My two best friends are from Missouri and the other, born in NC and living in TN. While out visiting my friend in MO, I called the other and handed him the phone. I should mention that he has a drawl, slightly southern, totally sexy-cool. Upon hearing her voice, he laughed and said, "That's so cute!! You have a southern accent!" To which I replied, "Hey! So do YOU!" When he handed the phone back to me, my TN friend simply said, " Lord! Have MERCY!" regarding his voice and accent.
Oddly enough, while I can note the accents they have, I can't really put my finger on what it is that makes them 'accents'. There's certain words like 'mah' for 'my' and she draws out the oo sound in words like 'book'; when I'm down there, it takes about 24 hours for me to start sounding like her, but it's subtle.
And yes, StellaLuna, she can also pull off the sweet southern belle deal when she wants to.
Some friends call it the "Bless Your Heart" act....that southern women can do this thing where they might say a sweet, smiling "Bless your heart" but their heads are planning the recipients imminent demise or thinking how stupid they are
