Accented Americans

Before beginning my teaching responsibilities at UC, my interaction with with people not born in the United States was pretty limited. If you can believe it, rural Dakota isn't exactly a hub for foreign-born people. The only unique accent I heard growing up was when my Oklahoma cousins came up twice a year.

Since teaching here, however, I've worked with and taught a number of people who speak with an accent. Currently, I have a Jamaican who loves to talk (and I love to listen to him), a Polish woman, a few Latinos, one Indian woman, and a number of Africans, mostly from Ethiopia. My classroom is like the United Nations. Or like an ad from the United Colors of Benneton. And I love it.

I, myself, have a Nor'Dakota accent. I say flayg, bayg, waygon. I say oh sure. I say oh yeah. When I go home to the local bar, my accent comes out thick. The first good friend I made in college was Hidatsa and Sioux, and I hung out a lot with her and her cousins. I loved their accents. It was like hills and grass. Once in awhile, I'll hear that accent down here and think of her, of them.

My friend L. does a hilariously fantastic impression of her Japanese mother. My friend S. has a completely addicting New York/Jewish accent. My friend K. slips very easily into her Mexican blood. My friend J. from Minnesota doesn't sound like she's from Minnesota at all. My moved-away friend N. has this great East Coast thing that I miss much.

B's parents have a bit of a Florida/Ohio accent, and it's a little Southerny. They say "darlin'" a lot. My dad will say things like "wort-less" for "worthless", and other things like "doggone it" and "you know, a guy could ..." when he is hinting that his three children should do something.

I like music an awful, awful lot, and I like the musicality that happens when a language is tackled by people who weren't born with it on their tongues.