Amen! Let’s hear it for the cupcakes! Cupcakes are muffins that have their ducks in a row.
I’d forgotten all about cupcakes when this little meme just happened to float though my FB feed. What’s a cupcake, you say? In the boonies, it’s an endearing term of affection, a bit of good-natured teasing, an expression of brotherly love often shown to women.
It is a word of encouragement as in, “Come on cupcake, you can do it!” Very important words to know if you are trying to lift a four hundred pound log and your only helper is someone half your size of the female persuasion.
I suppose tone, intention, and affection are important here, too. “Cupcake, can I have a cup of coffee,” can be sweet, charming, said with some degree of respect, especially by older gentlemen around these parts. It’s a recognition of your femaleness, not a designation of inferiority.
So what is a “cupcake” in the fancy places, on the East coast, in academia, in New York city? An insult. A demeaning term meant to convey sexism, disrespect, contempt, and inferiority. It’s a bit funny, I get into trouble with this all the time, as the demographics and culture of our community have changed. So you bump into another woman from these parts, “hey cupcake, how’s it going?” It’s a bit like saying, “hey, girl.”
Don’t do that to someone from New York city, ‘cupcake’ means something entirely different.
My daughters were often “cupcakes,” as in girls, sweet, precious, and enjoying a certain amount of pampered privilege. Princesses, royalty….who can also fish, cut firewood, and participate in amazing physical feats that far exceed our abilities. Soft, sweet, but strong. You know, cupcakes.
I was just pondering these little cultural quirks, the gaps between city folks and rural folks, people sharing the same country and language, but having such differences. I’ve never paid any attention to how much disrespect is often directed towards rural people, (don’t forget to sneer and toss ‘uneducated’ in there, too.) We be ignorant, uneducated sexists and any other -ism you can apply. What’s with that, what’s it all about?
I’ve been observing this thing for a long time, the way our tiny community has become so populated by people fleeing the area they are from, often the city, seeking what we have, desiring what we have, and yet bringing those same city values with them….and immediately setting about changing the nature of the culture and lifestyle they once desired. It’s crazy. People will move here, buy a house right next to the airport… and than to proceed to complain about the noise, the planes,….the culture, our way of doing things, the people who already live here.
It’s a clash of culture, a clash of civilizations.
We cupcakes will adapt, survive, and thrive in the midst of all this change, but some of you city folks, well, I often worry about some of you……
Lorra B. said:
LOL! I would worry about me too since I’m a city girl! I think it is an endearing term though I have friends that would give you the stink-eye if you called them that. Anyhoo, great post, Cupcake! 😉 Hehehehe
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Julie (aka Cookie) said:
I hear you my cupcake loving friend–they are grand really, ingenious…just the right amount of cake and frosting—allowing one to have said cake and actually eat it…as in a perfect proportion…
Being southern born and bread, I’ve been told we tend to have a bit of a drawl…
And I am aware that there are those, in this great nation of ours, who have decided that those of us who speak with said drawl are simply not a bright as others. They call us “country” or hicks….dimwits and ignorant, even white trash… They assume we are as slow as our speech… There are certain companies that have even made their more southern employees take elocution lessons in order to lose the accent.
There was a recent study out that actually showed that most folks don’t give as much credence to one who has a southern accent verses one who has a more generic accent.
Our’s is a country that is a conglomeration of colloquialisms…expressions, sayings and accents…making us the mixed bag of nuts that we are—the minute we begin to neuter ourselves…as is the sadly the case taking place, we will lose who we really are…George Orwell would love seeing how life is now imitating his literary skills.
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Wally Fry said:
Don’t call a guy cupcake
Just sayin. I mean, you can…but then you better hope it’s true LOL.
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ColorStorm said:
Sorry to disagree W.
A guy can call another guy ‘cupcake………..’ and get away with it. As in, ‘hand me that 500 lb log, cupcake.’ lol
Truly a term of endearment for the confident of heart, resolute of mind, and robust of nature.
Isn;t that so……………cupcake?
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Wally Fry said:
Ha..good point ColorStorm…never really thought about it, but sometimes guys to say stuff like that. Too funny
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ColorStorm said:
Can’t you see Stallone calling Ahnold………’cupcake?’ …………..Yep. Ha ha
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Wally Fry said:
Ha..yeah. You have tickled me my friend, thanks very much
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ColorStorm said:
Well,we do owe an honorable mention to the good host here for getting the ball rolling. lol
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Wally Fry said:
True that…cheers to the host
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insanitybytes22 said:
LOL! You guys are very funny. Now see, cupcakes make perfect sense. There’s a certain amount of logic to it that most reasonable people would understand.:)
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ColorStorm said:
Leaping for joy! There is one person 😉 who thinks there are at least two men who are reasonable!
Yeah for our team W……… We just may be an internet sensation ;).
Thank you ma’am, er, msbytes, in the vernacular of the Southern Belles ala cookie!!
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Wally Fry said:
Not sure I’ve been called reasonable before.
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Wally Fry said:
Do say I mean
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Wally Fry said:
And thanks for that vote of confidence…cupcake.
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Julie (aka Cookie) said:
That would be bred– don’t want a yankee to say I told you so 😎
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Dan Ledwith said:
Great post cupcake!=)
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superslaviswife said:
Round these parts they call people “duck” and “duckie” as affectionate terms. Should have seen the look on my face the first time I heard that one! Apparently it actually comes from “duke” and “duchess” and is sort of like “prince” or “princess” in other areas. Culture is a funny thing.
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Andy Oldham said:
Hi IB. Wally asked me to respond to you question on his post yesterday about the falling away of the church. Just letting you know if you’d like to read it. I appreciate your open and honest heart.
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insanitybytes22 said:
Thank you for letting me know and for your kind words.
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