Just moved to the fattest state in the union!

minihaha80

Talk about culture shock! I moved from upstate New York where I built organic backyard gardens for a living to southern Mississippi, where 1 in 3 children are hungry but I cant find em, maybe they're hiding behind all the obese people. I know, thats insensitive, but im going to restart my business down here and im hoping it wont flop, try talking health to anyone around here and they start talking about God! Its scary, lets pray for health, while we eat only fried foods and never move anywhere! My daughter literally goes to school a 7 min. Walk away from our house and we walk, whats odd is ive been asked if we need a ride around 50 times in the month we've been here, each time I state "thank you but we like to walk" and 9 times out of 10 they argue that that cant possibly be the case! Whats worse is they send a bus around to the development directly across the street from the school, which im positive is way more expemsive than hiring a couple crossing gaurds! Idk, I need some health conscious friends online because i feel like im the only one around here who gives 1 iota about being healthy happy and staying that way for as long as possible round this place!

MichaelBrewer2634

I grew up in Mississippi. Around Hattisburg, MS. I've lived all over the US, and I can honestly say that I have no interest in going back there. The southern diet consists of tons of carbs (cornbread), a ton of meat, and the vegetables are prepared with a stick of butter & a cup of sugar along with pork in them. Most unhealthy place on Earth. Hot as hell in the summer so you don't want to stay outside, and so humid that in the winter it is cold as hell. Again, not a place to be outside again. People eat, and drink for pleasure. If you are an isolationist, and like to go to the gym then Mississippi is a great place to train because there is nothing else to do. For me the best thing about growing up in Mississippi was getting the hell out of there. Good Luck

erinpd

Mississippi is also one of the poorest states in the U.S. Many of the people who live there are struggling with a hell of a lot more than their weight.

What an insensitive and ignorant post. Please, do yourself a favor and research a little. Less judgment and more respect will take you much further.

quirkytizzy

There is just so much to flame in this post.....

Really? why bother, if you enjoy trolling why threaten? move on to your next target, I dont know you, dont care what you think of me or my post. Your such a ***** you cant even show a pic of yourself!

Meow, babe. At least I didn't fly off the handle with name-calling first. Also, there are tons of succesful posters who don't show their pics.

Would you like to call EVERY member on MFP who doesn't have a face-pic names? By all means, please do. Find out how popular you are.

Feel better? I betchya do.

Also I didn't threaten anything. If I wanted to flame, I would have. (You, however, took that first step by calling me a curseword.) Threats indeed?

bostonwolf

Talk about culture shock! I moved from upstate New York where I built organic backyard gardens for a living to southern Mississippi, where 1 in 3 children are hungry but I cant find em, maybe they're hiding behind all the obese people. I know, thats insensitive, but im going to restart my business down here and im hoping it wont flop, try talking health to anyone around here and they start talking about God! Its scary, lets pray for health, while we eat only fried foods and never move anywhere! My daughter literally goes to school a 7 min. Walk away from our house and we walk, whats odd is ive been asked if we need a ride around 50 times in the month we've been here, each time I state "thank you but we like to walk" and 9 times out of 10 they argue that that cant possibly be the case! Whats worse is they send a bus around to the development directly across the street from the school, which im positive is way more expemsive than hiring a couple crossing gaurds! Idk, I need some health conscious friends online because i feel like im the only one around here who gives 1 iota about being healthy happy and staying that way for as long as possible round this place!

Simple, tell them the healthy, organic produce is made only with God's own ingredients and none provided by man.

It's all about marketing!

Bubsys_mom

I live in Mississippi....

I will say I hate it here. I always have. Only thing that keeps me here is my parents/family and my husband's job. Where I live, there are a lot of overweight/unhealthy people. It's fact. Hard to resist all that Southern comfort food, fried food, etc. lol It's why my entire family is fat.

bostonwolf

There is just so much to flame in this post.....

Really? why bother, if you enjoy trolling why threaten? move on to your next target, I dont know you, dont care what you think of me or my post. Your such a ***** you cant even show a pic of yourself!

Meow, babe. At least I didn't fly off the handle with name-calling first. Also, there are tons of succesful posters who don't show their pics.

Would you like to call EVERY member on MFP who doesn't have a face-pic names? By all means, please do. Find out how popular you are.

Feel better? I betchya do.

