My son, Holmes and I play a friendly game of, “I dare you.” It all started when we were putting gas in the car and we noticed a store with the name of “Badd Kitty” written in bright read letters. Believe me, this store is no “Pet Smart” and became another, “I dare you” game.
“Mom, I dare you to go into that store,” said Holmes.
“Okay,” I said. So I proceed to walk across the parking lot for my “badd kitty” challenge. Holmes was right behind me.
Once inside the store, he said, “Mom, I dare you to buy something.”
“Okay,” I replied. The most un-badd kitty merchandise I could find was a pair of edible drawers. So I bought them and put the flavored uns in my pocketbook.
Our next stop was watching the movie, Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Well, during the movie, I got hungry so…….
Holmes was mortified. “Mom, seriously? You are chewing on the edible uns?! You are embarrassing me!”
Oh, how sweet it is; I was embarrassing him… finally.
As I gnawed on the other leg of the drawers, Holmes, once again, exclaimed, “Mom! This is embarrassing! And, this is Mister Roger’s Neighborhood, not Sex in the City!”
As I said in my new book, “Sweet Tea Secrets from the Deep-Friend South,” story is how we speak in the South. I had a new tale but, little did I know that the story would become even sweeter.
A few weeks later, I was speaking for a group of Baptist men and women at Epworth By the Sea in St. Simons Island, Ga. I asked the gentleman in charge if I could tell the Badd Kitty story; I certainly did not want to offend anyone! He gave me the go-ahead: the story was a big hit.
Afterwards, an elderly woman using a walker, approached me. “You know that story you told about Badd Kitty and them edible drawers?”
“Uh, yes M’am,” I said, fearing that I had crossed the line.
“Well,” she continued. “Them drawers tastes just like Fruit Roll-ups!”
SWEET TEA SECRETS FROM THE DEEP-FRIED SOUTH shares fifty unusual, but true, faith-filled stories of growing up in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Whether you love Southern ways of life or find their ways strange and amusing, you’ll be entertained and inspired with warm Southern-fried humor and tried-and-true tips for attaining the best version of yourself.
