Monday, July 07, 2008

Yankee in the South - Part 2

5 more things I have learned in the south...

1. "Git-R-Done": Having married a man whose Father was born and raised in EBF, Berry, Alabama where the claim to fame is a Piggly Wiggly, I have actually heard this one ALOT! This basically can be sued in regards to anything. Larry The Cable Guy did NOT start the trend of this saying but rather it started long before he was born.


"Git R Done is a common phrase used mostly by the people living in the southern states. The term is used when a person is about to tackle a task are it can simply be used in any conversation for no apparent reason. Usually Git R Done is used to state how you or someone feels about something in an excited type of phrase. Most people think that only rednecks and wannabe southerners use this phrase but thats completely untrue."

2. "Y'all": I actually use this! This take the place of "You Guys" which I also use on occasion. It basically refers to more than one person although it doesn't really matter southerners use it in every form.
  • Use of the contraction y'all as the second person plural pronoun.[3] Its uncombined form — you all — is used less frequently.[4]
  • When speaking about a group, y'all is general (I know y'all) —as in that group of people is familiar to you and you know them as a whole, whereas all y'all is much more specific and means you know each and every person in that group, not as a whole, but individually ("I know all y'all.") Y'all can also be used with the standard "-s" possessive.
"I've got y'all's assignments here."
  • Y'all is distinctly separate from the singular you. The statement, "I gave y'all my payment last week," is more precise than "I gave you my payment last week." You (if interpreted as singular) could imply the payment was given directly to the person being spoken to — when that may not be the case.
  • Some people misinterpret the phrase "all y'all" as meaning that Southerners use the word y'all as singular and all y'all as plural. However, all y'all is used to specify that all of the members of the second person plural are included, that is "all y'all" as opposed to "some of y'all"
Want to read more on Southern American English just click HERE! (Drew they even talk about the diphthong). :)


3. Pecan: I will never in a THOUSAND years say p-kän like they do down here. It will be a
pkn pie that I eat every Christmas. Luckily, I have taught my son to say it like a good Yankee should despite my Father in Laws efforts. I also have to say that I had never seen a Pecan tree before moving here and was amazed at the amount of nuts it produces. Our Friends The Guerry's have a ton of tree's in their yard and pick them up to sell. We got to go over one day and pick a bunch up to help me make my Coffee Cake and Pecan Pie over the Holiday's. Pecan's are expensive.

4. Grits: is a corn-based food common in the Southern United States, consisting of coarsely ground corn. It is similar to other thick maize-based porridges from around the world such as polenta. It also has a lesser resemblance to farina, a thinner porridge.

Hominy grits is grits made from nixtamalized corn, or hominy.

Yellow speckled grits is also very popular[citation needed] in the southern states, named for the black specks in its yellow body.

Now I must admit that seeing grits for the first time was nasty. I was told over and over that I needed to try them but it took me 2 years before I finally gave in. While on a Christian Retreat they made Cheese Grits for breakfast. Rick told me to add a bunch of pepper and some salt or they would be to bland for me so I did and they were YUMMY! I have since had an incredible shrimp and grits dinner that was spicy and intense. I still have not managed to order grits for my side to my breakfast while at the Huddle House or cooked them in my own home but maybe sometime soon. This is one southern food that is just starting to grow on me.

5. Hunting: This is a sport here! People where the camouflage clothing like it is the latest trend. They even sell a pink style of camo for the female hunters. Did you know people even hunt squirrel. It's crazy! They spend tons of money prepping their "deer hunting property". Yes they buy property JUST to deer hunt for. They set up their tree stands and sit up their all day. Children as young as 4 join their Dad's on these "manly" adventures. During Deer Hunting season you can expect to see at least 1 if not 2 deers in the back of a pick up truck just about every time you leave the house! My Neighbor is 8 and has shot himself an 8 point buck last season. Crazy... and something I work hard to shield Alex from. I pray he NEVER takes this hobby up.

Well.. that's 5 more... More soon!

1 comment:

alyssa said...

Okay, so you know I'm not a real southerner but my great gramma (yes, I spelled gramma just like I used to say it!) was from the south. I LOVE grits in any way shape or form and as for pecans....well, I say that just like a southern girl too! Go figure y'all!
P.S. Grits are pretty easy and quick to make. Try it sometime!