Roy Exum: We Ain’t A Whirlygust

  • Saturday, September 5, 2015
  • Roy Exum
Roy Exum
Roy Exum

I have lived in and around the state of Tennessee my entire life and I have spent the last 50 years writing words in stories every day. I love clever words, words that fit perfectly in a sentence. I also like funny words, clever phrases and all sorts of “slang” words. This week the Slate website came out with “The United Slang of America” and, naturally, I was eager to see what the word or words the writers decided best typified Tennessee.

Some words are obvious, like ‘Aloha’ in Hawaii, ‘Hoss” in Texas, but “dingnation” in Georgia? The Slate folks had to really stretch in other states, where Alabama was identified with “cattywampus” and the best they could come up with the Florida was “toad-strangler,” as in a heavy rainfall.

But when I got to Tennessee on the list, it read, “whirlygust.” I can honestly say I’ve never read nor heard that word in my entire life and I am a word guy.

I’ve heard of “whirligig” (a child’s toy) and “whirlwind” (very rapid) and “whirlpool” (an eddy in the sea) but never, not once, have I heard the word or the term “whirlygust.” So help me that is the truth.

The best word for Tennessee? I think it is probably “Rocky Top” to reflect our country music, the Smokies and, in more recent years, UT’s adoption of the song. I could go along with “Volunteers,” ever since we made history during the War of 1812. It is our state’s nickname and thus UT’s teams are nationally known as the Vols, in most instances.

But “whirlygust?” That's insulting, especially when the Facebook thread on the Huffington Post is filled with comments like this one from Michelle Gillum: “I have never, ever heard the word whirlygust in TN. EVER. Is that something they say in West TN??”

As a matter of fact, a quick glance at some of the 800 comments that are posted finds the great majority from other states disagree with the Slate writers. Greg Thomas writes, “I've lived in GA for 53 years and I've never heard dingnation.”

Vanessa Greenwell Davenport, from KY, “never heard that word.... and been in OH for 9+ years and never heard that one either!”

Candace Smith-Jones: “Have lived in Wyoming 10 years and have never heard "dout". Who makes this stuff up????” but maybe Lewis McClarkserton had the best take, “God, these are some stupid words...”

Here’s the Slate list of the “United Slang of America:”

* * *

ALABAMA
cattywampus (adjective): crooked, tipped over, sideways, crazy, messed up
Who came up with this cattywampus campaign slogan?

ALASKA
sourdough (noun): a longtime resident of Alaska
That sourdough is super old and kind of smelly, but he’s got a good heart.   

ARIZONA
snowbird (noun): a visitor who flocks to Arizona to escape the cold winter elsewhere
Here are two things that snowbirds love: playing golf terribly and telling everybody back home that it’s “a dry heat.”   

ARKANSAS
tump (verb): to tip over or dump out
We’re about to hit this bump, so hold your drink or it will tump. 

CALIFORNIA
hella (adverb): very or extremely; (adjective): many, much, a lot of
That telenovela is hella melodramatic. 

COLORADO
fourteener (noun): a mountain more than 14,000 feet above sea level 
So far on this road trip I’ve counted 13 fourteeners!

CONNECTICUT
glawackus (noun): a mysterious and ferocious animal/monster of local legend
Enjoy this map while you can, people, because the glawackus is real—and real hungry.

DELAWARE
baggin’ up (expression): to laugh loudly or for an extended period
The clerk at the grocery started baggin’ up when he noticed all the packages of bacon Jerry had placed on the counter.

FLORIDA
toad-strangler (noun): a heavy or especially severe rain storm
That rainstorm ended up being a real toad-strangler.  

GEORGIA
dingnation (noun): damnation, hell
Getting stuck at this impromptu choir bell concert is akin to being trapped in dingnation.

HAWAII
aloha (noun): greeting/farewell; (adjective): welcoming, friendly, kind
[Telephone rings]
-Aloha!
-Aloha?
-Aloha.
-Aloha!
-Aloha!
-Aloha.
-Aloha.
-Aloha.

IDAHO
whistle pig (noun): a prairie dog 
I tried to chase down the whistle pig in the yard, but it dove into a hole and disappeared. 

ILLINOIS
grabowski (noun): a hard-working, tough, blue-collar individual
A true grabowski has no time for your linguistic squabbles.  

INDIANA
Hoosier (noun): Someone from or living in the state of Indiana, or a country bumpkin, depending on who is using the word and how.
This is an example of how to use “Hoosier” in a sentence when you are not from Indiana and don’t really understand this whole thing and are afraid of angering people by crafting something that will be offensive in some way.

IOWA
kybo (noun): port-a-potty
Whoa, I gotta go! Where’s the kybo?

