Here's a few things we've been noticing lately.
Some people in West Michigan have a very thick accent. It seems to be concentrated in the Jenison/Grandville area.
My, but customer service is good here. And my, but that fake niceness present in so many Midwestern phone calls, store greetings, and exchanged pleasantries is irritating.
I miss the train. Gas may be cheap here, and it sure is convenient to control your coming and going times, but driving in a semi-awake state in early morning traffic is frustrating for me and a waste of good mental energy.
Drip coffee = fantastic. And to think that nearly everyone has a coffee maker in their home!
People here/Michigan, generally women, put too many smiley faces in their emails. I know you're joking. People there/England, generally women, put too many xx's in their emails. I know you are sending a friendly email without a kiss by your name.
We really don't say please a whole lot here. Thank you is a must, but please is implied after a child turns about 14. Very curious.
Why is Grand Rapids too small a city for a subway/light rail system? I've heard this a few times and find it a strange logic.
In a small way, we miss the comraderie of holidays far away. When you have no family nearby and your friends have no family nearby either, you make family of each other, and it makes for awfully pleasant holidays. Of course, you are all (secretly or audibly) missing your family in one way or another. I think it just makes it more meaningful to finally be able to be here.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Here's a few things we've been noticing lately.
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9 comments:
Coming back to Michigan this Thanksgiving, I actually noticed the West Michigan accent for the very first time, and it was somewhat alarming.
And I'd be shocked to see Michigan put in any kind of decent light rail or subway. Michigan is in love with their cars and people will live 30 minutes from the next closest thing without even thinking twice.
I'd love to see light rail come back to West Michigan. I don't think there are too many folks still with us that remember the old interurban.
I've read in a couple of places lately about the "Michigan" or "West Michigan" accent (here's a good one) but what I usually see described sounds like "yooper" to me. I'm just not hearing it at home. Do you have any examples? I'd like to think I don't suffer from a region-specific dialect, but I guess I'd like to know. :)
Oh, right...smileys. Sorry.
Thing is... sometimes smileys are necessary.
I'll get back to you on the accent. Gotta think a bit.
I had a professor that once described it this way. "People from West Michigan are just happy people and tend to smile alot. That pulls the corner of their mouth out, makes sound resonate on the top front of the mouth (the soft pallet on the other side of the sinus cavity), its really the resonating that matters more than the shape. :) (unnecessary smiley face) It's the same basic thing as what they do in Chicago and parts of Wisconsin. Detroit's is a bit more nasal than a West Mich. but pretty dang close.
And as a general whole Michigan's dialect is often held as fairly close to neutral (we sound like most people on TV). Though if you have a stronger accent (God sounds more like Gad)... well not so much.
This is way too long for just a comment. :) (smiley face part 2)
I notice it most on "A"s. I sometimes say them very flat without even realizing it until it comes out and I think... wow... did I really say it like that? It's especially bad at the end of sentences. "That" and names like "Dan" and "Al" are good examples. My coworker in England's name was more nasally when I said it and with the mouth more flat then up and down.
Also, when I refer to the Jenison area, what I hear a lot lately is the dropping of some "T"s and -ing. "I jus finished reading aninneresting story. Now I'm go-in to the store" I'd drop the N on reading, but with the N's following, I'm not sure you would.
ooh, when ending a sentence with "that" it almost sounds like a nasal "tha-it".
Tha-it is exackly what I'm talkin about.
Interesting. I'll be listening for it. Do you notice any patterns as to the type of people affected by the accent as opposed to those that aren't, e.g education, background, etc.?
That's an interesting question. In England, accent felt quite influenced by education and class. Working class folk from towns 15 minutes away could have very different accents, while their upper or middle class neighbors might sound more like each other... partly due to the popularity of boarding school among higher classes, perhaps.
I'm not sure about what I've heard around here. I haven't ever really thought about it! I'd tend to say that people who move away for school or whatever and then move back have it less, but I suppose that's to be expected and it often comes back just as thick over time, it seems. I could maybe see a slight correlation with less education. To be honest, I feel like youngish stay at home moms have it the "worst". Isn't that odd?
I haven't really put my finger on it yet, so I'm trying to find a person with a particularly thick accent to give a good listen to.
I've actually noticed since I've been paying attention that what I'm starting to hear is most common in the people that (I assume) don't get much exposure to a large group of people, particularly those from other places, and for lack of a better term, "upmarket" media. Young stay-at-homes would tend to fit that description more often than not, I'd guess.
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