So I have made my home down south and have experienced a bit of a culture shock. I have talked to my family and friends up north and have tried to explain the differences, this works to some extent, but writing accompanied with images do it better. So, with this in mind, I submit to my Yankee brothers and sisters, my top ten tips for Southern survival:
1) Take it down a notch or two2) Lose your roadway/driving expectations3) Forget about snow4) You can now relax at the toll-booth5) Read up on man - eaters6) Try some fried green Tomatoes7) Experiment8) Watch a few green acres re-runs9) This aint the city10) Prepare for a different donut cultureExtra!!!!!!!
10 + 1) Share your experienceHere we go..................
1) Take it down a notch or twoI know most of us Northerners find this hard to do, we are always trying to find a way to kick it up a notch or two
We need to go the other way, here...
One thing that I may need to work on some is my communications skills down here. I don’t communicate well here at all. I mean, I don’t say bad things or things that would get one riled up, (I don’t think I do) I like to ask direct questions and want direct answers. I think this comes across as rude and gives me my Northerner label. I am a very friendly guy that can hold a good conversation, but when it comes to business or my dealings with entities I am buying from or other situations and such , I don’t spend much small talk time. It’s all business 100%
I was brought up in a place that if you did not make quick decisions or ask targeted questions, you are left out. This meant at work, play or even at the dinner table. If I wasn't fork and knife up and ready when mom put the food on the table......
.....my brothers and sister where all over it before I could say excuse me. I grew up on the streets of the inner city were everything was fast paced, from conversation to work and play to the little things like going to the store,or running from the police-did I say that?
I am always pondering what it was I said or did that ticked someone off. Am I rude? Am I too quick to ask questions? Is my body language all bad? Sometimes I ask a targeted question, a question I believe that’s to the point and I get that thousand mile stare, not the stare of confusion but the “did he just ask that?” stare. Sometimes I think I may just need to take a chill pill and try to slow things down, but I can’t it’s not me. I feel like I am speaking in tongues sometimes, in a different language, the conversation mix is like oil and water, it's very frustrating.
I came across this list while searching the web. Someone did a little compare/contrast essay on Northerners and Southerner.
Here is what they got on Northerners:
-more of an aggressive attitude
-considered rude and unfriendly
-used to colder weather
-different city dialects like NY and Boston
-different food and beverages
-go by Mr. and Mrs.
Here is what they have on Southerners:
-”Southern hospitality”"Southern gentleman”
-used to warm weather and flip-flops year round
-”country” dialects
-sweet tea and grits!!- different food/beverages
-politeness- yes sir and yes ma’am
According to this, we are looking bad right out of the gate.
This may be all on me folks! I may indeed need to slow my pace down, I just need to know how. Any pointers (be nice) from Southerners is much appreciated.
2) Lose your roadway/driving expectations
One thing you never lose as a northerner is your impatience and your aggressive driving prowess. I graduated the head of my class in city driving while in Boston. Trust me, it’s an art form. I have had a heck of a time translating this experience down here. The traffic is slower and the Boston mojo is just not here! It’s has me way off balance. I cannot get into the traffic flow here at all and I don’t think I ever will.
To my credit, I was able to stop yelling at Tallahassee drivers giving them “pointers” on the proper driving technique for certain situations via my drivers side window. I do have a little more patience while waiting for the car in front of me to make that slow turn to the left or right. You see, down here, turning right or left is a major maneuver , it’s like turning the Queen Mary,
well it seems like it takes that long..The turn blinker (signal) goes on 17 miles before the turn and at the point of the turn the vehicle practically stops and the driver takes his/her time turning …I really mean..takes their time..I wait for the driver ahead of me to turn all the while envisioning the turning of the ole luxury liner “port to stern, man the gibbles and full steam ahead turn on a tack of 23.56”
Dealing with rotaries up north is a dangerous proposition, they have HUGE rotaries, you know the kind that may have a statue of one of our founding fathers in the middle and at least 10-15 cars already circumnavigating it.
