You Say Color-aa-do, I Say Color-ah-do

Most states seem to hold another state's population in low esteem. Now, like most other western states, the residents of Colorado view transplants from California as a scourge. But when we first arrived in Colorado, being a Texan was not held in high esteem by the other folks who were already here. This impression of Texans was probably most often made on the slopes of Vail and Aspen, where rich Texans came to get drunk and spend their money every season. Back then, Las Vegas was not the place to go and make an ass out of yourself for Texans; it was Colorado.

My family first moved to Colorado when I was 13 years old. We moved from Houston, where I was born. We had never lived anywhere else during my lifetime. We came to Colorado pulling a trailer full of "y'alls" and other attributes that made us instantly identifiable as Texans. Upon arriving, I had to get used to the fact that a carbonated beverage was not a "coke" as every variety in Texas had been, but was now referred to as a "pop" - a ridiculous word if you ask me. The hardest thing to get used to saying was "you guys", which sounded to me like something only an effeminate male interior designer would say, instead of "y'all" - a perfectly proper contraction by the way.

Over time, my prejudice against these and other previously unknown uses for the English language disappeared. I went with "you guys" to get a "pop", just like the rest of my friends did. But there was still one pronunciation that I have never become accustomed to - "Color - aa - do". Years later as an adult, I moved to Nevada, where I lived for twelve years. There is no disputing the fact that Nevada is pronounced "Ne-vaa-da", and not "Ne-vah-da". The pronunciation "Ne-vah-da" make the hair on my arms stand up. It's just wrong. The end.

Now, back in Colorado, I have noticed that the newscasters all seem to say "Color-aa-do". I figured there must have been an invasion of newscasters from Nevada while I was away. Now I come find out that "Color-aa-do" is the proper pronunciation, and that only outsiders say "Color-ah-do"! Don't believe me? Here it is:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/colorado

So, now I have to change again. I'm getting too old for this. I just figured out how to say "Hyundai". Alright you guys. Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I'm going to go get a pop now.