Regional Differences

[golfgal]

Chipotle
McD's

I'll admit I don't order it too often at fast food cuz I do the drive through and don't want to deal with tea and sweetener in the truck.

I also tend not to order it in fast food places since one of the news stations did a report a few years ago about how nasty the tea was. I have a more faith in the sit down restaurants, but I probably shouldn't!

Our McD's has the Nestea crap stuff in the fountains and I don't eat at Chipolte because it is too spicy for me We have ONE friend that orders tea when we go out to eat and only if it is non-fountain stuff because it is diabetic. I rarely hear people order tea in restaurants but when we go south to Missouri or in Arizona, EVERYONE orders tea.

 

[spacemountainmom]

Our McD's has the Nestea crap stuff in the fountains and I don't eat at Chipolte because it is too spicy for me We have ONE friend that orders tea when we go out to eat and only if it is non-fountain stuff because it is diabetic. I rarely hear people order tea in restaurants but when we go south to Missouri or in Arizona, EVERYONE orders tea.

Last time I was our McD's, they still had brewed tea. It may have changed since then.

My dd could eat Chipotle every day of the week so we go there too much. It doesn't help that our favorite sit down Mexican place closed recently.

I think it's funny that my whole family LOVES iced tea and drinks it all of the time, but my in-laws who've lived in the south for more than a decade can't stand it.

 

[Cdn Friends of Pooh]

Bunny hug = hooded sweatshirt/hoodie
Hork = steal ... as in "he horked the last donut"
keener = brown noser
Parkade = parking garage
Toque = knitted hat/beanie
highway = freeway
yak’d = vomited
washroom = restroom/bathroom
icing sugar = powdered sugar
processed cheese = American cheese
chocolate bar = candy bar
elastic = rubber band
housecoat = robe/bathrobe
runners = tennis shoes/sneakers/running shoes
Caesar = bloody mary
Corner store = convenience store
Eavestrough = gutter
Tea towel = dish towel
Beater = beat up old car
Fire hall = fire station
Gotch = underwear
Tap = faucet

And here in Canada it’s pop!

We also ask for the bill at a restaurant rather than the check

Smarties in Canada are like M&Ms – what American’s call Smarties are called “rockets” in Canada

And as for the gravy with fries – that's very common in Canada. People also have vinegar on their fries.

 

[Michelle67]

I love iced tea, and so does my family. I make "sweet tea," although by true southern standards it really wouldn't pass muster. Most people (and restaurants) around here leave it unsweetened and expect you to be able to get the sugar to dissolve in cold tea if you want sugar. I have a friend whose husband is from Tennessee. When we meet up at the park, I always bring along a jug of tea. For awhile, the friend's husband would get big eyes, say "Is that sweet tea?" and when I said yes he would smile and say "I LOVE YOU!" and go pour a glass. Now he just skips to the "I LOVE YOU!" and heads over as soon as I set the jug down.

 

[arminnie]

1)
8) People who think a 5.9 earthquake is newsworthy.

I so agree!!!

Maybe not on the left coast but it's a BIG DEAL in NY!

It was a big deal for 30 seconds when the NY people didn't know what it was. Once it was over, well it was OVER!! That's the beauty of an earthquake. When it's over it's over.

What many call regional differences I find to be socioeconomic differences. For all the "cover your plate" stuff coming out of the NE - it is really more of of NJ thing. The "upper crust" in NY, CN, and even NJ are appalled at the thought of "charging" for a wedding.

Growing up as a child I lived in Detroit, Little Rock and San Diego. As a young adult I lived in New Orleans, Dallas/Houston and the San Francisco Bay area for the most part with some shortrer stints in London, Pittsburgh, Bucks County, New York, Boston and Tulsa.

New Orleans is the most unique place I've lived primarily because of the cultural differences. Napoleonic law is quite different from English common law. It's also my very favorite place.

 

[golfgal]

Last time I was our McD's, they still had brewed tea. It may have changed since then.

My dd could eat Chipotle every day of the week so we go there too much. It doesn't help that our favorite sit down Mexican place closed recently.

