I have an accent, apparently

"zeontestpilot" (zeontestpilot)
02/11/2016 at 14:28 • Filed to: Work, michigan

On a lighter note than my earlier post, I was talking on the phone earlier with one of my [many] managers, who just happens to resided in Poland. She asked me a question and it admittedly caught me off guard, but I thought it was worth the chuckle.

Her: “... By the way, where is your accent from?”

Me: *silence* “.....Michigan?”

Her: “So it’s Midwest?”

Me: “I guess? I’m born and raised a Michigander. I spent 5 years in Florida, but I was adamant on not picking up an accent there.”

Her: “that must be it then.”

I think I have a neutral accent, and I try to pronounce words as they are in the dictionary, but apparently it’s defined enough for someone from Poland to pick it up. I must be losing my neutral accent goal.

Also, I think I have fallen in love with the Polski Fiat 125p, which i looked up because Poland. It’s a box on wheels, I love it.

DISCUSSION (53)

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:32

You have an accent lol

I bet you didn’t hear a Jersey one from me. Now that’s effort.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:34

I know your feel Bro. Sometimes accents can be hard to get rid of, I’ve been trying the past few years to strip my Dutch of the accent of the rural area I’ve grown up in. Whenever I think I’m actually talking nice accent free Dutch, my friends from other areas of the Netherlands are always saying I’m talking like some farmer.

zeontestpilot > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
02/11/2016 at 14:35

Ha, that bad then?

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:36

I mean I don’t think it’s a big deal, but I’ve been listening to Michigan people talk for over 10 years now.

OPPOsaurus WRX > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:36

i used to get a bunch of crap for my Boston accent at college, which was in Boston. screw New Jersey people, they were they ones with the wierd accent

zeontestpilot > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer
02/11/2016 at 14:39

I never considered I had accent, at least nothing obvious like southern or New Yorker.

The only other time I’ve been asked where I was from because of an accent, was when I visited Florida in high school.

zeontestpilot > OPPOsaurus WRX
02/11/2016 at 14:43

Hahaha. I grew up thinking I talked normal, but normal is relative. So at least I can take pride in talking like a Michigander.

duurtlang > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer
02/11/2016 at 14:44

What kind of accent do you have?

zeontestpilot > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
02/11/2016 at 14:44

Well, as long as I don’t talk like a Floridian, I’ll be happy, :).

Still feel sorry for my kid though, she was born a Floridian...she never stood a chance... :).

fhrblig > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:45

When I go back and visit the U.P. it only takes me a day or two before the yooper accent forcibly takes over. My dad never lost his.

yamahog > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
02/11/2016 at 14:46

DOES IT EVER GET BETTER??

zeontestpilot > fhrblig
02/11/2016 at 14:48

Ha, nice. I was born a yooper and raised a troll, :).

Ash78, voting early and often > OPPOsaurus WRX
02/11/2016 at 14:48

Pot, kettle, etc.

/southern

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > duurtlang
02/11/2016 at 14:50

Brabants, however I’m from the North-Eastern part of Brabant, which has difficulty with pronouncing the ‘ui’(so ‘tuin’ becomes something like ‘toin’), atleast that is what my friends say.

Ash78, voting early and often > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:51

I’m a long time Alabamian who grew up in a very diverse, accent-neutral part of FL.

People here think I’m from “The North” (to the old Southerners, that’s anyone west of Mississippi or north of NC, and Florida doesn’t count at all. Missouri and Arkansas are usually toss-ups, if they can find them on a map)

But to most Americans, I have a Southern Accent.

I’ve rarely met anyone from Michigan who didn’t have a recognizable accent — not say their pronunciation was wrong, but it was like a blend of WI/MN accents and a little bit of Canada.

gin-san - shitpost specialist > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:53

On my travels, I’ve had people tell me that my Canadian accent is apparent. Funny, since it’s technically my second language (Korean was my first but at this point it’s far weaker than my English) and Ontario doesn’t have that stereotypical accent that some may associate with Canadians.

When others tell me I have an accent, I simply shake my head and tell them that I have no idea what they're talking aboot.

Needmoargarage > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:53

I recently moved to Michigan from the west coast, and the accent here drives me nuts. It sounds so strange to anyone outside the midwest.

That being said, around here I’m told I have a weird accent, but I speak totally normal! :)

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > yamahog
02/11/2016 at 14:56

You mean listening to Michigan people talk? Not really, I’ve just grown to accept it and if I drink more Whiskey it matters less.

IT’S SODA NOT POP

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 14:56

hahaha

zeontestpilot > Ash78, voting early and often
02/11/2016 at 14:58

What is the giveaway then for a Michigander? Now I’m all curious inside.

zeontestpilot > gin-san - shitpost specialist
02/11/2016 at 15:05

A lot of people who speak two languages have accents I noticed. But I think it’s a carried over from their primary language. Like, I know some words in Spanish, but I'm pretty sure I pronounce it like an American would.

zeontestpilot > Needmoargarage
02/11/2016 at 15:06

Ha, what do we say different then?

zeontestpilot > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
02/11/2016 at 15:08

You mispronounced pop there. There is no ‘s’, ‘d’, or ‘a’ in pop, :).

kanadanmajava1 > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 15:12

My English has nearly perfect Finnish rally driver accent. You would easily believe my stories about my tires being round and black or something comical happening during the last special stage.

Kinja'd!!!

My accent in Finnish isn’t a proper accent of any Finnish area as my parent came from opposite sides of Finland and they haven’t got an accent of any of the areas where we have lived. And now I have lived 15 years in another area.

zeontestpilot > kanadanmajava1
02/11/2016 at 15:17

My parents have developed Floridian accents, and I’m slightly ashamed. Though I take every opportunity to correct them in the ‘proper’ pronunciation, :).

