I just love your Pennsylvania accent!

Spending a lot of time on the phone has given me the ability to detect accents and geographic linguistic nuances. In simple talk that means that I'm usually pretty good at untangling and English, Australian or South African accent. It goes a bit further than that. Pennsylvanians will pronounce wash as worsh. Of course some people call that fizzy drink soda and some call it pop. It has a lot to do with where they are from or where they grew up. 

I was born in Boston, at good old Mass General Hospital. My family moved to California when I was six, but I still have a few remnants of my Massachusetts accent. It really only pops up when I say envelope - which I pronounce more like onvelope. And then there is Aunt - which many pronounce as Ant but I say Ont. 

Now there are also geographic differences in the way a customer will order product. For instance some Southerners will ask for needle when they really mean 3cc syringe attached to a needle. Now we know that there are 2 popular syringe tips. Luer Lock and Slip Tip. Yes, I capitalize them both, and I don't know why, but I'm working on an understanding. Now I've learnt that a lot of Veterinarians in Texas prefer 3cc syringes with a slip tip. Some have explained that they work on large animals and leave the needle injected and quickly switch out the syringe for different injections. 

Over the years I've had customers request a lugar lock and a lunar lock and slip lock syringe. They're usually new and I try to educate them. I get a lot of calls from customers in Florida that have New York accents - and I can narrow it down to Brooklyn or Staten Island! They get a kick out of it when I'll ask if they're rooting for the Mets or the Marlins.

As Americans we are fortunate that we can freely move about the country - and mix up our accents with our states! We know that our country is special because so many people from other countries want to move here. I'm writing this on Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Day. Our country has come a long way since he was born. Perhaps, somewhere, someone was just born and that person will impact us all in a positive way. We all have the ability to create positive change - I know many in the Veterinary field do each day. That's just one of the special things about people who appreciate animals.

All the Best,
Simon