When I tell people here in Portland that I'm from Alabama they're usually pretty shocked. "Where's your southern drawl?" they ask. I usually take this as a compliment and feel slightly liberated from the confines of my southern upbringing (and I felt especially good about myself when someone told me that they would have guessed I was from somewhere in New England). But I must admit that I sometimes feel a tinge of disappointment that I don't have some fascinating accent to differentiate me and give me a distinctive history. So I was ever so amused and delighted today when I had this little exchange with Kiki, a super-cool eight year old from work:

Kiki: Calla Maria, are you from the country?
Me: Mmm...what do you mean?
Kiki: Well, you talk like a cowgirl.

I guess maybe it just takes the innocent ears of a little girl to pick up on my cowgirl accent.