The Displaced Southerners Lament

Now, judging by the title of this post one may assume that I am deeply depressed about not residing in the South any longer, and had this post been written a few years ago that would be completely accurate. I was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. I went to college not too far up the road in Athens at UGA, and I bleed red and black. I met my wife, another born and raised Georgian, there. After college I moved back to Atlanta and for a long time thought I would never leave. I was a southerner and I would remain a southerner until the day I died...or at least until five years ago. Now, don't get me wrong, I AM a southerner and always will be, but the address had simply changed. It changed to a very cold place called Ohio. A place that I wanted to get in and get out of quickly and get back to where it was warm and people stretched words out into as many syllables as possible. That was exactly what we did, and the grass truly is always greener on the other side, or maybe in this case, covered with two feet of snow, but we started to realize that there were many things that we missed up here. Eventually we made our way back to Columbus, Ohio and this time we brought a new perspective with us. There is nothing like a fall Saturday in the SEC for a lot of reasons, but there is also nothing like a Midwestern fall Saturday for a whole other set of reasons. That is what Just North of South is all about, bringing the best of both worlds together.  I'll be heading home soon enough to get a much needed dose of goodness. In a way it will be like going to confession, but instead of a priest it's a southern mom, because everyone from the south knows there is no guilt like southern mom guilt. "Forgive me, for it has been six months since my last visit home." "It is okay my child, drink three sweet teas and eat two bowls of grits and it will be fine.....actually eat three bowls of grits, you look skinny...do they not have food in the Midwest? why are you not eating? are you sick? oh, dear God, please save my baby, he's dying up there from starvation....." You get my drift, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Just North of South is like sitting on a front porch in a rocking chair with friends, sometimes the conversation is riotous, others very contemplative. Hopefully you will visit often and sit a spell.