Also I didn't threaten anything. If I wanted to flame, I would have. (You, however, took that first step by calling me a curseword.) Threats indeed?

No, I know not everyone shows their face and they have a myriad of reasons for doing so, but people who spend hours of their day trying to make random people upset so they can get a giggle and hide behind the anonymity of the internet are *kitten*! And, you are right, I made the first move, I dont do trolls.

Trolls are amusing.

quirkytizzy

No, I know not everyone shows their face and they have a myriad of reasons for doing so, but people who spend hours of their day trying to make random people upset so they can get a giggle and hide behind the anonymity of the internet are *kitten*! And, you are right, I made the first move, I dont do trolls.

Eh, I should have just moved along and not said anything myself. If the idea of someone saying "There is just so much to flame" is enough to send you into a fit of cursewords, then there's obviously more going on with you than I need to be privy to.

Cest la vie. Live and learn, no?

minihaha80

Mississippi is also one of the poorest states in the U.S. Many of the people who live there are struggling with a hell of a lot more than their weight.

What an insensitive and ignorant post. Please, do yourself a favor and research a little. Less judgment and more respect will take you much further.

I am very aware of the impoverished state of southern mississippi, no research necessary! I will also tell you that when I had a thriving business in Ny I built gardens pro bono for local schools, boys and girls clubs and churches and plan to do the same down here while your busy researching. Havent you ever heard that actions speak louder than words! Have a nice day policing sensitivity!

5hellz

I've lived in Alabama my whole life and I can tell you that it wasn't always like that. When I was growing up here, it was still hot as hell in the summer but we got up, had our breakfast and went outside to play. We didn't want to stay inside anytime, because being outside and playing was what we knew. Luckily, my family (my husband and our children) have never been a fan of the "traditional" southern food but the food hasn't really changed much in the South, it's fried and it's full of sugar and carbs but the people have changed, at least where I grew up the people have changed. Now the kids are inside playing games cause it's too hot outside or it's boring outside (quotes from my own children). So, like most kids, my two teenage sons (14 & 15 at the time) were basically glued to their gamers chairs playing the PlayStation and XBox. They had no life and only a handful of friends that I could actually meet in person and I decided that it was time for me to make the change for them.

They came home from school one day and their game systems were gone, the laptop was password protected, and I took their phones away. The only way they could get their devices back was if they joined 1 extra curricular school activity that held a minimum of 1 practice per week outside and required them to sweat. The next day they came in and joined the marching band at the high school. Even though my children were not overweight (14 years old, 98lbs, 5'3 and 15 years old, 130lbs, 5'7), they have gotten in better shape, they have so much more energy, and even though they have their electronic devices back, they may spend a couple hours a week on them because they have now taken up playing tennis.

With all that being said, if I had not went to the extremes and forced my children to join something, they would still be in their rooms spending hours a day on the games.....I believe that if more people would go to those extremes then maybe the weight issue with children would change.

Anyway, that's my opinion and good luck with your business. I hope you come to love the South as much as I do

Kimba1974

Well I recognized the picture. Its from Mass Effect series and I love that game too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

quirkytizzy

Well I recognized the picture. Its from Mass Effect series and I love that game too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you! So it is!

algebravoodoo

There is just so much to flame in this post.....

As a life-long resident of Mississippi, I could agree with you, if what the OP said weren't true...

I just want to ask the OP, to where in Mississippi did you move? Some regions are far more set in their ways than others.

minihaha80

Talk about culture shock! I moved from upstate New York where I built organic backyard gardens for a living to southern Mississippi, where 1 in 3 children are hungry but I cant find em, maybe they're hiding behind all the obese people. I know, thats insensitive, but im going to restart my business down here and im hoping it wont flop, try talking health to anyone around here and they start talking about God! Its scary, lets pray for health, while we eat only fried foods and never move anywhere! My daughter literally goes to school a 7 min. Walk away from our house and we walk, whats odd is ive been asked if we need a ride around 50 times in the month we've been here, each time I state "thank you but we like to walk" and 9 times out of 10 they argue that that cant possibly be the case! Whats worse is they send a bus around to the development directly across the street from the school, which im positive is way more expemsive than hiring a couple crossing gaurds! Idk, I need some health conscious friends online because i feel like im the only one around here who gives 1 iota about being healthy happy and staying that way for as long as possible round this place!

Simple, tell them the healthy, organic produce is made only with God's own ingredients and none provided by man.

