BS: British-American cultural differences 2

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: running.hare
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 06:20 PM

I've read though both threads & picked out a few points to answer from a young English point of veiw. ---------------------- "To serve this purpose they have to be carefully maintained. People prune them and interweave their branches to keep them strong and tight." <- this is called cut & lay, & yes I beleive the are grants availiable for maintaining heges in this manner. "While we're on the subject of horticultural practices: does anyone know, or care to know, what a coppice is? Or a pollarded oak? An espaliered apple tree? I'm full of arcane lore!" A coppice, usualy a hazel coppice, is a perticular type of managed woodland. The Hazel will be coppiced, cut down to almost ground level, on a 3 / 4 year rotation. Ths produces lots of strait thinish shafts of hazel which can be used to make hurdles etc.. & burned to make charcoal. to pollard an oak (or any other tree) is to remove its crown (top grouth) to promote healthy low down side shoots. an espaliered fruit tree, is tied in to a specialy shaped support so it grows to a flat fan shape. -------------------------- some1 said their friend made a peace sign in a bar to signifie2. when using 2 fingers in briten you have to be careful side of your hand is towards the person. Palm towards person is perfectly exceptible, back of hand towards person = rude gesture (which has it's roots in the british mastery of the long bow) -------------------------- explain A leval O level GCSE,

GCSE = General Certificate of Secondary Education. you take GCSE exams @ the age of 16, but start the course 's 2 yrs prior. before GCSE's where introdused @ 16 you'd either sit O~levels cGCE (General certificate of Education) if you wheren't up 2 O~levels.

A~levels are the main thing studied by 6th form students (16~18) & people whould traditionaly sit 3 / 4 A~levels. (the A stands for Advanced) but now they've changed it all & nobody understands the new AS & A2 system!!!!!!!!!!!

------------------------------

"How common are porches on homes in the UK? I love porches...and some of the old homes in the States where they wrap around two sides of the house...WOW! " porch V verander. we keep our coats etc in the porch. It can also refer to a small roof over the frount door to keep off the rain while you find what you did with your keys. a large covered area atached to the out side of the house etc whould generaly be called a Verander. ---------------------- "The first season or two of "Red Dwarf" seemed more cerebral to me than subsequent seasons. When the show became popular in the U.S., it seemed like they jazzed it up with flashier colors and more explosions, which is pretty much what I would expect if they wanted to market to the majority of people in the U.S. " no they just had a bit of money to put in to it when it became a sucsess, killed the show a bit ;) ----------------- "The kids are supposed to use the money to buy fireworks, which they then stuff into the guy." 1) It is an offence to sell fireworks to anyone under the age of 16 (may have increased to 18 reasently) 2) no1 in there right mind whould throw firworks on to a bonfire! especialy stuffed in the guy! (although I'm told when my dad was a kid a carefully stuffed guy was sucure to the top of a bonfire B4 it was lit.) Nowa days the bonfire & the fire-works are kept distinktly seperate, & no1 except the one adult in charge of the fireworks goes NE where near the lighting area. --------------------- I apologise for my awful speeling ;)

~ Lizabee.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 12:41 PM

This discussion will be continued at BS: British-American cultural differences 3.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 11:34 AM

Hello, Can some body make a part two please(It is hard for me to read long threads).thanks.john

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 11:21 AM

Allie Kiwi: A stick of butter is one quarter pound.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Maryrrf
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 11:02 AM

We once had some guests in from New Zealand here in Richmond. They were staying in a very upscale hotel and would drink at the bar/cocktail lounge every night. They couldn't figure out why the service got downright hostile - the cocktail waitress slammed the glasses down on their table, the bartender glared at them and they were made to feel very unwelcome. The problem was they weren't tipping. You're supposed to tip pretty generously in bars and cocktail lounges (nice looking cocktail waitresses usually earn pretty good money!).

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 06:26 AM

Allie kiwi, blame Napoleon for the driving on the wrong side of the road thing. For some reason he decided to dispense with centuries old tradition, and the Americans followed suit. Dawn of a brand new world and all that. At least the Americans had and still have the sense to resist metrication.

