Is there an AMA American thread?

[upskilledotter]

I have so many (probably really boring) questions to ask of Americans (USA) but don’t know if a suitable thread exists.

Before we met, my DH worked for a big four consulting firm and they sent him from NY to their London office for six months to provide specialist skills for a project. He was single at the time, and I’ve often wondered if his American accent got him any special notice from the ladies he met there. He’s also very good looking.

I’ve asked him about it, and he refuses to discuss it, so I’m guessing the answer is yes.

Yes, I get that is the intention, but how realistic is it (within the handwavy world of sitcoms)?

The houses are a bit nicer and more posh than I would expect in a working class/lower middle class neighborhood, but not wildly so.

Sorry but in 20 years of being in the UK I've never heard a British person appreciate an American accent! I'm sure they appreciated his good looks though :)

I adore the American accent! ☺️ I find it fascinating and I've had American friends who I just loved to hear talk. "Yes, Ma'am" amazing! 😂

Oh that's sweet. I've literally never heard this before!

Home Owners Association that you must pay dues to. Required, not optional. They must approve of how you paint your house, your landscaping, any renovations, additions, or remodeling. And such like. Some HOAs are helpful and chill. Others contain nitpicking, controlling, power mongers. Myself, I would not buy a house where I had to belong to one. My house is MY house, thank you very much.

Thanks so much for replies so far. I have thought of a few more questions if you’ll indulge me!

1. Do most bathrooms have a shower and a bath?
2. Are new recruits for the services targeted in specific areas or among specific demographics?
3. Do dog owners use poo bags like in UK when walking pets?
4. What is your state’s greatest export and most celebrated thing?
5. How do driving tests work? Kids seem to drive quite early - is insurance reasonably priced? Do you have L plates? Can you learn to drive in a manual car or is that rare?
6. Coke float - just why???

1. I have come across more bathrooms with just a shower rather than just a bath but both seems usual.
2. yes, same as the UK
3. yes
4. I think Lincoln although he wasn't born here
5. Kids can learn a to drive at school, ages vary by state but 15 seems quite common.

The driving test is very very very easy. You can get new driver plates but really aren't used. My dc were told that the driving school would only teach them to drive stick after they had passed their driving test in an auto so dad taught them. Parents do a lot of the teaching. Good things are that there is a a number of hours that kids have to drive before they licensed. Kids also have restrictions on when they can drive, having teen passengers when they first get their license

I had floats as a kid in Scotland

We fall into the anti group - not against any Americans personally but their government. We are their northern neighbours - and no we will never ever become the 51st state. We no longer cross the border to go for lunch or shopping.

I'll just add my 2 cents on a few of these.

1. Shower stalls are more common, but most houses have at least one bathtub. Our house has three full baths, one of which has a tub with a shower. The other two just have enclosed shower stalls. We had two toddlers when we bought the house and wouldn't have considered a house without a tub, since you can't really give a three-year-old a shower.
2. Recruits for what services? If you're referring to the military services, it's targeted to people of enlistment age and certain professions, like medicine.
3. Yes.
4. High taxes and oddball politicians. The big industries are financial services and healthcare. Tourism is big as well.
5. In New York, it's gotten harder for young people to get a license. The license is restricted to daytime use, and they must have a supervising driver over 21 in the car, and there are limits on how many passengers they can carry. This was done because so many young drivers get killed or injured in MVAs.
6. I've never even heard of a coke float, so I have nothing to offer about it.

I love Coke floats. A scoop of vanilla ice cream in a glass, fill with Coke, and enjoy. Popular in the South, especially in Georgia, the home of Coca Cola.

We had these made with root beer when I was growing up, but I think they’ve gone out of fashion.

We used to enjoy these in NZ when I was a teen. I feel like one now!

Coke float is so delicious. Chocolate, vanilla, cherry, etc. are all good. Alternative sodas, ginger ale, root beer, ginger beer, orange soda, any variation is ultimately acceptable. So creamy and fizzy and sweet.

Yes, we used to have them with Fanta and other different flavours.

I stand corrected on Coke Floats - maybe I have just had dud UK ones!

In NZ they're known as 'spiders' (no idea where that name came from) and yes they're delicious! (haven't had one since I was a kid but reading this thread makes me want one now)

Used to have these as a treat in the UK as a child/teen in the UK, late 70s.

Can I ask a question? Sorry this is going to sound rude but why do Americans not lower the volume of their voice in a restaurant or similar? It’s always apparent when an American is close by as everyone can hear their conversation.
I know that sounds super rude and I can’t ask my (lovely but LOUD) American SIL so thought I’d ask here.

I think extrapolating from your SIL to 350,000,000 other people is a bit of a stretch 😬

@canklesmctacotitsoh it’s not just my SIL. I heard loud Americans in almost every restaurant I went to on holiday this year (Spain and London). They don’t turn the volume down at all!

How much is health insurance per month and do people really get refused treatment if they don't have it. Are there any free care homes for older people. How rigorous is the debt collection when it comes to unpaid medical bills.

I debated answering this or not, because the US healthcare system is enormously complex and varies to some extent by state and your age, so take any answers you get as an oversimplification.

The full cost of health insurance per month for a family of four or more would be about $2k per month, but almost nobody pays the full cost on their own. Most people get subsidized health coverage from their employer and would pay about 10-20% of the cost. Costs would be a bit lower for a childless couple or a single person.

People on low incomes get free or almost free coverage under Medicaid, which is jointly funded by the Federal government and the states and administered by the states. People 65 and older and people with disabilities get coverage under a similar program called Medicare. People who don't qualify for either can buy coverage established by the Affordable Care Act in a government-run marketplace here. Some states run their own ACA exchanges. The cost for coverage obtained on the exchanges depends on your income. The lower your income, the more the government pays.

Military veterans, of whom there are several million, get medical care under the Veterans Affairs system, which runs their own hospitals and clinics. It's comparable to the NHS in many ways.

Hospitals cannot withhold emergency care based on your insurance status or ability to pay. Hospitals and medical practices are happy to accept people who want to pay directly for care, as it saves them a lot of admin involved in the insurance billing process. 92% of Americans have some form of insurance coverage, with employer insurance covering 66% of the population and the government providing the rest. See here for more details.

On the debt collection question, it varies based on who provided the care. Some non-profit hospitals write most of it off and get government subsidies to do so. For-profit hospitals and medical practices are more vigorous about it. Generally speaking, if you can pay, they'll pursue it, but they can't get blood from a turnip, and they don't want people to declare bankruptcy, which would erase the debt.

As I said at the beginning, this is just an overview, and there's a lot more nuance.

Different cultures have different rules. Americans tend to project rather than lean in.