My latest creation for a friend - for her son's 9th birthday!
Thought it was apropos with the Phillies in the playoffs!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Friday, October 10, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Talkin' Pennsylvanian
A friend of mine just sent me the following e-mail. As I haven't had time to do a real post, I thought I would put it up to honor my PA friends and family! Having lived in both suburban Philly and Western, PA, I was quite familiar with all of these. I inserted some of my own comments in italics.
Once a Pennsylvanian, ALWAYS a Pennsylvanian!
- We never refer to Philadelphia as anything but 'Philly' and New Jersey has always been ' Jersey.'
- We don't go to the beach, we go "down the shore." (To be precise, that's the Jersey shore.)
- We know who 'Punxsutawney Phil' is, and what it means if he sees his shadow. (As well as anyone who has seen Ground Hog's Day!)
- The first day of buck and the first day of doe seasons are school holidays. (Usually limited to more rural locations. I never experienced that until I went to school out in Western PA.)
- At least five people on your block have electric 'candles' in all or most of their windows all year long. (2 or 3)
- We know what a 'State Store' is, and our out-of-state friends find it incredulous that we can't purchase liquor at the mini-mart.
- Words like 'hoagie,' 'crick,' 'chipped ham,' 'dippy eggs', 'sticky buns,' 'shoo-fly pie,' 'lemon sponge pie', 'pierogies' and 'pocketbook' actually mean something to you. (By the way, that last one's PA slang for a purse!) (Seriously, do people not call it a pocketbook elsewhere? I use both terms.)
- We can eat cold pizza (even for breakfast!) and know others who do the same. Those from NY find this 'barbaric.' (I find it quite barbaric myself. Hubby, however, took advantage of my absence one weekend recently to introduce our son to the fine dining experience of cold pizza for breakfast. He was proud of it,too!)
- We not only have heard of Birch Beer, but know it comes in several colors.
- We know the difference between a cheese steak and a pizza steak sandwich , and know that it is impossible to get a really good one anywhere outside of the Philly area. (Amen!)
- We live for summer, when street and county fairs signal the beginning of funnel cake season. (Personally, I associate it with the Wildwood Boardwalk and Fall craft shows.)
- We know that Blue Bell, Intercourse, Paradise, Climax, Bird-in-Hand, Beaver, Moon, Virginville, Mars, Bethlehem, Hershey, Indiana, Sinking Spring, Jersey Shore, State College, Washington Crossing, Jim Thorpe, King of Prussia, Wind Gap, and Slippery Rock are all PA towns ... and the first three were consecutive stops on the old Reading RR! (PS - That's pronounced Redd-ing.)
- We know what a township, borough, and commonwealth are.
- We can identify drivers from other states by their unique and irritating driving habits.
- A traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a horse-drawn carriage on the highway in Lancaster . (And remember ... that's Lank-ister!) (Traffic jams always occurs on the PA Turnpike and Rt 80 for mile stretches, only due to continuous decades of construction (which is not nearly as adorable as a horse and buggy!)
- We know several people who have hit deer more than once. (And a bear, but I'll save that story for another day!)
- We carry jumper cables in our cars and female passengers know how to use them. (Doesn't everyone?!)
- Driving is always better in winter because the potholes are filled with snow. (Still LOL over this one!)
- As a kid we built snow forts and leaf piles that were taller than we were. (That's the good old days - not now.) (Awww, I remember doing that!)
- We know beer doesn't grow in a garden, but know where to find a beer garden.
- We also know someone who lives 'down the lane'.
- We suffer through sports seasons and valiantly come back for more every year. (Philly fans are quite unique!)
YEAH! THAT'S GOOD O L' 'PA' AND WE LOVE IT!
Once a Pennsylvanian, ALWAYS a Pennsylvanian!
- We never refer to Philadelphia as anything but 'Philly' and New Jersey has always been ' Jersey.'
- We don't go to the beach, we go "down the shore." (To be precise, that's the Jersey shore.)