And don't you think the Americam way of spelling "honor" , "color" etc is much closer to the classical roots of these words than the Briitish way is?

Murray

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST,allie kiwi
Date: 19 Sep 01 - 03:27 AM

This thread is hilarious! It is interesting to see similarities and differences - paricularly as I am from New Zealand and standing off at a distance.

It seems to me that New Zeland is even more british than Australia is, who have a few more american tendencies than us. (eg pronunciation like 'dance' - and dont get me onto how they say 'six')

In NZ we have a Guy Fawkes celebration, which to me has never really made sense, particularly if one is a Roman Catholic.

Things that have always interested me about american things are:

a) what is a stick of butter? how much does it weigh?

b) why do you drive on the right side of the road? (did you all throw the tea off the boats into Boston Harbour and say 'Guys, from now we're being non conformist and driving our carts and carriages on the other side of the road!'?)

c) why did the letters 'u' and 'h' become such parah's in spelling? (eg in colour and yoghurt)

Allie who is neither a bird nor a green furry piece of fruit

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 10:01 PM

Vegetable marrow :
The plant species Cucurbita pepo, which produces long, cylindrical fruits. These are usually green but may also be yellow, white, or striped. Like their relatives melons and cucumbers, they are climbing or trailing annuals, with large, prickly leaves and stems. In North America these fruits are known as summer squashes, and include the American pumpkin. They originated in tropical America and are now grown all over the world as a vegetable. Other varieties of C. pepo include ornamental gourds, and those with fruit used when young as courgettes, which are also known as zucchini.

Trifle is a confection of layers of cake alternating with whipped cream and fruit, topped with custard. There are many different recipes, I seem to remember my mother incorporated jelly (=US Jello) into her trifle.

Murray

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: marymarymary
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 09:37 PM

Ickle Dorritt: Sorry, no idea what a "trifle" is... is it something to eat? It seems like most of the semantic differences are food-related.

Something I always wondered about is this: what is a "vegetable marrow"? In Agatha Christie books, Poirot was always talking about retiring to raise them, and I never knew what they were. I found a picture of one on a webpage, and it looked like a zucchini to me, but someone in this thread said that in the UK zucchinis are called "courgettes", so is a vegetable marrow actually something else? Do we have them in the US by some other name?

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST,Lyle
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 08:33 PM

John Bond does a funny poem called "Toast." In it, he refers to "up toast." What is that?????

Lyle

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 08:16 PM

Ebbie, the factually incorrect part of your post was in the first line, where you stated that Thanksgiving Day was the third Thursday of November.

Murray

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Linda Kelly
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 04:24 PM

Thanks marymarymary.What about the trifle?

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: marymarymary
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 01:43 PM

Ickle Dorritt: In the states that require pre-marriage blood tests (I'm not sure that all of them do) they are testing for diseases or traits that would affect potential offspring of the couple (sickle cell trait in either, or negative blood type, syphilis, or rubella in the mother). In some states, such as Indiana, the premarital blood test is only required of women who are of childbearing age. I guess it's done on the principle that many people will wait until marriage to start a family, and that if there is a reason why you and your future spouse should be cautious about having children, it's best to know that beforehand so that it can be treated or special precautions can be taken. What's actually tested for varies from state to state. The only thing that Indiana tests for is Rubella.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Ebbie
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 12:19 PM

Murray, which part of what I said is incorrect?

Incidentally, some of the information given on that link is incorrect. It says: "Over the next seventy-five years, Presidents followed Lincoln's precedent, annually declaring a national Thanksgiving Day. Then, in 1941, Congress permanently established the last Thursday of each November as a national holiday."

In 1941, under President Roosevelt, Congress established the last Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day. I think it lasted two years, before they (we) went back to celebrating it the fourth Thursday of the month.

Check out this year.

