I am Tammy. I am a Southerner currently residing in a mid-size South Carolina town. I am a rural bred, thirty something, first-generation college educated native of Spartanburg, S.C. I am a mother, a wife, a full-time employee and a community activist of sorts. I love my family, my fixer upper home, my city, my downtown historic neighborhood and I'm totally smitten with the friends I have chosen to surround myself with. I enjoy theatre and I am a 70's music junkie. I love politics and Bill Clinton. I pride myself in being labeled a bleeding heart liberal by many of my fellow southerners and, although they refer to moderate republicans in the same way, I still wear the label proudly.

It is not always easy being me in the south. I decided years ago to not blindly follow the teachings of my youth. I grew as a person because someone, somewhere down the line sowed a seed. My life is now a journey not a regurgitation of what someone else thinks it should be. Someone once said "life is journey" and I now know that to be true. I haven't always lived in Spartanburg. Growing up I couldn't wait to get out of here. And I did for awhile. Experiences I would not change for anything. It was those experiences that made me realize how much I love my home. Regardless of the negative, degrading (yet earned), stereotypical characteristics that plague the south–racist, sexist, homophobic, close-minded to name a few this place is still my home.

So before someone posts a "if you don't like it here you can leave" comment, just go ahead and shove it. Spartanburg is My home. The home of a bleeding heart. It is just as much my home as anyone else's. I like it right where I am. I don't plan on going anywhere. If you don't like me–you feel free to leave. Left leaning people have been leaving for too long and now we have no political balance not to mention it's a mess.

So that's why I'm here. I have a blog. It's my therapy. It's about me–a southern liberal female who is not the stereotype, who ran yet returned, who has struggled over the years to find pride in her heritage and wants her children to grow up with that pride instilled instead of having to seek to find it and how I see and feel about the world in which I live. It's not always easy here. We are the minority and it can be hard, but I hope to encourage my fellow left Southerners, native, returning or newcomers, to come out, come out wherever you are…you are not alone anymore. You really weren't alone before, but it sure did feel like it before the Internet.

Thanks for being here :-) t   

**Photo credit: I have no idea who took this photo. We saw it on a couple of websites and I thought it was supercool and wanted to use it. We tried to find copyright info but had no luck. SO…if anyone knows anything regarding the photo…please let me know via the contact page. THANKS! :-) t