I haven't forgotten you! Really! It's just that we've had such a hot summer, sometimes I almost forget I'm not in the South (and with Chick-fil-A around and McDonald's hawking sweet tea, it's even easier to get confused). I don't have air-conditioning at home, so it's hard to work up the initiative to cook, much less actually eat anything hot, so the grits are still on the back burner, so to speak.
I do always remember that I'm actually up north whenever I notice all the people up here trying to keep up their normal pace of things. It's clear that they just don't know how to deal with this. When it gets this hot back home, we 1) slow down, 2) find an iced beverage (preferably sweet tea or lemonade), 3) find a body of water (or at least a sprinkler), and 4) let the heat and humidity act like a budget sauna and sap all of the stress out of our muscles and bones.
I have made a couple of recent ventures into southern Illinois (ie, anything south of the Chicago burbs) and discovered they've got a little better grasp on these things. I found Moon Pies, pimento cheese, Sonic, and some of the best fried fish I've ever had at a shack beside the boat ramp at Lake Clinton State Park. It even came with hushpuppies!!!!
So I'll just keep hoping to find somewhere to hang my hammock where my hiney doesn't drag the ground so I can keep Southern in a bit more comfort, and taking those Southern blessings where I can find them.
You do the same, y'hear?
