Country Tact

West Virginians are tactful. I make my best shot at unfamiliar place names, but I've learned I have to come right out and ask, "How should I pronounce that?" or I'll never find out.

I called our road "Maw-zee" Road (M-a-u-z-y) for quite a while and never had a clue that I was off base. But, it turns out, it's "Mosey," as in "just mosey along." Mauzy (or Mauzy Gap) Road is a narrow, twisty road of blind curves, and you really ought to mosey, but many drivers just barrel along.

With prededents like "Oswego" and "Otsego" in mind, I never had a doubt about "Onego," an unincorporated place further West on Route 33. But I did ask, and it's "One-go," in other words, not 2-go or 3-go.