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[LiberalLoner]

19. Thanks for posting this, this is an interesting discussion!

I don't really belong anywhere. I was born in Alaska to parents who were from the West (Montana and California) and then moved all over the place (including Europe) because my father was in the Army. My mother, who was born and raised in western Montana, made sure all us kids knew we were from Montana and that was the only place to call home.

But I spent years in Georgia, years in Virginia, and many many years around people from the deep South, because the Army has quite a few people in it who grew up in the South.

I have the typical Montana accent - not southern, but not east coast either. Slower. Kind of a western drawl I guess. But I use "Y'all" and I really can't ever remember choosing to use that term, it was just always "there" for me. I have been laughed at by natives of Montana..."she said 'y'all' - ha ha ha!"

The term "y'all" is very seductive and very useful. But I'm sure it must seem funny to hear it coming from someone like me who has a Montana accent.

P.S. I never ate grits or polenta - not until I turned 18 and moved away from home. In western Montana, potato is king, just like in Idaho. The first time I encountered grits, in the dining facility of Basic Training in the Army, I put sugar and milk on it. I thought it was Cream of Wheat, which was what I grew up eating. The young man from South Carolina sitting across from me was horrified and told me of the grave mistake I had made.