Amulet,
You write and the words flow like honey across the screen.
Yes, there are parts of Florida that are definitely southern.
Although, be aware that the Yanks have invaded. Should the south ever “rise again”, we shall have to battle the “10th Elderly Assasins”. They will be coming through the swamp on walkers, armed, and heavily medicated. 
Yours,
-NM
Northern Virginia is just full of Yankees, and they all drive like it. That’s why I’ve always hated driving any further north than Fredericksburg.
I take offense to the notion that just because you are geographically located in a more southerly direction that you are more Southern. I also take offense to the notion that because your state is more backward that makes you more Southern. Who says being Southern means you have to be stupid? For all of you Northern Aggression buffs out there…who was the smartest general in the war? I’ll give you a hint he was a VIRGINIAN. Some of the better minds in this country have always attended Virginia colleges, UVA, William and Mary, and VA Tech. Without Virginia the South just might be as backward as the Yankees think we are.
As for grits…sugar is a no-no unless you’re under the age of 8. I prefer them with lots of butter, salt and pepper but my kids will eat them if I put in shredded cheese. BBQ is pulled or sliced pork that has been cooked over hickory wood in a pit. BBQ sauce can be sweet with honey, or tangy with vinegar and cracked pepper (NC style). Oh yeah, and the scrapple you find here is a Yankee conspiracy designed to undermine our southern society. Everyone knows that breakfast meat must be bacon, pork sausage, rib eye steak, country ham, corned beef hash or crisp fried herring or mackerel. Cornbread is made with buttermilk, so are biscuits. Unless it’s spoonbread. Pies are pecan, and sweet potato. Unless they are cobblers then they are peach, and blackberry. If you’re gonna live in VA learn to pick crabs and how to eat an oyster.
Manners are a must, especially toward Southern women. It’s OK if their own Bubba treats his Beagle better than his woman but a Yankee better not offend her. Southern women like being called “mam” but not until they stop dying their hair. About trucks, they must be Ford or Chevy, no Toyotas and such. They can be old, primer grey or brand new with big nobbies. You must hunt or at least eat the deer meat your neighbor press on you to try. Fishing is something everyone knows how to do. You might be asked to eat fried catfish, alot. You must at least pretend to watch Nascar every Sunday, and it must be accompanied by a cold Bud. Jack Daniels is the only whiskey, unless you’re strapped for cash then you can substitute with Early Times. There are really only three football teams, the Redskins, the Cowboys and the Dolphins. Only one baseball team, the Braves, and basketball is college ball.
Oh yeah, and I like the “women rule the South” thing, don’t forget that one.
Needs2know
And yours, of course, was your own country.
Gotta admit, Texas was the politest state I’ve been in…
I suppose Fort Worth has to be considered more South than Dallas.
Couldn’t believe they had an 800 number posted at the Ballpark for those who wanted to complain about them selling beer at the stadium…up North it would be 1-800-***-KYOU.
And those Miamians are from the south. The South Bronx, south Brooklyn…
Darlin’ there are so many *&$# yankees in Dallas, Dallas ain’t even in the South anymore! Dallas spends all of its time trying to be New York or San Francisco. That’s why I wouldn’t look at homes in Dallas County even though they were closer to work than where I am.
Zyada - Fort Worth native (say it Foat Wuth)
**
Except, as brilliant as he was, Lee could not have done what he did with no soldiers. The south sent very spirited soldiers at the enemy. The “rebel yell” came out of that enthusiasm.
Virginia is a key state, but its not the only one. All of the states provided soldiers in the war. Soldiers were the biggest assest.
Mrs. Firefly hails from Plant City, right down I-4 from you, GolfWidow; her parents were born there, and her grandparents either came from there or from towns a few miles up or down the road. And there’s no question about her being a Southerner.
Gotta feel sorry for her that she fell in love with and married some damnyankee…
Getting back to the OP, said damnyankee grew up in Northern Virginia, just a few miles from where Phil and Peta have just settled. Northern Virginia is not, I repeat not, part of the South. (Thank goodness.)
Depends, really, on where your kinfolk is from.
A few points that I forgot to address in the previous post…
The only decent football is the SEC.
