Country, ghetto...whatever!

Last night, I was on the phone with a friend who lives in a large midwestern city and I told him that if it hadn't been raining I was going to mow my grass. He then asked what I meant by mow. I told him again and he just acted like he'd never heard that expression before and I told him mow and cut the grass are the same thing. He asked why I just didn't say cut the grass, why would I when mow in one word means the same as cut the grass in three? I told him I use a lawn mower, so mow is the verb of what I'm doing with it. He just tsked and added it to his list of things that he considered makes me a country, uninformed woman.

Lately, this guy has been really getting under my skin with his insinuations that because I come from a small town in Arkansas that I am stupid. I have known this guy for over 25 years. He, his sister and brother would spend every summer with their grandparents who lived down the street from my family. In fact, we had a mutual fondness for each other, but my mom wasn't having it, so he got passed around by all the other girls in town. Time passed and we grew apart, but circumstances allowed us to be reunited about three years ago. It was during Thanksgiving 2003, we were both in town for Thanksgiving and bumped into each other. We talked for hours and exchanged phone numbers. Our relationship and friendship grew and at one point I thought maybe he was the one. I ignored all of his comments regarding my ignorance about stuff. If I didn't understand something, he just dismissed as being stupid because I come from a small town. He just couldn't understand why people would want to live in a small town. I informed him that some people like small town life and if they want something to do, they could always drive to a nearby larger city. He would comment on the fact that people had to drive to nearby towns for work, but think about it, in larger cities, a drive across town can take just as long. I've lived in large cities and small towns and honestly, I prefer small town life. I guess if I'd spent my entire life in a large city, I'd probably prefer it over the small town.

Anyway, I've tried to explain to this guy that small city does not equate stupid. I realize he is not alone in his thinking. The media portrays people from the South as stupid, rednecks and illiterate. There are thousands of brilliant people who hail from the South. As a reader, I think of Alice Walker, Eric Jerome Dickey, E. Lynn Harris and Richard Wright. I also don't think I am stupid or dumb by any means. I don't equate knowing the lastest trends or gossip or even the latest slang terms and being stupid. If I happen to talk loud, he accuses me of being county. I spent two weeks in Milwaukee, Wisconsin last year and had the pleasure of attending a barbecue on the 4th of July. The family who hosted the event was so friendly, I laughed and told my cousin, I felt like I was in Montrose! So I don't think that where you lives makes a person, it is what is on the inside. I had to laugh during the same conversation when I asked him if he likes asparagus and he said he doesn't know what it is!