Regional Traditions

[Jaya]

Boblo! The boat ride there and back was always as much fun as the day in the park itself. I miss Boblo.

QUOTE]

I had a friend who loved Bob-Lo so much, she got married on the ferry. Then the reception was at the park and we all rode the rides.

 

[sunshinehighway]

See this is where we disagree. I do not believe just tacking a ma'am or sir on the end of something automatically makes it polite. She may have said no ma'am but she was still throwing a temper tantrum which is not good manners no matter how many ma'ams she tacked on.

I agree.

 

[DarthMama]

It is also important to let the other drivers on the road know that there is an idiot in their midst and to watch out for him.

Very, very important! Thank you for doing your civic duty.

 

[ebtbmom]

When I was in high school kids would go to the beach and call it Demolay. Don't know if they still do this or not.

Our barbeque in eastern NC is very unique, chopped pork vinegar based, and to me gross.

We have massive cheese biscuits made with hoop cheese.

Is Brunswick Stew a regional thing? It is thick, tomato based and has chicken and vegetables in it.

You can order a hotdog all the way (with onions) or without (onions).

You are expected to throw your hand up when passing people.

Krispy Kreme kicks Dunkins butt!

We celebrate life events with pig pickins.

 

[Family Fun Mom]

See this is where we disagree. I do not believe just tacking a ma'am or sir on the end of something automatically makes it polite. She may have said no ma'am but she was still throwing a temper tantrum which is not good manners no matter how many ma'ams she tacked on.

Lighten up, folks! It was just a cute story, not meant to be literal. Two year olds throw fits, no matter where they are from, and this little southern sweetie added "ma'am" onto hers. I think it's adorable.

Very cute story!

 

[Jaya]

My question earlier about coney sauce got lost in the battle between North and South, so I'll ask again.

When we eat coneys here in Cincy, it's with chili, mustard, onion, and cheese. Earlier in the thread, I saw someone mention "red sauce" and "grey sauce" on coneys, and I'm stumped. Can someone please explain? I'm very curious.

Red sauce is tomato based sauce - like chili - like what most of America thinks of as "coney sauce". Grey sauce....well, I don't think anyone really knows what's in it. It's probably best not to even think about it. It's just..."greyish" with a hint of "brown". It's a Michigan thang....you either love it or you hate it. You got bad breath and raging heartburn, but oh heavens was it worth it! I got so excited years and years ago when a place opened up in Orlando advertising "genuine Detroit coney dogs". Not even near. Didn't last long, either. Transplanted Michiganders wouldn't come back a second time and anybody who didn't know about Michigan coney dogs wouldn't come back, either.

 

[JaneBanks]

When I was in high school kids would go to the beach and call it Demolay. Don't know if they still do this or not.

Our barbeque in eastern NC is very unique, chopped pork vinegar based, and to me gross.

We have massive cheese biscuits made with hoop cheese.

Is Brunswick Stew a regional thing? It is thick, tomato based and has chicken and vegetables in it.

You can order a hotdog all the way (with onions) or without (onions).

You are expected to throw your hand up when passing people.

Krispy Kreme kicks Dunkins butt!

We celebrate life events with pig pickins.

Demolay is the Masonic youth group for boys.

 

[IheartMickey]

I think that's actually an Italian American thing. Most of my friends, Italian American, say man a got, motz a rel, etc. like you mentioned. or it's a regional Italy thing..most of the above mentioned friends are of Sicilian descent. I'm not really srue.

My grandma, born in Northern Italy, raised in Brooklyn most certainly never spoke like that. It was mootzarella(rolling the ll and the a kind of trailing away, but defintely heard), man-uh-gote-eh for manicotti, etc.

My friends parents were born and raised in Naples, own a pizza place here in NJ and they say everything just like my Grandma did. My other friend married a guy from a very Italian from Italy family, they flew their priest in from Italy to marry them, they speak just like my Gram as well.

The only people I know who say Italian words while dropping the vowels at the end, are not the people I know who are from Italy, but the peope I know from NY/NJ who have Italian heritage.
Except me, I pronounce them like my Gram did.