I think it's funny that my whole family LOVES iced tea and drinks it all of the time, but my in-laws who've lived in the south for more than a decade can't stand it.

My DD too. If I go I eat chips, can't eat anything else there, I can hardly tolerate mild picante sauce though too.

 

[luvsJack]

FYI: for anyone that likes sweet tea but gets caught somewhere that only serves unsweet. Don't try to sweeten with just sugar. Use one packet of sugar and one packet of Equal (or Splenda) and stir into the iced tea. It disolves easier and the two together make the tea sweet and no "sweetner" aftertaste.

 

[C.Ann]

Probably should have read the whole thread - but....

Areas where people think it's odd to bring wedding gifts to a wedding reception..

Areas where people feel their wedding gift must equal the "cost per plate" of the meal..

Areas where open bars are expected - when wine, beer, soda, and champagne is provided for free..

Children attending weddings - when they are not part of the bridal party..

"Less than appropriate" wedding dresses worn in churches..

Stores, restaurants, eating areas, etc., that allow animals to be present..

Areas where homes are destroyed by hurricanes every few years and people choose to rebuild in the same spot again..

Areas where people are somehow able to run rampant with food stamps, welfare checks, etc., and the counties/states are oblivious to it..

"Unschooling" - not homeschooling.. Don't know if it's regional, but I've learned a lot about it here..

Areas where people think nothing of spending thousands of dollars on birthday parties for very young children..

Areas where cell phones are an absolute "must"..

Areas where baby showers are frowned upon for unwed teens..

Areas where baby showers aren't common if there is a large gap in time between the first child and the second..

Areas where children still walk a long distance to school each day..

The difference in the cost of child care from one section of the country to another..

Homestead protections..

------------

I'm sure I could think of more (especially if I went back and read the entire thread), but that's just off the top of my head..

 

[Imzadi]

2: People own horses..

The thread is about regional differences. I've only lived in urban areas and I've never know a SOUL who owned a horse.

I've read several threads of people who own horse here on the DIS. I LOOOVE them and it just blows my mind to actually have one as a pet.

Ahh, that makes sense. If you've only lived in urban areas, you probably haven't met any horse owners. For the record, it is cool to have one as a pet. Although, for the record, I don't live on a farm/ranch. I live in a neighborhood and the horse is boarded at a stable a few miles away.

I'm with Robin. The first time I saw a post where someone here said they own a horse, I thought, "She has a horse??? Where does she keep it? In her garage???

The only time I ever thought about people owning horses, was if they had big ranches, like on the TV show, Dallas, with the Southfork Ranch.

Oh yes, that "Jersey Girls Don't Pump Gas"...I had to learn driving to MB and driving home from FL and when we went to Cooperstown.

You must have been sitting in the car for a long time before you figured out that no one was coming.

We have a similar issue in Jersey. You go "Down the Shore" not "To the Shore".

I think that term came from the fact that the South shore of NJ: Atlantic City, Cape May & Wildwood were considered the IT places to be at. So even if you were at the northern shores of NJ, you went Down the Shore to vacation at the IT places.

Actually, I also say that I live "on" Long Island. Go figure.

No offense, but to some of us in NYC, we have a phobia about being trapped IN Long Island.

 

[fall08CP]

Just moved from the North to the South. The one thing that drives me CRAZY: southerners are always late!! After working at Disney where we'd get points against us for clocking in at 8:31 for an 8:30 shift, I am very accustomed to being early "just in case". My official start time here is 8:30, but most don't show up until close to 9. I've started relaxing and arriving at, oh.. 8:35 but it kills me to be late!!!

 

[Magpie]

The regional difference between the midwest and living back east (I've lived in NYC area, upstate NY, MA, RI and DE, as well as doing lots of travel involving vistis to client homes in the southeast) has to do with food and hospitality. Back east, it was the norm when you visited someone to be offered a drink (not a cocktail, just a beverage) and often, food. And certainly, if there was any visiting over a meal time, you would be fed. Never a question.

