Toboggan Weather

We've been smacked by a big 'ol blast of cold air. It's not been comfortable to say the least. Everyone laments on it, and, well, that includes me. We usually get hit with one closer to or after Christmas. Last winter got everyone spooked. Heck, you'd think we moved Southern Appalachia to Wisconsin. It's early this year. That's winter and we jut have to deal with it.

Now, if you go by the wooly worms, they are black on the front and the tail while brown in the middle. I've been told otherwise, but, from what I was told before I was told otherwise, by someone that was probably told otherwise, the black is the cold, and brown is well, not so cold. Last year everyone I seen was as black a the ace of spades and last year was as cold as the dickens. We all know about the dickens.

Now, you may have caught what I said. I said it unapologetically. I'm from Southern Appalachia where "seen" and "saw" can be used just the same as the other. Last winter might have been like Wisconsin...Well, maybe not that bad, but you get my drift. Look, at this latitude a month of below freezing weather is a good stretch...but, we don't talk like them, but they may say the same thing. But we'd get a laugh when one of us Mountain People said we were going to put a toboggan (pronounced Toe-Boggin) on our head. Those folks would be puzzled as to why and how we were going to put a sled on our head. No rhyme intended. It's one of those things, only we, the residents of this region call a watch cap a toboggan. How it got so, I've no explanation. It's something that we grew up with. When I was a kid living in SC we were the only family that said toboggan. It might have rubbed off on some friends, I don't know. If so, well, I was spreading Appalachiaism earlier on then I thought. But If I could spread on thing of Appalachian Culture it would not be our peculiar speech. It would be that it's OK to be curious as long as you mind your own damn business.

The Appalachianist