Grits and sugar is total blasphemy and should be grounds for deportation.
BBQ is always pork, never beef. Only Texans think that it’s beef, and that’s cause you can’t ride a horse and steal a pig at the same time.
Why thank you, Needs2know! I knew someday you Yanks would recognize my better mindedness. As for UVA…well, Jefferson may have FOUNDED it, but he WENT to William & Mary!!! GO TRIBE!
Note: I am not usually like this about my school, but I couldn’t resist.
I live about 10 minutes from Plant City and you’re right, Plant City is very Southern; more so than Lakeland. How did she adjust to life outside the bible belt?
Amulet:
I’m originally from Maine, but being a Navy brat, have lived in Mississippi, South Carolina and Virginia, and have lived in Florida for 20 years. I consider myself a Southerner, with a few Yankee quirks, one of them being absolutely revolted by grits on my breakfast plate. Yuck. The comparison to wallpaper paste is being kind.
Falc - Bill & Mare, huh? Impressive. 
(yankee college, but we’ll overlook that )
You sound like a Southern belle, but someone has gravely mislead you – Memphis barbeque is not really barbeque. The only real barbeque is Rocky Mount, NC barbeque. Next NC Dopefest, we’ll have to do a BBQ run and set you straight.
She’d rather be further south, GolfWidow, all other things being equal.
But things aren’t equal, and we’ve got good jobs here. And airfares home are cheap out of BWI, so I make sure she gets regular visits home to keep her sane.
Aw, man. Y’all have criteria and stuff? And here I thought movin’ below the Mason/Dixon line was sufficient. I’ll be danged.
Anyway, I do love grits, usually just with butter. And I yell at the TV no matter what’s on.
YANKEE COLLEGE? How so? Any college where 70% of the students are from VA can’t be a Yank college. (Wait…most were from NoVa. Hmmm.) And thanks…got in from out of state, so I was VERY happy to go there. And be a Southern belle.
And you’re on about Rocky Mount BBQ…because Memphis BBQ from Corky’s is a little slice of heaven. Mmmmm… And thanks for saying I sound like a southern belle…I try, even though I live in Maryland…
Actually, Phil just yells, period. (Trying to rebuild your rep after the stuffed animal incident…)
A friend sent this to me today and I thought it might be appropos to the topic at hand.
A SHORT LESSON ON SOUTHERNISMS
> > >
> > > The North has sun-dried toe-mah-toes. The South has
> > > 'mater samiches.
> > >
> > > The North has coffee houses. The South has Waffle
> > > Houses.
> > >
> > > The North has switchblade knives. The South has Lee
> > > Press-On Nails.
> > >
> > > The North has double last names. The South has
> > > double first names.
> > >
> > > The North has an ambulance. The South has an
> > > amalance.
> > >
> > > The North has Indy car races. The South has stock
> > > car races.
> > >
> > > The North has Cream of Wheat. The South has grits.
> > >
> > > The North has green salads. The South has collard
> > > greens.
> > >
> > > The North has lobsters. The South has crawfish.
> > >
> > > The North has the rust belt. The South has the Bible
> > > Belt.
> > >
> > > Keep in mind that in the South, gravy is treated as
> > > a beverage.
> > >
> > > A Northerner will never eat what he can sell; a
> > > Southern will never sell what
> > > he can eat.
> > >
> > > If you run your car into a ditch, don’t panic. Four
> > > men in a four-wheel-drive
> > > pickup truck with a tow chain will be along shortly.
> > > Don’t try to help them,
> > > just stay out of their way. This is what they live
> > > for.
> > >
> > > In the South, when going up a one-way street, be
> > > sure to keep to the right so
> > > that on-coming traffic may safely pass.
> > >
> > > Don’t be surprised to find movie rentals and bait
> > > sold in the same store. Do
> > > not buy food at this store.
> > >
> > > Remember, y’all (one syllable) is singular; all
> > > y’all is plural; and, all
> > > y’all’s is the plural possessive form.
> > >
> > > You may hear a Southern say “Ought” to a dog or
> > > child. This is short for
> > > “Y’all ought not to do that!” and is the equivalent
> > > of saying “No!”
