Where in the Northwest are you? You may have said before, but I can't
remember. My husband's family lives in southern Idaho. I, too, haven't noticed
any particular accents or expressions from those folks. I live in SC now, but
I was raised in Texas, and people always say, "But you don't sound like you're
from Texas!" I think most people from Texas don't sound like what people think
Texans are supposed to sound like. :)
My maiden name is Friend, and when I was student teaching here in SC, that was
the first time I ever heard "Friend" pronounced as a two-syllable word: "Hey,
Miss Fri-end." LOL! (Please don't anyone feel insulted -- I'm not meaning that
as a put-down -- just thought it was interesting.) Some southern accents are
very nice to listen to -- one of my roomates sounded like she could have
stepped out from "Gone With the Wind." It was fun when I was in college to
hear different accents and learn where they were from. There were a number of
students from the Flint, Michigan area who had their own distinct accent among
the other Michganders. People from one area -- can't remember where -- would
say "warsh" for wash and others would say "wuhteh" for water. I think it is
fun and fascinating, and I think it is neat when some of these things "show
through" the posts on the TM list -- makes it more personable. :)
Barbara H.