Put your heads together

[morrigirl]

Okay all you highly intelligent people who've been doing other things besides commenting on my journal recently, Carla needs your help with a writing assignment once again.

I have to write a piece about two people from two different places and what happens when they interact. I want to focus on language, how turns of phrase vary from place to place. So, what I need from you are examples of specifically New York, or even general Northeastern speech and specifically midwestern speech. I'm looking for stuff of the "Soda or Pop" variety. I'm drawing blanks. I've got Soda/Pop, Tank top/Wife beater. I've got my own personal confusion in respoding to the phrase "wanna come with?" the first time I heard it. (I waited 15 seconds for the girl in question to finish the sentence with a "me".) And my horror at first hearing the word "wigger" even though I heard it from a southerner.(Up here we always called them "Wannabes")

What am I missing? Kids from the coast: What midwestern language just boggled your mind the first time you heard it? Midwesterners: What phrases made you think we eastern seabpoard types were way lame?

Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

Comments

[spiltvinegar.livejournal.com]

You can add the coke thing in to the pop/soda. Jimmies/sprinkles. Delis...and the fact that they don't exist out here. Subs/hoagies/wedges. Pizzas/pies. Pronunciation of Horrors (whore-ers vs. Harrors).

"Where you at", and "Where you been at" are the two that got me when I got out to Galesburg. Also, my roommate called cars with really loud music and lots of bass "dumpin'".

[morrigirl.livejournal.com]

I knew you'd come through on this one :-D I forgot all about jimmies/sprinkles. That's really good.

Dumpin? I swear, I'm not trying to be annoying here but could you use that in a sentence? I'm trying to figure out how one would use it as you definied, and I can't.

[spiltvinegar.livejournal.com]

I believe her sentance was "wow, he's really dumpin'" as a car drove by that shook our little Post windows.

I thought of another one. Getting in a line vs. on a line. I have found that it's a small difference, but still different.

[kdc4evr.livejournal.com]

are you sure she didn't say bumpin'? we always used to say a car with bass was bumpin'

[morrigirl.livejournal.com]

Yeah I've got on line/in line on my list.

[jsb1750.livejournal.com]

I know I've brought this up in this journal before, but what about "guinea t?"

[morrigirl.livejournal.com]

I didn't forget the guinea-t. I actually thought of our first thread on that topic while brainstorming on the the tank top/wife beater dichotomy. I tried to figure out how I could throw guinea-t in there and then I remembered the only person I've ever heard use the phrase in regular conversation is my 71 year old father. It's not in wide use at the moment so I'm gonna pass on it.

[jsb1750.livejournal.com]

I never stopped using it.

Do you think your father would ever do an olive garden commercial?

[morrigirl.livejournal.com]

I'm sure he would if they offered him one. He used to be the Brute spokesman.

[jsb1750.livejournal.com]

By Fabergé!

[divineagl.livejournal.com]

hey carla juss wanted to let u kno that were on for tomorrow 1oclock at 8th street r sTATION we'll find each other

[kdc4evr.livejournal.com]

well the comment about cars made me think of a hoopty or however you would spell it, which is a really crappy car
and do you know what a pa-diddle is? and do you guys call them slug-bugs on the coast?
do you call it a drinking fountain or a water fountain (people in wisconsin call it a bubbler)?
there was some food item people always ordered in the Gizmo that was occassionally called something different, but I don't remember

and yes, we midwesterners like ending our sentences with prepositions.

omg I want a powdered donut, someone just ate one on TV

good luck!

[morrigirl.livejournal.com]

I have no idea what a "pa-diddle" or a "Slug bug" is. Care to enlighten me?

Oooh bubbler is a good one.

probably since you don't drive a lot in NYC

[kdc4evr.livejournal.com]

a pa-diddle is a car with one headlight, it's a sort of a car game, you get points or something if you see one first or something like that
a slug-bug is a VW Bug - another game - when you see one, you punch someone else in the arm & yell slug-bug

[daver40.livejournal.com]

I'm waiting on line is the phrase that comes most readily to mind as an east/midwest difference.

[jsb1750.livejournal.com]

I think you should do it about racial slurs.

The language may be different, but the feelings are the same.