I don't know what it is about Southerners but they love their cups.As a young gent, I fondly remember my father screaming "Cup! Cup! Cup!" instead of "Throw Me Something Mister!" at Mardi Gras parades and could never figure out why he wanted a plastic cup so badly when we had perfectly nice glass and acrylic ones at home (not to mention stacks of Mardi Gras cups).
It wasn't until years later that I realized the necessity of having a good quality, LARGE, plastic cup you could fill with ice and your choice of beverage - be it tea, lemonade, aqua purifina, or most importantly, the roadie.
As such, cups seem to be a big part of our lives - whether from a favorite restaurant, sporting event (hell, they aren't called 'Stadium Cups' for no reason), to mark a special occasion, emblazoned with your alma mater or interest, or simply utilitarian - unassuming by day and night, these plastic cups are perfect to start with at home and then head out the door with no one being the wiser on what's inside.
Join me in raising one to the Cup - for they not only connect us to a memory, but provide refreshments along the way. Cheers!
Reason #126 that I'm no fun. When I think of the cup, I just think of what a pain they are in the dishwasher. Are you an LSU Deke by any chance?
ReplyDeleteAhhh, the plastic cup. I liken it to a trophy... sitting on the counterop, gleaming with pride, filled with memories...
ReplyDeleteLongwing: I never thought about that, but yes, they are a pain in the dishwasher: too big for the top rack and just flip over on the bottom and fill with dirty water.
ReplyDeleteThat being said:
Boozie: I couldn't agree more - they are a total trophy!
Cups are like t-shirts, more ablout memories and less about fashion. My dad's so attached to his you are forbidden to leave his house with one. So, how as the trunk show? Consoled myself with a new CKB purchase for missing out. XXOO
ReplyDeleteWe always called them "go cups". we used to host a party called "the secret engineers ball" at a city club in baltimore. we had one of our friends design a go cup for the occasion and people really loved getting a collection of them. since i have never had a dishwasher (except moi), it's not a worry how they come out!
ReplyDeleteI love this! I keep all my plastic event cups. My roomate used to use them as disposable cups, and I had to put a stop to that immediately!
ReplyDeleteAs I say I have been held hostage by love north of the Mason-Dixon for nigh onto 35 years. I tell my Yankee husband that since I have turned over every square inch of my lot to make my garden, I wish to be cremated and have my cremains in Dixie cups for my family to distribute over my gardens.
ReplyDeleteAllie: The event was great and there will be more - I'll let you know. How's the tan?
ReplyDeletePD: Down in New Orleans we had "Geaux Cups" too!
HBD: Oh Dixie - how did I forget those!
"Cup, Cup, Cup!" Fond memories indeed:) Looking forward to Mardi Gras this year, my cup collection needs replenishment badly! As for collection cups, having attended school in Miami (where all things must be luxurious) my sorority didn't do the plastic cups for our events. We did beer and martini glasses! hah
ReplyDeleteVery true- in college every cup was a collector's item. We mostly stick to Tervis these days though!
ReplyDeleteGeneral question Dickie:
ReplyDeleteWhat is your definition of Southern? Maybe this is a topic for another post, but I have to ask. Southern= Confederate States, States below Mason-Dixon Line, just a general attitude, etc. ?
Obviously there is a difference between New England Prep, and Low-Country SC Prep.
R.C.
RC:
ReplyDeleteGreat question. I haven't stopped to really define what southern means to me - as I guess SOUTHERN GENT is one long defintion.
And, yes, it would make for an interesting post on its own, but here in its most literal, I reference Southern as the southeast United states.
I suppose you could say the Confederate states, but as I do reference "Mason-Dixon Line" regularly, it could include those as States as well.
To your last point, while I havnen't compared/contrasted New England Preps vs. Low-Country/Deep South Preps, I do regularly think about the difference being in Washington and surrounded by both. The comparisons/constrasts I observe usually inspire the posts I publish.
Does that answer your question?
Yes, it does. I think Washington is a melting pot of sorts for the prep/collegiate style, because of the amount of entry-level jobs, attraction from East coast/Mid-west universities and stable economy. A solid prep style is also apparent in Balt/Annapolis, but these are likely locals. DC does have its fair share of Archies though, as many east-coast towns, where blue-collar business casual has taken over. Appreciate the reply and the work on the blog.
ReplyDeleteR.C.
Did you pledge "90 E. Broad Street"? I saw the shield on one of your earlier posts. If so, good work, brother.
ReplyDeleteR.C.
R.C.: OΥΔΕΝ ΔΙΑΣ ΠΑΣΕΙ ΗΜΑΣ
ReplyDeletemakes me excited for start of the 'canes season with the miami-fsu game on september 7th. perfect oppportunity to break out the 'canes tervis tumblers for some monday night football.
ReplyDeleteOMG so funny, mostly because a good friend of mine is from NOLA and this past Mardi Gras her cousin had a party on the Hill...so she brought me along this year and just before we cut out early, she made a mad dash to the table that held the Mardi Gras "cups" and attempted to take several before she was chastised by her cousin. She made a very big deal about these cups. So our 2 cups ended up in my kitchen for weeks and I just wanted to get them out but kept forgetting to give them to her. She could NOT understand why I did not want these plastic cups hangin around. So this Yankee learned about the NOLA cup fetish first-hand the hard way:-).
ReplyDeleteYour post about cups and it so made me smile! We had cups made for EVERYTHING in high school and they always came in handy. I would actually love (to have) some of them at my house now. Much easier to clean and harder to break than the fancy glass ones I use on a regular basis; could even take on to the park when I walk Kayak.
ReplyDelete