trust me. At the table where this guy came from were two women, a wife/Mom and a Grandma. Also he and his dinner companions looked clean, healthy, and nice. And I (and Grammy and Gramper) was ready to jump this guy the minute he did something I didn't like.
So he held Evelyn for a moment and in classic Evie style she did not smile at him and just stared at him with a look that said "Who the fuck are you?" She wasn't scared or worried just baffled. After he gave her back to me he proceeded to tell us about how his Dad had died recently and how his daughter had given him a puppy (and we didn't provoke him or anything, we just wanted to leave). He was telling us about how the dog howled and cried when they left him on the porch by himself. I quickly jumped in and said "Yeah, Evelyn always cries and howls when we leave her on the porch alone." Man you should have seen this guy, he was just dumbstruck. It was awesome!! I quickly told him it was a joke and after a minute or two he finally "got" it. After my little joke he quickly finished up his story and went back to his table. I guess I scared him off.
So yeah, there are many strange people in the South but to native southerners there is no such thing as a stranger.
**Sorry for my convoluted storytelling, for those that are wondering what the hell I am trying to communicate, here is the bottom line. In the south people come up to you for no reason and tell you their life story. Seriously. It's crazy!**
Here's a pic of Grammy and Evie when Evie was still small.
4 comments:
You have known me this long and didn't know that Southerners are friendly? I'm shy. Really I am.
BTW, try Lands End for bathing suits, they have suits for every body type, including ... ahem ... big on top.
LOL!! I love you Cara =)
I have no idea what to make of this post. Maybe I'm baffled because I'm a New Yorker.
:-)
Hey, now! As a very friendly Southerner, I take offense. I think it's much better to be open and honest and friendly than closed off and cold. I'm not saying all folks from the North are like that. Actually, I think Midwesterners tend to be the most stand-offish.
Actually, I had a rather different experience with a Southern woman at a baseball game the other night. I tried to strike up a conversation with her by telling her what sweet, pretty little girls she had and asking their ages and she answered me, but refused to engage in conversation. I was actually shocked and offended. Seriously.
Just be glad people take an interest in you and want to engage with their fellow members of humanity. Clearly, that man was reaching out because his dad had just died and babies bring so much joy into the world.
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