From A Detroiter to Southern Brethren
 

You guys know my story. I'm an Army brat that grew up in Bavaria and landed in Detroit.

Over the years there is one theme that keeps ringing through my head. It's community. The Bavarians are still working at it after 1000 years. I saw Detroit get wrecked in 20.

Take advantage of Southern Kindness as fast as you can. You guys are the closest thing America has to Bavarians.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zwq9RCeISY

Bayern heiraten ihre Vettern?:D

Been through Bavaria and a lot of the South and I am sitting here scratching my head.

Me, too. Maybe the OP has an idealized view of our southern states? That's not to say there aren't pockets of civilization down there in Dixie (NOLA, Memphis, Atlanta) but almost everywhere that I went in southern germany I was treated with respect and civility. Even Frankfurt am Main was pretty cool once they realized that I was cheering the locals to win the World Cup against Italy.;)

Yeah, I don't get it either. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of nice folks down here.

But, comparing my hometown in Ohio to here or just about anywhere I've been, I really don't see much difference. People is people, here, there or wherever. Well, 'cept for LA, but that's a different planet.

Dave

Good thing I live in the OC, eh Dave?:rolleyes:

Reminds me of a song...........

"Truckin got my chips cashed in. keep truckin, like the do-dah man
Together, more or less in line, just keep truckin on.

Arrows of neon and flashing marquees out on main street.
Chicago, New York, Detroit and it's all on the same street.
Your typical city involved in a typical daydream
Hang it up and see what tomorrow brings.

Dallas, got a soft machine; houston, too close to New Orleans;
New Yorks got the ways and means; but just wont let you be, oh no.

Most of the cast that you meet on the streets speak of true love,
Most of the time they're sittin and cryin at home.
One of these days they know they better get goin
Out of the door and down on the streets all alone.

Truckin, like the do-dah man. once told me youve got to play your hand
Sometimes your cards aint worth a dime, if you don't layem down,

Sometimes the lights all shinin on me;
Other times I can barely see.
Lately it occurs to me what a long, strange trip it's been.

What in the world ever became of sweet jane?
She lost her sparkle, you know she isn't the same
Livin on reds, vitamin c, and cocaine,
All a friend can say is aint it a shame?

Truckin, up to Buffalo. been thinkin, you got to mellow slow
Takes time, you pick a place to go, and just keep truckin on.

Sittin and starin out of the hotel window.
Got a tip they're gonna kick the door in again
Id like to get some sleep before I travel,
But if you got a warrant, I guess you're gonna come in.

Busted, down on Bourbon Street, set up, like a bowlin pin.
Knocked down, it gets to wearin thin. they just wont let you be, oh no.

You're sick of hangin around and you'd like to travel;
Get tired of travelin and you want to settle down.
I guess they can't revoke your soul for tryin,
Get out of the door and light out and look all around.

Sometimes the lights all shinin on me;
Other times I can barely see.
Lately it occurs to me what a long, strange trip it's been.

Truckin, Im a goin home. whoa whoa baby, back where I belong,
Back home, sit down and patch my bones, and get back truckin on.
Hey now get back truckin home."

Just Beautiful, Man...........

Dave

All type of crap gets idealised in music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDE7ghRhfzo

You hate Tony Bennett?:confused::D

No!

Because of him I learn not to associate San Francisco with earthquakes.

Here is something from the archives.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xqi0kN9wXac

Just funnin' witcha, Don. San Fran is a beautiful city but like N.Y. it's a pricey place to live. I think N.Y. is a great town, too. (To visit.):cool:

If y'all want to find civilized and neighborly folks, try the Midwest.

Actually, lots of folks I met in New York were civilized and neighborly.

Texas - small sample size, but meh . . .

Regards,

D-Ray

Bavarians view Bavaria as the Texas of Germany. It's a widely used metaphor over there. It's the biggest state full of proud, gregarious people who wear silly hats, talk funny and think they're the center of the universe. I lived in southern Bavaria for 5 years and love the place. In fact, if I could pick anywhere in the world to live permanently, it would probably be on one of the lakes between Munich and the Alps in the Alpine foothills, probably near Herrsching on the Ammersee.

Damn, my little neck of the wood is being invaded by hipsters. There goes the rent, there goes the mortgage, there goes the price of everything.

Many of these people are coming from Manhattan. The word was out that Brooklyn was for sale and so in a very short span of time there were lots of bicyle riders, number of jazz and rock bars, artists and book reading meets.


The latest: Bicycle stations all over the borough where one can rent and return bikes. The mayor says he is striving for fit citizens dispite the thumbs down on his large drink fiasco.:D

Alan Jackson grew up about 15 miles from my farmstead and I can tell you he
sings a lot of truth. The South gets a bad rap from people elsewhere mostly
from movies and tv. All I know about California is from what I saw on Chips
and a few Cheech and Chong movies and the same could be said about
other areas. If you have never really toured the South or any areas of the
country I don't see how they can really base an honest opinion of it.
I have been to downtown Atlanta and New Orleans and they are not good
examples of what goes on in small towns across the South. I know most of
us grew up watching The Andy Griffith Show and while it was a comedy it did
do a better job of showing what life was like in the South. You can still find
a little Mayberry in any southern city. You may have to hang out at the local
BBQ joint, attend a cruise in, a chilli cook off, a fish fry, a horse shoe
tourny, hang out at a hunting camp, go to a high school football game
watch a parade but you will find it. There are some real people down here.
A bunch of them. And they can all cook.