Trying to get into a rotary up north is akin to trying to hop on a fast moving train-timing is everything? 1,2,3.......GO !!! no wait!..1,2,3....
Down here the rotaries are tiny,
almost speed bump tiny, I don’t really get why they have them.You are out of the rotary before you even get in it. It’s like a hint of a rotary; they look like a small mound with plants in the middle of the road.like serving no real purpose but I guess they are visually pleasing?
Don’t be late for anything or you will be screaming at everybody on the way in. Take a traffic light in Boston, if you don’t anticipate the light going green by looking at the yellow light from the cross traffic and you don’t accelerate seconds before your light turns green-mayhem occurs, cars behind you honk, not one of those little horn taps..but a prolonged honk that has meaning. It truly is a drag racing setting:
Up North if you experience a yellow light, that means go faster..NOW
Down here, the light turns green and there is a process that needs to take place before the car ahead of you resumes. Foot off the brake, check your seat belt, slowly press the gas pedal and resume. If you are 7Th or 8Th in line you need to wait for this process to take place with all the cars in front of you. It’s a great opportunity to check for new messages on your blackberry.
You can see I still have northern driver’s angst. Driving down here has one big benefit though, life expectancy is higher for southern drivers and that’s a good thing.
3) Forget about snow
One thing that surprised me more than anything else living here down south, is how my body has changed. I cannot stand the cold-at all! My internal thermostat is broke. I will admit this here little gem that most people (most y'all) do not know about me-I now use a little electric heater in the bathroom in the mornings to stay warm as I get ready for the day. I really have turned into a weather wimp.
It may have something to do with the Tallahassee area summers that are constantly over 90 degrees in the shade and a humidity you can cut with a knife. I can remember the very first day I stepped out of the airport in Tallahassee (it was the summer) to get a cab to my hotel, I open the doors to go outside and take my first step out , I could hear this great swooshing sound and my eye glasses immediately fogged up with the humidity-“What the heck!?” I exclaimed, and as a true Yankee, I ask the cabbie “is it like this down here all the time?
He answers “Yes, it is, it’s not so bad today”
I do romanticize about the snow every now and then..I remember the fun times as a kid, the snowmen, throwing snowballs and even saving a few snowballs in the freezer for the summer -they were REALLY kind of hard by the time I got around to taking them out , I remember the sledding and most importantly..the time off of school! Oh and Hockey, how can I forget about hockey, up east it’s baseball, apple pie and hockey, they put us on the ice at age 3 and leave us there until we learn how to skate! Our heroes were Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito and the like. We didn't go to the prom-we went to the rink!
I will always remember the silence right after a snow storm, the snow on the ground absorbing all the regular street sounds-kind of eerie but calming.
It does not take me long to also start thinking of the not so pleasant features of a snow fall, like having cold snow find its way down your neck and into your shoes, how after a storm you have to be shovel ready to rescue your car from the fallen heap and after you uncover the car, be careful not to get stuck on the ice because you will be tearing up the nearest cardboard box to stick under the tires to use for traction and that’s after you take a lighter to your car lock as it is frozen over. Driving in the snow, your car has a mind of it's own- I forget, is it if you start to slide or skid left while you are driving am I to turn the wheel right or is it the other way around?
*SNAP! snow days dreaming is over --back to the Florida sun for me.
Every now and then we do get a little of the white stuff down here, in a bad winter we may get ½ inches of snow. It’s fun to watch the locals (Me too!) navigate through the blizzard :)
So I guess you can say I miss it but yet I don’t, I could have fun throwing a few snowballs and call it a day..take me back to the warmth, It would be a disaster if I had to confront a snowstorm now, I would not know what to do-those crazy up east drivers would be laughing at me at the sight of my car going 20 miles and hour with my emergency flasher on! Yup, I have turned into a weather wimp!
