Sunday, June 5, 2011

OBSERVATIONS FROM OUR NEW HOME

Well, we have arrived in our new home on St. Simons Island, Georgia. I thought I would share with you some observations as we have noted them.

First, on our arrival our daughter and a friend brought us a house warming gift. The gift consisted of a bouquet of flowers and a basket including a fly swatter and a can of Raid ant and roach killer. There seemed to be a message here. Apparently this is the home of red ants. Now these are not like normal ants. No, they swarm and they bite. I am told it is a very painful experience. Secondly, the roaches are also different from what you might expect. Some of them can be saddled and ridden. When you discover them they don’t scurry away. No, they want to stand and fight. They seem to dare you to take them on. They are referred to as “Palmetto Bugs.” How quaint. I will have more to report on that issue later as I experience them.

Some of you may remember that I had previously reported on the language of the South. For example, I reported that the plural of the term y’all is all y’all. I have now learned that the possessive form of this term is y’all’s and all y’all’s. Y’all can and does refer to as few as one individual or to many individuals. Also, a new word I have learned is “n’” as in shrimp n’ grits, or biscuits n’ gravy. We are confident that we will learn these new words as well as others. It is important to learn the language of a new place. We don’t want to look conspicuous.

How about the weather? Of course one of the main considerations to us in moving here was the weather. I read in the paper the forecast for the weekend. It read hot and hotter. No temperatures, no numbers, just hot and hotter. As it turns out, they were right. We are supposed to be in the middle 90s with corresponding high humidity. That is going to take a little getting used to. This winter though, when you are in the single digits or lower, we should be in the 60s and 70s. I’ll let you know.

The main reason for our move, however, was not the language or the weather, and certainly not the bugs or snakes. No, the main reason was to be closer to our family, mainly our grandchildren. They live an hour away. Linda and I look forward to spending more time with them, especially holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is our opinion that we need that and we believe that our grandchildren need that. I have Grandpa things to teach and share with them. They surely have grandkid things to share with me. We look forward to watching them grow up and become adults. We hope to be a positive influence in their lives. I think today’s world is difficult. There are many challenges to young people. While we don’t have all the answers, it is just possible that we may have had some experiences that might help our kids through a difficult situation. Otherwise, failing that, we may just take a picnic to the beach and talk about it. At any rate we will have the opportunity to try and be helpful.

I will continue to comment as time goes on. My columns will return to the politics of the day as we go forward. I hope the fishing is getting better for all y’all as the weather improves, oh, and watch out for snakes and ants.

Ron Scarbro June 5, 2011

2 comments:

Online GED said...

nice going well when anyone settled with new house they would prepare for all the expense they think or problem they are in mind. but in your case you have securely all the things are doing better.

Anonymous said...

You have no idea how important you as grandparents are to your grandchildren until they grow up and thank you and tell you how you have made their lives so much better. It makes you feel pretty good when they tell you you are the best grandparent in the world. Also be careful I'm allergic to fire ants, and you haven't lived until a palmetto bug flies at your head. They not only stand and fight, they fly and attack. I hope you are happy there.
Deena