Northern California; home of the Golden Gate Bridge, half of Lake Tahoe, cows, and the words "hecka" and "hella". Growing up in beautiful Sacramento, CA, the word "hecka" has been a part of my vocabulary since I left the womb. "Hecka", equivalent to “hella”, either meaning "very" or "a lot of", was a common word used by all of my friends since as long as I can remember. I eventually graduated to "hella" when I hit junior high where we could say the word without getting in trouble.
Life was good until moving to Chicago after freshman year, where I could no longer use my true diction. I quickly came to find that these simple-minded midwesterners had never been exposed to as extensive of a vocabulary as those of us in the Northern California. Now, every time is said “hecka” or “hella”, I would usually receive a puzzled look like there was something on my face. Chicago wasn’t ready for my foreign terms, so I was ultimately forced to cut down on the “heckas” and “hellas”. I adapted to life without these crucial words of my childhood and life was once again good… until I came to SMU.
Unfortunately, my roommate happened to be from Southern California. Unlike my friends in Illinois, my roommate was familiar with “hecka” and “hella”, however not only does he not use them, but there are few things he hates more than those two words. Instead of a puzzled look, I now just receive straight anger and hatred. Hella rough huh?
Normally I am very receptive to other cultures and the various practices that they follow. However, the use of the H word is one practice of the typical Northern Californian that I find painful to accept. I must note that my disapproval does not extend to the user of said word, it is merely the word itself that causes me pain in the depths of my heart. I guess my dislike mainly stems from the fact that the H word is not even a word at all. I can't seem to understand why you cant just say "really" or "a lot" instead of the H word.
ReplyDelete"Hecka" sounds like something Sarah Palin would say. Right? "You betcha!" Her dialect is actually typical of Northern Minnesota, where she grew up. There may be a connection between these Northern dialects. On the other hand, Chicago is the home of what is called "Network English," the dialect spoken by news anchors and therefore common in parts of the country where people listen to broadcast journalism. The Midwest, where I come from, has no accent and is considered "normal" speech.
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