Ebbie

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 11:46 AM

For those who aren't familiar with American Thanksgiving: There are certain foods traditionally associated with it: roast whole turkey stuffed with a bread-based stuffing (recipes vary), cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes (yams), and pumpkin pie. Any of these things might be eaten at other times, too, especially at Christmas, though some people favor ham at Christmas. There would probably other dishes, too.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 11:10 AM

Thanks Ebbie & Murray.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 10:58 AM

Being from Canada, Living in the Georgia USA, having many English friend. I can Favor the Colourful expressions on theis thread, S'all goood...Y'all

Canada's Thanksgiving is the second Monday in October. Celebrated in much the same way as In the USA. It is not as big a deal in Canada for a number of reasons. We don't go in for the whole Pilgrim/Indian thing. So we have fewer traditions. In the US, because the holiday is a Thursday closer to Christmas you tend to get 4 day weekends and family reunions. In Canada there is no holiday between Halloween and Christmas so the Christmas decorations go up in the malls very early in November.

Bon Fire night (Guy Fawlkes We didn't have an effigy or collect for Guy I think we were celebrating that he almost got away with it.) was a very big holiday in Newfoundland when I was growing up and for generations before. Most of the pranks occured on Nov.5 same as the fires except for the tradition of "Bucking" materials to burn. Bucking basically means stealing. But not stealing something of great value. One would buck apples from someone's tree or buck worn out tires or old barrels from a backyard or shed.

There would be great rivalries between the boys from different parts of town to see who made the greatest fire. Most of the bucking was from each other.

Here is Georgia I have a number of English friend's who miss "proper biscuits". I would not dare pat them on the fanny. Another froend regularly had Popadoms and curry powder flown in so that he could have a "proper English Curry"

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 10:58 AM

Being from Canada, Living in the Georgia USA, having many English friend. I can Favor the Colourful expressions on theis thread, S'all goood...Y'all

Canada's Thanksgiving is the second Monday in October. Celebrated in much the same way as In the USA. It is not as big a deal in Canada for a number of reasons. We don't go in for the whole Pilgrim/Indian thing. So we have fewer traditions. In the US, because the holiday is a Thursday closer to Christmas you tend to get 4 day weekends and family reunions. In Canada there is no holiday between Halloween and Christmas so the Christmas decorations go up in the malls very early in November.

Bon Fire night (Guy Fawlkes We didn't have an effigy or collect for Guy I think we were celebrating that he almost got away with it.) was a very big holiday in Newfoundland when I was growing up and for generations before. Most of the pranks occured on Nov.5 same as the fires except for the tradition of "Bucking" materials to burn. Bucking basically means stealing. But not stealing something of great value. One would buck apples from someone's tree or buck worn out tires or old barrels from a backyard or shed.

There would be great rivalries between the boys from different parts of town to see who made the greatest fire. Most of the bucking was from each other.

Here is Georgia I have a number of English friend's who miss "proper biscuits". I would not dare pat them on the fanny. Another froend regularly had Popadoms and curry powder flown in so that he couls have a "proper English Curry"

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Linda Kelly
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 10:09 AM

Whilst we are on the subject -can you get a decent trifle in the U.S.? also, can you explain why you need a blood test before you get a marraige license - this isn't required in the U.K.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 09:36 AM

RE: cheerleaders and dance teams.

After watching a dance team perform at halftime in a local basketball game, Lars, the Swedish exchange student at our school said, "What is the purpose of this?"

Mary (NEVER a cheerleader, but the mother of one)

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST,SarahC
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 08:43 AM

Mischief Night is November 4 - the day before Bonfire Night. It is a particular Yorkshire custom as far as I understand, because that was the night that the Gunpowder plotters were in Parliament laying the explosives. Fawkes and many of the crew were from Yorkshire.

Mischief Night means the kids go round wreaking havoc (lard on the doorsteps, eggs broken on the upstairs windows etc). At least on Halloween you are given the chance to buy the little blighters off).

Cheers

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: kendall
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 08:43 AM

Just for the record, Plymouth Rock is a myth. Oh, there is a rock alright, but it is nowhere near the waters edge.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Nemesis
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 08:18 AM

Someone may have posted this already - We do have baton-twirling in UK (My Uncle was President of the European Baton Twirling Asssociation) - altho it's more of a personal sport choice than a cultural one.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 06:37 AM

Uhhh, not really correct Ebbie. Click here for The Origin of Thanksgiving Day

Murray

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Ebbie
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 02:47 AM

Thanksgiving Day, the third Thursday of each November, is a national holiday in America; a holiday officially pronounced by the President each year.

