Naturally, where you grow up leaves an imprint on you, and Louisiana is no exception. Louisiana is such a unique state, and growing up here comes with some weird side effects. Whether you never left or maybe you’ve moved away, you’re bound to have experienced a few of these side effects from life in the bayou.

  1. You measure distance in minutes.

Jay Parker/Flickr Instead of telling someone to go down the road 5 miles, you probably say something like “go down the road about 10 minutes”.

  1. You’re used to keeping one eye on the weather channel during hurricane season.

Kabsik Park/Flickr Just becomes part of your daily routine…

  1. You know your evacuation route and where you’d go.

Cool Revolution/Flickr …and when you’d have to leave to avoid gridlock.

  1. You know how to pronounce Natchitoches…

Anthony Turducken/Flickr

  1. …and Opelousas…

Anthony Turducken/Flickr

  1. …and Lake Pontchartrain…

lilMDP/Flickr

  1. …and Atchafalaya.

Matt Northam/Flickr

  1. You don’t think it’s weird if someone asks if you suck the heads.

Linda MacPhee-Cobb/Flickr That’s where all the flavor is!

  1. Asking if there are gators in the water is a normal question.

John Flannery/Flickr Lakes, rivers, ponds…you never know.

  1. You say “y’all.”

Richard Nix/Flickr

  1. And no matter how old you are, you still say “sir” and “ma’am.”

JouWatch/Flickr It’s a sign of respect, not of age.

  1. You’ve picked a side: Tony’s or Zatarain’s

Steven Brown/Flickr And you put it on EVERYTHING.

  1. This will always be a po’boy.

dabruins07/Flickr Never a hoagie, sub, or grinder.

How many side effects have you experienced? Let us know in the comments below!

Jay Parker/Flickr

Instead of telling someone to go down the road 5 miles, you probably say something like “go down the road about 10 minutes”.

Kabsik Park/Flickr

Just becomes part of your daily routine…

Cool Revolution/Flickr

…and when you’d have to leave to avoid gridlock.

Anthony Turducken/Flickr

lilMDP/Flickr

Matt Northam/Flickr

Linda MacPhee-Cobb/Flickr

That’s where all the flavor is!

John Flannery/Flickr

Lakes, rivers, ponds…you never know.

Richard Nix/Flickr

JouWatch/Flickr

It’s a sign of respect, not of age.

Steven Brown/Flickr

And you put it on EVERYTHING.

dabruins07/Flickr

Never a hoagie, sub, or grinder.

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