Negotiating Small Town Lingo, N'Stuff

We live in a small town. The kind of town that people have never heard of and you have to tell them the larger city next to it before there is an understanding of where you're at. Shortly after we moved here we noticed most people added the words "n' stuff" to the end of their sentences. For example, "I just went rock climbing, n'stuff" or "I'd like pancakes for breakfast, n'stuff." At first, we were confused and tried to make sense of it. We tried to figure out what this extra "stuff" was everyone was talking about. Then we were amused and began counting "n'stuffs" during conversations to see who could come up with the most. I once counted 18. We are easily amused.

One time I was in WalMart trying to get an extra key made. The gentleman at the counter said, "We don't got those kind of keys, n'stuff. You'll have to go to old man Nisson's place to get one." And I'm thinking, "Old man Nisson? Am I guest starring on an episode of Scooby-Doo?" Then I find out that no, Scooby and the globetrotters are not in town. Mr. Nisson has a store down the street from WalMart and it's probably been there since the town was founded.

In fact, Mr. Nisson also owned a grocery store in town that recently went out of business. Our local newspaper told the story. There was a quote from a 100-year old woman who was asked how she felt about the store going out of business. She said, "That really rankles my cockles." Now this is something I had to take to Dictionary.com to figure out. Turns out it means she wasn't too happy about it.

Another phrase people in our small town like to use is: "up north." Whenever they are traveling in a northern direction, they are going "up north." At first we thought maybe they're going to The Great White North (which, if you're going to Cedar City you might as well be because it's just as cold). Then we realized everyone was using it even though they were headed different places. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that our town is situated in the Southern-most edge of the state - only six miles from the boarder of Arizona. So I guess everywhere else in the state actually is "up north." Even still, I guess I'm a fan of specifics.

I'm also a fan of the city. Small towns are beautiful and I enjoy living here, but I prefer tall buildings and hustle and bustle. I prefer places to go and things to do. I prefer the big city, n'stuff.