Colloquialisms

DH was offered a position with his company to move to NC. I sometimes kick myself for telling him no and so does he. It turned out for the best as far as work is concerned. He's working for a MUCH better co. now. But I like it there when we visit. The people and the food are to die for! Last time we were there (2 years ago) we stopped on an old road to change a flat. This was just outside Fayetteville where my daughter lived. An older southern gentleman, Mr. Clarks, came down his driveway and helped us. After we were done, he told us to come on in the back and have some lemonade. His wife heard the story of the flat and said, "You poor deahs! You have to stay for suppah!" There were about 30 people already there but she insisted two more was nothing!!! That was the last fish fry I've been to. I love the food, I love the people, I love the beautiful countryside. Y'all are great! We considered moving there anyway but the cost was too much at the time. I have never met a kinder bunch of folks in my life.

We posted at the same time, Marsue! Loved your story. Lucky he's persistant!!!

When we had the farm, we grew pickles and we grew cukes. They are different. You can pickle either one, or you can use either one for slicing in a salad.
The pickle is fatter and shorter when overgrown, the cuke stays nice and thin when grown.
Maybe it is because I grew up in Michigan. LOL
I remember arguing with a professor from Ca about this many years ago. Too funny.
(this guy also thought a pony was a baby horse)

Marsue...that was a great story!! I grew up in the country....and come to think of it, we always called lunch...dinner....and the evening meal...supper. Somehow along the way of life, probably living with my DH...I now call it lunch and supper. Funny how things go, huh?

I live in Mis-sip-i. We don't say Miss-iss-ipp-i. We say Missipi. It's shorter! LOL

And people around Memphis sometimes say 'Miffis'. It's easier.

Lots of people in the south call soda pop, or pop, "Coke". So when you order, you ask for a grape coke, or an orange coke, etc. 'Coke' means soda pop.

Defoecat, can I have your hushpuppy recipe? When I make them, they're greasy!

Hey, Flowrlady! Don't forget Naw'lins!

Yep! Naw'lins.... just how I would have spelled it!!

What fun. Marsue is this the forum you told me to look for? LOL!

I am a native New Mexican except for a few rough years I have always lived in southern NM. We said lunch and supper and Dinner was Sunday dinner or like you said a special meal when you went out to dinner at night. If we are going to do something right away we say we are "fixin" to do it. We always called any soft drink a Coke. Give me a coke, what kind? A Pepsi! I don't drink any of them nowadays though. LOL! I have a friend who moved here from Indiana. She always talks about how much she loves it here in the "souwest" never pronounces the "th" in south. She says PEECAN. I told her my Dad who owned a pecan orchard would tell people that was what they used to put under the bed so as not to have to go to the outhouse at night! LOL! We mix in a lot of Mexican words too. "See you manana" etc. and don't think twice about doing that.

Well, hesh ma mouf, cpartschick! I nivver knowed cukes and pickle wuz differnt--always thost pickles wuz made from cukes!

Life does change as we go along, doesn't it, Marcy_1 ? (aka Marcia Sue and I'm aka Marilyn Sue)

FlowrLady, I'm quite sure that since you live down in 'Missippi' you are well aware that it is spelled
M-I-crooked letter, crooked letter,- I-crooked letter, crooked letter,- I-humpback, humpback-I
What a mouthful! LOL

Kwanjin, my maternal grandparents used to live down in Naw'lins back in the 50's--lived there for 10 years, matter-of-fact.

Yep, cactus, this 'ratchere's' the one!
That's so funny about the peecan! --and my paternal grandmother actually kept one of "them thangs" under her bed! LOL Down here one usually hears "pacahn" but occasionally you will hear it pronounced peecan. and I, too, grew up saying 'coke' whenever referring to a soft drink--much like saying 'kleenex' for any brand of facial tissue.

