What's a NOLA girl to do (in Birmingham)??

So, a friend of mine inspired me that with the new year I should start a blog. "What would I write about?" I asked. "I think a girl from New Orleans stuck in Birmingham would be an interesting angle," he replied. As I digested that idea, I had to agree. So here it is, my blog about being from New Orleans but living in Birmingham and how the two are so different and how I struggle with those differences. Let's just put it this way, I was never home sick in college, only after moving to Birmingham and I now make the 5-hour trip home about once-a-month. Let's start off with the things I learned/was exposed to once moving to the great state of Alabama:

1. I learned what "sweet tea" was - I had never heard of nor tasted it before.
2. Learned what a "meat and three" was - I had also never heard of nor had before. (My brother-in-law in New Orleans just asked me over Christmas if I had heard of "meat and three" before and if I knew what it was).
3. Had never listened to a country song all the way through and at my first keg party in college, I was looked at like I had three heads when David Allen Coe's "Darlin" song was on and I didn't know any of the words (let alone knew what it was). They proceeded to play it over & over again until I learned all the words.
4. Never eaten BBQ before, let alone, had places that sell only this type of food all over town. (In New Orleans we have creole/cajun food and seafood...we didn't have BBQ. There is one BBQ place I know of in NOLA, and it is a chain).
5. Didn't realize there were places (mostly fast food) that sold nothing but chicken (i.e. Gutheries).
6. Was perplexed the first time I tried to buy wine at the grocery store on Sunday and was told I couldn't.
7. Was even more perplexed at why the Winn-Dixie in Auburn didn't sell liquor.
8. Started to question why I lived here when I was told that I could not have a go-cup, even if the drink wasn't for me (it truly wasn't).
9. Had a seriously hard time adjusting to the "no open container" law (that was a pain at Soho for St. Patty's).
10. And the number 10 adjustment......"Bars close? at 2 a.m.?!?!?!"