Out here, "food is for family." Period. There have been numerous occasions when we have been INVITED over during a meal time and they will not only not even offer a glass of tap water, but they will actually pull out food for themselves and eat in front of us.

I learned that I had to send snacks with my dd if she was going over to a friend's house after school because the mother would provide snacks for her own child, but not guests. Same with being invited over for dinner -- it did not actually include FOOD.

One time early on before we know the rules, my dd was invited to a sleep-over beginning after school on Friday and continuing until 4pm on Saturday. When I went to pick her up, the mother complained to me that dd had been grumpy for the last couple of hours. I asked dd what was wrong and she said she was starving and hadn't eaten since lunchtime at school the day before. I was perplexed and made a comment about her not being picky and refusing to eat what Mrs. X had offered. Mrs. X laughed and said, "Oh, we didn't feed her. Food is for family only."

Before people jump on me, I'm not saying my experience is universal. But has certainly been nearly 100% universal FOR US when we are dealing with people native to this state to the point where when someone offers me food/bev, I ask where they are from and they are NEVER from here.

Count me as another dying to know what area you're in! All I can guess is that the folks there must've been dreadfully poor and hungry for many generations, and they're not over it yet.

 

[Magpie]

Bunny hug = hooded sweatshirt/hoodie
Hork = steal ... as in "he horked the last donut"
keener = brown noser
Parkade = parking garage
Toque = knitted hat/beanie
highway = freeway
yak’d = vomited
washroom = restroom/bathroom
icing sugar = powdered sugar
processed cheese = American cheese
chocolate bar = candy bar
elastic = rubber band
housecoat = robe/bathrobe
runners = tennis shoes/sneakers/running shoes
Caesar = bloody mary
Corner store = convenience store
Eavestrough = gutter
Tea towel = dish towel
Beater = beat up old car
Fire hall = fire station
Gotch = underwear
Tap = faucet

And here in Canada it’s pop!

We also ask for the bill at a restaurant rather than the check

Smarties in Canada are like M&Ms – what American’s call Smarties are called “rockets” in Canada

And as for the gravy with fries – that's very common in Canada. People also have vinegar on their fries.

Add some cheese to that gravy on your fries and you've got poutine!

Also, you can give a misbehaving child or pet a "pichenotte" (a little flick on the head or ear) when they're bad.

That corner store is also called a dépanneur.

By the way, these are words that Anglos use, even though they're French in origin.

And fascinatingly, according to an Egyptian friend of mine, they also use the word toque! It's a farmer's hat, over there. Maybe they got it from the French, back when Napoleon was in Egypt.

 

[Imzadi]

We got one actual gift at our wedding, given by a guest who grew up in the midwest. It was a Cuisinart food processor and I was thrilled!!!

I don't get this? I used to cater for a lot of weddings throughout NY, NJ, CT. Some people are traveling in from out of town. They didn't send a shower gift. Their first contact with the bride & groom may be at the wedding, so the out of towners BRING their wedding gifts. We just set up an extra table for that. The parents end up taking them home after the reception if the bride & groom have left.


Now, hearing that people in other regions don't have the big elaborate wedding receptions that we have here, with the open bar, hors d'oeuvers, cocktails, and multi-courses for dinner and also dancing, and aren't scaling down for economic reasons, was surprising to me.

Here in CT mostly people buy gifts from the registry for the shower and give cash for the wedding.

I was astonished to see the mother of the bride or groom walk around with an old, threadbare pillowcase and collect the different envelopes of money and cash that was put in. She didn't even bother to buy a fresh new pillow case for the occasion. It almost appeared like begging for money to me. But, many people there understood and pulled out their prepared envelopes, kissed the mother, and tucked the envelope in the pillow case.

Maybe, it's a cultural thing, as I saw something similar in, My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding. Bit, I've seen it also at Italian & Jewish Weddings.

When I was catering, we had to warn the waiters NOT to throw out the scruffy looking pillowcases they might find lying around stuffed with papers. It's NOT garbage!

