Since we're on pronunciation: My mother had an odd (to me) way of pronouncing "ruin." It was neither "roon" nor "ru-in," both of which I hear frequently. Rather she slighted the u sound and pronounced the i as ee. (Forgive me for not having the appropriate terminology.) The closest I can come to describing the combination sound is that it was similar to the oi in coin, only with u instead of o. Is that a diphthong??? Anyway, I've never heard anyone else use that particular pronunciation, even those who came from the same area of Pennsylvania as she did. I'd be interested (if you can figure out what the 'ell I'm talking about) to know if it's common elsewhere.