Silicone and Saccharine

"Oh, I love that skirt! Where did you get it?", the flamboyant redhead remarked, raising an eyebrow as she ingested a full head-to-toe inspection of the pixy-like newcomer before continuing her discussion of damask drapes and the annual all-night Pottery Barn sale with her fellow women's Bible study members. As soon as the young visitor had left her realm, she immediately lowered her drawl to a whisper and all eyes turned on recent Texas transplant.

Something I've learned in my transition from Yankee to Southerner is that most seemingly sugary dispositions are artificially sweetened.
Growing up in Chicago, I distinctly remember a difference in demeanor. If someone did a girl wrong, was an annoying attention whore, or an insecure little twat who changed friends like underwear, a person wouldn't think twice about refusing their friendship, let alone their conversation. It was socially acceptable to be somewhat cold if you disliked someone. Maybe to some, this sounds harsh, but it sent a clear message and completely alleviated the need for plastic pleasantries.

On the other hand, here in the good ol' South, someone can cheat, lie, and steal from you, but the social grace police will get you if you don't pretend to be their best friend for five minutes as they kiss you on the cheek during a bar run-in.

I've noticed that the longer I live here, the more I waver in between the two behaviors. I've found myself guilty of plenty of fake niceties and it sickens me to the core. I wonder how the locals would respond if I suddenly reverted back to 100% Yankee mentality. The more I watch those around me, the more I consider putting this into practice. People get away with murder here because others are more worried about saving face than speaking their mind, even if they're right. This is especially true and even more sticky in the work place and frankly, I'm tired of it. If I offend someone, I want to know about it. If someone wounds me, you better believe I'm not going to pretend everything's okay. Communication gets messy but at least it's genuine.

Everyone wants to be liked, but at what price?
This is where completing my social pyschology degree would have paid off.
I'm done biting my tongue.