Am I a disgrace to my family because I hate my own accent?

i also talk far too fast, which makes it all the funner.

As for the titular poser -- there are times when I get very tired and I speak in the same manner that my mother speaks. This irks me to no end, because it doesn't sound particularly sophisticated. In fact, it's sorta lispy in a "child of parents who recently emigrated from a Spanish-speaking country to an English-speaking country" sort of way. With her, it's completely excusable, because in fact she is a child of parents who had recently emigrated from a Spanish-speaking country to an English-speaking country. In my case, however, it's a completely different kettle of fish.

I don't know how big Kingfish is... actually, I don't know enough Michiganders to know whether their accents are like a Wisconsin accent or not. Unfortunately, I don't have a pure Wisconsin accent -- my mother's family have lived in rural Wisconsin since they came to the U.S., but my dad's family was Air Force and stationed in the American South for I guess way too long... so I've inherited this horrifying northern-southern rural Frankenaccent... gaaahhh, I don't even want to leave my house till I at least listen to the radio for a few more hours... it essentially sounds like I'm drawling except REALLY REALLY FAST and with a weirder "a" sound... gaahahhhhh... and my r's, for shame... my dad is a really intelligent man but until people started making fun of the president, who he hates, he said "nukular"...

"Ya, so, do y'all got inny nukular reac-tors in Arkinsaw?"

"Heyull yessah... and are y'all having, how you say, modern-style toilet in Wess-consin?"

The Franken-cent: a horror from beyond the city walls...

and for the record, Ann, I'm 6'1"

Count yourself lucky Ann, I've been in a DRY county for the last week!

This is going to sound atrociously snobbish, but there are times when I would much less embarrassed if I could speak in French to everyone because at least then if I can spell something I can generally figure out how to pronounce it! I can probably spell thousands and thousands of English words that I don't even know I'm pronouncing wrong. I feel like such an ass whenever I have to communicate in non-written form...

I missed my family's Arkansas accents this year since I stayed in London. My southern inflections can be heard when I'm on the phone to any of them. Though I still say "y'all" in regular conversation.

http://www.celt.stir.ac.uk/staff/HIGDOX/STEPHEN/PHONO/CONSONA/L.HTM

That being said, I don't pronounce 'washer' as 'warscher'.

hmmm..tough to do...I don't have a microphone. You can, however, check out PManny--our lovely CBC news anchor. He normally hosts The National--but I think the one they have posted today is anchored by Wendy Mesley, and she's got light ls, so this may not help you! Perhaps tomorrow...
http://www.cbc.ca/newscast.html

More proof that Canadians are really fucked up:

Bryan says:
if you get water inside your boot from stepping into a puddle what do you call it?
Kim says:
a soaker
Kim says:
why?? is there another word?
Bryan says:
BOOTER
Bryan says:
we call it a booter here!
Kim says:
fuckoff!!!
Kim says:
you're making that shit up
Bryan says:
nope
Kim says: ;P
Bryan says:
soaker? that's not very descriptive!
Kim says:
more descriptive than booter
Bryan says:
no way!
Bryan says:
soaker can mean getting anything wet!
Kim says:
what if yr like wearing Keds or somthing? do you call it a Kedder?
Bryan says:
with booter you know it's because you were wearing rubber boots and water got in!
Kim says:
hence the genius of soaker
Bryan says:
you guys are bonkers!
Kim says:
applies to all footwear
Bryan says:
yes, but if your feet get wet when wearing Keds that's your own fault. If water gets in your rubber boots by going over the top that's a huge piss-off!
Kim says:
That doesn't ever happen here I expect. Toronto sidewalks don't have give like your western mud
Kim says:
haha sucker

From the best Canadian movie EVAH:

[cut to vat, Bob and Pam knee deep in beer.]

Bob
My brother and I used to say that drowning in beer was like heaven,
eh? Now he's not here, and I got two soakers... This isn't heaven, this sucks!

I AM MANITOBAN
by Dougald Lamont

I'm not a farmer, a gang member or an arsonist.
I don't live in a sod hut, I don't eat Red River cereal every day for breakfast.

That's a block heater cable, not an electric car.

As it happens, I do know Tom, Dick and Sally from Winnipeg
Tom is my cousin. Sally dated several friends of mine.

It's a jambuster, not a jelly doughnut.
A nip, not a hamburger. (this is not really true, only at Sal's)
When you step in a freezing puddle in spring its a booter, not a soaker

It's pronounced Por-tij and Main, not Por-taj and Main.

I can proudly say that Winnipeg is where the Bronfman's started bootlegging, where Bob Hope first learned to golf, and has the highest per-capita slurpee consumption on the planet.

Winnipeg IS the centre of the country,
And the centre of North America, at least when you look at it geographically.

YES it's COLD but it's a DRY cold
And the Mosquito, not the spotted owl, should be our provincial bird.

Manitoba is the ONLY place you can get a decent burger anywhere,
A surprisingly cosmopolitan place with a vibrant cultural scene, and despite the humiliating departure of our hockey franchise,
The BEST part of Canada!!

My name is JJ
AND I AM MANITOBAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, though, it's another case of east/west terminology. Just like the word people use to refer to those donuts with the yellow custard inside and the chocolate on top.

Then again I'm sure we Aussies must have some odd words for various heat/sun/beer driven annoyances, I just cant think of any. Colin, gaz, wake up! (I'll excuse Jim, he's err... occupied I think).

a: "are there any cokes in the fridge?"
b: "yeah, there's a couple sprites and a diet pepsi."

Matos and I have been here before with the Minnesotanisms. First, a 'cheesehead' is a Wisconsinite or more correctly a Packers fan. The booters/soakers thing I've never heard, and my grandfather was born in Baudette by the MN/Canada border, hmmm. The doughnut with custard in the middle is a Bismarck as in Otto not ND. We drink 'pop' and men pay for this with money from their 'billfold'. Parking is done in 'ramps'. We 'come with' if we tag along, and if something's gross we exclaim 'ish!' instead of ick (adj: ishy). We also have 'tennies' but that stops at about age 10 when people ask for the brand name of their sneakers. But does anywhere else but MN refer to gym class as 'phy ed'?

Do Wisconsinites call a drinking fountain a bubbler?

I grew up wearing sneakers to phys ed in my Maryland (and for two years, Texas) schools. Everyone in my family but me refers to all carbonated beverages as 'cokes.' I say soda. Huzzah for the cruel hoax.

Bryan, back me up on this bumper shining thing. And in my neighborhood, anyhow, the biggest target of it was the city bus.

Come to think of it I do remember large groups of kids hanging off the back of a crazy green Brandon bus. They'd all wait around the stop at Queen's and Elderwood then go around the corner towards Park.

What else do you call a parking ramp?!?!? Yeah, I come with. I was raised saying "bubbler" but try not to say that because people don't know what the hell you're talking about. My favorite Wisconsin mistranslation was when I was in Chicago with this annoying friend of a friend, who was extremely bizarre and a spaced-out stoner to begin with, and we were looking for a "cash station," except in Wisconsin we call them TYME machines; to all the people who were crossing the street to avoid us it just looked like this dizzy chick was hollering "DOES ANYBODY KNOW WHERE I CAN FIND A TIME MACHINE!?!?!?" I just stood there laughing at her till she figured it out.

Now I'm out West (Canada) and they do, indeed, say "soaker", but I'd never heard "booter" until I caught this thread.

They also say "sliver" instead of "splinter" here. And perhaps a hundred other differences I can't dredge up right now.