I certainly hope that Cheech and Chong were true representatives of California. :D

One thing that the South has to offer is some fine writers. The one that immediately comes to mind is Roy Blount, Jr.

Of course, the South also gave us Jimmy Carter. :D


Regards,

D-Ray

So true! Another Eudora Welty.

Lewis Grizzard wrote some funny lines.

One of my nieces is one of 'em, Don.;)

The Lion's Club puts on a heckuva fish fry every year, here in Costa Mesa, to benefit the Boy's and Girl's Club. Wouldn't miss it for all those peaches in Georgia.;) There's a bit of small town everywhere in this great land, even in Californication. You just have to look for it.

BTW, Dad went to North Georgia College in Dahlonega when he was in the 10th Armored Division in '42-'43. He sure liked those Georgia peaches.;) Heh, heh...

The Canadian Maritimes are where the word hospitality was coined. Had good times in Bavaria but when I married Florence I also acquired a Bavarian sister-in-law, what a b***h. Spent a month in Dallas one week. Enjoyed many southern places, other's not so much

How is that even possible?

Dave

Another good writer from the South is Robert Ruark. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Ruark)
If you haven't read any of his books I would suggest starting with "The Old Man and The Boy".

I was just reminiscing about the good old days, such as the early 1980s when Detroit was still at least halfway glued together right. Then I thought about Nashville and how much it changed after GM built the Spring Hill plant. They were on pins and needles a few years ago when GM was deciding whether to close the plant.

Big business is like a drug. When you are in it it feels good, but the withdrawal is a bitch when the drug dealer moves to another town.

It's best to just not get wrapped up in it in the first place IMO. I have deep respect for agriculturual communities and hope they hold onto them as long as they can.

No love for Harper Lee or Tennessee Williams?;)

If you want to sit down and make a list of every writer from the South, go ahead.;) I wanted to mention one.:)

Good analogy.

Regards,

D-Ray

Tennessee Williams: CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

Loved the movie with Elizabeth Taylor, Burl Ives and Paul Newman.

Burl Ives surprised here. Especially loved his discourse on "Mendacity".

Tennessee did not like the movie because it excised the homosexual references.

It is a double edged sword. When I think of the early '80s, I still hear the line, ".....United States Steel has announced that it will cease all operations in the Youngstown district over the next three years. By 1984, this will bring the total loss of steel jobs in the valley since Black Friday* to 27,000.":eek:

After hearing that, I went straight to the recruiters office and joined the Navy.

The eighties were hard times for some parts of this country. Very hard.

(*Black Friday was in 1977, when Youngstown Sheet & Tube declared bankruptcy and laid off 4,600.)

Dave

The 80s were tough in Detroit too, particularly the early 1980s. But nothing like the conundrum it is in now.

Crime exploded. Arson, drugs, prostitution, robbery, murder, car jackings, people looting abandon homes and businesses for scrap metal........... It was the craziest thing I've ever seen. If your a Detroiter, you know what I'm talking about.

I'm hearing the Mahoning Valley is doing much better these days. Still a little tight for jobs, but the bulk of the blight and insanity is gone.

Dave

Yep. There is a number of recent YouTube videos about Detroit as it is today. It looks eerie, actually. The "rush hour" videos of downtown with hardly any cars or people in the streets. Huge, abandoned buildings everywhere. Like something from a movie, except it's real.

Dave

During the 1990s the picture started to come in focus for me. That was when Chrysler built their new HQ in the suburb of Auburn Hills. At the time it was a country community with a small downtown and small homes within walking distance. They had a horse ranch.

After Chrysler built their new HQ I saw the village rush to spend the new cash. It hit me when I was walking through town and noticed that they replaced the old concrete sidewalks with bricks. It was then that I thought, "bricks?" This crap can't survive Michigan winters. Do the city planners know what kind of maintenance bill they have just signed up for and that the businessmen at Chrysler play hardball?

It just seemed like a house of cards and I felt sorry for the local politicians that got sucked into the game.

An interesting one, old man. Kinda Hemingway-esque? I might have to read me some. I guess those southern writers had to suffer a bit, to sing the blues. Conrack was a decent writer.:)

Sorry for the threadcrappin', Ed.:o

Try the follow-up to "Old Man". The Boy learns just how much the Old Man has taught him. If you, or anyone you are close to, has ever gone through a divorce, "The Honey Badger" is a good read.
"Uhuru" gives an interesting perspective on the Kenya Emergency in the 50s.

There was also a movie made on the same subject, based on another of his books... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Something_of_Value

(I read all of his books at a young age. I was drawn to them because my mother went to school with him. They were casual friends.)

I love the idea of old Detroit and am hoping to spend a weekend there as a tourist soon.

They'll come back eventually, the worm will turn. Might take a while though.

Big business? If it wasn't for the rich folks years ago Cleveland wouldn't have Severance Hall, our free art museum, the Cultural Gardens, Lakeview cemetary...

We've still got some (very few now) brick streets here and some of the weathier suburbs are bricking their sidewalks, but brick on concrete.

Pete

Been there, done that, don't need any reminders.

Did someone say "Honey Badger"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nggAj0cxLro

Dave

There were beliefs at the time that Honey Badgers would go straight for a mans crotch.:eek: Sure sounds like a divorce case to me.