What I Love...

...about the South.

Thank you Rodney Atkins for a song that pays tribute:

"What I love (what I love)
About the South (about the South)
If you need a Dixie Fix just a' come on down
It's what I love (what I love)
About the South (about the South)
Southern Belles with a drawl make you stop and drop your jaw, come on y'all, shut your mouth...."And thank you Adrianne for a late-night blog post that was AWESOME to start my morning with:"So my Yankee boyfriend is consistently reminding me of what a Southerner I really am. Maybe I should to a blog miniseries on this...

Anyways, today's reminder of our regional differences: summer beverages.

Apparently, north of our nation's capital, they drink unsweetened crap tea and black coffee year round. Well not down here, thank goodness. There are a few things that every Southern needs in the summer:

* BBQ (the food, not the action, I'll have to share the language barrier we had based on that word some point in the future)
* Watermelons, peaches, and strawberries
* Some time at the beach/lake/sprinkler/your local body of water
* Potato salad
* Porches
* And of course, lemonade (Country Time, Chick-Fil-A, or freshly-squeezed. Pink or Regular. I'm not picky.)

Here's some recipes from RealSimple.com for some summer lemonade for my fellow Southerns who will really appreciate it (aka Lil Lisa.)

And if you love lemonade and you happen to live in Raleigh then I'm going to tell you a secret. The city's best lemonade (and maybe the best BBQ) is at Cooper's Barbecue. It's downtown on Davie Street (across from Progress Energy) and you can get a BBQ sandwich, Lemonade, hushpuppies, and a side for $5. They only take cash but it's TOTALLY worth the trip to the ATM. That's my local endorsement of the day. :-P

P.S.: If you want your summer beverage done up grown-up style then remember, citrus vodka can always go in lemonade, no matter what flavor it is. :-)"See there, she even graced everyone with a great BBQ joint recommendation!