i'm a little more country than that

Just so we're clear, I blame genetics for this...

Both of my grandmothers were intensely fond of country music; therefore, I believe that I was genetically programmed to love it and everything that goes along with it, for the purposes of this post I mean specifically cowboys.

Whether it's genetics, the deep Southern drawl, southern summers, or just plain preference, I'm crazy for country cowboys. Now, I know what you're thinking.. "yea, yea. so is every other southern girl." To this I reply, "so what." It doesn't take a true lover of all things country-fried to appreciate 4-wheel drive, an old dirt road, or Luke Bryan. But while on my hiatus, I've become particularly preoccupied with WHY exactly this is. I've come up with a few answers for me personally. Let's go..

numero uno: George Strait (need I say more?) This country cutie has been melting hearts ever since his hit "Unwound" back in 1981, and he's had the most #1 songs of any artist in history (from any genre, he's had 57 as of 2010)

My dad's mom(Grandma) says he's her favorite because he just sits on stage and stares right into the camera, right at'ya. c'mon, any gal would swoon, right?

His song "Troubadour" has been playing on repeat while I'm writing this, FYI. I'm oddly fond of the lyrics,

"Well the truth about a mirror

Is that a damned, ole mirror

Don't really tell the whole truth.

It don't show what's deep inside,

Or read between the lines.

And it's really no reflection of my youth."

Still not convinced?

Numero dos: Hope Floats dancing scene. period. roll curtain. (but seriously, Harry Conick Jr. outdoes himself as Texas' toned trailblazer.) If that scene doesn't get ya then wait for when he waits in front of the photo shop for her. Literally, ah.maze.ing.

Numero tres: Who wouldn't wana sit on a front porch swing drinking sweet tea from a mason jar in cowboy boots? I beg of you, people. Anyone who has roots below the Mason-Dixon line would be in heaven.

Numero quatro: My trip to San Antonio, Texas, or more specifically to Gruene, Texas. If you've ever had ANY desire to dance in a honky tonk, this dance hall will make you want to pack your bags and become a Texan. This is definitely on my list for traveling again. It brings out every fiber of "country" in your soul.

Anyone still not convinced why it's so easy to love a cowboy, Google/iTunes search: Luke Bryan, Jake Owen, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Conway Twitty, John Anderson, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Alan Jackson, Hank Wiliams Jr., or any other "related search" that pops up.

okay, okay. Maybe I live in a fantasy world/in the movies where when I'm sitting on that front porch swing there are no mosquitos, I'm not dying of heat stroke, and I have nothing else I should be doing. Nevertheless, I do think that my love of Southern gents runs deeper than the muddy Mississippi, and I have my charming Memaw and Grandma to thank for it.

To them I'll say what Emily and I always said to my mom's mom(Memaw) whenever we left her house,

"I appreciate it."