I do want to give my northern brothers and sisters a gift from down south-
A Southern Snowman:
4) You can now relax at the toll-booth
I was thinking of a good way to express my deep appreciation for southern hospitality and got to thinking of my different experiences going through toll booths down here vs. the tolls up north. What better ambassadors for a region than a toll taker, in many cases they are the first person that a distant traveler comes in contact with as they travel through their region.
What a contrast:
For starters the general appearance of the toll takers down here are more aesthetically pleasing, they all wear the same colorful shirts that depict the Florida landscape,like the one pictured above. Up east they look like grey drab standard uniforms. Have a nice day, thank you and a smile is what I usually get down here..up east, not so much.
One day while traveling route 95 to Boston, I had to pay a toll over a famous bridge two states down from Boston, well, I was a little confused over the lane to get in so I chose a lane that looked quicker, well, it was quicker because the toll taker had just turned the red light on indicating that the lane was closed-too late for me. So as I pull up, I get one of the best welcomes to the big city anybody could hope for. The toll taker seemed a little angry. “Did you not see the Fu*&^*% sign, I am fu&$#@# closed! Are you a fu%$#@& moron? You ass$#&% !"
Well, needless to say, I was a little stunned and gave my 50 cents and said “thank you” and sped away. It did help me get my east coast mood on and I was an angry driver for the next 4 hours.
There is something to be said about the southern hospitality, don’t get me wrong, down here they do get angry, but you wouldn’t know it. They even have a nice way of telling you off. Sir, this lane is closed but I will take your toll this time..next time please be more aware of the red/green lights above is how it would have been handled down here.
I would leave you with this lovely photo. You see, up east it’s all about fast..who can get there first, even when it comes to paying tolls! -
OUCH!
With all my complaining about the attitudes up east, I must admit that I am one of them and do enjoy the Adrenalin rush when driving, racing for a better place in line, trying to catch a subway train, arguing about the red sox,and generally getting "pissed" on all fronts. My favorite line I used up North when the traffic light went green and the front car was slow in recognizing was "Hey! The F%$@#&% light is not gonna get any greener!" There, I feel better already Why do I miss that? :)
5) Read up on man - eaters
The more I thought about this topic the more I came to realize how vast the difference is between my northern city exposure to animals in the wild and my southern exposure to REAL animals in the wild. I remember my dad taking me to Boston Commons to feed the pigeons some peanuts. It was a blast; Pigeons can smell a peanut from miles away, you feed one and minutes later, this is what you get:
This was great fun; they would wind up in a feeding frenzy over the peanuts. Some people say that pigeons are dirty birds. I don’t know about that, but they are not respected very much as some consider them to be one of the dumbest animals due to the size of their brain-peanut size, go figure.
Now down south, I haven’t seen many free range pigeons about, but what we have here are creatures that don’t care too much about peanuts – we have meat eaters.
I do follow Florida Statute 372.667 to the letter. Just 10 minutes from my house is one of the most beautiful places in the South, Wakulla Springs State Park. You can take a boat ride and see many of these creatures sunning on the banks or in the water looking for their next meal. Now, don't you think this picture below is a little more intimidating than the calm, relaxing pigeon feeding frenzy above?
I don’t think they are looking for peanuts.
Another creature that I see down here almost every day is the Turkey vulture:
The Turkey Vulture feeds primarily on a wide variety of carrion, from small mammals to large grazers, preferring those recently dead, and avoiding carcasses that have reached the point of putrefaction. Now, you won’t see these meat eaters on the Boston Commons. As a matter of fact, I just came back from the store and noticed three of these birds on the side of the road feeding on some unfortunate road kill, forget the peanuts, throw these guys a T Bone steak and get out of the way!
Yup, an outing to the park is a little different down here.