- We refer to Pennsylvania as "PA" (pronounced Pee-Ay). (Hmmmm, how else would you pronounce, PA? )
-" You guys" (or even "youze guys", in some places (yeah, only if you're from Philly!)) is a perfectly acceptable reference to a group of men and women.
- We know how to respond to the question 'Djeetyet?' (Did you eat yet?)
- We learned to pronounce Bryn Mawr, Wilkes-Barre, Schuylkill, the Pocono's, Bala Cynwyd, Duquesne and Monongahela.
- We know it's pronounced Lank-ister and not Lan-kaster. (Drives me carrrazzzy when it is pronounced incorrectly, too!)
- We know what a 'Mummer' is, and are disappointed if we can't catch at least highlights of the parade. (And may be known to be the only one doing the Mummer Strut to 'Oh Those Golden Slippers' at midnight on New Year's Eve with your friends staring at you in dismay! This is really a local Philly tradition)
- We know who 'Punxsutawney Phil' is, and what it means if he sees his shadow. (As well as anyone who has seen Ground Hog's Day!)
- The first day of buck and the first day of doe seasons are school holidays. (Usually limited to more rural locations. I never experienced that until I went to school out in Western PA.)
- At least five people on your block have electric 'candles' in all or most of their windows all year long. (2 or 3)
- We know what a 'State Store' is, and our out-of-state friends find it incredulous that we can't purchase liquor at the mini-mart.
- Words like 'hoagie,' 'crick,' 'chipped ham,' 'dippy eggs', 'sticky buns,' 'shoo-fly pie,' 'lemon sponge pie', 'pierogies' and 'pocketbook' actually mean something to you. (By the way, that last one's PA slang for a purse!) (Seriously, do people not call it a pocketbook elsewhere? I use both terms.)
- We can eat cold pizza (even for breakfast!) and know others who do the same. Those from NY find this 'barbaric.' (I find it quite barbaric myself. Hubby, however, took advantage of my absence one weekend recently to introduce our son to the fine dining experience of cold pizza for breakfast. He was proud of it,too!)
- We not only have heard of Birch Beer, but know it comes in several colors.
- We know the difference between a cheese steak and a pizza steak sandwich , and know that it is impossible to get a really good one anywhere outside of the Philly area. (Amen!)
- We live for summer, when street and county fairs signal the beginning of funnel cake season. (Personally, I associate it with the Wildwood Boardwalk and Fall craft shows.)
- We know that Blue Bell, Intercourse, Paradise, Climax, Bird-in-Hand, Beaver, Moon, Virginville, Mars, Bethlehem, Hershey, Indiana, Sinking Spring, Jersey Shore, State College, Washington Crossing, Jim Thorpe, King of Prussia, Wind Gap, and Slippery Rock are all PA towns ... and the first three were consecutive stops on the old Reading RR! (PS - That's pronounced Redd-ing.)
- We know what a township, borough, and commonwealth are.
- We can identify drivers from other states by their unique and irritating driving habits.
- A traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a horse-drawn carriage on the highway in Lancaster . (And remember ... that's Lank-ister!) (Traffic jams always occurs on the PA Turnpike and Rt 80 for mile stretches, only due to continuous decades of construction (which is not nearly as adorable as a horse and buggy!)
- We know several people who have hit deer more than once. (And a bear, but I'll save that story for another day!)
- We carry jumper cables in our cars and female passengers know how to use them. (Doesn't everyone?!)
- Driving is always better in winter because the potholes are filled with snow. (Still LOL over this one!)
- As a kid we built snow forts and leaf piles that were taller than we were. (That's the good old days - not now.) (Awww, I remember doing that!)
- We know beer doesn't grow in a garden, but know where to find a beer garden.
- We also know someone who lives 'down the lane'.
- We suffer through sports seasons and valiantly come back for more every year. (Philly fans are quite unique!)
YEAH! THAT'S GOOD O L' 'PA' AND WE LOVE IT!
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