Cellar Scribblings

[serious crayons]

I'd hazard a guess it isn't an East Coast/Midwest thing, or isn't exclusively, anyway. It may be more complicated than that.

My dad, who was raised in a more or less rural/small town situation, tends to say "cellar." I was raised in a more urban atmosphere--relatively speaking, anyway--and I tend to say "basement." I also seem to make a distinction: a "basement" is "finished" (some type of flooring, maybe a drop ceiling with inset lights), whereas a "cellar" is "unfinished" (dirt floor, no walls except the foundation, maybe light bulbs on wire for illumination). But after I've spent some time with my dad I tend to fall back into some of his speech patterns and say "cellar."

That makes sense, up to a point. I grew up in a suburb, so urban-ish, and I say basement. But what about Chuck? Chuck, didn't you grow up in an urban area? Or maybe when you came up with your username you couldn't think of an appropriate rhyme for "basement"? 

I think a basement can easily be unfinished. In real-estate ads, where they call it "basement," at least around here, they specify whether it's finished or unfinished. My basement is more on the unfinished side, though it currently has old linoleum over part of the floor and a drop ceiling. But you're right, some of the basements I have seen -- carpeting, nice furniture, big-screen TV, maybe a bar and/or pool table -- I can't imagine calling those cellars. You can barely even call them basements!

And those places that have narrow wood-plank steps down into a cave-like concrete room, where the walls are lined with shelves of home-canned food vegetables and jellies that the mom "put up" herself with produce from the garden and they can be kind of scary? Definitely cellars.

Chuck, what was your former dwelling space like?

[Front-Ranger]

And then there's the "garden level" which just means a basement that is not so far down and has windows that look out onto ground level.

I now live in what's called a "walk-out basement": garden level on the east side, full length windows and doors on the south and west.

[CellarDweller]

There are differences between cellars and basements, and technically my parents' home has a basement.   We've always called it a cellar.

http://civilengineersforum.com/basement-cellar-difference/

[ZK]

Hi Matt
Hope you have some cool breezes on Waiheke.
For everyone else NZ is having a heat wave. Some places in the 30s'C which, as an Aussie by birth, I should laugh at calling a heatwave but I have become acclimatised. I moved from Sydney to escape the heat and they have had record temps over 45'C this summer. Even down here in the south we have forecast 27'C again today and 33' for Wednesday, which if it happens will be a record.
My sister asks when I am moving to Antarctica. 

Hi Brian  ummm I have moved to Canterbury so we have had 32+ degrees, then blasted by North West winds. Now its apparently down to 16 degrees, crazy summer would be an understatement. Don't think I could cope with 45 degrees, I'd probably skip Antartica and head for the Auckland Islands as alternative. Hope you are well.

[ZK]

I had to google to find out what a comforter was, funny we all speak English but some times we don't. I know I get myself in to trouble some times with my accent overseas, having to repeat myself and on occasion even having to spell - not that I have an accent of course LOL

[serious crayons]

And then there's the "garden level" which just means a basement that is not so far down and has windows that look out onto ground level.

I think "garden level" is a euphemism for "basement." My then-husband lived in one of those when he moved to Chicago. It wasn't much, if any, higher than my actual basement, which has windows that look out at ground level. And it was on the same level as the laundry room.

I now live in what's called a "walk-out basement": garden level on the east side, full length windows and doors on the south and west.

That's the best kind. And big windows looking south and west are my favorite.

[serious crayons]

There are differences between cellars and basements, and technically my parents' home has a basement.   We've always called it a cellar.

http://civilengineersforum.com/basement-cellar-difference/

Thanks, Chuck! Who knew there was an architectural difference? I thought it was semantic, like pail and bucket, or soda and pop.

[CellarDweller]

I had to google to find out what a comforter was, funny we all speak English but some times we don't. I know I get myself in to trouble some times with my accent overseas, having to repeat myself and on occasion even having to spell - not that I have an accent of course LOL

[CellarDweller]

Thanks, Chuck! Who knew there was an architectural difference? I thought it was semantic, like pail and bucket, or soda and pop.

Oh, the soda/pop debate.


I went to a diner with friends  down south, I asked for a soda.  Waitress looked at me weird, and I said, "you know, Coke" and she said "Oh, you mean "pop"!" and I said..."No, I mean soda.", and she said "It's called "pop"."

I bet her $10.00 that it was soda.  She accepted the bet and went back to the kitchen.   She comes out with a Coke bottle, and she's laughing, she holds it out to me, and on the bottom it says  "Soda Pop".



I left her a big time for just having a good sense of humor.

[brianr]

It's neither, it is a soft drink 
And let's not get started on leaving a tip. On trip Advisor we continually tell people not to tip when in Australia or New Zealand.
However on my sister's last visit to me, she asked for a "skinny flat white" and the barista told her she came from Australia. She had forgotten it is a "trim flat white" here. I just ask for a cappuccino, same everywhere.