KANSAS
shucky darn (expression): an exclamation that loosely equates to “wow!”
Shucky darn, that’s a yucky barn!

KENTUCKY

Chughole (noun): a pothole
Our Ford Fiesta might struggle with that chughole.

LOUISIANA
banquette (noun): sidewalk
Estelle regretted wearing high heels after she tripped on a crack in the banquette and dropped her baguette.

MAINE
ayuh (expression): yes
Ayuh. Nu-uh! Ayuh.

MARYLAND
hon (noun): short for honey
My anaconda don’t want none unless you got buns, hon.

MASSACHUSETTS
wicked (adverb): very; (adjective): awesome, great, etc.
That Broadway play was wicked!

MICHIGAN
yooper (noun): a person from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan
The Michigan state trooper pulled over the speeding yooper.

MINNESOTA
uff da (expression): a brief statement of surprise or disgust
Uff da, was Jesse Ventura really the governor at one point?

MISSISSIPPI
nabs (noun): peanut butter crackers
I’ve got tabs on the nabs, so they are not up for grabs.

MISSOURI
Missouri (noun): a state name that has four different pronounciations

How do you say Missouri properly?

MONTANA
graupel (noun): snow-like precipitation that resembles tiny ice balls
That rain was pretty annoying, but this graupel that stings when it hits you is just absurd.

NEBRASKA
runza (noun): a pastry consisting mainly of ground beef and cabbage
Runzas seem like they would be completely gross, but they are surprisingly delectable.

NEVADA
pogonip (noun): a dense, icy fog
Whatever you do, never attempt to use a pogo stick in the pogonip.

NEW HAMPSHIRE
poky (adjective): scary or eerie
I can’t decide whether that Donald Trump impersonator is hokey or poky.

NEW JERSEY
jug handle (noun): an intersection that forces you to turn right in order to turn left
Why can’t Springsteen call up Christie and have him do something about all these stupid jug handles in Jersey?

NEW MEXICO
christmas (noun): green and red chili mix
Please pass the christmas—these chips could use some flavor!

NEW YORK
mad (adverb): very, exceptionally; (adjective): many or several
De Blasio seems mad chill.

NORTH CAROLINA
Cackalacky (noun): another name for North Carolina
I had a massive stomachache following our epic road trip to Cackalacky for some pulled-pork sandwiches.  

NORTH DAKOTA
hotdish (noun): a casserole
Trish knew her hotdish was delish.

OHIO
carry-in (noun): a potluck dinner
What sort of casserole are you going to bring to Carrie Ann’s carry-in?

OKLAHOMA
quakenado (noun): an earthquake that occurs at the same time as a tornado
This quakenado could really use some sharks.  

OREGON
jojos (noun): potato wedges
Guests at the dinner party reported that Joe’s jojos were just so-so.

PENNSYLVANIA
yinz (noun): you all, you guys
If yinz people from Philly were making this list then maybe you could have gotten “jawn” on here, or something about cheesesteaks, but those are the breaks.  

RHODE ISLAND
cabinet (noun): milkshake
I can’t believe you hid my chocolate cabinet in the backyard!

SOUTH CAROLINA
surcee (noun): an unexpected gift
She tried to conceal her disappointment at the fruitcake her grandmother had dropped off as a surcee.

SOUTH DAKOTA
chislic (noun): cubed meat
The only available appetizer was the chislic that made me sick.

TENNESSEE
whirlygust (noun): a strong wind
Just as we were about to complete the house of cards on the back porch a whirlygust rolled through and ruined everything. 

TEXAS
hoss (noun): partner, friend
Hey, hoss, would you mind trussing that there pig?

UTAH
oh my heck (expression): a variant on “oh my God”
Oh my heck, these kids talking in the movie theater are such a pain in the neck!

VERMONT
creemee (noun): soft serve
This chocolate and vanilla swirl creemee is totally dreamy.

VIRGINIA
might could (verb): can
Virginia might could be for lovers.

WASHINGTON
jumble sale (noun): a yard/tag sale
Rob’s jumble sale was a smashing success: Someone actually paid real money for all those stupid Beanie Babies he bought back in the day!

WASHINGTON, D.C.
bama (noun): a loser or chump
It’s only 9:30 and these bamas are already in their pajamas.

WWEST VIRGINIA
mess (used as a measurement): a mess of
Luckily, we made a mess of banana bread!

WISCONSIN
TYME machine (noun): an automated teller machine
Where can I find a working TYME machine in this town?

WYOMING
dout (verb): to put out a fire
Don’t dout the fire. For it exists and shall carry on.

Royexum@aol.com

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