Needmoargarage > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 15:19

That will be fourteen “dah-lers” please...

The short “o” being pronounced as a short “a” drives me a bit crazy. There are a few other things but that is the most apparent.

Then again, people give me weird looks when I ask for a soda.

RallyWrench > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 15:21

I had a New Zealander identify me as Californian by my accent. I didn’t think I had one, either.

I can’t really tell a Michigander from Minnesotans or Wisconsonites, it’s varying degrees of the same accent to me. Mostly it’s the “O” pronunciation (“Minnesohta”) that’s a giveaway, with a hint of the East Coasty flat “A” as in “Chicahgo” or “Bahston.”.

kanadanmajava1 > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 15:25

Too many vacations?

zeontestpilot > Needmoargarage
02/11/2016 at 15:29

I'm now mouthing it at my desk, trying to figure out which one I say, lol.

zeontestpilot > RallyWrench
02/11/2016 at 15:31

I'm just gonna group all those states as Michigan 2.0, :).

zeontestpilot > kanadanmajava1
02/11/2016 at 15:34

They live there now. For 7 years I believe. As a rule, people in my family end up migrating to Florida some time in their life, and stay there. I already served my time and left.

My parents are slowly going native, lol.

Bman76 (no it doesn't need a WS6 hood) is dead, long live Bman76 M. Arch > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 15:56

While living in the Czech Republic my favorite was always that most people couldn’t tell American from British accents.

Matt Nichelson > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 16:09

Oh that’s cute.

- Lives in Mississippi

zeontestpilot > Bman76 (no it doesn't need a WS6 hood) is dead, long live Bman76 M. Arch
02/11/2016 at 16:17

Really? Wow.

zeontestpilot > Matt Nichelson
02/11/2016 at 16:23

I know, right?

Ash78, voting early and often > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 16:26

Hard to articulate or imitate, but it’s a very “rounded” way of speaking. An extreme example would be a Minnesotan saying “both” like “bolth” with an excessive “o” in the middle that almost sounds like an “l” (for what it’s worth, a Minnesotan English professor once made me aware of this, even though I have lots of extended family up there).

But compared to most accents, Michigan isn’t very strong (except for maybe the rural Yoopers). It’s much more “standard American” than anything from an east coast city.

I don’t know all the linguistic terms, but I can usually narrow down most accents to Boston, New England, NY/NJ, generic East Coast, upper South (WV, rural VA/NC), deep south, Texas, Upper Midwest, Lower Midwest, and “Everyone Else” — Colorado, California, Oregon, most of those melting pots sound pretty much the same to me, except for areas with heavy Hispanic and/or Native American influence. Those all have a very cool staccato sound.

kanadanmajava1 > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 16:32

At certain phase Finnish pensioners moved to Florida in vast numbers. Currently they tend to move to Spain instead as houses, apartments and living costs are very low there but it is still located quite close by.

zeontestpilot > kanadanmajava1
02/11/2016 at 16:52

Low cost of living? Wow, it must be expensive there!

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 17:05

The 125 is awesome!

Also, the FIAT 126p - now THERE’s a box on wheels! :)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_126

Matt Nichelson > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 17:18

I think it’s funny though. When my wife and I went to Vegas last year, we were just as fascinated with the people there as they were with us.

wiffleballtony > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 17:20

Dude.

- California native

EDIT: I actually have a mild Canadian accent.

zeontestpilot > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars
02/11/2016 at 18:20

Wait wait wait, what?! 126p is RR?! That small thing? That's awesome! Polish cars, where have you been all my life?!?

Bman76 (no it doesn't need a WS6 hood) is dead, long live Bman76 M. Arch > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 18:22

It was always funny to us, especially when we had classes with us, Brits, Scots, and Aussies the professors could never remember/tell who was from where.

zeontestpilot > wiffleballtony
02/11/2016 at 18:23

I really like this edit. Im imagining a scenario when you forgot you had a mild Canadian influence. :)

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 18:34

Yeah, about that.

-Alabama Native whose accent granted me the nickname Bama, before I said I was from Alabama.

wiffleballtony > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 18:48

Well it’s odd, I was born in raised in surfer country, but both my parents are Canadian. So it was a weird mash up of “Hellas” and “dudes” combined with “aboots” and “sowrries”

touring the brook - now with ZHP! > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 20:07

I’ve been told I have a New York/Boston accent on multiple occasions. Which is weird.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 20:54

My thoughts exactly! :D

The 126 has the same mechanicals underneath as the original FIAT 500 (although the 126's are updated a bit) - 4-speed synchro gearbox with NO synchro on first, and a 650CC inline 2-cyl putting out something like 24-26hp. :P

There were Polish-only pickup versions as well, and a German coachbuilder did some convertibles too!

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > zeontestpilot
02/11/2016 at 22:57

Not even from Mass. Visited an old roommate in California and all his friends kept going “i can’t believe his accent”.

meanwhile my mass friends

zeontestpilot > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars
02/12/2016 at 06:19

Awesome! Also, in my search for more info, I came across a pickup version for sale (at one time) in the states.

http://www.classicitaliancarsforsale.com/1976-polski-fi…

Will have to research the 126p now, :).

kanadanmajava1 > zeontestpilot
02/12/2016 at 09:06

Yeah. Finland is quite expensive. The Spanish economy isn’t doing really well and many things are very cheap there.

Stephen the Canuck > wiffleballtony
02/12/2016 at 10:58

I’m from a small Canadian town and I’ve been asked if I’m from the southern States due to a somewhat redneck accent.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > zeontestpilot
02/12/2016 at 17:05

One of our fellow Opponauts, Borsuq owns a later 126p and keeps a running blog about it! :)

https://kinja.com/Borsuq

http://oppositelock.kinja.com/tag/shoebox