Also, I have a great story about 'a'fixin' but I'll save it for another day. Don't want to overload y'all in one day! LOL

nice and interesting thread, marsue.
The term "termination dust" is used here in August/September as the snow on the mttops "terminates" summer. "Sourdough" is another term, but not sure when one qualifies for the designation:), we've been here 29 years but sure don't "feel" like a sourdough.
The "mountain is out" refers to Mt. McKinley; meaning it is out from behind the clouds.
Kiska
Alaska

interesting phrases, Kiska, all of which are new to me. Down here, sourdough is a type of bread--what does it mean up there? I would think the snow would just be beginning again in Sept. instead of 'terminating'--shows you how little I know about Alaska! That's what is really nice about DG--one learns so much about all parts of the country, not to mention other parts of the world.

marsue ~~ you're so right, DG is a great site;
and, you're also right, "termination dust" does refer to the beginning of the new winter season, by signalling the "termination" of summer.
We've now passed the "termination dust" stage and are into snow for tonight's forecast.
As to "sourdough"; it means an "oldtimer; someone who's lived in Alaska a long time", the opposite of a "cheechako"; newcomer to the State.
Kiska

Out here, some people call others a doughnut. It means loser or someone with no sense. Doughnut=round=zero=loser.

speaking of sourdough, I love it. Does anybody have a recipe, it has to be a "no fail" one, cause I am not a baker, I can cook anything, but breads and cakes, then I am in the beginner mode.

What a fun thread. and what fun learning about everyones local lingo.

More Michigan nonsense.
A "troll" is someone who lives below the bridge. (Mi being 2 seperate peninsulas, with the Mackinaw bridge hooking them together)
A "yooper" is from the upper peninsula, (UPer)

Because most upper Mi is tourist destination, lots of lakes and woods, on the weekends here we have "weekenders" those who own cabins, or summer homes. But weekenders are frequently called "flatlanders" or "trunk slammers" (the sound you hear around the lakes on fri night as they unpack) and many other not too nice names, I am afraid.

I've really enjoyed reading this thread! It's funny and entertaining, and I've learned a bit as well!

I've got two. My ex is from "the mountains," or Eastern Kentucky. And, like others they say "I want a Coke" when they mean a soft drink. They have many, but there's one word that comes to mind right now, and that's "poke." "Poke" is a paper bag.

I've lived in the Louisville, Kentucky area most of my life. People still do not know how to pronounce the name of the city!! And, when you hear someone pronounce it "Louis-ville," you know they are not from around these parts because most people pronounce it "lou-a-vul."

Oh, and when it comes to dollar bills, people down here call them "ones," while people up north call them "singles." Talk about the strange looks I'd get when I lived in Chicago for a while and asked for "ones," instead of "singles." :)

Kwanjin, around my house if I were called a doughnut it would be 'cause I eat too many of 'em! LOL
Defoe: I love sourdough bread, too. Let me know if you get a recipe for it, an easy one, 'cause I'm no baker, either!
cpartschick; we need to ask heathrjoy to make us up a story about trolls and yoopers--I bet she could come up with a dandy! LOL
Lily, welcome to the thread! I always thought it was called "Loo-ey-vul" but that's pretty close to "lou-a-vul". I have heard of different kinds of "pokes", but never a paper bag! Ha!--that's funny about the "singles"--down here we call them ones, also.

Talking about cities and pronunciations... again when I was visiting "joJa" we were going shopping to a nearby small town "CoRNcob" = ( Concord). I still to this day will say Concord, and get strange looks. I refuse, absolutely refuse to say "coRNcob!!" LOL!

Garden6...Is it pronouced Con-Cord or Con-Kerd? There's a town by San Fran where they pronounce it Con-Kerd. Stress on the Con.

There is a sign in downtown Louisville, listing all the possible pronunciations, and then says: Anyway you say it, it still is a nice city.

Kwan~ the locals insist it is "coRNcob" for Concord, so I will say Con-cord and receive empty blank stares from the local. I even emphasize to my pumpkins to say Con-cord lest they return to the prairie .. and you can imagine the results of reading "CoRNcob", MA in their history classes! ;0)

Thats too funny! LOL

How on earth do they get coRNcob out of Concord? "Tis a puzzlement" but speaking of funny pronunciations, there is a creek (not a "crik") in Faulkner County, AR called Cadron Creek. I also used to live on a road called Cadron Ridge Road. All the oldtimers around there call it "caddern" creek, or caddern ridge rd.--you get the picture. I've had telemarketers call me trying to sell me something and invariably they would always pronounce it "CahDRONE" and I would have to correct them.
That's a great sign to have outside one's city about however you pronounce it, it's still a nice city.

