"Bless your heart!" Should I still feel offended? (Knoxville: rich, land)

[RamblinRoseRanch]

Depends, Leonard.

Here in the south, if we know you an appropriate close would be "Y'all stop by some time." or something to the effect. Not perfect grammar, but still good manners.
If we don't know you "You take care (y'all if plural)" "You have a good day." or something of the sort.

Trust me, i'm in no way a prude and my language can sometimes make a sailor blush but my pet peeve remains ' a good un."

If it helps any, I am in the psychological field and am very aware of how speech and body language affects mood and response. Perhaps that heightens my sensitivity?

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by RamblinRoseRanch

Depends, Leonard.

Here in the south, if we know you an appropriate close would be "Y'all stop by some time." or something to the effect. Not perfect grammar, but still good manners.
If we don't know you "You take care (y'all if plural)" "You have a good day." or something of the sort.

Trust me, i'm in no way a prude and my language can sometimes make a sailor blush but my pet peeve remains ' a good un."

If it helps any, I am in the psychological field and am very aware of how speech and body language affects mood and response. Perhaps that heightens my sensitivity?

Well, if it bothers you then it bothers you. Being in customer service, like I said, I'm lucky that they just don't swear at me.

"But have a good 'un," is said by Southerners, a lot. Or males, anyway.

[jabogitlu]

I agree with ya on this one, Rose. Ya'll come over some time is friendly. You have a good day = don't know you much, but like you.

What I find interesting as a linguistics student is our emphasis on "You." If someone's never heard a Southerner say "You have a good day," they can't possibly imagine the stress put on the word You. And most other dialects would drop the subject entirely.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by jabogitlu

I agree with ya on this one, Rose. Ya'll come over some time is friendly. You have a good day = don't know you much, but like you.

What I find interesting as a linguistics student is our emphasis on "You." If someone's never heard a Southerner say "You have a good day," they can't possibly imagine the stress put on the word You. And most other dialects would drop the subject entirely.

Or how about this one, which I have never heard anywhere but The South...

"I appreciate you."

I like that one.

Unfortunately, The South may be polite, but I think as time marches on they are getting just as rude as everywhere else. It would be sad, but I sometimes wonder if they won't be known for that politeness in 20 years.

[jabogitlu]

Hardly anybody my age is polite like that. So, yeah.

(But I do like that one, hik, though it usually comes out more like "Prishate-chee" <G>

[RamblinRoseRanch]

I agree with the use of 'you'. And I like "I appreciate YOU" as well. My sixteen year old drives me nuts. She's been taught manners but I find myself constantly reminding her "That's "no THANK YOU", not just *no*.

[leonard]

Originally Posted by RamblinRoseRanch

Depends, Leonard.

Here in the south, if we know you an appropriate close would be "Y'all stop by some time." or something to the effect. Not perfect grammar, but still good manners.
If we don't know you "You take care (y'all if plural)" "You have a good day." or something of the sort.

Trust me, i'm in no way a prude and my language can sometimes make a sailor blush but my pet peeve remains ' a good un."

If it helps any, I am in the psychological field and am very aware of how speech and body language affects mood and response. Perhaps that heightens my sensitivity?

Hi,

I just want to get it right so that when I am living there I can try to avoid giving offense.

Mind you with my sense of humor that will be tough.

[ladyofengland]

Oh shi* I say nice all the time. I had better watch out !

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by ladyofengland

Oh shi* I say nice all the time. I had better watch out !

You are too funny!

I had no idea about this "nice" stuff, either. Are you all sure about this? So if someone says I look nice today, they really mean I look bad?

[jabogitlu]

To be honest it probably depends on the person and on the tone. Common sense here, folks.