When it's not a common occurrence, and you're sitting on the 45th Floor of a building in NYC right before the 10th anniversary of 9/11, you have a different perspective on this.

Maybe not on the left coast but it's a BIG DEAL in NY!

Like it's a GOOD thing to be bragging about having earthquakes well over 6.0?

 

[Michelle67]

No offense, but to some of us in NYC, we have a phobia about being trapped IN Long Island.

That's okay, because when I went to visit my ILs on Long Island I found out that at least some Long Islanders have a phobia about going anywhere near "THE CITY." They (my ILs) even say it as though it were the depths of you-know-where. Haha.

 

[Imzadi]

That's okay, because when I went to visit my ILs on Long Island I found out that at least some Long Islanders have a phobia about going anywhere near "THE CITY." They (my ILs) even say it as though it were the depths of you-know-where. Haha.

I'm glad the phobia is mutual.

 

[Mkrop]

I so agree!!!

It was a big deal for 30 seconds when the NY people didn't know what it was. Once it was over, well it was OVER!! That's the beauty of an earthquake. When it's over it's over.

What many call regional differences I find to be socioeconomic differences. For all the "cover your plate" stuff coming out of the NE - it is really more of of NJ thing. The "upper crust" in NY, CN, and even NJ are appalled at the thought of "charging" for a wedding.

Growing up as a child I lived in Detroit, Little Rock and San Diego. As a young adult I lived in New Orleans, Dallas/Houston and the San Francisco Bay area for the most part with some shortrer stints in London, Pittsburgh, Bucks County, New York, Boston and Tulsa.

New Orleans is the most unique place I've lived primarily because of the cultural differences. Napoleonic law is quite different from English common law. It's also my very favorite place.

Not really, we are in SE PA outside of Philly and that has always been the general guideline to cover your plate.

 

[tink_lover]

I don't know what part of the twin cities you live in, but I encountered gridlock when I worked full-time and my dh runs into it several times a week on his drive from Plymouth to White Bear.

Totally OT - I grew up in WB. That would be a long commute to Plymouth.

 

[Michelle67]

I'm glad the phobia is mutual.

I'm not! I really wanted to see the Statue of Liberty and they looked at me like I was on crack! They said "You can see it from the bridge on the way out." Well yeah, you can. It looks about two inches tall. And my husband, being one of them, just said "See? See it over there?" as we were leaving. Yeah, I see it. STHU.

 

[monorailsilver]

New England style hot dog buns are a must for my family & I was shocked to know they aren't all over the US.

Also lobster/lobsta rolls. For me they are on the above bun slathered with butter & fresh lobster meat (thanks Lenny & Joe's) but I know in RI they are mixed with mayo (I think) & I don't like them that way.

Oh & even though I am in CT, we do gifts or money as a wedding present. I had a mixture of both as did my sisters.

I can tell you I am in the mood for a sandwich on a grinder roll (unless I am headed to Subway then it is a subway sandwich...can't figure that one out since it started in CT??) and I will either drink soda or iced tea with it. I am also thinking of making some gravy for Sunday just in case we lose power from the hurricane. I have enough packages of pasta to last me a few weeks. And yes I call it gravy and grew up calling it gravy-my great grandparents are off the boat around 1900, from Naples then to Bridgeport, CT.

Oh & I might have to grab my pocket book & go to the package store before Sunday since they are closed here in CT on Sundays. I can buy beer only in the grocery store but it is more expensive & also not sold on Sundays or after 9 (or 8 in some stores). And I might have to wear my sneakers to run in there before they close.

There are also a bunch of horse farms around me. Heck someone owns a horse down the street from me, thru the woods & occasionally rides it down my road. Otherwise there are a ton of horse farms. But I live in the boonies of CT-OK not totally boonies but I grew up closer to the NY line & there were not alot of horse farms, small ones like we have in my area.

Someone just wrote about the money bag at a wedding. Um..yeah I had one as did my sisters. My mom is Italian, need I say more?!

 

[Mkrop]

oh yeah what is up with calling sneakers - tennis shoes.