Advice to this Walker

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I was surprised a man approached me near the cafe as he walked in for breakfast. I recognized him as the one who took over the iron-worker’s shed halfway up the steep hill. In the past few weeks, he greeted John and me with several sentences of a Southerner’s standard greeting as we walked past. (“How y’all doin’? Mighty fine day! Y’all have a good un!”)

092818 Shed on the steep hill.JPG
Ironworker’s shed now houses lawncare equipment.

Today he said, “I wanted ta tell ya ta be careful. T’other day y’all just got past my place, an’ a cow came bustin’ outta the woods. Run right across the road inta the cornfield. Ya need to be aware of what’s goin’ on around ya. Ya never know what’s gonna happen with animals around here.”

Please note that I am not making fun of his accent, because I sound a lot like him, only at a higher pitch. Blogger Kate Crimmins (https://coffeekatblog.com/) can vouch for that after I jangled her ears with my normal speech. Kate herself sounds like a normal person with a nice Pennsylvania accent.

I thanked him, and we had a good laugh over crazy animals that get loose in the area.

Going up the hill, I stopped to chat with Nancy at the first house on the right. She had been concerned at not seeing us for several days. I found out the big RV parked in the yard belongs to her niece from Missouri. She and her husband and crazy dogs are going to move here and open a commercial cleaning business.

Toward the top of the steep hill, next-door-neighbor Dawn stopped her car and wondered why a vehicle with a flashing yellow light turned around in my driveway. The only thing I could think of was someone delivering the newspaper. I came home to find papers for three days in the box. A sheet inside explained that our carrier quit, and another person will deliver to us after doing his own route. With news three days old, we might as well be on Colonial time.

Published by Anne Mehrling

I'm a retiree who loves to write about life in the mountains of North Carolina.

Published

46 thoughts on “Advice to this Walker”

    1. We have seen a few things, mostly dead, since we moved here four years ago. The list would include a copperhead snake, a skunk, a raccoon, and a rabbit. The rabbit had been shot, but the others were road kill. We’ve heard howling coyotes, and we’ve seen a few deer. That’s about all. What kind of wild life have you seen near your home? Even in Manhattan coyotes have been spotted, so urban areas can have interesting animals.

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    1. Very true. We’ve never seen either here, although our neighbors who keep chickens have. I think I’m more scared of the skunks. Pphewwwww! We saw one cross the road while we were walking a few weeks ago. We didn’t speak to him.

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  4. Seeing a cow running across the road would be awesome! Run Elsie run! Take a break for freedom! Thanks for calling me normal. I don’t think anyone has ever called me that before. Your accent is very soft and not all that pronounced. I worked with a guy from Virginia and his accent was strong. After a few months I could imitate him pretty well.

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    1. Well, you aren’t normal. You are exceptional. That’s much better. I’m sorry I smeared you with normal. It won’t happen again.

      I have a friend I see every other year or so, and I could revel in her Mississippi accent for hours on end. I love for her words to echo in my mind over and over. I used to think I sounded like her, but I know I don’t.

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      1. I’ve never been called exceptional except by my piano teacher and unfortunately it takes more than talent. It takes drive to continue to play during the distractions of high school. Also, my hand wasn’t really big enough. I could barely reach an octave. There is something soothing about that southern accent. A southern mama would be the best!

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        1. You are extra special! My piano teacher never called me exceptional, because I wasn’t. I was a good hack, though. I have the same problem you have with small hands. You ought to see me drool over grandson Nathaniel’s hands. He can easily reach an octave and a half without trying.

          I shouldn’t just skip over the musical subject. I have a degree in music and ended up being a church organist for 25 years. You can cheat on an organ with small hands.

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  5. I told you I picked up some Southern idioms and a bit of an accent by the end of each Summer I worked full time at the diner. Wow to the cow – “how now brown cow” is not what you want to be saying when you are out walking in the early morn. 🙂

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  8. Hi Anne, Accents are so much fun. My Dad was born and raised in Virginia, we have many relatives in NC. My sister has lived in NC for about 25 years and she now speaks like a southerner too. I spent many summers in Virginia so I say some words with a southern twang but don’t think I have much of an accent at all, but people who aren’t from around here say I have a strong Philadelphia accent. I suppose they are probably right.

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      1. I laughed. I went back and read your reply three times to find double buts!!!! I would never have noticed on my own. I know how you feel, though. I have cringed at some of the mistakes I have made, because they were NOTICEABLE!

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        1. I will sometimes read an old post and find horrible mistakes. At least I can correct those…I make so many mistakes on comments, and the sad thing is I usually read them through before hitting send and still miss them. :/

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      1. I was born in PA., my mother’s family is from the Pittsburgh area. They also have an accent. I am quite a combo of different accents.

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      1. Well, my friends always laughed that a New Jersey girl would say ‘thang’ instead of ‘thing.’ My husband says I say windowseal, instead of windowsill. Maybe they aren’t a southern pronunciation at all, but just my strangeness shining through.

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  11. When I was in college, some kids from Chicago would spell out words they wanted to hear me say, so they could hear my “accent.” One night I told them, “I don’t have an accent. You do!” We all thought that was pretty funny.

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  12. I like the idea of a cow on the loose. Do you suppose it’d be motivated enough to jump over the moon?! Now THAT would give you and your neighbors something to talk about.

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  14. Hiya Anne! Just weighing in, letting you know I’m still around… I’ve been super busy since my honey John moved in, we’re getting all organized etc.! So gradually I’m getting around to as many posts as I can, but there are just so many! Ay yi! Right not he is at choir practice so I’m taking the time for it. I just wanted to comment on this – you said “because I sound a lot like him, only at a higher pitch.” But Anne! You are originally from New York – Long Island, no? So how/why would you sound like that fellow? Just curious! See you! xox

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    1. I know you’ve been busy, Ellie. I’m glad you’ve had a little time to catch up. I grew up in West Tennessee, so I have a Southern accent. It’s a little more crisp now because I lived in New York for 50 years. Friends in NY tease me about my accent, but friends I grew up with say I’ve lost it.

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      1. Ohh maybe I knew that and forgot, or maybe I didn’t know! So you’ve kind of moved back ‘home,’ almost. Nice! That’s funny, what you say about your accent! 😄

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