It probably is a regional (NY/NJ) Italian American thing. My great great grandma was from Naples and only spoke to my grandma and mom in Italian and we still say things the 'wrong' way. My grandma was raised in Brooklyn and my mom was until she was 5 and then they moved to Queens. We don't really have Sicilian in us.. For some reason people from Naples don't like Sicilians and vice versa. I don't know if it's like that in Italy but my great grandma would have flipped if I married a full blooded Sicilian. My grandma got more lenient about that, and my mom doesn't care at all.

 

[Turn the Page]

Lighten up, folks! It was just a cute story, not meant to be literal. Two year olds throw fits, no matter where they are from, and this little southern sweetie added "ma'am" onto hers. I think it's adorable.

Very cute story!

Yes, it was a cute story. What I interpreted the story to mean was that her DD may have been throwing a temper tantrum but she said ma'am several times so that meant she was displaying good manners while she threw the fit. Yes, 2 year olds throw fits, it's just the nature of that age group.

My point was that it isn't good manners simply because she said ma'am. From what I'm reading some people from the south believe you are automatically being rude if you don't tack ma'am or sir on to the end of the sentence but you are being polite if you do. I was just pointing out that is not always the case.

 

[SC Minnie]

As AshMarie mentioned earlier, here in Cincinnati we also have a festival that celebrates all things goetta. It's called GoettaFest, and you can eat all manner of things made from goetta, including pizza and brownies.

DH is from Cleveland, his mother originally from Cincinnati. THe first time I went to their house for the holidays everyone was so excited that mom was fixing goetta for breakfast. She even had frozen some from the kids to take home with them. Being from the South I had never heard from this and had no idea what it was.

DD18 was raised saying yes ma'am/sir and calling elders Ms/Mr firstname unless they asked that she call them something else. She had dinner with her aunt, DH's sister, the other week when they were vacationing near where she goes to school and DD replied to a question with 'yes ma'am'. They then had a whole conversation about why she called her ma'am. She was brought up that way just like I was.

 

[BearcatsFan]

DH is from Cleveland, his mother originally from Cincinnati. THe first time I went to their house for the holidays everyone was so excited that mom was fixing goetta for breakfast. She even had frozen some from the kids to take home with them. Being from the South I had never heard from this and had no idea what it was.

My husband introduced me to it - I was always afraid to eat it before I met him. My MIL makes it - hers is so much better than store-bought (Gliers). I love the stuff now.

 

[IheartMickey]

What is Goetta? The package on that website makes it look like sausage meat or something?

 

[BearcatsFan]

What is Goetta? The package on that website makes it look like sausage meat or something?

It's actually sausage cooked with pinhead oatmeal and other spices. It's very yummy! You fry it up crisp and serve it with eggs for breakfast in place of or with breakfast meat. But as you can see on the website, there are many other uses for it also!

 

[Teresa Pitman]

Boblo! The boat ride there and back was always as much fun as the day in the park itself. I miss Boblo.

I thought of another one; here we don't "mow the lawn," we "cut the grass." And we don't "edge" we "weed wack."

When I was a kid (living near Windsor) I competed in a horse show at Boblo Island. We had to bring all the horses over on the ferry - now that was interesting! I remember one of the jumps in the competition was a picnic table. (No idea why that stuck out in my head, but it does.)

TP

 

[ecuagoddess]

Born in South America, raised in NJ, living in HI.

What I have learned from living in HI:
*I talk too fast.
*I'm a complete boor for using the horn on my car for any purpose.
*I should be prouder of where I went to high school than where I went to college.
*I'm abnormal for not thanking God every day that I live here, as in, we're "lucky we live Hawaii." (not a typo- the word "in" is not part of that common phrase). Sorry, but I do not believe this place is paradise- pretty, though.
*If you speak Spanish, you must be Mexican! There is practically zero awareness of any other Spanish-speaking country. But they get all up in arms if someone mistakes a Japanese for a Korean. Luckily, since I have good manners, being from NJ and all , I never ask if they are "_____". I let them tell me what their heritage is.
*When you go to Hallmark, Target, etc. to find Hanukkkah-themed wrapping paper and accessories, you get asked if you meant to say Heineken.
*A potluck is not a potluck unless someone brings the Zippy's chili.
*When a coworker's close relative dies, you are expected to give a monetary donation to said coworker. No one could really tell me why.
*The GLACIAL pace of business transactions (like at the bank, car care center, etc) is part of the "charm" of living here. It's completely inefficient and lacking in charm to me. Please give me the straight answer in a reasonable amount of time!