It's all about marketing!

Thank you! I might just do that

Alarista

You can do it! Every state you find will have some of that. I know lots of people who want to deep fry everything and eat nothing but fast food (I will lay down the hate that they are skinny people and compensate my irritation by thinking their cholesterol must be through the roof). However, I'm sure there are people who will want to hear what you have to say. To my understanding southern culture is more about family, so maybe stress being around when their kids have kids or to walk their daughter down the aisle. Or stress the excitement of trying new ways to cook foods and experience things.

As to the picking you up, honey, they're trying to help you. That's the sense of family and community. If you ever have a flat or something like that, it will be something you will see differently (I know we are strong independent women and can change a tire, but having someone offer to help instead of just watching you is thoughtful). I'm from Kansas originally, I hit a deer in December. A GIANT deer, doing 55. It was startling and I was a bit freaked out. Nice people stopped, pulled the deer out of the middle of the road, checked on me, heck one guy even stayed and hung out with me until the policeman got there. And though no one could do anything for me really because I was okay, it was really nice.

So, you can do it, and enjoy the niceness of the new place! You have to find a positive somewhere in there.

Rebirth08

To the OP, I didn't think your post was at all insensitive. I think you recognize a problem and want to know how you can overcome the idea that all that unhealthy living is Godly, happy living. All I can say is, keep doing your part, and talk to one person at a time. That's beautiful that they talk about God, but go there with them, let them know the first thing God created was vegetation, and that while we pray for God health, FAITH without WORKS is dead! We can pray for good health, but if we don't do one thing about it, is not going to come. God put us in charge of our own bodies; With me, I have burned off 43 pounds so far, and I prayed about it, but, I had to get into motion. And when I got into motion God created this miracle inside my body that we call 'weight loss.'

So, with that said, you'll have to go there with them. And one person at a time. Everyone won't listen, but God has a interesting way of opening up some people's minds at the right time. He'll open up one mind for you to feed, then another, that one mind you feed can go tell someone else, who tell someone else. It takes time. You can't fix it, but you can do your part and be a great impact. Stay strong, stay focused. Don't let fear (if you battle that) stop you from achieving your goal.

Ooh, and for kids, you may can start some sort of Play 60

BondBomb

I don't think its insensitive to point out the obvious. I live in Chicago. One of the fattest cities. The younger generation seems to be more health conscious here but I was surprised when I moved to Southern California and saw how fit and healthy the majority of people were. Moving back here was a shock and an eyeopener. I hope your business thrives and that you are able to help people on the path to healthier lives.

Deipneus

I'm just grateful I'm not forced to live somewhere against my will. I grew up in Ohio but found the South more to my liking.

erinpd

Mississippi is also one of the poorest states in the U.S. Many of the people who live there are struggling with a hell of a lot more than their weight.

What an insensitive and ignorant post. Please, do yourself a favor and research a little. Less judgment and more respect will take you much further.

I am very aware of the impoverished state of southern mississippi, no research necessary! I will also tell you that when I had a thriving business in Ny I built gardens pro bono for local schools, boys and girls clubs and churches and plan to do the same down here while your busy researching. Havent you ever heard that actions speak louder than words! Have a nice day policing sensitivity!

I have, which is why I work for a food bank. A Feeding America affiliate, even. Understanding poverty, obesity and hunger is part of my job.

I won't engage you anymore, however. I will wish you good luck in your business and hope you have an excellent day.

Rebirth08

To my understanding southern culture is more about family, so maybe stress being around when their kids have kids or to walk their daughter down the aisle. Or stress the excitement of trying new ways to cook foods and experience things.

As to the picking you up, honey, they're trying to help you. That's the sense of family and community. If you ever have a flat or something like that, it will be something you will see differently (I know we are strong independent women and can change a tire, but having someone offer to help instead of just watching you is thoughtful).
So, you can do it, and enjoy the niceness of the new place! You have to find a positive somewhere in there.

Very good points

ReddySetLose

I hated your post.... i moved to ct from la and guess what ?? they have obese people here too... but their noses are so high in the air, they don't even realize it. People up north like to assume what the southerners do and in reality they haven't a clue,,,, perhaps you moved to a bad area, who knows. My suggestion is for you to do your thing, and let them do theirs. I'm sure if they feel the need to change themselves, they will. Have a Great Day