6) Try some fried green TomatoesSo, if you were to ask me when I was up north if I have ever had fried green tomatoes, I would have answered “Had?” um, no but I did see the movie about A housewife who is unhappy with her life and befriends an old lady in a nursing home and is enthralled by the tales she tells of people she used to know. I liked the movie; it was nominated for 2 Oscars
Well that’s not the fried green tomatoes we are talking about here:
Fried green tomatoes are a side dish usually found in the Southern United States, made from unripe (green) tomatoes coated with cornmeal and guess what-----fried! Just had some a few hours ago at the annual Blue Crab Festival here in Panacea Florida..look!
Yum! Served with a side of Horseradish, well, Hot damn! Come on, you know you want to try some….
(from Wikipedia) Traditional preparation of fried green tomatoes begins by cutting the tomatoes into approximately 1/4-inch (~1cm) slices. They are then seasoned with salt and pepper, coated with plain, coarse cornmeal, and shallow fried in bacon fat for a few minutes each side, or until golden brown. Shallow frying is preferred, as the tomatoes do not float in the oil, which allows the weight of the tomato to press the cornmeal to the underside of the tomato.
We did get this dish only two vendors down from the one that was selling fried gator, I have not attempted that dish yet, and maybe never will. I may try the fried pickles or fried Oreos they were selling here, before I try the fried gator. On second thought, I will skip the gator, although I can tell you the gator dish is VERY popular here in FSU Seminole country! :)
On a side note, my wife (Orig from Philly-Cheese steak Country) Makes a mean fried green tomato dish. She also is acclimating well to the cuisine down here, just need for her to get past here fear of the slimy okra!
7) Experiment
Nothing like trying to do some deep southern cooking for the first time to snap you back to your roots.It was not too bad, just in the beginning, I was all wrong with my personal challenge to make a true southern dish. Collard greens. You see, I started my venture with this simple list:
• Collard greens
• Pigs feet
All wrong! (damn Yankee) I had it in my head that pigs feet is what I should cook with the greens. I was quickly notified by a couple I was chatting with at a local park that you cook Collard greens with Ham Hocks and Neck Bones. Say What!??
I first had to consult the above chart to see what part of the pig was the hock. The neck bone part was pretty much self explanatory, Needless to say,I was very happy to see and learn that the hock was far away from the rear end. So I set out on my mission.
And I adjusted my list:
• Collard Greens
• Ham Hocks
• Neck Bone
• Sugar
• Pepper
I got really lucky at the local farmers market. I met Fred and Kevin Sherman, a father and son team that happened to be selling Collard greens along with many other items. The Sherman's are from Thommasville Georgia. Fred was a very happy man, watching his son attend to the booth and conduct business while he spent some time giving me a great education on the proper preparation for collard greens.
First: Find the best greens available:
Check!
Then, Fred takes time out of his busy day and teaches me the best way to cut the greens.
Check!
Fred says you can’t have Collard greens with out Cornbread. Cornbread from scratch. So in my best Yankee tone I said, “oh you mean from the box?”
At that point Fred and Kevin looked at me and knew right away I “aint from round these parts” NO, said Fred, with Flower. I told him, for me, that is a totally whole new blog topic and that I needed to put all my energy into the task At hand-Collard greens.
Next: where do I find Ham Hocks and Neck Bones? Now, just for a moment, close your eyes and picture yourself in the middle of a big city, say Boston or New York. I mean the middle - traffic everywhere people hustling and bustling. Think of how it would be that in the middle of this, you go up to a random stranger and ask for the best place to buy Ham Hocks and Neck Bones. I would expect a look similar to this:
Here, any store will carry them. So I go local:
Macks meat store has been around these parts for a very loooong time. It made my day to ask, for the first time in my life- "Can you please tell me where your ham hocks and neck bones are?"
So, I get home and display my bounty like a true hunter, gatherer.
Ready to cook:
Cooking:
The finished product:
Wow! fantastic! These Collards rock baby! I just need to know what to do now with all these Ham Hocks and Neck Bones..I certainly am no going to eat THEM! or maybe.....I should at least try one?......nah.
