What do you envision?
I had to laugh today. It wasn’t new, I’ve pretty much heard it my whole life, but when I told someone out of state online that I write stories set in small southern towns, usually Texas…. the response was a familiar one.
“Oh I love Texas stories, love the cowboy flavor.”
Ummmmm…no.
I’ve lived in Texas most of my 44 years (shhhh), and I can honestly say that any “cowboys” I might have seen dressed up on purpose to look that way. My brother sometimes wears boots, but that’s because regular shoes tend to hurt him. We don’t ride horses, rope cattle (is that what you do with cattle? I don’t know) or wear guns. Although with concealed weapon laws, I guess alot of people might, but they have them tucked in their pants like a gangsta, they aren’t in holsters hanging on their hip like a Gunsmoke episode. “Helloooo, Miss Kitty…”
I have never owned a horse or know anyone who has. The only ranch I’ve ever been to was in Colorado (many ranches and cowboys there, by the way) and the only farm I’ve ever been to was in Iowa.
Not to say they aren’t here. I’m sure they have farms and ranches and…cattle… in places in Texas. Just like they do in every other state. I mean, I’m assuming cattle don’t stop in their hoofy little tracks at the Mason Dixon line and put up a picket sign.
I will ‘fess up to a brief stint in junior high (and I’m aging myself but I already gave that one up, so…) when I wore one of those fancy suede cowboy hats with the feathers hanging off the back… Right after the movie Urban Cowboy came out, for some goofy reason they were all the rage. For about a year. Then FlashDance came out, and we all switched to sparkly headbands and shirts that fell over one shoulder and legwarmers.
But I digress. My point is that I have always found it funny how people outside the state perceive it. But I guess I probably have preconceived notions about other states I’ve never been to. I always thought of Colorado as perpetually snowy till I lived there for 4 years and was shocked by the constant sunshine and PERFECT weather.
What preconceived notions do you have about places? Have there been any that totally shocked you?
Award winning author of sassy, sexy love stories. Texas girl. Wife of Superman. Frequently speak of coffee, dogs, TV shows & men with sexy eyes. {
Hi Sharla,
Loved your post about Texas. Like you, I’ve lived all my life in Texas and share your amusement at some of the stereotypes.
As I grew up on the south plains of Texas (near O’Donnell) I did see a lot of farms and ranches. I lived in a small town but a lot of my friends lived on ranches and farms so I had some up close and personal moments with livestock. Still love riding horses.
I agree, most “real cowboys” (the ones that own or work on ranches) don’t dress the way the media thinks they do. Some wear boots, others wear athletic shoes, most wear jeans but are inclined to wear t-shirts more than fancy western shirts, some wear cowboy hats to protect themselves from the sun’s rays but just as many wear gimme caps or baseball caps with the name of their favorite team.
Guns, well, quite a few people do collect them (sigh) but they seldom wear them in a holster.
At the country western clubs, you can always tell the cowboy wannabees because they DO look like the media’s version of a cowboy.
Sharon
funny how the real thing is so far from what people see in the movies, isn’t it?
Well, since I’m from Canada, I’ll tell you about the preconceived notions I’ve heard about our country.
Do you all live in igloos?
Is there a road over the mountains so you can get from British Columbia into Alberta and vice versa.
LOL!
Thanks for the great post, Sharla. Whenever I think of Texas, I think of the old Dallas series with Larry Hagman. 🙂
Oh yeah…and you know what’s funny about that show is the house looks so huge and it’s actually really very unimpressive in person. TV magic!!
I’m out in Southern California, but I assure you, every other word out of my mouth isn’t “dude”, and I’ve never tried surfing 🙂
Great post, Sharla!
Being a 44 yr old native Texan that has traveled a little in his time, I’m amazed at the number of people I meet outside the state that seem disappointed that I, a Texan, have never owned cattle or oil wells …
Speaking of Canada, Texas and Canada have some things in common:
We both have our own accents.
We both have a hard time understanding the accent of people from Mississppi, Alabama, and Georgia (ok, that’s kinda funny).
There are parts of both where english is basically a second language (think about it for a minute).
And both have some of the nicest people you will ever meet. 🙂
Good post Sharla, hats off to ya.
Hi girlie!
As an Arkansan, you can imagine the image and stereotypes we have to deal with. Toothless hillbillies with sixth-grade educations.. LOL
Well, I’ve got all my teeth, but when I hear my own voice I cringe.. There may be a tid-bit of hillbilly engrained in my DNA.
Love ya, buddy!