I have officially been a resident of Hattiesburg, MS for a month now. I have to say, it may not be my beloved North Carolina, but I have enjoyed exploring a place where the only things I know about it I googled before I arrived. I have learned countless things in this past month, but I narrowed it down into a 15 item list. I have decided to divide them into two separate posts, as to not take up your entire day!

Here are the first 8. Welcome to Mississippi, y’all!

1. It. is. HOT. Now I was warned of this fact before I got here, but living in it is a completely different thing. It is humid some days and a dry heat others, but you can bet your bottom dollar your car will be smoking hot every single time you get in it. I’m not complaining though! While the rest of the country is bypassing the summer sales to stock up on cozy fall items, I get to take full advantage of the sale rack because I’ll probably be wearing shorts until Thanksgiving. #winning

2. Down here, they pronounce pecan like “pee-cahn,” rather than “pee-can.” I just find this very odd and it sparked a debate between myself and some of the chapter members. Let’s be real though, it’s pronounced “pee-can.”

3. Going to a university with football is something I am so pumped for! This is something I traded for the breezy town of Wilmington and it’s beaches (that I definitely don’t regret at all). Now that I am having a chance to partake in a college football season, I have found myself searching the boutiques for game day outfits, day dreaming of tailgates, and counting down the days until I get to experience my first game at The Rock. Southern Miss To The Top! #BEATSTATE

4. I absolutely, without a doubt, love and thrive on being around people. Whether it’s the awesome chapter I have the privilege to work with, the quick meals with different officers and advisors, or even the man at the kiosk in the mall, my days are best spent when they are filled with people. While recruitment season was stressful and tiring, nothing made my days happier than spending over twelve hours at the chapter house surrounded by my sisters.

5. Speaking of people, I have a ton that are very important to me. I am so blessed to have parents who talk to me constantly and a boyfriend who loves to spend his mornings on the phone with me talking about anything and everything. I have friends that I talk to every single day, and friends who are so thoughtful to reach out just to make sure I’m doing okay. Leaving the college, or city, or state means nothing to them. They will always be my people, and they mean more to me than anything in the world.

6. When you’re lonely, you should watch a movie that’s on TV and text commentary to your friends. In thriving on people and being away from my homebase, I’ve had to find ways to not feel lonely or homesick. This past weekend, I realized my consultant bestie, Ashley, was watching the same movie as me! It was almost like I was annoying her in person as I texted all of my thoughts throughout the movie. Instant loneliness cure.

7. Also speaking of movies, I have watched a million of them and On Demand is AMAZING. My entire weekend was spent recovering from endless recruitment work by watching as many movies as the day allowed. I have discovered the On Demand feature of my TV and it has been fabulous! Free movies and TV shows galore.

8. Check all of the rooms in your apartment when you move in. Okay this one sounds silly, because it totally is. When I moved in, I thought I had a one bedroom apartment with an office that they just accidentally put a bed in. I didn’t have a master bathroom because the bathroom was connected to the hallway and the office. Through total accident, I realized that I had another random door hiding behind my bedroom door….A MASTER BATH! Who knew?! I have now officially decided that I live in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment. Lol.

Now that you have a tiny sneak peek into my Mississippi life, be on the look out for the other half of my “learning list” in my next post!