If you were born in the south or had the good fortune to move here you already know that strange, eccentric and sometimes downright scary people are just part of the local landscape. The south treats their off beat citizens the same way you treat your odd ball cousin from Kalamazoo, warily at times but mostly with warmth and good humor. The colorful people you encounter help make life in the slower paced south a little more stimulating. During the holidays in upstate South Carolina we make pilgrimages to a little town called West Pelzer to observe "the light people" in full regalia. The aptly named light people are a middle aged couple and assorted relatives who drape themselves in Christmas lights and wave to the hundreds of cars and people who pass by at night during the month of December. The light people have become so popular they've begun giving out candy and collecting donations for charity. The light people even rated a live shot from local tv reporters this year. When I was growing up in Michigan we used to go on light tours but we never had light people.

A couple of years ago my husband, my son and I ventured out to Easley to check out the legendary "tiny town." We weren't really prepared for what we encountered. On the edge of town, near the road were a bunch of old glass display cases. The glass cases held an assortment of junk from old Barbie dolls to weebles, Christmas lights and lots of dust. Some of the displays were easy to decipher and obviously evoked the Christmas spirit. Others just seem to be random collections of crap. We left Tiny Town that night puzzled but glad we had actually seen this odd seasonal display with our own eyes.

If I ever had any doubt that the South was different from anyother place it was erased when I spotted a home-made sign outside an old shed that read, "lawn mower repair and income tax preparation." I thought for a long time about how handy it would be to get your lawnmower repaired while you got your taxes done.