Southern Belle Lessons - Page 3

AGDLynn · #31 03-30-2003, 01:32 PM

I know I posted this when it first happened but I couldn't resist posting it again...

Over a year ago hubby and I were at St. Augustine (FLA) beach..actually in the water, when we struck up a conversation with a lady from somewhere up north. They had been down to Tampa and were making their way back home.

We got to talking about Southern cities and of course Atlanta! She asked if Atlanta had recovered from "the War" and was there a lot of building damage etc still around!! I was soo stunned, my Southern Belle politeness made me bite my lip and say "Atlanta has lots of wonderful things to see"!!! And proceed to tell her about the Jimmy Carter Center, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Woodruff Arts Center, World of Coke....

AlphaGam1019 · #32 03-30-2003, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AGDLynn
We got to talking about Southern cities and of course Atlanta! She asked if Atlanta had recovered from "the War" and was there a lot of building damage etc still around!! I was soo stunned, my Southern Belle politeness made me bite my lip and say "Atlanta has lots of wonderful things to see"!!! And proceed to tell her about the Jimmy Carter Center, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Woodruff Arts Center, World of Coke....

geez, what cave is she from?

AGDLynn · #33 03-30-2003, 08:40 PM

Cincy, Ohio!

AlphaGam1019 · #34 03-30-2003, 09:32 PM

hahahah.

ZTAMich · #35 03-30-2003, 10:11 PM

I like the humorous side of this thread but I fear this North/South mentality in general spills off into Greek Life and leads to the kinds of problems discussed over in the ZTA fourm on this It's sad that we just can't all get along...

AlphaGam1019 · #36 03-30-2003, 10:18 PM

It's all love. I need southern belle lessons even though I was born and raised in ATL.

Sistermadly · #37 03-31-2003, 02:10 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by ZTAMich
I like the humorous side of this thread but I fear this North/South mentality in general spills off into Greek Life and leads to the kinds of problems discussed over in the ZTA fourm on this It's sad that we just can't all get along...

That wasn't my intent when I originally posted the question. I didn't mean to infer that southerners were better about things, just that things are different.

ZTAMich · #38 03-31-2003, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Sistermadly
That wasn't my intent when I originally posted the question. I didn't mean to infer that southerners were better about things, just that things are different.

I know it wasn't your intent and I think the topic is cute...I was just mentioning the other thread bc it seemed ironic to be have both discussions going on at the same time...

UGAnchora · #39 03-31-2003, 11:38 AM

Born and Raised in Georgia, so I think I am a Belle! haha! Anyways, this thread reminded me of a really cute email I got. I'll just post the Southern Belle part:

Southern girls know bad manners when they see them:
Drinking straight out of a can.
Not sending thank you notes.
Velvet after February.
White shoes before Easter or after Labor Day.

Southern girls appreciate their natural assets:
Dewy skin.
A winning smile.
That unforgettable, Southern drawl.

Southern girls know their manners:
"Yes, ma'am." "Yes, sir."

Southern girls have a distinct way with fond expressions:
"Y'all come back! now ya heaah,"
"Well, bless your heart."
"Drop by when you can."
"How's your mother?"
"Love your hair."
"Well, shut my mouth."

Southern girls don't sweat.... they glisten.

Southern girls know their summer weather report:
Humidity
Humidity
Humidity

Southern girls know their three R's!:
Rich
Richer
Richest

Southern girls know their vacation spots:
The Beach
The Beach
The Beach

Southern girls know the joys of June, July, and August:
Swimmin
Summer tans
Wide brimmed hats
Mint juleps
Just Lollygaggin around

Southern girls know everybody's first name:
Honey
Darlin'
Sugah

Southern girls know the movies that speak to their hearts:
"Gone With the Wind"
"Fried Green Tomatoes"
"Driving Miss Daisy"
"Steel Magnolias"

Southern girls know their country breakfasts:
Red-eye gravy, thicknin white gravy, or (wiennie gravy for the
die-hards. )
GRITS-GRITS-GRITS,
Mouth-watering homemade buttered biscuits with Cantaloupe, Honey
Dew
Melons, and streak 'o' lean.

Southern girls know their cities dripping with Southern charm:
Hotlanta or Adlanna =(Atlanta as outsiders say)
Richmon
Charleston
S'vannah
Birminham
Nawlins'
OH! That city in Alabama? It's pronounced MUNTGUMRY!