And some positive things:
*Pork hash is so yummy, where has it been all my life? They even sell it at 7-11!
*Lots of Disney lovers- though they're loyal to Disneyland, and many have never been to Disney World.
*It is possible to learn another language as an adult: I can fully understand pidgin, and translate for my husband (from the Bronx).
*Kama'aina discount baby. - I don't remember too many places where I could get a discount for being a NJ resident, so it's pretty cool.

 

[Skip2MyLou]

When I was a kid (living near Windsor) I competed in a horse show at Boblo Island. We had to bring all the horses over on the ferry - now that was interesting! I remember one of the jumps in the competition was a picnic table. (No idea why that stuck out in my head, but it does.)

TP

The ferry was always my favorite part. My mom would bring old bread for us to toss to seagulls. Probably not the best idea, but as a kid, I loved it!

 

[Colleen27]

Our local area small towns also have their “celebrations.” In my area we have the following: Aebelskiver Days (Danish settlement); Polska Kielbasa Days (Polish settlement); Belgian-American Days (self-explanatory); Syttendemai Celebration (Norwegian settlement); and others not necessarily named for ethnicity (Old Sod Days, Boxcar Days, Boxelder Bug Days, etc.) These celebrations usually run about three days and include the crowning of a queen, lots of different food stands, softball and golf tournaments, beer gardens and live music, local vendors, and a parade. Of course, almost all of the local celebrations are held in the spring, summer, or fall—when the weather is decent.

One more thing----on the weekends, lots and lots of people “go to the lake”—when the weather is decent. We have so many lakes here, so that could mean ANY lake—it’s just a general statement. And if you don’t have a lake cabin, you probably have friends or family who have a lake cabin you can visit, or you have a camper that you park at a local campground or State Park. Or sometimes we will say, “We’re going up north” for the weekend. “Up north” just means that we are headed to Northern Minnesota. To us, we’re “headed south” if we’re going to Iowa!

These too are Michigan things too. Towns all have their festivals, and some celebrate some weird things (Fishflies, for example - if you aren't familiar, look here: http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/18830498/2012/06/19/fish-flies-good-guys-that-get-a-bad-rap). The town my family settled in when they first came to the States has a potato festival, and every year I take my kids to the pickerel festival fireworks in a nearby town.

And up north... That's where we all go every summer. Anywhere above the middle of the palm, roughly speaking, is "up north" so one person might mean heading all the way up to the Lake Superior shore while someone else is only going a couple hours up I75.

I didn't see this...any Michiganders remember Boblo Island? You had to ride a ferry to get there. One of my favorite childhood memories....

One of my great-uncles captained one of the Bob-Lo boats and used to bring us kids up to see the controls. We had a family reunion every summer on the island and it was always so much fun!

 

[NotUrsula]

And up north... That's where we all go every summer. Anywhere above the middle of the palm, roughly speaking, is "up north" so one person might mean heading all the way up to the Lake Superior shore while someone else is only going a couple hours up I75.

As discussed in another thread recently, folks from South Louisiana also refer to "Up North" ... and generally it means anywhere north of the town of Alexandria, LA (which is about 3.5 hours' drive due north of the Gulf of Mexico.)

Tourists from the Dallas area or Memphis tend to get a bit puzzled when a local from somewhere like Baton Rouge says, "Oh, y'all are from up north, then?"

 

[christineann]

Ecuagoddess, do you like poi?

 

[Southernmiss]

As discussed in another thread recently, folks from South Louisiana also refer to "Up North" ... and generally it means anywhere north of the town of Alexandria, LA (which is about 3.5 hours' drive due north of the Gulf of Mexico.)

Tourists from the Dallas area or Memphis tend to get a bit puzzled when a local from somewhere like Baton Rouge says, "Oh, y'all are from up north, then?"

Reminds me of the scene in the movie the "Princess and the Frog" where one character says they are from up north and the other says "Oh, y'all from Shreveport?" Cracks me up how many things that movie got spot on about south Louisiana and the culture of the area. My favorite Disney movie! Had to be written by folks from the area.