Outer Banks man to Florence: “Kiss my grits”

By Ken Smith, WRAL anchor/reporter

A handful of residents still in the Outer Banks on Wednesday pride themselves on being resilient in the face of any storm, including Hurricane Florence.

Jim Rose, owner of Sand Spur Ocean Cottages, is taking the few days of downtime this week to get his cottages ready for the end-of-summer season.

He put up a sign some will understand instantly: “Kiss my grits.”

The line comes from the 1970s sitcom “Alice.” It’s a catchphrase of the sassy waitress Flo.

Rose said he put the sign up to show Florence won’t weaken his sense of humor.

“It’s part of living in the Outer Banks,” Rose said. “We’ve seen direct hits and near-misses and now this.”

Residents like him, he continued, take storms as they come.

“We’ve been around long enough to know the preparations,” he said. “We have water. I’ve got 60 pounds of ice in the back of my truck, whole house generator.”

He said he plans to stay on the island for now, but if Florence turns in his direction, he may leave.