And then it hits me:

I DO live in [rural] Florida! Gainesville is an oasis. If the South were a desert, Gainesville is a lush mirage. Most of the time, I forget this. I forget that I'm in the South. I forget I am in Florida, even. But yesterday, there was no escape. I found myself in Newberry, Florida - the Athena, Oregon of the South, I soon discovered. Oddly enough, I was there for softball practice. That's a whole different story. Anyway, after waiting for my captain in the town market parking lot (FANTASTIC people watching), I made my way to the city park and met 4 members of my team. Low and behold, I live in the South. These guys epitomize the South. Not even kidding. So much accent. So much camo. Even a can of snuff. I'm still reeling. What have I gotten myself into? This is certainly not what I had in mind when I signed up. Now don't get me wrong, all were very nice. Just so, so southern. Rural South, southern. To be fair, I'm sure these guys were thinking "who the hell is this girl", or something along those lines. It was a gentle clash of cultures. So I'll be spending the next 10 Friday nights with this group. It'll be good for me, right? Perhaps I'm secretly rural South at heart.