Midwestern Musings

Although we've now lived in Lansing for 6 years (I know, how did that much time get past us?), I'm still playing catchup with the VERY strong Michigan accent (I risk offending several people by saying this, but for all you non-Michiganders, clamp your nose shut and then start talking...yeah, you got it...a little more nasal-sounding...almost got it...now make every statement end with a rise in pitch so it sounds like a question...YES! that's it!.) A few years ago, I went with a friend to the airport to meet a visitor who was flying into Michigan. As soon as the friend met us at the gates, she started laughing, because she'd been surrounded by Michiganders on the plane and she said she never heard such a funny-sounding accent (she was from Georgia). On Michigan's NPR station a few weeks ago, a linguist was on, talking about the unique quality of the Michigan accent. He said it is actually considered one of the most abrasive sounding accents in the U.S., because of the nasal quality it has. He also said that the one universal trait about the Michigan accent is that Michiganders themselves are not aware of it or how (in his words--and he was a Michigander!) "annoying" it is! I don't know if I'd go so far as to call it annoying, but I am often quite aware when I'm talking to a native Michigander. The accent is hard to miss.

It has taken awhile, but I am now starting to finally sport some of the midwestern lingo, too. Below are some of my favorites:

Example: sweet. Or "saw-weeeeeeet!" if you're really enthused. It means something is really great, fab, cool, you get the point.

My other favorite is "tool", as in, "that gross guy who was hitting on me at the bar last night was such a tool." OR "my roommate is always trying to brag about how good he is at sports, but i always kick his butt; he's such a tool." There's not even a real definition for "tool", because it can kind of change meaning depending on the situation. A tool can be a jerk, an annoying person, a schmuck, a deadbeat, a suck-up, whatever. The one thing I've never heard is a female being called a tool. Not to say it couldn't happen, but I just haven't heard it yet. Seems to be a guy word. The other interesting thing about the word is that Adam hates it. He says he was always taught that a tool was someone who would allow themself to be used by someone else; it meant you had no backbone, no spine. He doesn't use it to describe other people, and seems surprised that anyone would use it for anyone else. Different regions, different meanings, I suppose.

As I log off tonight to tuck into bed, I am just hoping that all of my Michigan friends who read this blog are still talking to me tomorrow...