Drew and I left for D.C. last Thursday night for the annual political science geek fest, I mean, the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association. The conference went well, I met some interesting people, and I got to visit with some old friends. It was a pretty quick trip; we left Sunday morning for southwestern Virginia to visit his parents.
The South kind of freaks me out. (Of course, so does Orange County, what with all the breast implants and botox.) But really, the South kind of freaks me out. The Southern drawl, the confederate flags, the racism (I think "It's heritage, not racism" is the battle cry around here), the bad hair, and the camo. I'm exaggerating, but just a little bit. I just don't trust people who think they will rise again (never mind that they didn't do it the first time). I saw a guy with what I thought was a gun in his holster, but Drew reassured me that it was really a maglight. It didn't matter, I kept my distance. Oh, AND he was wearing a hat with a confederate flag. The guy with the maglight, not Drew, in case you needed the clarification.
I think that the main reason that the South freaks me out is because I'm Asian. So I guess that I've brought this upon myself, in a sense. It's just that I get quite self conscious here because there are like no Asian people here. Maybe I'm being extra paranoid and sensitive, but I just feel like everyone is staring at me (and sometimes they are- really). And because I'm not certain that people in the South have encountered too many Asian people, I feel like I have to represent "my race" and do it well. So because of me, people in the South probably think all Asian people are super friendly and smiley. You're welcome.
There are some things that I really like about the South. Like the Waffle House. I have discussed my fondness for the Waffle House many times. I adore it. The closest one is in Phoenix, and believe me, Drew and I have contemplated making the 6 or 7 hour drive just for the greasy diner food (superior to all other diner food, of course). I like other Southern food too. Like banana pudding. And hush puppies. And any greens. I also like how cheap everything is here. I saw gas for only $2.32 a gallon somewhere. The last time I filled up in Irvine, I paid $3.21 per gallon. Just today, I excitedly said to Drew "Check out how many donuts I got for $3!" It was 7 by the way, and for $2.85 to be precise. And Drew and I stopped by a coffee shop and got iced coffee and a hazelnut latte for a total of $4.97. We couldn't believe it. What has SoCal done to us?
The South kind of freaks me out. (Of course, so does Orange County, what with all the breast implants and botox.) But really, the South kind of freaks me out. The Southern drawl, the confederate flags, the racism (I think "It's heritage, not racism" is the battle cry around here), the bad hair, and the camo. I'm exaggerating, but just a little bit. I just don't trust people who think they will rise again (never mind that they didn't do it the first time). I saw a guy with what I thought was a gun in his holster, but Drew reassured me that it was really a maglight. It didn't matter, I kept my distance. Oh, AND he was wearing a hat with a confederate flag. The guy with the maglight, not Drew, in case you needed the clarification.
I think that the main reason that the South freaks me out is because I'm Asian. So I guess that I've brought this upon myself, in a sense. It's just that I get quite self conscious here because there are like no Asian people here. Maybe I'm being extra paranoid and sensitive, but I just feel like everyone is staring at me (and sometimes they are- really). And because I'm not certain that people in the South have encountered too many Asian people, I feel like I have to represent "my race" and do it well. So because of me, people in the South probably think all Asian people are super friendly and smiley. You're welcome.
There are some things that I really like about the South. Like the Waffle House. I have discussed my fondness for the Waffle House many times. I adore it. The closest one is in Phoenix, and believe me, Drew and I have contemplated making the 6 or 7 hour drive just for the greasy diner food (superior to all other diner food, of course). I like other Southern food too. Like banana pudding. And hush puppies. And any greens. I also like how cheap everything is here. I saw gas for only $2.32 a gallon somewhere. The last time I filled up in Irvine, I paid $3.21 per gallon. Just today, I excitedly said to Drew "Check out how many donuts I got for $3!" It was 7 by the way, and for $2.85 to be precise. And Drew and I stopped by a coffee shop and got iced coffee and a hazelnut latte for a total of $4.97. We couldn't believe it. What has SoCal done to us?
1 comment:
It's funny how different NoVA/DC is from SE VA. Those living in NoVA would never consider themselves "southerners." I know I never did.
If you look different from the majority of the population in a particular area, you're going to get looked at no matter what race you are. Everytime I visit my Mexican relatives in certain parts of Los Angeles, I get stared at because I look as white as my husband, even though I'm not! It's kind of funny.
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