School has gotten stupidly busy here in the last dying weeks and blogging is always the first thing to go. Expert shorter posts and maybe (horrors!) a day here and there without a post.
From Dave Schwartz:
What American accent do you have?
Created by Xavier on Memegen.net
Created by Xavier on Memegen.net
Northern. Whether you have the world famous Inland North accent of the Great Lakes area, or the radio-friendly sound of upstate NY and western New England, your accent is what used to set the standard for American English pronunciation (not much anymore now that the Inland North sounds like it does).
Take this quiz now – it’s easy!
Current Mood: Bleck | 
Currently Listening To – Joe Strummer – “Walker”
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What American accent do you have? Created by Xavier on Memegen.net Midland. The Midland (please don’t confuse with "Midwest") itself is the neutral zone between the North and South. But just because you have a Midland accent doesn’t mean you’re from there. Since it is considered a neutral, default, "non-regional" accent you could easily be from someplace without its own accent, like Florida, or a big city in the South like Dallas, Houston, or Atlanta. Take this quiz now – it’s easy! We’re going to start with "cot" and "caught." When you say those words do they sound the same or different? Same Same, no wait I mean different, maybe, a little bit different… Different
I have a dark suspicion this quiz doesn’t care about black people.
Oops. Graphic doesn’t work.
Anyway, this quiz shows that I don’t have an accent, just as I’ve always known. It’s everyone else who has an accent. Also, towns near where I grew up have normal, commonplace names. Like Wyomissing. Towns elsewhere have exotic, strange-sounding names. Like Kalamazoo, La Jolla, and Mumbai. Also, the people I grew up around have noses the sizes noses should be, are about the right height, and go to normal churches. People elsewhere have noses that are too long or too flat, are strangely tall or short, and practice exotic religions that couldn’t possibly be true.
But where I grew up, and the way we talk, are completely normal.
Although I have tried to lose most of it, the quiz correctly identified my accent as Southern. (Hey, ya’ll!)
I hear you, Andy. Typically the only people correctly guessing I’m from Minnesota are those noting my impeccable manners and honest work ethic. I thought I had more or less lost the accent. The results of the test, however, were spot on:
“North Central. This is what everyone calls a “Minnesota accent.” If you saw “Fargo” or “Drop Dead Gorgeous” you probably didn’t think the characters sounded very out of the ordinary. Some Americans may mistake you for a Canadian.”
I’m just happy the wife’s Milwaukee accent hasn’t infiltrated my vernacular. That would be upsetting to learn.
Swenson, when’d you get married?
Well, maybe it just feels like it.