Hello All,
This is a post slightly out of the ordinary, but one I am sure you will all find entertaining and purposeful. Recently I have been taking extra special note of what one would call "culture". Not just English, culture, but how other international students bring their culture here during their time abroad. I have found this mostly entertaining, yet some moments end up being rather uncomfortable. It has also made me notice how much we as international students serve as examples of our home countries, for better or for worse.
For instance, the girl next to me in the library about two weeks ago. She was from some Asiatic country, the origin of which I am not totally sure, but it really doesn't matter. What matters is that there are about twenty open desks in the library from her to choose from and she leaves one in between her and I, sits down, and promptly proceeds to belch. Not just a burp, but a belch that contained the stench of the spicy prawn flavored potato chips she was munching ever so loudly on. My eyebrows raise and my head turns slowly her direction, you know, just to see if she is embarrassed. Who knows, maybe it slipped out, maybe she thought it was going to be one of those silent passing of air burps, like after you eat too quickly. NOPE! She doesn't even look up, but proceeds to let out another study shattering prawn bomb. I say all this because if she was the only person I ever came in contact with from her country, it would reflect very poorly upon her upbringing. Ultimately, as we humans sadly do, I would end up judging people from her home based on my experience with her. I guess it is just an eye opening experience (or eye closing experience as you will soon find out) and made me aware that I have to be careful about how I portray myself as an American during my time in England and Europe. Once people know I am an American, my words and actions will be scrutinized, much like that when I tell people I am a follower of Christ. Well, Prawn Bomb kept burping, and as I wrote the final sentence of my paper, she did the unthinkable, she pulled the pin on a Prawn Gas Grenade. When that sucker exploded, I was literally crying. Half from the eye burning smell, the other from laughing so hard at the fact that this petite little asian girl just cleared nearly a whole floor of a 5 story university library. It ain't a small place, and it ain't an easy one to clear. I have yet to see her again.
Though I have made the conscious effort to give our lovely United States of America a good name, others have not fared so well in their exploits. Again, it was a girl. (It's not that we men have become such proper gentlemen, these just happen to be the experiences I encountered.) My mates and I were all enjoying a nice pint at the campus pub, taking it easy and slow. We watched the footy match, played a few rounds of pool, and laughed the night away. It gets quite crowded and rather jovial on wednesday nights at the campus pub, and some people get a little too excited, a little too quick. Well, as I approach the bar, being it my round to buy (A holdover from the previous weekend. Never try to cheat an Englishman out of a pint. He will always remember who bought last. They are like Buddha-Yoda's in this sense. Ever laughing and smiling like Buddha, but every knowledgeable and remembering like Yoda). Sorry, I got way off topic there. Well, as I am standing at the bar, a very wobbly, high-heeled American girl approaches the counter. I know she is American by the way she talks, and by the way she is shouting to her friends on the other side of the pub as if they were still in the States. It is about 10:00pm at this point, something she most definitely is not aware of, as the acknowledgement of time left the capacity of her brain about six shots ago. After stumbling a couple of times, using my arm as stability, she finally graces the marble counter with her near 75 lbs of weight (purse included). After a minute or two of "ummmmmsssss" and "uhhhhhhhhhssssss", she finally goes "I'llllll havvvvveeee (drunk hiccup)... I will have a Budweiser and a Corona Light... (giggles, and leans in to say in a failed attempted whisper) They're both for meeeee". This is where I so badly wanted to step in and say "Actually, she won't be having either of those". Partly because she had definitely had too much, and partly because she was ordering a Mexican beer and an American beer in ENGLAND!!!!! It was the first time I saw with my own eyes the true ugly American. Well, she made it about three steps before spilling 90% of the Corona on the floor, and as for the fate of the Budweiser... probably similar to that of her state of mind... wasted.
Well that concludes my comments on culture for now. I do not mean to be condescending, and am in no way over dramatizing these events (well, maybe the fart a little bit, but it really was pretty bad). There will most likely be more comments on "culture" and "life" to follow. I love people. Good, bad, or indifferent, and I love to write about what I see.
Finally, I want to comment on something a little more serious. This is mainly for the men following this blog. The month of November has started, more importantly the month of Movember. The 'Mo' is short for the Mustache and each November, men across the world are growing out their mustaches to support men with prostate cancer. Women rally in support of one another to save their twins every year, so we should too! Check out www.movember.com for details. You don't need to do the whole raise money if you don't want to, but it may be worth it for some of you to just grow the stache out in support of our fellow brothers. I know I am, as meager as it may be.
Thanks for making it through another novella of mine, the inner workings of my mind don't really stop generating life experiences into stories. Lots of love, and I miss everyone last one of you who read this on a regular basis, as well as those who don't.
Blustery Norwich Winds In Our Sails,
The Pirate Crew
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