Conversation Piece...

Picture, if you will, a busy 'Subway' in downtown Charleston and me, quite frankly, starving as i stand in the queue waiting to be served. There is obviously quite a line as it's a busy restaurant and there aren't too many staff on hand. But still, the queue is moving reasonably. I get to the start of the counter and ask for a foot-long Club sandwich (told you i was hungry) and then shuffle slowly along to to the vegetable part of the whole process.

Server: Lettuce, Tomato? (pronounced 'Tom-ay-to' of course)

Me: Yes. Lettuce, tomato, green pepper please.

Server (having not added tomato): What else?

Me: Tomato as well please.

Server: Mustard only?

Me: Excuse me? No. No mustard. But i'd like tomato as well please.

Server slides sandwich along to co-worker: Mustard only.

Me: No, no, no, no!!

Voila, a large dollop of mustard gets added, i promptly bang my head again the glass counter. Okay, not really. I pointed out the error and the first Server insisted that i had asked for Mustard Only, but the sandwich was remade and all was well and done. After being here for two and a half plus years now, i had grown accustomed to my accent being misheard, but this is the first it has happened in some time. I guess it was a combination of the noise, and how busy the place was, added to my insistence on saying 'Tom-ah-to' that confused matters. But how Tomato sounds like mustard only? Well, your guess is as good as mine. Thankfully, i got my sandwich and that was all that mattered.