Questions for our American friends

[keefriff]

Originally Posted by TexMadrid

Phrases, that is the "kicker" to use a unique term. Phrases, words and unique expressions really differentiate regions. Well put Keefriff, you reminded me of my expriences in "the north". When I came back from living in Philadelphia for a few years I said "Yo" constantly as a way to get someone's attention. Yo Johnny. My southern friends did notice that.

A good friend of mine from High School in MN. moved from Philly and he was the king of "Yo". We called him Rocky because of it. I have only heard that expression used regularly by people from Philly or Southern Jersey. The whole phrase and expressions are almost more distinct than accents. I drink "pop" up here in the Cold North while most of the rest of the country drinks "soda". These random terms are almost more telling than accents.

[tygrkhat40]

Originally Posted by keefriff

A good friend of mine from High School in MN. moved from Philly and he was the king of "Yo". We called him Rocky because of it. I have only heard that expression used regularly by people from Philly or Southern Jersey. The whole phrase and expressions are almost more distinct than accents. I drink "pop" up here in the Cold North while most of the rest of the country drinks "soda". These random terms are almost more telling than accents.

According to the book The Largest U.S. Cities Named After a Food, "soda" is used mainly in New England/Atlantic Coast, California and Hawaii, "pop" in the Great Lakes states, Great Plains and Pacific NW. Here in Buffalo, it's pop. Soda is pop and ice cream. I'm just north of the line that calls it a bag, not a sack; we say "grease-ee" not "greaze-ee;" we eat subs, not bombers or grinders; obviously, here we eat "wings," not needing the "Buffalo" identifier.

Another way of ID'ing a Western NY native is how they call the city they come from: Buff'lo, not Buff-a-lo. And the large Canadian city to north is Trono, not Toronto.

[tygrkhat40]

Originally Posted by LeroyLargeCar

One of my favorite subjects, Mal. This refers to a sandwich made from a slow cooked pork shoulder where, after cooking, the meat is shredded or 'pulled' from the bone. Some people then add barbeque sauce and slow cook it some more, or the meat is placed on a nice roll or bun and sauce is added to taste. Usually served with coleslaw, potatoe salad, baked beans, etc. It's a great summertime favorite here in 'The Windy' but I enjoy it all year long. Here's a pic of what it looks like, courtesy of one of my favorite places, Honky Tonks.



http://honkytonkbbqchicago.com/about/

Now here's a topic that can show you the differences of America: food. From Leroy's description, pulled pork is about the same in Chicago as it is here in Buffalo. But pizza in Chicago is markedly different from Buffalo pizza which is markedly different form New York pizza.

Barbeque means slow cooking over low heat. But depending on where you are in the country the meat is either pork or beef; the marinade may be a dry rub or vinegar based; for some, the sauce is a secret greater then the nuclear codes or the formula for Coca-Cola, for others, sauce is an abomination.

Do you eat subs or bombers? Grinders or hoagies? Po' boys or heroes?

What else is out there?

[tygrkhat40]

Originally Posted by theequestrian

In response to a question asked 8 months ago (I'm a new member);Why is the American Football (NFL) season so short? A great variety of answers have been given for this. Here's my take. The officiating in the NFL is the most incompetant and arbitrary of any professional sport anywhere on earth. Unlike in all other american pro sports, NFL officials ARE NOT professionals. They are investment bankers and stock brokers who are working a second job.
There is no real vetting procedure for them. As the use of instant replay has revealed NFL officials actually make the correct call less than 50% of the time. It is not helped by the fact that many NFL rules are changed from season to season and a good portion of the rules are thoroughly subjective and open to interpretation (or in the NFL case, mis-interpretation) You can only make shitty calls-which change the outcome of a game-for a finite period of time before the fans stop paying both money and attention to you and your product. That finite period of time is 16 games.

I disagree with you about the quality of NFL officials. I think they are better than the NBA refs, NHL officials and MLB umpires. A lot of people say that it would be better to have full-time officials in the NFL. Well, here are two names that show that full-time officials are no better. Don Denkinger and Tim Donaghy. Denkinger, a full-time umpire, blew an obvious call and most likely cost a team a World Series title. Donaghy was a full-time NBA ref who was a degenerate gambler who may have influenced the outcome of games.

No vetting procedure for NFL officials? They undergo an incredibly detailed investigation from the FBI before they are hired. What, did you think that they just hired guys off the street? And where did you get that figure of 50% of all calls are shown to be incorrect by instant replay? Many rules are changed for season to season? Which ones? And just what of the good portion of rules do you think are subjective?

I really would like to hear your response.

[Jasper Lamar Crabb]

Originally Posted by tygrkhat40

Many rules are changed for season to season? Which ones? And just what of the good portion of rules do you think are subjective?

The NFL does seem to change at least two or three rules every off-season.

As for subjectivity, have you ever heard the cliche about refs being able to call holding on every play if they wanted to? I'm not necessarily agreeing with the first poster as there seems to be a lot of subjectivity in officiating for all sports.

I'll add that I think the NFL season is the length it is in large part because the game is so violent.

[Jasper Lamar Crabb]

Originally Posted by WATASHI

George Will hit the NFL bullseye. He said "The NFL is so popular because it
features the two greatest evils in America... violence and committee meetings."

As I recall, he said 'football' and not just the NFL.

[Rangertom1357]

Originally Posted by keefriff

A good friend of mine from High School in MN. moved from Philly and he was the king of "Yo". We called him Rocky because of it. I have only heard that expression used regularly by people from Philly or Southern Jersey. The whole phrase and expressions are almost more distinct than accents. I drink "pop" up here in the Cold North while most of the rest of the country drinks "soda". These random terms are almost more telling than accents.

Too true!

I'm originally from Philadelphia, and it took me a long time to lose the "Yo"...

As for the local dialects, I can tell the difference between someone from NYC, Northern New Jersey, Southern New Jersey, Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago...

Another oddity from the Philadelphia region that I can't seem to shake is putting a "Y" or "ie" at the end of one's given name... Tommy, Jimmy, Billy, Joey, Vinnie, Paulie... Never, ever Thomas, James, William, Joseph, Vince, Paul...

Sylvester Stallone is most definitely from Philly... He and I went to the same High School, although he graduated several years before me!

Joe Pesci's accent is definitely from New York City, but from what Borough I couldn't tell you.

[billybunter]

What really goes on in area 51...

[keefriff]

Originally Posted by billybunter

What really goes on in area 51...

Isn't that where Jimmy Hoffa is buried and Amelia Earharts plane is?

[billybunter]

Aliens flying saucers and George W Bush.