10 Signs You are from Rhode Island…

Rhode Islanders, A Unique Breed

There are many ways to identify a Rhode Islandah’, from the way they talk to their choices in cuisines…there is truly a uniqueness to someone from Rhode Island.  Here are 10 signs that might identify you as a Rhode Islander:

1.  A cabinet is not a place to store items!  It is a creamy delicious treat that non-Rhode Islanders would most likely call a milkshake.  If you ask for this out of state, which many of us have, you get some really quizzical looks.  A Rhode Islander will fearlessly show up to an ice-cream shop and boldly as for a “coffee cabinet” and think nothing of it.  You only realized it was odd when you tried this out of state!

2.  You have driven by the Big Blue Bug so many times you only notice him when he is dressed in his seasonal garb.  My personal favorite, the Rudolph nose!  Why?  Only in Rhode Island would we decide to worship a Big Blue Bug and then play dress up with him.  We do have a sense of humor here.  You also probably watched “Dumb and Dumber” and got beyond excited when you spotted the iconic bug!

3.  If you ask for “cabinets” you will most likely try to order a grinder out of state as well!  Sub, hoagie?  Not in RI…we call them grinders…or rather, gridahs!

4.  The letters “er” can be removed from the end of any word at will AND they can also be added to the end of any word.  Basically, the letter “r” is always optional. The further north you go the more variations you will hear!

Here are a few examples on how to speak “Rhode Island”:

Chowder– remove the “er” and add “a” to say chowda’

Soda- remove the “a” and add “er” to say soder.  You can also do this with words like pizza…

Art-  Pronounced aht.

Hmmmm…just an RI thing!

5.  If you are going north or south of “the towers”  or anywhere longer than 20 minutes away, you most likely do the following things:

• Tell someone you know that you will be traveling that day
• Fill up the gas tank
• Get a map or look up directions
• Pack drinks and food
• Be sure to use the bathroom before you go
• Grab a coffee for the drive
• Plan around “traffic”
• Charge your phone

6.  Summer means a few things:

• Del’s
• Lobsta’ Rolls
• Coffee Ice Cream (don’t try getting this on the west coast)
• Clamcakes and Chowda’
• Beaches!
• Drinks out of the bubbler

7.  If you are giving or  being given directions “used to be” is a common phrase.  For example, “take a right where the Bess Eaton used to be”.  We are creatures of habit and it takes a good 10-20 years for the new place to be acknowledged in any set of directions.

8.  You have been asked way more than once if Rhode Island is a part of New York.  What?!  No it is the littlest state in the United States!  Geez…we might be small but we are mighty, you betta’ recognize!  This certainly hurts the Rhode Island pride a bit, but that person will never ask that question again!  A Rhode Islander makes this mistake abundantly clear.

9.  Depending on your age, you might have ordered iced coffee out of state.  A few years or so ago you were most likely handed hot coffee with ice in it…yuck!  Luke warm, watery coffee is not iced coffee!  In the recent years, the trend has caught on and you can get iced coffee out of state.  Good thing, if and when we travel out of state we need our RI staples.

10.  Every time you leave Rhode Island, you remember why you love it!