Speaker: Well you-know, you're- you're dealing ah- I-guess we were dealing a lot with the- the tech kids. Th-- we call them the four-year kids as opposed to being fi-- the five-year at the time. Interviewer: Yeah. Speaker: Ah we didn't call them matriculation and tech anymore, we called them four-year kids and the five-year kids 'cause the five-year kids were- the boys and girls mixed pretty much.

But our dad thought we should all take matriculation and you can go on to s-- well for girls then you- if you got a job, you got about fifteen dollars a week. Were you going to save to go to university? No way. (Laughs) Boys- they'd work in the mine, get a little bit.

Yes, yes, yes we had um um I had two- th-- three friends up the street from where I lived and ah then another friend um her parents were the superintendent and matron of the County-Home, which was quite a ways out in those days.

No, no. My girlfriend's parents were the superintendent and matron and they ran the- the ah County-Home and.

It was built in ah I’m only guessing but about nineteen-eleven, and my grandfather Bill put his- applied for the job and they called them matrons them days, like you’re the boss but you’re a matron.

One of the older girls in grade thirteen had a boyfriend and his mother was a great friend of our matron.

Interviewer: (laughs) So, um, what- did you guys go to church often, or- Speaker: We did. Like, every Sunday we'd go and then in May would be the May dev-- devotions. Interviewer: Mm-hm. Speaker: I think on Wednesdays and Fridays were May devotions, so we would come to school, walk home, have supper, do the chores and then walk back to church for the devotion and walk back home.

Speaker: Services and things during Lent. Interviewer: Yeah. Speaker: That we went to. Interviewer: Was there a favourite part you had? Speaker: I remember the May devotions. ... Because it was May then and it was nicer. It would be nice to go out, like, walk most of the time.

But I think her- her birthday was on the twenty-fourth of May. And then all of the sudden, they called it this May-Run. (inc) Why May-Run? What is it? (inc) I can see if it's May-Run if that- that's the day- the weekend that the (inc) would run or-something you-know?

Interviewer: But I think her- her birthday was on the twenty-fourth of May. And then all of the sudden, they called it this May-Run. (inc) Why May-Run? What is it? (inc) I can see if it's May-Run if that- that's the day- the weekend that the (inc) would run or-something you-know?

Interviewer: Yeah May- yeah. Well there's May-Run. When I was young, we never called it May-Run, we called it Victoria-Day. Interviewer: (laughs). Speaker: What? Yeah. Interviewer: Yeah, I know. Speaker: I don't know when May-Run started, but that was way after. Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: I finished school, way after. What's May-Run? Twenty-fourth of May, they Queen's birthday, if you don't give the holiday, we'll all run away.

Interviewer: Yeah May- yeah. Well there's May-Run. When I was young, we never called it May-Run, we called it Victoria-Day. Interviewer: (laughs). Speaker: What? Yeah. Interviewer: Yeah, I know. Speaker: I don't know when May-run started, but that was way after. Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: I finished school, way after. What's May-run? Twenty-fourth of May, they Queen's birthday, if you don't give the holiday, we'll all run away.

Interviewer: Yeah May- yeah. Well there's May-Run. When I was young, we never called it May-Run, we called it Victoria-Day. Interviewer: (laughs). Speaker: What? Yeah. Interviewer: Yeah, I know. Speaker: I don't know when May-Run started, but that was way after. Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: I finished school, way after. What's May-run? Twenty-fourth of May, they Queen's birthday, if you don't give the holiday, we'll all run away.

Interviewer: So then would you say that Northern-Ontario is ah speaks English or uses different slang than Southern-Ontario? Speaker: Definitely. Interviewer: Right. Speaker: I can give an example right now (laughs). Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: We call it May Run, they call it May-Two-Four (laughs). Interviewer: That's right. Speaker: They're like, "What is May Run?" We're like, "What?" That's one that sticks out every year

Interviewer: So then would you say that Northern-Ontario is ah speaks English or uses different slang than Southern-Ontario? Speaker: Definitely. Interviewer: Right. Speaker: I can give an example right now (laughs). Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: We call it May Run, they call it May-Two-Four (laughs). Interviewer: That's right. Speaker: They're like, "What is May Run?" We're like, "What?" That's one that sticks out every year.

Interviewer: Is there any- is there any spet-- specific lingo or words that you think are ah unique to Northern-Ontario or the Timmins areas that come to your attention? Speaker: May Run. Nobody knows what May Run is.

Speaker: Um um North-Bay, I know quite a p-- few people from North-Bay and I haven't noticed a different language that much um. Interviewer: What about slang, though? Speaker: Slang? Yes, that whole thing- that May Run, May-Two-Four thing seems to start at- past North-Bay. Interviewer: It's the border? Speaker: Mm-hm hits- it's the border.

And he phoned me and he said "You know where that started?" And I said "No" And he said "Well, I can tell you." And he gave me names dates people and ah I followed up on it, and by golly yes May Run started in this area.

Interviewer: Um what would you call the- the ah weekend that just passed. Speaker: Oh (laughs). Victoria-Day? Interviewer: Okay. Speaker: The long weekend in May. Um the ah May Run. Interviewer: Right. Speaker: But do you know the history of May Run?

Interviewer: A lot of people call it the Two-Four down south (inc) and May Run up there. Speaker: Oh yeah? Well yeah May Run, yeah. But I just call it the long weekend because that wasn't a highlight in my life to go out camping and drinking on the May long weekend (laughs).