Being Brits in Okotoks doesn't usually cause much comment from the locals, as many locals are also British too, and the others are so used to hearing British accents around town that it has long ceased to be a topic of conversation for most! However, venture into Calgary and it becomes more of a talking point.
Several facebook friends have commented on my growing Canadianisms in my writings, and I guess it's just a natural thing to adjust your words and expressions to fit your surroundings. Mostly you do it to make yourself understood amongst the local folk, as many can look at you quizzically when you say 'fizzy drink' instead of 'pop' or that you will 'ring' someone later rather than give them a 'call'. Although we share a language, there are many subtle differences that cause a little confusion at times, or, in my experiences at work, chuckles and gentle teasing about my 'funny English words'!
The children found out pretty quickly that if you ask your teacher for a 'rubber' rather than an 'eraser' it can have quite a different effect (hee hee!) They already correct us with their newly acquired knowledge of Canadian English, with the 'chips/crisps' debate, and the soccer/football thing too. Jumpers are now 'sweaters' and tops are 'shirts' even if they don't have buttons!
We've learnt to call shopping trolleys 'carts' now after confusing the people at Walmart on more than one occasion, and have mastered the essential coffee ordering lingo. We know our 'double doubles' from our 'regular non fat latte' now and don't feel a cold sweat coming on as we join the 'line up' not the queue, at the Tim Hortons or Starbucks in town.
Working with children with speech and language issues means that I have to be very conscious not just about the words I use, but also my accent and intonation. Little people often just look at me blankly when I pronounce words in a particularly English way and I am learning to Canadianize my accent at work, not just to make myself understood with my little wonders, but also to provide correct models of speech for them. This usually makes me quite Canadian on my return from work each day. I'll still be talking about 'budderflies' and rolling my 'r's like a local! I remember asking Raya to fetch her 'felt tips' back at the beginning of the year, only to be met with a quizzical stare, and a 'pardon me? Apparently they are 'markers' here. Raya is very strict with me and makes me 'say it properly' before we can continue our activities - so funny! The other day I warned her about 'watching the wire' that was trailing across the room from her mum's laptop. Very sternly, she put her hands on her hips and corrected me - 'Sarah it's a CORD not a WIRE!' I was told.
Canadians get very offended when people call them American and tell them their accent is the same. It is subtly different and we can now tell Canadians and Americans apart. It's all in the vowels. Canadians have a vowel shift called 'Canadian Raising' which means that words with a long 'igh' sound like 'right' or 'hike' come out as 'rate' and 'hake'. They also pronounce the long 'ou' sound as an 'oa' so words like 'how' come out as 'hoe' and 'mountains' is more 'moantains'.
There are a couple of things that Canadians seem a little confused or undecided about. They have an interesting mix of metric and imperial measures here. There are no miles, only kilometres on the roads, and litres at the petrol pumps too. Temperatures are in degrees Celsius unlike their neighbours to the south! However, measurements seem to mostly be in inches and there are still a lot of pounds and ounces around.
They also seem undecided about spellings. It seems that here, anything goes really regarding traditional English v American spelling. Although everything you read tells you that Canadians follow the English pattern of things with 'our' endings on words like 'colour' and 're' endings for words like 'centre', the reality is different. I don't think they get too hung up on it to be honest, which would match the laid back attitude to life of most Canadians.
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