Lots of fun reading and thinking here..
From the Alaska Almanac:
Sourdough Starter:
2 cups flour, 2 cups warm distilled water. Mix n a glass or ceramic bowl or pitcher;(never use metal when working w/yeast). Cover with cheesecloth and let the mixture rest in a warm, draft-free place for 48 hours. The mixture should be the consistency of pancake batter, slightly bubbly, and sour smelling. Stir and store, covered, in the refrigerator. Makes 2 cups.
Care and feeding-can be kept going indefinitely.
To Use: removes as muich fro the jcontainer as you need and let it stand at room temperature, till bubbly. Replenish starter w/equal amounts of flour and water. Let stand 48 hours.
Feed starter once every 2 weeks to a month. Add 1 cup water and 1 cup flour. Let stand 48 hours. If a liquid forms on top of sourdough, stir back in. If liquid becomes any color other than straw yellow, discard the sourdough.
I've not tried this because it's too easy to buy sourdough bread:)
I remember the pickle conversation w/cousins from Michigan that my sister, SacValley, mentioned..interesting, cpartschick, to see your comment as well.
Kiska

Many of the towns here are pronounced one way by us natives and pronounced "like it is spelled" by the newcomers. We used to call all newcomers "dang Yankees" when I was a kid! LOL! They really do a number on all the Spanish names. I have gotten to where I don't always correct them. When I lived in SD the state capital is Pierre but they pronounce it like Pier, not like a French name.

defoecat-I love to cook and have been able to find lots of great recipes here
http://allrecipes.com/

edited to add that I recall that the early CA pioneers were called sourdoughs.

This message was edited Oct 20, 2007 10:51 AM

Kiska are you and SacValley real live, sure enough sisters (as in you are related by blood) or did
you just refer to her as your sister because, as women, we are all sisters!

marsue --- yes, real, live sisters and I get to be the older sister:)
Kiska

Lucky you--older sisters get to "boss around" the younger ones. I know that for a fact because i was the younger sister in our family! LOL

marsue-but we do love our "little" sisters sooo much.:)

Sorry I've been away for a few days, had a wedding and DH has been off work. Speaking of DH's work they have some sayings down there that are all their own (but I won't share ALL of them!).

They work a "tower" instead of a shift. Overtime is simply called an "extra." I know there's more, but my mind just went blank. When we first got married I could hardly understand what on earth he was working. I don't know why they just won't talk right!

The supper/dinner/lunch thing is a big deal around here with the oldtimers. You never know what they are eating or when. If someone invites you to dinner you'd better get a time to show up or you may miss the whole thing, or show up 4 hours early.

I just thought of another. My Mom and Grandparents called pants "britches". Mom was from East Tx and the grandparents were pioneer New Mexicans. I never hear anyone refer to them that way anymore.

I have a friend who moved here from WI. She will say "over by me" where I would say come to my house. We used to laugh at that one and tell her we want to come TO her home not BY it!

LOL, heathrjoy! Supper/dinner/lunch seems to be a point of confusion in more than one area of the U.S.! --and those are certainly unusual sayings they use at your DH's workplace--I never heard of any of those.

Cactus, I'm with you about going TO your friend's home. However, now that I think of it, sometimes here in the South we do use the expression: "Come by anytime" when we are extending an open invitation to someone to visit at our house. BTW, I have said, "Pull up your britches" when telling my grandchildren to pull up their pants if they start slipping down.

And now, I'm 'a-fixin' to tell y'all a story 'bout 'a-fixin'. First I need to define 'a-fixin'. It means "To Prepare or Get Ready To" (cactuspatch mentioned this in one of her posts above)

Back in the 1980's my DH and I "got in the habit of" (another colloquialism) eating a late breakfast on Saturday mornings at a restaurant that was famous for its week-end breakfast buffets. One Saturday morning we had a waitress who was especially diligent about taking care of her customers. While we were there, it seems that this young lady was due to take a break. We noticed that she had another waitress with her and they were going from table to table together. When they got close to our table we could hear what she was saying and we understood why all of the people in her section were smiling. This little waitress took her replacement to every one of her tables and introduced her this way: "I'm a-fixing to go on break and this right here's Naomi and she's gonna be takin' care of you." Naomi was quite red-faced by the time the two of them came to our table but DH and I thanked them both politely. It was only after they had returned to the kitchen that we allowed ourselves to chuckle. The little waitress probably doesn't know to this day what sweet joy she brought to the lives of her customers that morning!