The thanks (originally thanks for a bountiful harvest) go to whomever each person perceives as being the giver of all things good. Traditionally God, but I see no reason why one could not give thanks to the universe or Goddess, whatever.

Presents are not normally given but Hallmark, et al, has seized this day as another marketing opportunity and you will now find in the stores a wide array of Thanksgiving cards. (Stay tuned. Another ten years and it will have become another 6 week extravaganza.)

Over the years a certain sort of decoration has come to denote Thanksgiving. For instance, a turkey, whether live or on paper or a ceramic figure, is a symbol of Thanksgiving. So are cornucopias overflowing with harvested vegetables and fruits, as are paper tablecloths decorated with autumn colors.

I know Canada has a Thanksgiving Day too. How does it differ from the US version? Anybody?

Ebbie

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 18 Sep 01 - 01:47 AM

A question for our US friends, What is Thanksgiving, who are you thanking & for what, Do you send cards/presents to friends? When is it? Cheers.john

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: JulieF
Date: 02 Sep 00 - 09:52 AM

Going back to roundabouts - has anyone else seen the one in the south of England - near Hemel Hemstead that is really 6 or 8 little roundabouts joined together. Sign for it looks like a molecule ( a bit like Benzene) and cars go in evry direction imaginable.

Julie

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: sledge
Date: 02 Sep 00 - 08:09 AM

From my visits to the US:

Catfish is great, cornbread is very good with beans and rice, Wisconsin bratwurst is fabulous especialy if preboiled in beer before grilling. Down side has been most US cheese I have found to be feeble tasting, the exception was Monterey Jack with Jalapeno peppers in it. My exposure to grits left a very unpleasant tatste.

As for UK food, I consider steak and Kidney pudding to be the food of the Gods.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Penny S.
Date: 02 Sep 00 - 05:39 AM

There are traditions of mischief around GF night, in some areas it's called Mischief Night, but until the US Halloween customs came back over the pond a few years this had fallen into abeyance, encouraged by the police. I haven't seen many guys lately. There is less readiness to accept children off by themselves, interacting with unknown people. I'll try and find my book on seasonal customs, but I haven't seen it for some time, and last time the perfect binding had unbound.

I heard a program last year about an incident in East Anglia, when, unnoticed because of the detonations in the street, someone blew up the new organ in the church, a crime never solved. The vicar, young scion of the local big house, had installed it to expel the choir and band (see Hardy) with their right of choosing the psalm, through which they could comment on local issues. The program pointed out that in this particular village there was a conflict between the villagers who believed the village to be open (not controlled by the big house) and the local dominant family, who didn't.

There was a widespread tradition of using GF as a time to express opinion which at other times would be risky - jobs could be lost. The attitude of authority to this has been negative, and there are continued attempts to end or control the survivals in such a way that they lose all resemblance to the original. In Sussex, those who do this are liable to end up in effigy as enemies of Bonfire. Bridgewater in Somerset, has a similar situation as the town no longer approves of bonfires on the main, now tarmac'd street.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~bonboy/bfl.htm

Bonfire

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: M.Ted
Date: 22 Aug 00 - 04:31 PM

No, it was London, alright, I know, because there was a tea kettle in my room.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 22 Aug 00 - 04:00 PM

If this had happened in the US, I would ask, were you watching "Saturday Night Live"? (A show that often does brilliant parodies of commercials.) This certainly sounds like the kind of thing they have done.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: M.Ted
Date: 22 Aug 00 - 03:46 PM

I am late again, but have a question, and this may be the place for it-- Just spent a few days in London, and, saw on the telly(what we would call a TV) a commercial for what appeared to be nappies for adults, however, they were not being promoted to persons with bladder control problems, the message was targetted at a younger audience, and promoted the idea that it was no longer necessary for healthy, normal people, to get out of bed when you needed to relieve themselves, thanks to this new product, they could simply let loose, then roll over and go back to sleep--

Did I hear right? Or did I misunderstand? Is there a general feeling over there that it is just too darn much trouble to get up at night and make a trip down the hall?