Southern girls know their elegant gentlemen:
Men in uniform.-(just have to add, I had a blind date for my formal this weekend and it was an Air Force boy and he wore his uniform!*swoon*)
Men in tuxedos.
Rhett Butler, of course.

Southern girls know their prime real estate:
The Mall
The Beauty Salon
The Ranch with the longest stretch of river bottom

Southern girls know the three deadly sins:
Bad hair
Bad manners
Bad blind dates
Southern girls know men may come and go, but friends are fo'evah!
G.R.I.T.S. = Girls Raised in The South!

I thought that was cute.

Word on the monogram thing. Practically every graduation gift i got was monogramed: towels, robes, bags.

It seems like Cotillion was voluntary where ya'll are from. Where I'm from, girls are hand selected the fall after there high school graduation. My mom was so upset I wasn't selected, even though I wouldn't do it because I can think of better things to do with $1500 than buy a white dress and spend an evening with the girls from high school that I hated.

aopirose · #40 03-31-2003, 12:59 PM

Here, there are several types of cotillion. Some you are invited to join and others you just sign up. The starting ages vary as well as your length of membership.

For high school and younger…
The Baton Rouge Cotillion, for example, is an “association” of the area’s high school students. Only X-number from each school is invited and it is for boys and girls. The only way that you can join, if not selected as a freshman, is if someone (girl for girl, boy for boy) from your school drops out. There are lessons on Sunday afternoons throughout the school year, two formal dances and two informal dances. Members stay in until they graduate. One of the reasons that there is a cap on the membership is because of space limitations. In addition, legacies do receive special consideration.

Other cotillions don’t have the school quota issue like BRC but function similarly - Sunday lessons, formals and informals. One here starts in the 4th grade and they have the same sort of activities as the BRC. This one is also affiliated with a national organization. The kids participate in ballroom dance competitions against associated cotillions on regional and national levels. They also take field trips to the opera, symphony, ballet and theatre.

For college age…
Usually, girls only and membership is by invitation only and limited. There aren’t any lessons per se because 9x out of 10 they participated in a younger cotillion. They do have parties and these are geared to the debutante season. (Although, some girls make their debuts while still in HS. It just depends on the club and where you live.)

For after college…
Membership is either single sex or couples. Membership is by invitation only and limited. They have regular parties and once a year, they have debuts for their children/grandchildren. A friend’s parents belong to the Shreveport Cotillion and he became a junior member when he graduated HS. When he turns ~30, he is expected to become a full member.

Quote:

Originally posted by UGAnchora
It seems like Cotillion was voluntary where ya'll are from.

Shine · #41 03-31-2003, 04:38 PM

My very northern mother always said you don't need "ettiquite lessons" to be a "condescending and fake gold-digging bitch with a drawl".

Hahaha.

She was so angsty in her young days. I think her first fiance was stolen away by a Georgia peach or something.

All I know is that she raised me to be a lady by her standards, and that's done this Chicago girl living in Arizona fine in all of her travels, North and South of the Mason-Dixon line.

ilovemyglo · #42 03-31-2003, 05:55 PM

Just remembered something else today on my way to work... when you are asking for smething go overboard with appreciation... like "I really hate to trouble you with this, if you can't do it I completely understand, but..... could you....." And then compliment on what a nice job they have done.... "I just can't thank you enough! That was so sweet and kind of you to help me like that! Let me know if I can ever help you".
Sounding so helpless to a man makes him feel like he is that good and you are so innocent, how could he say no?

AUDeltaGam · #43 04-02-2003, 09:17 PM

Today, Amazon.com delivered my copy of "What Southern Women Know"! I've flipped through it and it looks like a darling book! I'm going to start reading it tonight

White_Chocolate · #44 04-03-2003, 10:06 AM

are me and my friends the only southern girls who got a debutante ball during their senior year???

aopirose · #45 04-03-2003, 02:20 PM

No, my first one was when I was a HS junior. This particular organization presented debs beginning in their senior year through senior year of college. It was a slight error on the organization's part but they couldn't rescind and I wasn't going to decline. It felt weird because I was the only in my class that year having deb stuff.

Quote:

Originally posted by White_Chocolate
are me and my friends the only southern girls who got a debutante ball during their senior year???