> > >
> > > Don’t worry about not understanding what people are
> > > saying. They cannot
> > > understand you either.
> > >
> > > The first Southern expression to creep into a
> > > transplanted Northerner’s
> > > vocabular is the adjective “big’ol,” as in “big’ol
> > > truck” or “big’ol boy.”
> > > Most Northerners begin their Southern-influenced
> > > dialect this way. All of
> > > them are in denial about it.
> > >
> > > The proper pronunciation you learned in the Northern
> > > schools is no longer
> > > proper.
> > >
> > > Be advised that “He needed kill’n” is a valid legal
> > > defense here.
> > >
> > > If you hear a Southerner exclaim, “Hey y’all! Watch
> > > this!” Stay out of the
> > > way. These are likely to be the last words he’ll
> > > ever say.
> > >
> > > When you come upon a person driving 15 mph down the
> > > middle of the road, he
> > > probably learned to drive on a John Deere. That is
> > > the proper speed and
> > > position for that vehicle.
> > >
> > > If you see a vehicle traveling along with its turn
> > > signal on, it probably
> > > came that way.
> > >
> > > In the South, we have found that the best way to
> > > grow a lush, green lawn is
> > > to pour gravel on it and call it a driveway.
> > >
> > > If you visit here and subsequently decide to settle
> > > in the South and bear
> > > children, do not think we will accept them as
> > > Southerners. After all, if the
> > > cat had kittens in the oven, we would not call them
> > > biscuits.
Jeffery
Just wanted to say a few things (as a person that was born in GA and comes from a long line of Georgians)
Tea should only come sweet, why the heck would anyone drink unsweet tea, it tastes like dirty dishwater.
Just because a state was in the Confederacy does not make them Southern. I mean come on. South is warm climate. Virginia and all up there is freakin’ cold in the winter. Like TN said, He is in Tennesse and he barely qualifies. VA may have some of the attitudes and may hold some of the values but they are not Southern.
We like our women hot and spicy just like our chicken wings and our BBQ.
You cannot become Southern, if you move down here you are a transplant. You may adopt the attitude and the speech but you are not a Southerner. In a generation or two your descendants may be but you will never be.
Jeffery
I like the thoughts of Falcon as a Southern Belle.
Speak to me Falcon.
Viper
I met a man recently at a party in Tampa (he was making fun of the way Southerners talk). After living in Boston all his life, his company transferred him to Tennessee. Recently, his son (who is 15) came home from school with a note from his teacher stating that the boy had a serious speech impediment, couldn’t pronounce his “r’s” and they were enrolling him in a speech class. Of course, the man sent a note back to school stating his son didn’t have a speech problem, he was from Boston. Sheesh!
Got warm enough here for me yesterday 94 degrees. Then North and South Carolina, Tennesse and Kentucky would have to fall in there too, if we’re only talking about Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana being hot enough. I’m not sure climate has a damned thing to do with it. We’ve got just as many mosquitos and lightening bugs in the summer as you do. And I know we’ve got just as many guys running around with the Tennese Battle Flag emblazoned across the back of their truck.
Needs2know
My favorite subject. Being from North Carolina and being a southern belle, true bbq comes from Smithfield, NC. Tea is always sweet. TN has it right with the grits. Sugar on grits is something I’ve never heard of until Yankees started trying to fix the flavor. Sugar makes grits more of a cereal and that’s not what southerners consider grits. I’ve never had fish in my life for breakfast so that must be a VA thing.
Duke basketball rules. I don’t like racing, but I’m the minority. I do fish, camp, and can whip up biscuits and cornbread. I can make fried chicken that would make a grown man grovel. I have two dogs. Can’t live without a dog.
I’ve always considered Virginia a southern state. Don’t know where it came from that they are not. I didn’t consider Maryland a southern state but I’ve been corrected on that point.
Southern men are gentlemen. Regardless of how people classify them, the term ‘redneck’ seems to be often applied, but hey, like I’ve said in previous threads, that’s to keep the nothern women away.
The men teach their sons the art of hunting, fishing, etc. The women teach their sons manners and grace. Yep, believe it cause it’s true. Most southern men can fit in any situation with ease.