Let’s go for some comforting, relaxing videos today, yeah?
Not only is Mr. Rogers a national treasure, but he’s also from Pittsburgh.
So, not only do you get to see how crayons (crayns) are made, but because I went down a rabbit hole, you get to hear what my grandmother sounded like, too.
I don’t know if Mr. Rogers knew he was a pioneer of ASMR, but the results cannot be argued with.
It’s time to make some yella crayns.
The local accent is glorious: yella crayns! Yella flahr.
There’s a double bucket, but alas, nothing gets worshed.
I’m perpetually fascinated by regional accents and how speech changes geographically (the pop/soda divide is particularly fun). So I started looking up western Pennsylvania accents, and specifically Pittsburgh.
This footage is from The American Tongues Archive, and was filmed in summer 1985 on the Southside of Pittsburgh.
These ladies sound a lot like my grandma.
The house (haahs) dress envy I have right now is not measurable. The pink one with the pockets! The snap front on Veronica with the seersucker fabric!
Just for fun and because I’m nebby (nosy), I figured out where those ladies were hangin’ aht 41 years ago:
Still there. I hope they’re somewhere together, gabbing about the bingo.
What about you? Are you from an area with a regional dialect or accent? What sounds like home to you?
Friday Videos hope your weekend is filled with memorable, comforting moments that linger.
So much joy. Anyone else feel
slightly stoneddrowsy after listening to Mr. Rogers’ voice and piano? The big box of crayons, which cost 100 cents (didn’t know about dollars then) when I was a kid, were my prized possession. Was there anything better?Love the Pittsburgh accents. Growing up in Chicago — where we all said, “We don’t sound nasally,” — we thought we had no accent. It’s always good to travel beyond our own borders for so many reasons.
I grew up in Arizona and I say crayons just like Mr. Rogers probably due to this video…
Also, because the Arizona (Phoenix) accent is so close to the California “Television” accent, when I (a white woman) travel overseas I often get mistaken for a non-US person who learned English through TV because I don’t have a noticable regional dialect. Very weird…
I grew up in Midcoast Maine and attended college in Minnesota. Talk about two very different accents colliding!
Definitely remember the soda/pop debate, also sneakers/tennis shoes, how the word ‘route’ is pronounced, etc.
I have lived in Minnesota since 1996 so the Maine accent is long gone, but I will break it out on occasion. The word ‘garbage’ is especially fun to say, as well as ‘car’ and ‘store.’ I do say ‘pop’ now, but cannot do ‘tennis shoes.’ 😜
Mr Rogers and Dolly Parton are my two favorite people, so in this case, I argue the rest of us have been saying crayons incorrectly 🙂
The drummer playing to the footage did such a good job. I don’t know how I’ve never really noticed it before.
I remember watching that Mr. Rogers video years ago.
See, my hyper-specific crayon factory memory video is the Sesame Street one. https://youtu.be/ZQ_MEFVx5jM?si=KaxW0zXeCKeO4bNe
I loved everything about it, the butterfly picture, the building excitement in the music, the way the orange crayons made me think of perfectly formed carrots. I would stop and watch it when it came on, even when I was older.
Speaking of accents, I also love the paper recycling one “old pap-uh, new pap-uh”. Those kids are so cute.
https://youtu.be/CeUsxnaD6-s?si=ZW9to69LEe0SZshK&t=1
My accent is all mixed up b/c I grew up everywhere. I do say “pellow” and “melk” and “Ellinois” if I’m not careful though.
Locally, it’s “show’der” for “shoulder” and “sill” for “seal.” Those and warsh for wash are usually a dead give away you’re a real local.