My apologies to my wife AJ, my mother in law Muriel and to Burt up above for this topic and the use of pig parts in my ingredients. They are Jewish and can only watch from afar.
According to Jewish law, pork is one of a number of foods forbidden from consumption by Jews. These foods are known as "non-kosher" foods. In order for a meat to be kosher, it must first come from a kosher animal. A kosher animal must be a ruminant and have split hooves - therefore cows, sheep, goats and deer are all kosher, whereas camels and pigs (having each only one sign of kashrut) are not kosher.
I had a fantastic time learning about and cooking Collard greens today. I feel a little more southern after this, but think I may need to take the family out for some Brisket, gefilte fish and matza to make us all happy.
Oye!
8) Watch a few green acres re-runs
I can relate:Green acres is the place for me.
Farm livin' is the life for me.
Land spreadin' out so far and wide
Keep Manhattan, just give me that countryside.
New York is where I'd rather stay.
I get allergic smelling hay.
I just adore a penthouse view.
Dah-ling I love you but give me Park Avenue.
...The chores.
...The stores.
...Fresh air.
...Times Square
You are my wife.
Good bye, city life.
Green Acres we are there.
I remember watching the old episodes of green acres never thinking that I would be in a somewhat similar situation today. For starters, Just look at the town name similarities:
Town name in green acres: Hooterville
The town that I currently live in: Crawfordville
Farm livin' is the life for meWe don’t actually live on a farm, but if we wanted to, we could have livestock on our little plot we call home these days. We do have a VERY annoying rooster next door that is cock-a-doodle–doooing at 5: am every morning on schedule, never missing a day.
To my delight, I did find this:
Corfu Rooster
Serving size depends on the bird
1 rooster, cut into pieces
7 garlic cloves, smashed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoon olive oil or lard
1 tablespoon tomato paste (or use some tomatoes)
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar (or cider vinegar)
2 medium onions, halved and thinly sliced
3 ½ cups water
½ cup dry white wine (or vermouth or other booze)
1 teaspoon sugar
........One day
We don’t have a pet pig like Arnold Ziffel, around the house.
Arnold was an amazing pig, he could knock on doors, sign his name, and turn on the television. An urban legend says that Arnold was cooked and eaten by the cast after the show ended. In reality, several different pigs were used during the shows run, none of which was eaten by the cast.
Despite not having a pig around the house, I have learned a lot about pig parts down here-Ham hocks and neck bones to name a few. Don't put too many of these pig parts into your collard greens, just a taste!
We did have an opportunity to watch over a horse for 6-8 months. What a trip, and very educational.
The chores........I have always been afraid of horses-yup, I know,wimp! (I am always thinking they are going to bite me...must be something in my childhood). I had to be up at 5:30 am to feed and replace water, put out the hay, check the salt licks (“what the hell is that?”) and various other items and duties for horse caring.
One thing I will share with other Northerners coming to the rural south-Buy a pick-up truck! They are very useful for hauling things such as hay and do better on dirt roads than a car. When buying hay, I had to use my Ford Taurus to stack the hay in the trunk..what a Sight! Might have been better off doing it this way:
You are my wife.......
Do you think AJ would let me get away with this?
On a sad note, the horse, Jessie, passed away. It was a horrible thing for my wife, AJ, to witness first hand.
She calls me from home and says Jessie is acting crazy..trying to jump over the fence, he did finally jump a fence and right there in the middle of the dirt road, he died. That was a first and hopefully a last for us. You can imagine the details of removal and burial…
Fresh air.....The night sounds are very different down here. In the city you would get the sounds of cars/trucks passing, emergency sirens, people yelling etc..etc..
Down here at night, it sounds like the Amazon rain forests. All sorts of creatures a yapping to a cadence, listen
hereMix that sound with the sounds of tree frogs and owls and other creatures yet to be identified and you have a wildlife Hootenanny <--love that word.
