The list

Bill and I spent the first several weeks of our move to South Carolina in a hotel. We hadn't had time to locate a home, since I had finished school on a Thursday and moved on Saturday, only to begin school that following Monday.

Bill had started a week before, exactly three days after he left his job in New Hampshire.

Feeling somewhat rudderless, and unsure of my students' reactions to a northern accent, I decided to trick them into being on my side. The last questions on their first homework assignment read,"Now that Doña Ursula lives in South Carolina, she should..."

What I quickly learned is that my South Carolina kids are like my New Hampshire kids in that, although they like to complain that "there really is nothing to do here," they still want people to like it.

The answers were fun. And students have been eager to hear about my reactions as I try the foods and experiences that they had suggested. Each weekend I report out on the items that I have been able to check off my list.

Here are some of the things they suggested:

Go to the drive in movies at the Big MO
Go to Shealy's Barba
Visit the zoo/museum
Go to Lake Murray
Go to Miyabi's
Go to Myrtle Beach
Eat boiled peanuts
Eat chicken bog
Try sweet tea
Visit Charleston
Go to Groncho's and get and STP
Visit the Riverwalk, Congaree National Park and Saluda Shows Park
Get a tour of the South Carolina State House- it's cool!
Eat a pizzaburger
Spend the weekend in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Go to HiWire in Irmo
Go to Carowinds
Go to Cupcake Down South
Go to Paparoni's Grill
Go to 5 Points
Go to the Vista
Go to the South Carolina State Fair
Go to a football game
Go to the Isle of Palms
Enjoy our beautiful State. Columbia is 2 hours from whatever you want!
Stay
Learn the accents
Eat grits
Go to the Columbiana Mall

Needless to say, I don't know what half of this stuff means (what's a chicken bog?!), but I try to check something off the list every week. I am not always successful, but my students are genuinely excited when I report back to them that I have taken their suggestions. It takes about 10 minutes out of class time, but the good will I get in return has been worth it. These kids are invested in my success, and they want me to enjoy living here.


The first inkling of a rudder to guide my new life has come from my students. They are my first southern community.

And I am very grateful.