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Bert
Date: 22 Aug 00 - 01:06 PM

troll, you'll have to send me a pair to see if I agree with you.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST,PatJoe
Date: 22 Aug 00 - 01:00 PM

Has anyone in the US ever seen a tin of HP's All Day Breakfast?

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: ol'troll
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 07:27 PM

This is to give notice that the finest kippers in the world come from the Isle of Man and preferably from Peel on the Islands west coast. This is simple truth and I will brook no argument to the contrary.

The best are to be had in July when the herring are running so the kippers are fresh. There are Manxmen who only eat kippers at that time.

A couple of pairs with eggs and whole-meal bread and fresh-brewed tea is a breakfast that a king would envy.

But don't take my word for it. Go there and try them yourself.

troll

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 06:36 PM

OK, here's what I know about Guy Fawkes Day: Kids start preparing for it a week or so before the actual day. Usually a few preteen kids working together will first build a "guy" - a dummy made from old clothes stuffed with rags or crumpled newspaper. They usually put him in a wheelbarrow, or nowadays tie him to a plastic lawn chair, to make him easily portable. Usually on the Saturday before GF Day, they will set him up in a public place, anywhere there is a lot of foot traffic, and accost passersby with the words "A penny for the guy." (They don't go door to door, like American trick-or-treaters.) People are expected to give them a little money. (More than a penny, nowadays, I suspect.) The kids are supposed to use the money to buy fireworks, which they then stuff into the guy.

You will see signs posted around the neighborhood announcing that there will be a bonfire at such-and-such a place, sponsored by such-and-such an organization. That's because, in the interest of safety, it's a good idea to have this part supervised by adults. On the night of November 5, the kids bring their guys and throw them on the fire.

I haven't actually witnessed such a bonfire, but when I visited England shortly before Nov. 5, 1985, I saw several "guys."

I'm interested in hearing from Brits about their own experiences. Is Guy Fawkes Day, like American Halloween, also a time for pranks and minor vandalism? Americans often have fond memories of Halloween, because it is often their first experience of being outdoors at night in groups with no adults.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Whistle Stop
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 01:05 PM

Just jumped onto this thread, after avoiding it for some time. Regarding "roundabouts," I think they are the same thing we in the northeastern United States (the half-dozen states collectively known as "New England") call "rotaries". It's basically a traffic circle to handle cars coming from several different intersecting roads. They are common in my part of the country, but people from other parts of the U.S. hate them. It doesn't help that the rules seem to change periodically -- so there is no common understanding about whether you're supposed to yield to the oncoming traffic, or to the traffic that was already in the rotary.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Burke
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 12:58 PM

Australian: bubbler = drinking fountain

Someone from around Milwaukee, Wisconsin must have been the importer or exporter of the first of these to Australia :-)

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 12:45 PM

Sorry Quincy, I was having a Pratchett moment there.
Although you did remind me of the difference in definitions between the US and UK of "Fanny." It's MUCH ruder in England.

Then there are the things that you just don't expect. The first time I went to England I wanted to try a crumpet. So I went to a bakery (near Boscombe Downs) and was told that they were out of season!

Crumpets got seasons???

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: celticblues5
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 12:00 PM

Jim

OK, I'll go for it - what DO they to for GF day these days? - Different from the classic literary scenes of bonfires & effigies?

The electric shower thing was interesting - lately there have been little blurbs about this great new product - a heating coil that heats water just before using, as an alternative to big ol' water heaters - touted as an energy-saving device! lol - as they say, nothing new under the sun.....

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Quincy
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 09:34 AM

No Rabbit!!!! Bob's your uncle and Fanny's your aunt!!!!!!

