"Wicked Awesome" & Other Masshole Slang

For the first time in months, I was told "...and I love your accent".

I'm pretty sure I don't have the typical Boston accent (you can hear all my "r's" and I'm too much of a prep for that). However, I do forget that when I use inherently "Masshole" terminology, it confuses people from out of state. And considering I go to school with a large population of Texans and Californians, things can get dicey fast. Words like "rotary" aren't just for phones in MA, and calling something/someone the derogatory term "wicked" can be the greatest compliment in the 617/508/413. 

I've compiled a list of "frequently heard Masshole terms" for all those who have ever questioned my sanity based on the highly regionally-specific slang I use in every day conversation. Definitions brought to you by Masshole.com and Boston College, and edited by yours truly. 

• Breakdown Lane-- Highway shoulder. Also, an oxymoron -- the last place you want to break down in greater Boston is in the breakdown lane, especially during rush hour, when it becomes the high-speed lane (in some places, even legally).

• Bubbler-- That's a water fountain to the rest of the country/world.

• Candlepins-- Boston bowling; involves tiny little pins and tiny little balls (the pins are so hard to hit, you get three tries a frame).

• The Cape - Cape Cod

• Children's - Children's Hospital Boston

• Comm Ave - Commonwealth Avenue

• The Common - Boston Common. Never "Boston Commons", unless you want to cement your out-of-stater status. 

• Decked - adj., dressed nicely ("decked out"); past tense verb, to have been punched

• Jimmies - Those little chocolate sprinkles you get on top of your ice cream cone.

• Packie - Where you buy liquor. Used to be closed on Sundays, but voters repealed most of the remaining Blue Laws in Nov., 1994. (Take that AA). 

• The Pike - The Massachusetts Turnpike. Also, the world's longest parking lot, at least out by Sturbridge on the day before Thanksgiving.

• Rotary - A traffic circle. One of Massachusetts' two main contributions to the art of traffic regulation (the other being the red-and-yellow pedestrian-crossing light).

• Sketchy - A term used, most often by teenagers, referring to something strange or out of place (such as a suspicious person). This has had a recent resurgence in popularity and is big with the ages 12-16 Masshole crowd. 

• The T - The Boston subway system. Represents the triumph of sweaty logic, or something, because it does not actually stand for any single word.

• Triple-decker - Boston's contribution to architecture -- a narrow, three-story house, in which each floor is a separate apartment. 

• Westa Wuhstuh - Terra incognita; beyond the bounds of civilization; my father's birthplace; location of the New England Six Flags.

• Wicked - A general intensifier: "He's wicked loud!" Almost always used as an adverb, rather than an adjective. Some Bostonians feel it is grammatically improper not to put an adjective or verb after "wicked"... they would be correct. 

• Wicked pissa! - Something that's way cool.

Fellow Massholes, feel free to comment and add your own words or phrases that I forgot. 

Confused out-of-staters, y'all can leave comments with any remaining questions you have.

Also, a wicked big shout out to my Russian readers! They've been incredibly loyal, and I truly appreciate their readership and continued dedication to Big Apple Masshole. 
Спасибо всем большое за чтение моего блога. Вы были превосходны в моем блоге аудитории , и я ценю вас очень много.