[Hootenanny is an Appalachian colloquialism that was used in early twentieth century America to refer to things whose names were forgotten or unknown. In this usage it was synonymous with thingamajig or whatchamacallit, as in "hand me that hootenanny." Hootenanny was also an old country word for "party". Now, most commonly, it refers to a folk-music party] Who would think a little creature like this could be so loud. Theses green tree frogs have a special sound, I swear they are all saying Gordon….Gordon…..Gordon
Owls are cute little animals but………
They don’t play......
Good bye, city life.......We have heard stories of little pet cats and dogs being carried off by owls.
In the city you will notice people walking carrying long sticks, canes etc..in case of stray dogs, stray people…Down here ......they are used to beat off snakes!
We have seen many a snake on our front lawn and have found the ultimate removal technique,ignore them
Dah-ling I love you but give me Park Avenue........What happens when city folk move to the country...
City folk do not now much about country wild life as depicted in the lost
cat poster below:
Keep Manhattan, just give me that countryside.....We do love it down here, I think we have assimilated well or as best as we can being a Yankee and all :)
9) This aint the city
I get conflicted many times when I think of the city and the rural south. I do so much miss the city with all it has to offer and the adrenalin rush that comes with it. Then I think of Crawfordville and how much of a family town it is and a great place to live and do things like gardening, sightseeing and some other things that I really can't think of right this minute :)
I though I would do a fun comparison of New York City and my current home town, Crawfordville, Florida. Here it goes and please keep in mind that most of these comparisons has my tongue firmly placed in my cheek:
Songs dedicated to the cityNew YorkThe ever popular Frank Sinatra (Ole blue eye) singing, NY NY
Start spreading the news
I'm leaving today
I want to be a part of it, New York, New York
These vagabond shoes
Are longing to stray
And make a brand new start of it
New York, New York
How about a little more modern with Jayz’s Empire state of mind:
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
These streets will make you feel brand new,
The lights will inspire you,
Lets here it for New York, New York, New York
To name a few…
CrawfordvilleI could not find any songs dedicated to Crawfordville, now, that does not mean there are none, only that none have been published, yet? Although I did not find a song about Crawfordville, I will submit to you the closest thing I could find to a singing group that is associated with the neighboring town of sopchoppy, I give you the group - Swamp Cabbage
Swamp Cabbage play a type of North Florida fatback boogaloo blues (love that word fatback) - Fatback is a cut of meat from a pig. It consists of the layer of adipose tissue (subcutaneous fat) under the skin of the back, with or without the skin (pork rind). Fatback often is rendered to make a high quality lard. Yum! ;)
Night lifeNew York
The city that never sleeps.
Crawfordville
The city that sleeps
I have never been out in the Crawfordville night life because frankly, I do not think we have one. So for this post I googled "Crawfordville night life” and came up with "Capt Seanile's Pool and Pub". No photographs of the place were available and I don’t even know if they are still open for business. So I called and went to a voice mail recording- I left a message asking for the establishment's hours of operation, still waiting for a call back - sounds like a hoping place though.
Wildlife:New York
Need I say more (and no the Zoo does not count)
Crawfordville Here is where Crawfordville Shines:
That is just a small taste of the critters "round" here :)
Street/Road side vendorsNew York
Classic street vendor dawgs/sausage/pretzels etc…..
Crawfordville:Crawfordville has a lot to offer here:
Meet Woody:
Woody sells such down home items as:
Woody comes with an extra feature - conversation.
Public Transportation:New York:
Crawfordville
Healthier?
Crawfordville public transportation may be slower. But I don't think we would meet this guy in our travels:
Fine Dining:New York
Crawfordville
OUZTS TOO OYSTER BAR
Last but not least...................
Status Symbols:New York:
Classic
Crawfordville
I think the higher the truck the more important you are?
