Gone Native

I'm out with Alpha Male, my favorite Japanese man in Japan.  He's good company as usual.  I'm at ease.  With him, I feel safe.  I can be myself.  One of the consequences of being this relaxed is that I speak freely.  I don't edit.  I don't think before I speak.

Which is why the word "consequences" is so appropriate.  Somewhere in the conversation with Alpha Male I evidently said, "Why's that?"  It came out naturally.  It went downhill from there.  Sort of.

"What did you say?"  He's driving so he doesn't look at me.
"I said, 'Why's that?'  Why?"
"Say that again?"  He's smirking.  Instantly, I'm annoyed.  What?  I'm not enunciating?
"I said..." and before I can finish, he says "'Why's that?'  Right?'  You think you said, 'Why's that?'  Right?"
I'm not amused.  What is this?  I think I said?  I know what I said.  I said....

And then it hits me.  Ohhhhh.  I did it.  It happened.  I spoke using the Tohoku dialect.  I did say "Why's that?" but I said it Tohoku-style.  No one outside of Tohoku would ever say it that way.  It actually doesn't even make grammatical sense.  It's not technically Japanese, except that it is for those in Tohoku.  Crap.  Crap, crap, crap.  I look over at him about to concede, confessing this country-bumpkin dialect has now crept into my vocabulary when I see he's trying ever so hard not to laugh out loud.  I decide right there not to concede.  It is funny.  Yes.  But, far be it from me to let him have any fun at my expense, I get defensive.  Except, I don't know what to say.  No quick retorts today.

"What?" he says.  I still say nothing.
"Oh, come on."  I'm still silent.  I've honestly got nothing.
"Are you mad?" and now he's not actually asking but more insinuating I'm being unreasonable, albeit possibly, could it be?  Does he think I'm being cute?
"I'm not mad," and now I'm the one trying to keep a straight face.
"You're pouting."  He laughs, guffaws actually, and I'm afraid we're going to crash.
"Watch out!"  Instantly my hand shoots straight out hitting the glove box, propping myself as if I'll be safe if this way.
"Sorry."  He swerves, avoiding a moped.

We're silent again, both still half-smirking, half-smirk-hiding.
"You gotta admit, it's pretty funny," I hear.
Instead of defending myself, possibly even complimenting myself for being able to sound like a true Tohokuite I say, "It just popped out!  What am I going to do?  Honestly?  I can't even tell when I'm using the Tohoku dialect?  It's that natural now?  Oh no.....Who else have I said this around?"  It's funny.  I get it.  Except, it's not.  Alpha Male is laughing again.
"I think it's a good sign."
"Good sign?"  Indignant, I fly off the handle.
"Good sign?  It just popped out!  Seriously!  I didn't even know I said it until you pointed it out.  I don't speak standard Japanese any more?  This is not good!  What am I going to do?"  He's still laughing.
"Look," he says, "It is funny.  Everyone knows you're working up there.  It's natural you'd..." and he laughs all over again.  "Sorry," he says.  Is he crying?  He's wiping the corner of his eye.  Come on.  It's not that funny.  "Sorry," he says again, trying to sound normal.  Then it hits me.
"You know," I start.  "It's true."  I tell him the following story.

"I was out to dinner with a bunch of guys from Ofunato, and they asked me what I wanted to eat.  So I said, 'I'll start with sashimi,' at which point they all laughed."  Alpha Male is laughing again.  I know why.
"I said to them, 'What?' and they said, 'You've gone native,' and I was totally confused.  I asked what they meant and they said, 'That's how we'd say it in Tohoku.'"  I continued to explain to Alpha Male how they'd corrected my Japanese, giving me instructions on how people in Tokyo would say "I'll start with sashimi" and while I knew the difference, I had no idea the way I said it was Tohoku-style.  "So, it's true.  Evidently, I now have enough of a Tohoku dialect that I don't even know I'm using it."  I ponder this for a moment.  Is this a problem?  Evidently guessing what I was thinking, Alpha Male says, "That's a good thing."
"Is it?"
"Sure.  It means you really have gone native."
"But, when I'm in Tokyo..."
"No, we get it.  I'll bet I'm not the only one who thinks it's..." and here he stops.  Is he looking for the right word?  Is he about to say, "...who thinks it's cute"?
"It's not cute," I finish his thought for him, guessing.
"Yeah.  It is.  It's good."

So, the consensus is, or so I assume, it's okay for me to speak this way.  I'm not sure I believe this, and I'm certainly not sure I like it, but I decide to accept the inevitable; I now have gone native and it's taken as a good thing.

I sure hope it is.