Marsue that's precious! I can just picture it. Awwwww.

Ok, this doesn't quite fit, but I can't quit thinking about it so I'm going to post it anyway, lol. My ex-SIL from Nebraska always wanted to set the clocks ahead in autumn and back in spring. We always teased her that it was a NE thing, but I know it wasn't.

My same DB's girlfriend right now always says "What's the degrees?" instead of asking the temperature. I think that's adorable.

Hey, Kiska, I just printed off that sourdough starter recipe. Is that supposed to be self-rising flour that you start with? and distilled water--will water from my refrigerator work (it's filtered) or do I have to buy distilled water? I told you I wasn't a baker so what do I do with the mixture that I remove from the sourdough starter? I mean do I need a recipe on how to make bread?
Did I also mention that cooking in general isn't my strong suit? LOL
On 2nd thought I think it will just be easier to buy sourdough bread whenever I want it.

Hey, do I hear laughter in the background. That's okay--go ahead and laugh--I'm ROTFL at myself, too!

We say fixin to not a-fixin to! LOL! I never knew that everyone else did not say that until me moved to SD. They were very nasty to me about that one, so much that I quit saying it there. : ( They also made fun of the way I say ice. I never did figure that one out. My dd was 12 when we moved there. The kids in school were very mean to her, but I will never forget when they finally started to accept her. It was after she caught on to their extreme northern accent(think Fargo!). She came home excited that a couple of the girls had invited her "to go get soda" as she was getting ready she asked me what I thought they were going to bake with the soda. She thought they were making an outing of buying baking soda. Like I mentioned in another post we would have said "join us for a Coke".

This message was edited Oct 21, 2007 3:01 PM

Heathrjoy that cracks me up about your former SIL. Let's see if she did set the clocks ahead in autumn would, that make it 2 hours ahead instead of one? Does that mean she would be really early for an appointment---"Oh, my, Miz heathrjoy, that's jes too much thinkin' for me--my head is a'hurtin'!"

Cactus that is sooo funny about your dd thinking they were going to go buy baking soda! LOL

This message was edited Oct 21, 2007 5:03 PM

Ya I'm from Wershington, that's WASHINGTON to you nonlocals. In my part of the country we have a LOT of Indian named cities and boy do they get butchered!

My Grandpa would tell his kids, "You're breeding a scab on your nose" or "you got nose trouble?" when they would "put their nose into someone else's business". Another one used at our house "You're cruising for a bruising!" when we would tease each other too much.

Don't you mean 'cruisin' for a bruisin'? -- at least that is how we say it down here in the south LOL and "Breeding a scab on your nose" is a new one to me!

"Wershington" reminds me of something else. The old timers would refer to "wash day" as "warsh day" (that was the day they wasked the clothes)

We have an old family friend in his 80's and he has always said "wrench" for "rinse." Sometimes it's so hard not to laugh when he says it, but we really do respect him so much that we'd never intentionally laugh at him. "The warshing machine went crazy when it was on the wrench cycle." He has some others too that are cute and funny...
boondocks....any place back in the woods
cattywampus...one of my favorites...means things went totally out of control

Let me rewrite what he would say...."The warshing machine went cattywampus when it was on the wrench cycle and I couldn't get a repairman till next week because we live in the boondocks. I don't cotton with things like that!"

LMBO!!

Speaking of husbands workplaces...My DH got a new job about 2 years ago. I was at my job one day when he called me. This was about a week after he started there. My 2 co-workers were in the room. I put him on the speaker. He said, "I just wanted to call and give you the number here in case you need me. The guy in the next cell will answer and come get me. " Now, both girls looked at each other and started laughing. It took me a minute but then I figured it out. It sounded like he was in jail and the guy next to him had a phone they could use! When I finally DID get it, I started laughing too.

And Cactuspatch...How DO you say "ice"?