There are many more things I could compare but this is a start. In the end, I love both places although it is like comparing apples and oranges, Big apples that is :)
10) Prepare for a different donut culture
You can’t have a true conversation about all things Northern or Southern without a conversation about donuts: I remember very well my first conversation down here on this topic.
"What’s a Krispy Kreme?" I asked when approached by someone at work carrying a box of donuts with that label. “They are the best donuts in America” he said. Oh well, I fired back, you have not had a Dunkin Donuts-Donut,then I see ” This conversation went on for much longer than what it really should have. It was the North versus the South all over again......
.... Gettysburg and Antietam, Lee vs. Grant. I was trying to be nice about it, but you can understand growing up in Boston, we only had Dunkin Donuts and only the best in the world! …right? And the dunkin donuts coffee?????? great stuff!! and what say you about the Krispy Kreme coffee..humm ?
I remember asking out loud, why is this donut hot? “That’s how we like them” I heard in the background. Well, I did try one from the box that day; it was the “glazed” donut. Hot (Yuk) and VERY glazed, with puddles of sugar hanging off the sides.
You have to eat a Krispy Kreme glazed donut like you would eat spare ribs that are smothered in barbecue sauce, with plenty of napkins. The "glaze" stays on your hands the whole day and can clog up your keyboard among other things. You need to act fast to get the hot sugar off of your hands and face as it takes no time to harden like cement. I promised myself I would never eat one again.
Thus began my long, long abstinence from local donuts. Yea, most of it was about the taste, but I would be lying to you if northern pride was not also playing a part of my donut abstinence.
I am a Dunkin Donuts man:
A dunkin donuts honey dipped donut and a cup of coffee is heaven. For me, the nearest dunkin donuts is in another state. They did have a franchise 45 minutes away in Tallahassee but it closed down - go figure? So like all other things in life that you purposely stay away from, when the time is right and there is a dunkin donut in sight, I may have this reaction:
Dunkin Donuts started in 1946 when William Rosenberg (founder of Dunkin Donuts and also the International Franchise Association) invested $5,000 to form Industrial Luncheon Services,
a company that delivered meals and coffee break snacks to customers in the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts. The success of Industrial Luncheon Services led Rosenberg to open his first coffee and donut shop, the "Open Kettle". Then, in 1950, Rosenberg opened the first store known as Dunkin' Donuts in Quincy, Massachusetts.
The first Dunkin’ Donuts shop was opened in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1950. The company began franchising five years later. By 1963, there were over 100 Dunkin Donuts shops open and by 1979 over 1000 locations open.
Krispy Kreme also has a strong history:
The founder, Vernon Rudolph, worked for his uncle, Ishmael Armstrong, who purchased a secret recipe for yeast-raised doughnuts and a shop on Broad Street in Paducah, Kentucky, from Joseph LeBeouf of Lake Charles, Louisiana. Rudolph began selling the yeast doughnuts in Paducah and delivered them on his bicycle.
The operation was moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and other family members joined to meet the customer demand. The first store in the nation with the Krispy-Kreme name opened on Charlotte Pike in 1933. Rudolph sold his interest in the Nashville store and in 1938 opened a doughnut shop in Winston-Salem, and began selling to groceries and then directly to individual customers. The first store in North Carolina was located in a rented building on South Main Street in Winston-Salem in what is now called historic Old Salem. The Krispy Kreme logo was designed by Benny Dinkins, a local architect.
So what say you? Krispy Kreme or Dunkin (the best) Donuts??
Extra!!!!!!!
Share your experience
Following is a great Blog post from guest writer - Paul Gude of Seattle, Washington.
I want to thank Paul very much for agreeing to experience a little bit of the South by trying our boiled peanuts. So I mailed him some. I know it's not from one of our road side vendors with all the pots, boilers and such, but I think Paul got the idea. He's a great guy and funny too! If you are not following him on twitter, you should here:
@sgnp
Here is Paul's take on a Southern tradition-all the way from Seattle!
