West Coast Raised, but Southern Livin'

I am trying to watch what I eat, limit sweets/junk food and work out more. But this morning I was craving something sweet to drink. I didn't want a coke so I opted for a sweet tea. To born and raised Southerners, my version of sweet tea isn't true sweet tea. I put about 1/4 cup of sweet tea and then add regular tea and/or water to get it just sweet enough but not too sweet. That got me thinking about the way people are used to things, or I guess the way I am used to things. No matter how long I live in the South there are some things I may never learn to enjoy the way a true Southerner does. Take food for example. No way, shape or form do I think I'll ever enjoy crawfish. The smell alone is nauseating in my opinion. And don't get me started on people using rodents and small animals for meals. Squirrel? Possum? Turtles? Gross!!! Fried food is something I can tolerate....in limited portions. The only fried food I truly enjoy is fried okra or fried zucchini. I know a lot of people who love jambalaya but it is not my favorite. I'll eat it if there isn't anything else to choose from but it's not my "go to" meal. Don't get me wrong, I have had some of the best food I've ever eaten here (hello snowballs, corn casserole, gumbo and Middendorfs) but don't take my Mexican food or sushi away from this West Coast gal!
Another thing that, although Southerners may not like, but they seem used to is the wildlife. I've lived here 3 years and it still shocks me when ants bite me or I see a snake. In my 37 years out West, I only had 1 experience with fire ants and that's when P got bitten at a friend's house. I was talking about ants with a Southerner recently and he was shocked to hear that there are ants that don't bite. In my 37 years out West, I only saw 3 snakes. I know they were there but I didn't see any. Here I see them all the time. Just yesterday I PROUDLY ran over one when leaving the park. Every Summer I find a frog and a lizard or two in the house. Things I would've never imagined growing up out West.
Now here's an area where I may offend someone and I apologize in advance if I do. The way people talk. On TV I had heard the Southerner twang but I never thought much about it. People call carts "buggies", which seems more like an endearing term for a small child. Everyone is "fixin'" to do something. A lot of fish is called a "mess of fish". It's kind of like learning another language all over again. Educated people down here use the word "ain't" and double negatives without thinking twice. Out West, someone is considered ignorant when they talk like that. Sometimes I have to really hold my tongue so I keep from correcting people's grammar. It's just not normal to me.
There are many things I have grown to love about the South and things that still surprise me about it. But that's another blog for another time. I just got to thinking about how different parts of the US can be so different and I thought I'd share my thoughts with you. Hope y'all have a great weekend!