UK and America are two countries separated by a common language, UK and US Q&A

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Continuation of the previous thread where posters from the UK ask questions like 'what the hell is going on with the gaps in US toilet doors'; and posters fro the US ask things like 'what is with wearing stripes'

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/a2149133-to-think-there-is-something-wrong-with-Americans?msgid=48969042#48969042

We have Honors and High Honors - each is a list that is published at the end of the semester. I think High Honors is all As and Honors is all As and Bs.

What I think is fab, is that if you are are an Honors student you can get a very very reduced price ski pass at a nearby mountain (think $100 rather than $1000). I encourage my children to do well academically for that reason mainly.

Lots of schools do have Prom Royalty, 2Boys. Ours didn't though. :)

No prom king/queen here. Just homecoming.

Finally made it to the end of a fascinating thread! I absolutely love this type of discussion :)

Going back to the doctor thing, I know that ours do a 5y degree which now incorporates a B.Sc., once they've qualified, there's a few years on rotation doing various aspects and then they choose a speciality and become a registrar, in my area of work, this is a 5y training course, again rotating between different aspects, and including a M.Sc., on completion you are able to become a Consultant.

Please may I ask what cake mix is? I look through loads of US recipes and I just can't seem to get past it!

Quite honestly, the sight of a fly indoors doesn't shake me at all - we spent half our time in the summer with the doors open (and telling the dcs to close the door) so they were always letting flies in. I either waved them back out the door if I could be bothered, whacked them with the fly swatter or ignored them, for the most part. As soon as the mosquitoes came out in the late afternoon, the doors were closed. Windows have screens in the states - or we'd have been eaten alive by mosquitoes (at least in MN!!). And in AZ the screens kept out the wasps, as there were lots where I lived.

Speaking of creepy crawlies, it always wigged me out a bit that at my dd's elementary school (infants/primary), the children were all taught that any big black spiders, scorpions, or snakes were to be walked slowly away from and a teacher told immediately. There were a number of times they found rattlesnakes on the playground (desert area). Talk about nerve wracking! Nobody was ever hurt though, as they went over it all the time.

I used to use cake mixes in the states all the time - generally betty crocker.www.bettycrocker.co.uk/our-products/cake-mixes

But now that I've seen how ridiculously easy it is to make a cake from scratch (shown by my MIL here in the UK), I make them myself all the time. I haven't bought a cake mix in years.

www.bettycrocker.co.uk/our-products/cake-mixes

sorry, that link didn't work.

And I will admit the lack of screens on windows really threw me here - but not because of flies, as they're harmless (although annoying). But because of bees and wasps!! I get quite edgy if they fly into the house, as I tend to react badly to stings.

My understanding is when America ,s say they have a backyard they are referring to a fairly large out door space which we Brits would probably refer to as a back garden if we say a backyard it usually small with no grass ,if I,m right do you have gardens and what are they like?

Yes, backyard in the states is the back garden here. Ten years in the UK and I STILL struggle with this. And of course, I have to switch gears when I'm speaking to friends/family in the states as well.

In the states, a garden is a vegetable garden - so we had a backyard with a (vegetable) garden in it IYSWIM.

Hence yardsales where all the items you are selling are laid out on your front yard (and driveway) for people to peruse and buy.

Or to clarify .. in the UK, I mow my garden... in the states, I mow my yard (or lawn - if you want to throw another wrench in it). If I mowed my garden in the states, I'd be mowing over the vegetables I'm growing. Which did confuse my mother a few times, so I had to make sure I used US terms.

Ha ha yes confusing! Also who takes carecof a pregnant lady during g pregnancy and birth when. I watch american programmes about this it appears to be usually Doctors but in the UK pregnant women during pregnancy and birth are usually looked after by midwives unless it is a high risk pregnancy I did have a named consultant during both of my pregnancies but I never saw them ,and although both my babies ended up being delivered by doctors it was only because of complications at the end throughout both my labours until the very end the midwife took care of me !

What's the thing about wheelchairs when leaving hospital? Why can't you just walk?

