Of Grits and Gardenias

These are two of my favorite things and can be found in one of my very favorite Southern cities: Charleston, SC. I absolutely love this city - for it's southern charm, for the warm family memories it holds, for the romance that my marriage could use right now. Gardenias are wonderfully fragrant, and I fell in love with them for the first time walking the streets of Charleston. At that point, they became quintessentially Southern for me - and yes, that is Southern with a capital "S" which is different (more classically southern, or heck just more southern in general) than the one with the little "s". I now have gardenias growing in my own garden (upstate South Carolina), in which one whiff can take me back to my Southern roots in a heartbeat.

As far as those grits are concerned, how much more Southern can you get? Grits are a wonderful food, where you can enjoy them solo with a good dose of butter (real butter, not futter - fake butter) and salt (particularly sea salt). When I have an upset stomach, basic grits with butter and salt always make me feel better. Actually, when I am sick with a cold or anything at all they seem to work their magic.

When I am feeling a little more "uppity", grits make a good companion to a large assortment of other goodies. When in Charleston, it's old-fashioned "Shrimp and Grits" especially when served at the Palmetto Cafe in Charleston Place. When home at my parents' house, it is sometimes a nice slice of country ham on the side and a little red-eye gravy over the top of the grits. Sometimes it just makes a nice soothing side dish to a hot and spicy mix of hot sausage and scrambled eggs with salsa.

In these ways, grits and gardenias remind me of Southern women - again that capital "S" is quite deliberate. Grits, which is sometimes explained as "Girls Raised In The South", are a staple food - wholesome, filling, and capable of being very independent which are all ways to describe Southern women. We are wholesome, filling and capable of being very independent - have you seen Steel Magnolias? However, Southern women, like grits, are also capable of blending perfectly into a variety of other elements and situations many times bringing a unique level of fun or just adding that little edge to combine all other elements into harmony. Gardenias can be heady and overpowering, which can sometimes be like the charm of a Southern lady. But we also know how to blend into the background providing an air of calm beauty that enlivens the air and makes a situation much more pleasant.

Perhaps that is how I see this blog as well. I will be describing my life as viewed from my own southern perspective. At times, it may be a little heady or overpowering for some readers but for others it might provide the perfect level of loveliness and beauty. At times, it might seem a little bland like plain bowl of grits but at other times it will be spicy and fun and full of life. Somewhere along the way I hope to find a little something to please a varied audience.