The Boiled Peanuts Arrive
Gordon McCleary (@ASouthernYankee on Twitter) sent me the boiled peanuts by mail. I won't show you the package, as it has both of our addresses on it, but rest assured they come from quite far away from my current home of Seattle, Washington. I am sad to admit that I had anticipated them coming in a rusted tin can rather than a new-fangled plastic bag.
Preparation
Following the instructions, I vented the bag for microwave cooking. I was a bit surprised by the crossover between this packaged Southern favorite and, say, a bag of edamame I might pick up at Uwajimaya. My prejudices melted away, as I realized my vision of the South was pretty much stuck in the 80s, when I visited there on a trip to the Epcot Center. I'm originally from the Midwest, which some of the folks I've met seem to equate with the South. This is inaccurate. Having visited the South, I'd suggest that the Midwest is what the South would be like if you remove everything interesting.
Anticipating the Salty Aroma
As I put the bag in the microwave, I could already anticipate the smell. I love the smell of saltwater, but the boiled peanuts also had a slightly bean and/or pea smell to them that I tend to avoid. One good thing is that the cook time is only around 60 seconds, which didn't allow it to permeate the kitchen too badly. Still, when my wife came in later she said, "Ugh, I can smell the pea-ness." We both had a good laugh.
Ready to Eat
In my experience with foods from the South, the visual of the food presented is inversely proportional to how tasty it may be. Luckily for me, the boiled peanuts looked God-awful. The smell hit me with full-force when I opened the bag, and I instantly formed the opinion that perhaps boiling peanuts originated as a punishment invented by old people who could no longer chew them. "Now no one will enjoy them," they'd bark. "Shut up and eat." Still, I soldiered on.
"Oddly" Purple
This photograph doesn't do the hue of the boiled peanut justice. The red seed coat (mesocarp) had turned to a watery purple. It struck me as weird until I realized this obviously happens as part of the boiling process and I was being an idiot. The seed coat couldn't really be removed because it had slightly adhered to the "meat" of the seed, which in turn had become soft and almost mushy. The resulting edible portion is hard to describe, sort of a salty undercooked kidney bean, or a peanut that had been injected with sadness
A Second Look at the Larger Shells
I ate a LOT of boiled peanuts in my first sitting. After I became familiar with them, my initial recoil of horror subsided and then I couldn't stop consuming them. I started looking at the shells more closely and realized that there was some sort of fatty, clear, gel-like substance on the inside of most of the shells. For some reason, I had the impulse to scrape it out and eat it.
Slimy Clear Salty Gel in the Shells
I have no idea if there's a name for this, or even if you're supposed to actually consume it, but I pretty much did this with all the shells that had whatever this stuff was left in them. I'd scrape it out with my thumb and eat it. It's like what tear-jelly might taste like, something I assume horrible fairy-tale villains enjoy on a regular basis.
Eating the Smaller Shells
One of the reason Gordon had sent me the boiled peanuts in the first place is because we had gotten into a discussion of eating the shells of the peanut. I tried doing it with the first one out of the bag and couldn't bring myself to complete it. I basically squished the peanut mush out and spit out the remainder. However, I later found, scattered among the larger pods, smaller pods that were actually soft enough to consume. I ate two of these, and can report no ill effects.
Saving the Rest for Later
One bag is supposed to be seven servings and I estimate I ate around five of them in the first sitting. I put the rest in a clear plastic bag with the intent on trying them cold this morning. I will do so now.
(Time passes)
Trying the boiled peanuts cold has added a new revelation. They basically taste like something that's been fished out of the ocean. Exactly that.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to eat the rest of them.
I want to thank Paul again for his excellent post!
I am blessed to live down south and experience all things southern.Great people and places here. In my opinion, there is no better way to get your creative juices flowing than to get out of your comfort zone.
"Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new."
~Brian Tracy~
