Given the communications challenge resulting from the various accents spoken throughout the state -- is blogging a more effective way for West Virginians to communicate? ;)
"I remember the first time I ever drove through deep, southern West Virginia. I couldn't even understand the accent of the people there, you know. They couldn't understand me. West Virginia, actually, is a state that's made up of some different kinds of communities. " (Robert Grimes)
For persons interested in dialect research: The International Dialects of English Archive (IDEA) Web site has several examples of downloadable sound files (MP3) and documents (PDFs) online featuring West Virginia accent/dialect speakers.
