Weird Words

Being a Southerner living in the Northwest, I am often told that I have a weird accent and pronounce words funny. Sometimes when I first meet someone and have a short conversation with them they will ask, "Where are you from?" "Why? Did I mention that I'm not from around here?" I respond. "No, you just keep saying y'all." I don't think twice about saying "y'all", but apparently that makes me stand out like a sunny day in a Portland winter.

Yesterday I asked a friend (another word people tell me I say funny and with a Southern drawl), "What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" and he just started laughing at me. "What? Do you not want to tell me what you're doing for Thanksgiving?" And that just made him laugh even harder. "You say Thanksgiving funny. It's pronounced thanksGIVING, not THANKSgiving." I could hardly tell a difference, but apparently I place the em-PHA-sis on the wrong sy-LAB-al. I thought I would get a second opinion, so last night I asked my friend Amber, "How do you say the name of the holiday that is in November?" She immediately said, "Yeah, you say it weird. It's pronounced thanksGIVING." Whatever.

Also yesterday, I mentioned to a friend (there's that funny word again) that during my networking I met with several lawyers. He immediately started laughing. I was so confused. "Do you think its wierd that I met with lawyers?" "Say it again!" he said between laughs. "Lawyer?" I said with a puzzled look. I have no idea how I say that word differently, but apparently its pretty humurous.

So if you ever want to drop a not-so-subtle hint that you're from the South, just say, "Hey y'all. Even though y'all aren't lawyers, I'm glad y'all are my friends. We should spend Thanksgiving together."