It requires moderation, like all things. My wife and I used to joke around, talking to each other in southern accents, but we lacked moderation, and now the southern drawl has become part of our regular speech. We're not anywhere near the south.
That is very real. I'm in rural Appalachia and definitely adopted some turns of phrase after using them ironically. I find myself actually saying "howdy" with a straight face now.
I'm a punk from south Florida, "howdy" should not be in my vocabulary
I absolutely hated "y'all" when I joined the Army and was stationed where that was a common saying. I thought it sounded so ignorant and Okie. Welp, within a couple years it had found its way into my vocabulary, and it remains there to this day.
Don't let my people monopolize that accent! It's a beautiful accent, in my opinion. Shame about most of the folks it's attached to. Most people hear a southern drawl and their mind goes right to white supremacy rednecks, which is unfortunately not incorrect of them to think. I wish we had some popular well educated folks to bring that sound to the larger populace so that it isn't such a red flag.
Dolly Parton has done wonders for changing people's perception of the South. Matthew McConaughey has been vocal about progressive issues. And of course there are a number of activists from the South. But you're right, they're usually depicted in media as either ignorant racists, stupid, or evil rich people.
I think Southern ladies sound so sexy when they talk. I love their intonation.
My wife and I started doing it because we were backpacking once and ran into a couple of women from Louisiana who warned us not to go down a trail because they saw some bears down there. At the end of the conversation they reminded us not to go down there because of "them bears!". We thought the way they said it was hilarious, and it started an internal joke for us surrounding that dialect. Then it was reinforced by The Office and the "I do declare" scene, and just about every scene of the Tombstone movie. So we had a lot of quotable material that goes along with a Southern accent, and over the years it started sneaking its way into our normal speech.
That is a personal story I don't usually share online, but what the heck. Hopefully you enjoyed it.
How could I forget about Dolly Parton! I should be ashamed. The world could use a few more of her.
I did appreciate the story, thanks. And that's about exactly how I expected it happened, lol. Minus the hikers, I wouldn't have guessed that, but I can imagine exactly how it sounded when they told you to watch out for them bars!