Yvonne

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: rabbitrunning
Date: 21 Aug 00 - 08:52 AM

But surely Bjorn Stronginthearm is my uncle.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Brendy
Date: 20 Aug 00 - 08:40 PM

Bob's your uncle. The Definition.

B.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Roo
Date: 20 Aug 00 - 08:26 PM

Here you go Gary T - Strine at it's best. (Strine is how Australians are supposed to pronounce the word, "Australian" and so it means our distinct Australian language) You are right that ochre is an earthy colour, but an "ocher" (sometimes written okker; pron: okka) = an uncultivated Australian male arvo = afternoon footie = football chook = chicken (chook raffles are popular in footie clubs) mozzie = mosquito barbie = bar-b-que yobbo = similar to ocker ute = open backed van bludger = someone who bludges to bludge = do no work or borrow without the intention of paying back bubbler = drinking fountain

There are thousands of others. If you are interested there's a very good site which has a lot of Australian slang definitions: http://www.apex.net.au/~me/indexas.html

Bob's your uncle: Here in Oz we use it to mean "and that's that" or "hey presto" at the end of an explanation as to why or how something works or happens.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: GUEST,Crazy Eddie
Date: 20 Aug 00 - 06:00 AM

I've been told that John Cleese [of Fawlty Toweres & Monty Python fame] was once asked on American radio, what he saw as the main differences between English &Americans His reply (so the story goes) was: #1 We speak English, you don't #2 When we hold a world series, we invite other countries to actually take part. & #3 When you meet our Head of State, you are expected to go down on ONE knee!

Has anyone mentioned that chips are really crisps, whereas fries are chips?

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Penny S.
Date: 20 Aug 00 - 05:35 AM

We do eat pancakes at other times as well, but Shrove Tuesday is essential. Try a search on Pancake Day or Olney, where they have races tossing pancakes - I don't know if anything is there.

On the other hand, I do know there are a number of Bonfire sites, or try fireworks for links to all that is left of a fine old tradition of sending up authority rotten. My feeling is that to allow a tradition of rebellious behaviour while appearing to condemn it and trying to ban it is a very good way of keeping dissent under control.

Penny

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: rabbitrunning
Date: 19 Aug 00 - 11:57 PM

I'm a children's librarian (in Boston, Massachusetts), so I have seen a lot of the UK/US variations in children's books. Mostly they are dependent on who published first, and whether or not the other publisher is interested in taking the time and effort to change the words or spelling for the "home" edition. With Harry Potter, the concern _was_ that US children wouldn't know what a philosopher's stone was, and also that they wouldn't touch the book without something more recognizable in the title. Foolish mortals.

I've been reading British mysteries and books, and watching Dr. Who, and various sitcoms for years, so very little of the vocabulary baffles me. And the children I know who have heard about the controversy think it's nonsense. As one of my young patrons said. "If I can figure out what Quidditch is, I can figure out what a lorry is too."

One of the differences I noticed is that the UK TV-movie tie-ins are better than the US versions. I still have a lovely fat book called "The Further Adventures of Oliver Twist" from one trip across the pond. And I have both the US and UK editions of a Six Million Dollar Man book. (The one with Bigfoot.) There are twice as many words in the first chapter of the UK edition. Longer ones too.

Yikes!

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Rana
Date: 19 Aug 00 - 11:46 PM

Jim,

The pancakes we had on pancake day (or Shrove Tuesday) are not like N. American pancakes but more like a crepe. Instead of a filling we had sugar and lemon coated and then they were rolled up.

Rana

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: Gary T
Date: 19 Aug 00 - 10:32 PM

Thanks, Brendy, that does help. Over here one more commonly hears "chunks", meaning essentially the same as bits. In particular, soups or sauces might be called chunky, especially so if the pieces are rather large.

Okay, Roo, I'll take you up on some translations. I've heard of barbie=barbecue. I only know ocher as a color or perhaps type of earth of that color (pronounced OH-cur). I bet that's not it, huh? Can't say I've heard of any of your other examples.

Subject: RE: BS: British-American cultural differences 2
From: catspaw49
Date: 19 Aug 00 - 09:36 PM

Shaw

Spaw

rhymes huh?