Probably no one thinks they have an accent. I grew up in southwest Louisiana, about 30 miles from Texas. For some reason, almost everyone in our small town had much more southern drawl than those in surrounding towns. Any time we went anywhere away from home, people thought we were from Texas. Almost but not quite!
When Vince and I moved to Kentucky, it was a town, at that time, where there weren’t a lot of of people weren’t moving in and out. In fact, when I first went to the quilt guild meeting there, an older lady asked where we lived and I told her. She said “Oh, you may know Susie! She’s new in town too. They’ve been here about 15 years.” I thought . . WOW! 15 years and she’s still new in town.
There wasn’t not a single trip to town that at least one person didn’t look at me like I had two noses and say “You aren’t from here, are you?” After a while, I learned to laugh about it.
Then, in Missouri, the people were a bit nicer about it and only occasionally would someone say something like “You have a different accent!”
I have not heard it once in the 8 years we’ve been here til the other evening Vince and I were at United. They always have a shopping cart near the end of the checkout lines and it has marked down items in it so, of course, we have to stop by there. I was going through things and a couple of older ladies stopped and they were looking too. We started talking and one of the ladies said to me “Are you vacationing here?” I wanted to say “Do I look crazy?” but I didn’t say that. I said “No. We live here.” Vince asked “Why did you think we were vacationing?” The lady said “She has an accent that doesn’t sound local. It sounds more like Louisiana.” That made me happy! I thanked her and told her Louisiana was my home state, though I haven’t lived there in 22 years.
They both told me about different places they’ve lived and how much they love living here. I was honest – I told them if it wasn’t for a granddaughter in Missouri, I’d be here for the rest of my days but I want to spend time with her and be closer to them as we get older.
It was a nice conversation and it’s amazing that anyone thought I sounded like I was from Louisiana after having been away for so many years, and really not ever having had much of a Louisiana accent anyway.
Sue Edberg says
I am from Rhode Island but I’ve been in Arizona for over 44 years now. Before I moved here, I lived in the Boston, MA area for college and then several years of work. Rhode Islanders have a definite accent different from either Boston or New York. When I lived in Boston, everyone asked if I was from New York (meaning the City). When I visited NYC, I was told I sounded like I was from Boston. If you put me in a room with someone who grew up in either of these cities, I don’t sound like either of them. I still get asked if I’m from either Boston or New York but to my surprise there have been several times since I’ve been in Phoenix where several people have said, “Oh, you’re from Rhode Island.” I’ll never lose my accent and I never want to. It is me and who I am!
Nelle Coursey says
That is funny! I never would have thought you were from LA. But I would believe you were from Texas. I have friends in Ohio and they always tell me they love my Texas/Southern accent. I never noticed it at all!!
dezertsuz says
Maybe, since my mother and aunt grew up in Louisiana, and then lived in East Texas before moving to West Texas, I didn’t think you had an accent. LOL I’ve lived in the west all my life until the last 9 years, and I don’t think I have an accent. There is an east Tennessee accent, but most people here don’t have it, because they’re from someplace else! They come either for school at UT or for jobs. And because it’s one of the cheapest places to live in the U. S. Still.