If you've got a children's PBS show earworm, this one's better:

Zoom, a-zoom, a-zoom
C'mon and zoomazoomazoomazoom!

Now it's:

There were green alligators and long-necked geese two humpy-bumpy camels and two chimpanzees there were cats and rats and elephants as sure as you're born but the loveliest of all was the unicorn

and with that I'm off to work.

Damn you laga

you might get charged a late fee penalty. But, that's the "pay the bills on time" frugal me talking.

As for all the heritage talk. I'm proud to say I'm a Yankee. Grew up 25 miles north of The Stadium, got pics taken with Yogi Berra and Reggie Jackson and Ron Guidry as a kid. Yup, I'm a Yankee (fan).

Funniest "Yankee" story. Working at a theater in the NC hills south of Asheville. Driving a 1982 Volvo with New York Plates on it. At a traffic light on a one way street in left turn lane with the window open (it was hot, summer, in the south, go figure). Waiting at the light, and in pops this head, his face nanometers away from mine "Whathca doin' here Yankee?" "um, I work at the theater" "O, you with them queers and whores?" "ah, yes sir" "[something about carpet baggers to this day, forget direct quote]" "um, I guess, Don't know if anyone local applied, but my boss is local" "well, I guess I better let you go, yer light turned green" and his head popped out of the car and walked away.

As for my verbage. ya. It's got words from everywhere. Grew up in NY. Went to school in PA and OH, worked in NH, NC, KY, VA, MD, and now CA. It took about about a year after leaving Bal'more to stop saying "Hon". Since my trip to Australia, I still say "mate". Such a great word, and far more polite than "buddy" or "dude".

Ok, there was some hugs of support to dish out, but there was like a million posts to catch up. VW, are you ok? Cass, very cool aunt. Dang it there was more. I'm still bitter that my 1st day off in 7, the building decides to turn off the water, and I really don't feel like venturing out without a shower.

There isn't really an equivalent to "all y'all" in standard English is there? Nothing that works as well anyway.

"Heeeey yoooou guuuuys!" in a fat albert tone is pretty close :)

I'm endlessly entertained that my mother fired a babysitter when i was very wee because her southern accent was thick enough to cut with a knife and my parents didn't want to burden me with that. Talk about discrimination!

(I was born and raised in Richmond, VA. My mom is from NoVa and my dad was an army brat, so neither of them has a discernable regional accent.)

"O, you with them queers and whores?"

Maybe, but you may be confusing me with someone from Black Mountain, or Warren Wilson College (my MFA alma)... you see, mr. asheville guy, there's this great hub of imagination here. You might want to try it.

oofh.

hey Omnis, when were you in Asheville? Did you ever eat at a place called Spirit on the Water (run by the tribe). All the writers at WWC used to call it the Roadkill Cafe. Maybe I'm feeling like I've brought this up before (because, yes with the tired), but it was the best frybread ever.

I was down in Flat Rock. Only ventured north to Asheville a couple times. Once was to go to Poplar Lodge. The. Best. Food. EVER. To this day, I list it as a favorite restaurant. Never heard of Spirit on the Water or Roadkill Cafe.

O, when. I was there...[thinking]... summer 1993.

eta: about the only thing I remember of Asheville was a big statue of a Confederate Soldier that looked like they didn't allow any pigeons near to poop on. And I kept getting lost for my few trips there. Where was GPS then??

Mmmm...I'm having a carbolicious dinner--whole wheat pasta with tater tots. Life is good.

Oooh, good earworm, Kristin!

"Come with", I have been told, is an anglification of a German phrase. I think I was told that by my German teache, who was from Minnesota. And now I don't know if it requires salt or what.

We were all so proud of Ron Guidry when I was a kid in Baton Rouge, but it was confusing that he was a Yankee.