#bitter southerner

[surlyqueen]

Stop forsaking the south and other rural spaces. Not everyone can afford to move. Not everyone *wants* to move. There is work to be done, that IS being done and writing off rural spaces as "backwards and not worth saving" diminishes that work and harms actual people in the process (and shows your classist ass).

There are queer folks in Georgia, Texas, etc and not just in the cities.

every month someone makes a post like “wow, I can’t believe there are gay rednecks. can’t believe there are gay people living in the rural Midwest or Deep South.” kill the classist in your brain

[lowcountry-gothic]

"Six Seconds of Dark"

The proper habitat for synchronous fireflies can be found in pockets across the eastern United States, but they are sensitive to light — even a full moon can disrupt their ability to flash in unison. Large swaths of untouched, dark forest in national parks provide prime habitat. Every year, between 30,000 and 40,000 people enter a lottery for just shy of 1,000 passes to see the lightning bugs over eight nights at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A record-breaking 17,593 people entered a similar lottery in 2023 in hopes of being among the 1,300 chosen to see the Photuris frontalis species at Congaree National Park in South Carolina. 

From a story by Jessica Bradley for The Bitter Southerner. Photos by Stephen Cook.

[mamawasatesttube]

i am going to say something that is . well i don't think it's controversial in that i don't think it has been said enough to cause controversy to begin with but skjdfhjds listen. hear me out

tim/ber/kon <<<<<<<<< timiveskon

on the one hand you have an uphill battle to convince me why these characters would even give a shit about each other (plus i mean megfitz massacred their characterizations and thats a whole extra mess) and generally it just reads to me as just treating kon as tim's spare love interest uwu without any care about his character.

but on the OTHER HAND.... timiveskon? chefs kiss. kon and ives are instantly bonding over nerdisms. they are both standing on the table and yelling about the rereleased edition of return of the jedi and kon is going on about how he has the original literally downloaded into his brain and ives thinks that's the sexiest thing he's ever heard and tim is just sitting there consumed by lust while they both yell about greedo. it practically writes itself. come on

[sinnamonscouture]

André 3000 Covers The Bitter Southerner

[arrayed-in-purple]

𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧

𝐁𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐧𝐨𝐰 (𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟒)

[goldensunset]

*ie the post about using "pet names" in posts I am So Sorry if I ever do that at any point and make you uncomfortable. My natural Southernism has somehow resulted in me using "Sweetie" to refer to people almost as much as their actual names. I try to catch it online but it's soooo embarrassing irl when I'm having a conversation with a friend or classmate and I just drop a pet name out of nowhere asdfgh

really? i have never heard you say that… actually maybe i have? but like only as a sarcastic insult idk. also you are one of my besties you are equally exempt i just wouldn’t be used to it from you so it would be a shock to my system but like i’d know you meant well. i’m talking about like random strangers who are significantly older than me and want to talk down to me like i’m 12 but i know who you are so

[who-is-muses]

"-But in condemning that which He made in His own image, does God not condemn Himself? Does His omnipotence not include that free will which He Himself gave to humans that led them to sin? What are humans, but the manifestation of the Holy Father's self-loathing?"

[murdrdocs]

You most certainly do not need a southern trailer park summer. We have fire ants and flying cockroaches down here

trust ik i am posting from the soul of the deep south

[misterjt]

If forced to choose one person to represent the physical embodiment of New Orleans, Big Freedia is a strong pick in my book. Yes, worldwide legends like Beyoncé and Drake have her on speed dial, but the electric, gender-fluid “Queen of Bounce” retains real respect here from locals. And while New Orleans has a reputation for flash and debauchery, those who know the city's soul understand that the other side of its beauty is something equally softer, more serene, just like our Freedia.

—Maurice Carlos Ruffin on The Queen of Joy, Empress of Peace

[fearsomeandwretched]

When you go low I go lower

[dancingmusique]

What’s the status of this project?! I own the entire Bitter Root series and was excited about it being turned into a film. Now with the release of Coogler’s Sinner’s trailer that has a similar vibe, I realized it’s been loooonnnnggg time since any new news about a Bitter Root film has been announced.

We won!!!

[lowcountry-gothic]

All Together Now: 25 Years of Photographing American Music by David McClister

[allthefoolmine]

“I just really hope that they are really good at looking their shadows in the face and say, Sometimes I do this or I’m built this way — and to be curious about that! I think those are the things that literally make us better. I think it’s trying to understand my shadows: What are my shortcomings? How is the way that I was raised — how has that affected me as an adult, and the ways that I give and receive love, you know?”

[jtrav]

The Bitter Southerner / February 2024 Photo & Styling by Jason Travis Your Heart Is Your Home By Kyle Tibbs Jones For the dreamy kid in all of us, The Bitter Southerner's announces its very first children's book. 

Your Heart Is Your Home is a sweet reminder that we can take the best parts of the South around the globe or maybe just across town. We can also learn amazing things from our neighbors and bring lots of goodness home if or when we eventually return. 

Illustrated by the fabulously talented Durham, North Carolina, artist Kristen Solecki, this book on home is one we believe you and your families will love for ages.  Support BS Publishing and The Bitter Southerner. Buy their books at bittersoutherner.com. Available for wholesale, too!

[a-crimson-impressionism]

Liking tea and coffee and chocolate, and having chronic heartburn, is a recipe for burning pain at 3 am. Good thing: having yogurt before or after having coffee/tea/chocolate means no heratburn. Bad thing: I have no yogurt but still a constant desire for black tea.

[miltybc]

advent journal: erasing

Two quotes found me today. The first is from Meister Eckhart, quoted by Christian Wiman in Zero at the Bone: Only the hand that erases can write the true thing. The second is from Jason Isbell, quoted in an excellent article by Taylor Brown in the Bitter Southerner: Giving other people the ability to harm you is, I think, paramount in developing as an adult. And that is really difficult to…