Southernisms

I went to Cracker Barrel Restaurant this morning. I think its a southern restaurant, although I did see one as far west as Montana. Its got rocking chairs out front and a country store attached. The lowlight was the included bowl of grits. Its pretty much tasteless, but the taste that is there is not very appealing. I guess there are people that like it, but I can't imagine why. Other than the grits, the restaurant is really good. There are tons of them in the south. Golden Corral is also all over. Its a all-you-can-eat place. Their highlight is a chocolate fountain that you can dip stuff into. I could spend hours at that fountain.

Cracker Barrel made me think of other southern things I've come across this past couple of years. Children are not often, but sometimes, referred to as "young'uns". "Y'all" is common, but "you all" is probably more common. Its common to think of some of those southernisms as a lack of culture or intelligence. But that seems unfair. From what I remember from my three years of French class (almost nothing) when you conjugate verbs, there is a difference in when you talk to one person or a group of people. For the most part, in the U.S., we use "you" for both situations. In other countries and the south, they don't do that.

Here is another thing. I would think nothing of saying "You maybe could do that." In the south they would say, "You might could do that." The second way still sounds wrong to me, but both ways are really the same.

I reckon I might could end now.