Thanks Alice :) never use packets lol! What is the difference between yellow and white cake then? I know we have Madeira, Victorian and sponge etc over here, which is more to do with method and ratios! I really love trying out things from other countries but this bits impenetrable! Xx

Pregnant women see an ob/gyn doctor generally, at least I did when I was pregnant with dd. You usually are presented with a "birth package" that you pay on throughout the pregnancy so that hopefully everything is paid by the time you deliver. Obviously any complications are then billed to insurance and you pay the remainder (or for some insurances you pay up front and they reimburse you). Other insurances cover all but particular copays. It's a bit of a minefield (or at least it was when I lived there). I never saw a midwife at all when I was pregnant or delivered dd. Nurses and obstetrics doctor. That's it.

Wheelchair leaving hospital is IIRC a liability issue. Some hospitals insist on it just to protect themselves from liability.

White cake is white, yellow cake is yellow. Honestly, there is a flavour difference but I couldn't really say what specifically as it's been so long. I did love angel food cake though. (and my mother's chocolate creme de menthe bundt cake with chocolate drizzled over the top mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm), but that's different types of cake again.

And bars... a midwest thing, I suspect. Not the kind of bars like pubs. But "bars"... like traybakes. yum again.

And I am determined to find a sour cream and raisin pie recipe that I can make over here, now that we've been talking about food I used to have. Yank you may be familiar with that one. A staple of church coffees and bazaars and the like. sigh.

ah, there we go...
www.pillsbury.com/recipes/sour-cream-raisin-pie/53a2fd36-1758-47ce-83bb-d3ace34204af

But 'entree' doesn't mean a dish served between two courses. It means 'entrance', 'opening piece' or 'introduction' (as in music - the opening section of an opera or ballet).

It's the dish that introduces the meal (which later became the dish that introduced the main course, after a few other small bits). I know usage (and the structure of meals) changes meaning over time but the original/current French/current English use make linguistic sense and the US version is just Wrong - it makes my brain hurt.

Yellow and white cake is a good one- I've often wondered about that. There used to be silver and gold cakes in the UK (18th/19thc), one made with the egg white and the other with the yolks - usually baked as a single cake with one layer of each colour. Is that the same thing?

I heard that in the US, generally the press is not as 'free' - this was from someone living in San Francisco.

Also do you have jam and what Americans refer to as jelly not what we in the UK refer to as jelly completely different ti as because I was talking to someone on an american forum about peanut butter and jelly/jam sandwiches and she said she loved jam as she was american this confused me because I thought your jelly and our jam was the same thing?!

don't really know about the press being free. I do know that I like the news better in the UK, as it is more world oriented as well. US news is very insulated.

Yes, we have jam, jelly, preserves, marmalade... pbj is generally peanut butter and jelly (meaning jam).

I've always been understanding that:

jam - jam with fruit bits in it or a thicker consistency
jelly - jam with no "fruit bits" in it (strained when made, I suppose)
preserves - more fruit than anything in it
marmalade - same as here in UK

It's like the tinned cranberry sauce (I know, another can of worms opened!).
there's whole berry - that has big pieces of cranberries in it, or jelly/gel/regular - which is made with no pieces of fruit in it - just a jellylike consistency

For the record, peanut butter and jelly (jam) is lovely. But best with either grape or strawberry jam.

Have I utterly confused you? sorry.

No I think I get you Alice ! I have tried peanut butter and jam/jelly sandwiches I thought they would!d be awful but they were surprisingly OK I don't think we have grape jelly/jam never heard of that .

and I used to only buy Skippy peanut butter (since I can't get Jif peanut butter here ), but now I buy whatever is available and cheapest. lol

No, I've only ever seen grape jam/jelly in American shops here. And to be honest, strawberry works just as well.

Americans talk a great deal about freedom of speech but don't practice it nearly so much - especially when money is involved - in the UK we hardly mention it but practice it to a degree that always amazes visiting colleagues from the USA.

Similarly they are in a state of shock and awe at how good the NHS is.