New to Nashville

Thursday, October 02, 2008

(Image courtesy of Brent and MariLynn via Flickr)

1. “Might Could”

Pronounced: (mīt kood) - v.

Defined: Could.

Redundancy aside, this is by far my favorite Southern-ism. Almost always used in a helpful, constructive context. For example:

“I’m experiencing difficulty slicing onions.”

“Hmm...well, you might could try wearing glasses. Always works for me!”

2. “Used to could”

Pronounced: (yOOzd tu kood) - v.

Defined: was once able.

A slight variation on “might could” (see above) and normally used to lament a lost skill, or inability, such as:

“I can’t dunk a basketball, but I used to could.”

3. “Bless your heart.”

Pronounced: (bles yur härt)

Defined: You’re so stupid.

Used primarily to soften the blow in polite company when someone has, through a question or statement, revealed their ignorance on a certain matter. Especially appropriate when giving “out-of-towners” directions, such as:

“Excuse me, do you happen to know where the Ryman Theater is?”

”Bless your heart, it’s right around the corner from here up on 5th Avenue.”

Bonus - “Ornery as a cat turd”

Pronounced: (ôr’nu-rē az uh kat tûrd)

Defined: ???

Ok, I actually have no idea what this means, and, to be fair, I heard this one down in Florida. But hey, I’ll never forget it, and it’s a chance to tell the story.

While working on a volunteer trip near Arcadia, Florida, a few friends and I stopped by an orange grove to ask if we could buy some oranges. We were met by your stereotypical, grizzled, old, overalls-wearing farmer-type. As I approached the front gate, his dog ran out toward out group, barking wildly. He then quickly yelled out, “Oh, don’t worry about him. He’s as ornery as a cat turd.”

In any case, not only did he give us more oranges then we knew what to do with, he refused to charge us a penny, and we got quite the tour of his land. I’ll never forget that saying though…

Any more to add to my list?

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