Beech Tree News Network

    SOUTH-SPEAK (South Central Ky)

-We FIX breakfast, but we MAKE biscuits. Never the reverse. Biscuit can either be singular or plural.

-A southern farmer doesn’t do “chores”.  He does “-UP THE NIGHT WORK” or he does “THE MORNIN’ MILKIN’.” “Chores” is Hollywood.

-My era of southerners never say, “Sleep Over”, ITS “STAY ALL NIGHT”.

-I still say “EAT DINNER” and “EAT SUPPER”. On southern farms, the dinner bell was rung at high noon. Any other time signaled TROUBLE in the community. Kids could never play with dinner bell. That was a NO-NO.

-Southern coloquializations: HARD and FARD. “They FARD Virgil Fracklesniffer and HARD Howard Ganglinger.”

-What about a RO-SNEER? Corn on the cob.

-I once had a friend who taught English-(B.S. and masters’ degree). She still said FAR for FIRE.

-Reminds me of the fellow who took an atheist to see the Christmas play.  On the very last three men appeared, covered in ashes, wearing helmets and rubber boots and carrying long hoses.  “What’s with that?” the atheist wanted to know. “Oh, well YOU SEE see they are THREE wise men.  They have come from a FAR.”

- “BACK A LETTER”, An expression from my grandparents’ era. It simply mean to address a letter.

-Draw molasses. Pour molasses out of a gallon jug into a table pitcher. One of my grandmothers would say, “I need to draw some molasses.”

- “C-meer”, Please move from where you are to where I am.

-”Stepped-out”, They say he stepped-out on his wife while he was up north.

-My grandparents called my bicycle a “WHEEL”. I suppose the first bicycles they remember had a very large wheel in front and a very small wheel behind. The large wheel in front had pedals like a tricycle.

Well, I’ve got my coffee saucered and blowed; I think I’ll quit.

Kindest regards...