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["Frank Fries" <frank.fries AT imagewireless.ca>]

> Just curious, what's your day job, Frank?

I run the Treasury area for a fairly large corporation.  We own a number of 
smaller subsiduaries in the US, which we got when we bought quite a large 
company here (they had the US subs).

The one in Texas has their head office in Texas and had operations in Texas 
and New Mexico.  Since we acquired them, they have bought out a couple of 
other companies and now have more mills, including in Oklahoma.  I only deal 
with their Head Office and arrange financing or their banking arrangements, 
etc...for example, they need us to approve wire transfers to pay for larger 
purchases...or if they are short of cash for a period... we would send them 
money (an intercompany loan).

> One of the boys/guys who was in my son's scout troop, another Eagle
> Scout, went to Regina(I am almost positive it was Regina anyway) and
> married a Canadian girl.  His brother already lived up there and Andy
> met this girl while visiting his brother.  From what I understand, he is
> a RCMP.  He's a great guy..so if you come across a Mountie with a
> distinct "non-accent" ask him if his name is Andy and tell him TJ's mom
> said hello.  Andy was one of my Venturers as well.  He would be 23, I 
> guess.

You knew that Mountie was used as a short name for RCMP, I am a little 
surprised.....although I have noticed that your replies to everyone are 
generally knowledgeable and also insightful...

As you know, the US is a HUGE country..and Canada is even bigger...but if 
Andy became an RCMP officer (w/o accent), he had to do his training in 
Regina.....all RCMP training is done at the academy in Regina.....every RCMP 
in Canada spent some number of months in Regina at the Depot, no matter how 
many 100's or 1,000's of miles away they came from...I don't know offhand 
how long their training is, but it is months...

Once graduated, they are stationed all over Canada (and new recruits get 
shipped to the middle of nowhere to pay their dues).....  very few would 
happen to be left in this province (and then usually way up north) but it 
would be quite unique  to run into a Mountie with a Southern drawl...(lol)

I still get a kick out of talking to someone from Georgia or Texas who both 
have distinct non-accents...it is just neat....and I also know they get a 
kick out of talking to someone who has such a strong accent......

I would guess that his speech would change somewhat over time, without him 
even noticing....

I have noticed in the past that when I have travelled south for a couple of 
weeks, by the time I come back, I am "drawling" very slightly (just a slight 
softening of the enunciation of the consonants and a slight lengthening of 
the vowels)....of course, when you first get down in the States, the 
non-accent is a novelty and you imitate the American accent (non-accent) on 
purpose....however, as a couple of weeks goes by, you start doing it without 
meaning to.....although only to a small degree.....my friend Aubrey, who has 
now lived in Georgia for a few years, has the same effect but much stronger 
to my ear (but not anything like his wife for instance)... I would think 
that to someone from Georgia, he would have a strong Canadian accent, but 
not as heavy an accent as mine...

So the next time you see Andy, he may have this horrendous accent....(lol)

Frank