10 Random Things About Mississippi

Here are 10 things so far that I have learned about Mississippi that I am not used to (Please note that this excludes people that live on base and is referring to true Mississippians only).

1. Everyone here has accents; I mean thick, slow accents. It is becoming a problem for me because whenever I am around it, I unknowingly start to mimic it. I don't realize it until someone points out that I have just picked up an accent out of nowhere. Its awful when I am making phone calls at work and sometime during the conversation I get an accent. Really though, by the end of the work day I sound like I have lived here my whole life. It never sticks though (at least not yet). Once I get back on base or talk to people from home, I am back to my normal self.  
2. I have never seen so many strange, huge flying bugs in my life. Its getting warmer here and with that the bugs are coming out all over. I recognize the mosquitoes and bees (although I usually don't see them in such huge  quantities) but there are tons of other weird colored, noisy bugs that I have never seen. I'm sure people are amused when I start screaming and running from a huge bug that is probably harmless (Hey, better safe then sorry!). 
3. The weather here is crazy and sporadic, which is so much different than the never-changing weather of LA. I actually really like this part about Mississippi. One week here it was 80 on Monday and snowing on Saturday. Every day the weather is a surprise and wow do we get it all! It's fun to see seasons and rain and snow. One thing that is not great about the weather is the humidity. Anytime it gets hot it gets muggy and humid. It's that kind of feeling where you feel like you can't breathe. I can't  imagine what it will be like in the summer when its 100 degrees and 100% humidity...eek! Good thing I'll be gone for 2 months of it. 
4. I think that the first thing that surprised me about Mississippi is that there are more trailer homes than regular houses. It's normal for a large family to live in a small beat up trailer. Seriously, thats the norm here. There are tons of trailer parks and dealerships and people seem honestly quite content with trailer life. 
5. One great thing about Mississippi and the South in general is that people are so nice and hospitable and genuinely want to get to know you. Its strange to me that anywhere I go, complete strangers start to talk with me about everything going on in their lives. It really annoyed me at first (probably because people in LA stay in their bubbles and do not talk to strangers at the store) but now that I've gotten used to it I find myself doing it too. 
6. This is random but I think its so weird. When you are in a public restroom here there are NO toilet seat covers! I have yet to see one of those dispensers since I've been here. That is so weird to me and is so unsanitary. Seriously, thats strange right?
7. The big grocery store chain here is Kroger. I had never heard of a Kroger before and am used to things like Albertsons or Vons, but out here its Kroger all the way. Apparently its one of the biggest grocery chains in America. Shows how much I've been out of California...
8. It always surprises me to hear the use of the word ma'am. People are so courteous and respectful when they talk. Ma'am is used so naturally by the men here and I like it! 
9. In Mississippi, nobody is in a hurry to get anywhere. This is completely opposite of everything I am used to and completely opposite of me. Where as I am always sticking to a strict schedule and am always on time for things, people here don't seem to be aware of the time. They care more about the quality spent with what they are doing then meeting a deadline. Again, this was very annoying to me at first but now I am kind of starting to become somewhere in the middle of these two extremes and I am a much happier person because of it. In LA everyone and everything is always go, go, go!
10. My last one is really funny to me and it is that Mississippians have a completely wrong view of California. Not joking, almost every person I've met (outside of base) has asked me if I met a lot of celebrities in California. They also say things like "I bet you miss living on the beach" or "How big was your house there?" I always laugh and try to explain to them that I grew up in the middle of nowhere in central California and that even when I was in LA, I never saw celebrities and maybe got to the beach once a month. They are completely shocked at this and it makes me laugh. 

Well, there is some info about my new home here in M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I! I'm sure I'll have much more to add to this list as time goes on.