Inspired by post #41 here,
what examples of regional New England dialect are on the way out? Which have hung on? Which do you expect to see gone in, say, the next 25 years?
And just what IS a spuckie?
I have no idea what a “spuckie” is, but here are a few:
Tonic
Soda or pop, of course
Bubbler (Pronounced “Bubblah”
Water Fountain
Spa
Convenience store. I swear. You can get cigarettes and high-fat food at the Spa!
Packy
Package Goods Store – a Liquor Store
A Spuckie is a sub. Grinder. Hero. Whatever.
A spuckie is a sub, more or less. I think the word derives from an Italian word for the sub roll. This term had a narrow range – maybe Southie and Charlestown, maybe some of the areas immediately around. It’s a lot deader as a term than “tonic” is.
Anyone else every heard the T referred to as the rattler?
Never heard rattler.
My college roommate (from Milton) used to say “Spuckie”. I grew up in Arlington, saying “sub” like all the normal people, so I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about at first.
Here are a few I remember:
“Mustie”-probably very few people (certainly no one younger than 60) have heard this one…it refers to a mix of 50% beer and 50% ale. It was popular in and around Boston
“Grinder”- a submarine sandwich (“spukie”). Tjhis term is used in western Massachusetts, from Worcester west.
Bayzo"- used in South Boston to refer to a drunken person-just about extinct
“frappe”-a milkshake
I expect all of these terms will disappear within the next 10-20 years, as American English melts down to one common format
And a “milkshake” in Boston used to be a drink wityh milk and syrup, but without ice cream. But now I can get ice cream-laden milkshakes easily in Boston, and Frappes are dying out.
Never heard the T called the “rattler”. Old timers call it the “MBTA” (Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority". Older Timers call it the “MTA” (as in “Charlie on the …”) for Metropolitan Transit Authority.
“MassAve” and “CommAve” (for Massacvhusetts Avenue and Commonwealth Avenue) aren’t really in the same class.
Do people in D.C. say all the syllables in “Massachusetts Avenue”? It seems a waste of time and breath.
“Frappe” is in no danger of dying out, so far as I can tell. It’s what I routinely order, anyway. Except when I got to Rhode Island and have to call it a “cabinet.”
This gets even more complicated; it can depend on which side of the bay you live on. I’m in Cabinet (or Cab) country.
I have absolutely NO FRIGGIN IDEA why it’s called a Cab, tho.
Oh, and to the OP, “Chowdah”
Say it, Frenchie! Say ‘CHOWDAH!’
Ah. I was going to mention cabinet, but I thought it was just an old MA term.
And a wicked pissah one at that.
Well down here in Conneddikit Grinder, and Packy are in no jeopardy of going extinct, Frappe for that matter either.
I plan on passing down all the good NE terms to our next generation with pride. I don’t care how many New Yorkers come up hea.
I’ve lived in Rhode Island for more than 9 years and I’ve only heard OF people calling it a cabinet, never actually heard it called that.
I can’t see “frappe” or “packy” dying out. They’ve always been part of my daily vocabulary, along with the ubiquitous “wicked”.
“Spa” and “spuckie”, OTOH…they’re both still alive and well, as another poster pointed out, in the little ethnic enclaves scattered here and there. And yes, a “spuckie” is another word for a sub/hero/grinder.
You hear fewer young’uns saying “tonic”, although it’s still quite popular with the over-60 set. We said “soda” or “Coke” when I was a kid.
Wish I could remember where it was that I actually saw “cabinet” on the menu. It’s been a while. I go to Rhode Island a certain amount, but I’m usually not getting ice cream.
I spent 4 fun years in RI in the 70’s, and might even still be there if someone would have given me a job 
Do people now sit next to each other, or are they still sitting side by each?
BTW, The Grinder Man was the most popular person at URI. He was also probably the wealthiest
I am not from New England but I live here. I have no idea how common this phrase was but I wish it would die out. I ever heard my wife use it once and recoiled in horror:
Regular Person: “I just love snow skiing over Christmas”
New Englander: “So don’t I.”
http://www.boston-online.com/glossary/so_dont_i.html
Also “Sawr” as in “I ‘sawr’ it with my own eyes.”
Feh chrissakes, it’s a ROTARY, not a ‘roundabout’. Say that and I think you’re butchering Paul Hogan.
I forgot the best regionalism: “wikkid pissuh”! (a term meaning something really good). Haven’t heard it in years!
My Old New England Mother used the expression “Going all the way around Robin Hood’s Barn” to describe hasing something out verbally to the point of ridiculousness. I still say “going around the barn,” and everyone knows what it means and thinks it a cool way to say it.
Well, I haven’t heard the term “packy” in ages, and it’s been years since I heard “frappe”. You may say they’re not going extinct, but my experience is that they’re gone already.