You Yankees Listen Up... If Y'all Plan to Come for a Visit, Y'all Gon' Need This Information
Y'all:The MOST mispronounced word to ever roll off a Yankee's tongue. It IS NOT "You'all", it's YAWL! Learn it!!
A MESSAGE FOR ALL THOSE TRANSPLANTED YANKEES
If you are from the northern states and planning on visiting or moving to the South, there are a few things you should know that will help you adapt to the difference in life styles:
If you run your car into a ditch, don't panic. Four men in a four-wheel drive pickup truck with a 12 pack of beer and a tow chain will be along shortly. Don't try to help them, just stay out of their way. This is what they live for.
Don't be surprised to find movie rentals and bait in the same store. Do not buy food at this store.
Remember "ya'll" is singular, "All ya'll" is plural, and "All ya'll's" is plural possessive.
Get used to hearing "You ain't from around here, are ya?" Get ready to run when you hear it.....
You may hear a Southerner say "Ought" to a dog or a child. This is short for "Y'all oughta not do that!" and is the equivalent of saying "NO!" It is frequently punctuated by throwing a half-full can of warm beer or Coca-Cola. *If a Southerner says "Ought!" to you, duck.
Don't be worried at not understanding what people are saying, they can't understand you either.
The first Southern expression to creep into a transplanted Northerner's vocabulary is the adjective "big ol'" as in "big ol' truck" or "big ol' boy". Most Northerners begin their new Southern-influenced dialect this way. All of them are in denial about it. They think it's a big ol' lie.
The proper pronunciation you learned in school is no longer proper.
Be advised that "He needed killin" is a valid defense here.
If you hear a Southerner exclaim "Hey, y'all, watch this," stay out of the way. These are likely to be the last words he'll ever say.
If there is the prediction of the slightest chance of even the smallest accumulation of snow, your presence is required at the local grocery store. It doesn't matter whether you need anything or not. You just have to go there.
When you come up on a person driving 15 mph down the middle of the road, remember that most folks learned to drive on a John Deere and that this is the proper speed and position for that vehicle.
Do not be surprised to find that 10-year-olds own their own shotguns and are proficient marksmen. Or that their mommas taught them how to shoot. Don't be surprised if you discover these facts after honking at the Southerner who's driving 15 mph down the middle of the road.
If you do settle in the South and bear children, don't think we will accept them as Southerners. After all, if the cat had kittens in the oven, we wouldn't call 'em biscuits.
Lastly, if you do settle in the South, don't think that any amount of time will help you better understand Southern statements like the one above.
In matters of Southern metaphor and analogy, if the last eight generations of your family weren't born & raised south of the Mason-Dixon, you might as well be a polecat in a bucket of grits.
I have no interest in being a transplanet I am an American and go where I like!
I believe when in "Rome do as the Romans do" in other words respect their customs an as a neighbor I expect to be treated like wise.
One of the nice qualities of being an American is not having to suffer others pretences!