AIBU to ask you some questions about the USA?

[BreakfastInAmerica]

I've been reading lots of US fiction over lockdown, I've never been there.

What's the big deal with joining a fraternity house at College? What is the benefit of it? Why the Greek frat house names?

Is public access television still a thing?

Why do they call savoury muffins English Muffins when I'm more likely to see a blueberry or chocolate muffin when I'm out and about?

How do Americans eat things like thick pancakes with cream for breakfast, even the people who are slim?

What are grits?

Why are Automatic cars so prolific in the US, rather than manual/stick shift?

I'm sure I've got lots more questions and please pitch in with your own questions and answers.

AIBU to ask for your answers and questions about the small differences between the US and the UK?

Is bullying as rife and brutal as made out in ALL American school films?

My son was bullied in his first year at high school. We went to the deputy principal who started an investigation, spoke to everyone who'd see what was happening, spoke to the perpetrator, mediated a solution, kept us informed, and made counseling services available in school time to my son and his bully.

I don't think they necessarily always do such a good job, but they do try to uphold their anti-bullying policy IME.

But that's just one school out of thousands...

He’s not racist so much as he just says really dumb shit. But everyone already knew that and still voted for him in the primary

I think this is very true. It's one of the reasons I didn't vote for him in the primary. As it turns out, he doesn't really need to say anything at all - he just needs to keep quiet and let Trump talk.

It doesn’t even make sense. Poor kids are demographically overwhelmingly white?

It was a bad statement and he must have muddled some stuff up.
But where I live the poor kids are black or Latino.
They have much less access to good education and achieve less academically.

Frats - are clubs, groups. In movies the frats and sororities are all the popular kids having foam parties and breaking rules. It can be a little like that, but often they're groups of students with similar interests who join together. They can live in a house owned by the frat and pay rent to them. Names are Greek because they date way back to the early universities when people studied Greek and Latin.

PBS (Public TV) still very much a thing

Food - different cultures, different traditions. Grits are kind of semolina.

Cars - again - different culture, different traditions. If it's 500 mils to the next big town, an automatic with cruise control is extremely useful, and that's how cars developed here.

Did part of my degree in the US, and have now lived here for 12 years, although I'm still a Brit.

Do all university students HAVE to share bedrooms? Are they put into a room with a stranger?

@Handsnotwands Not all university students have to share a bedroom, but many do. Single rooms tend to be uncommon, at least at larger universities, and more expensive.

Summer camps - don't have to be sleep-away. they are essentially day care given a fun name. I teach camp most summers, but only during the day. This year I'm teaching cooking camp from my kitchen via Zoom. It keep the kids occupied over the 3 month break. If parents are WFH, they get a couple of hours when they're less likely to be interrupted.

Oooh, can I ask a question, please?

On US tv shows/films no one ever seems to close their curtains when they’re in bed. Why not? Is it the same in real life? If so, do people not wake up as soon as the sun rises?

(disclaimer: I’ve only read the OP’s posts and a few other pages, apologies if it’s already been asked)

@Handsnotwands

Do all university students HAVE to share bedrooms? Are they put into a room with a stranger?

Yeah generally in a room with a stranger - could be a double or a triple. Singles are rare. you usually fill in a questionaire and are loosely matched but it can be hit or miss. I know people who, 30 years later, are still best friends with the person randomly assigned to them as a freshman roommate. Usually after the first year you pick your own roommate.

Not sure about bedrooms (we do close our blinds because of the light) but my experience is downstairs curtains (drapes) or blinds are drawn far less than in Ireland and UK - so you can see into people's houses.

Do all university students HAVE to share bedrooms? Are they put into a room with a stranger?

Housing is usually limited, with singles and apartments or nicer halls being reserved for upperclassmen, so doubles and sometimes triples are common.

You get the details of your roommate a few weeks beforehand so you can work out who is bringing a mini-fridge, TV, etc.

I cordially loathed my roommate, so I stuck it out for a year and then got a house off-campus with friends from one of the organisations I'd joined the next year.

Some of these questions are so funny! I mean that in the nicest way :)

Yes we close our curtains, we're not aliens.

Do all university students HAVE to share bedrooms? Are they put into a room with a stranger?

I was in a quad, so three strangers. It was a blast! You were required to live on campus for two years unless staying with family. This afaik is typical so as to build a community

There were single rooms, but more expensive and typically for grad students

Brit on the west coast here. The thing with Biden is, he's not Trump. That's it. I live in a very lefty ( Americans would say progressive) city and there are virtually no signs or bumper stickers for Biden. But people will vote for him because anyone is better than Trump. We know all the stuff about Biden's past. He's a very mediocre choice who I'm still not convinced is ready to meet the moment we're in. But he is not Trump.

Yes we close our curtains, we're not aliens.

So that makes it even more odd that they are always open on tv shows/films. Honestly, it’s baffled me for ages! Once I noticed it, I couldn’t stop seeing it. I now check every tv show to see if they close their bedroom curtains at night - nope, never closed, not a single time!

Exactly, Terra.

Is Biden 100% non-racist? No way. But he's not going to put migrant children in camps or call the Klan 'very nice people'. And he might very well pave the way for a woman of color to become president, for the first time in history.

It's either him or a deranged mobster fascist, I mean come on.

BigBad :) I've never noticed that before but now I'm sure I will!

I assume it's because they're not like real curtains, they're probably nailed up there.

What do Americans (generally) think of the British?

I've never noticed that before but now I'm sure I will!

Once you see it, you can’t stop seeing it!

[Although now I can pretty much guarantee that on the next show you watch, ALL curtains will be closed!]

I'll report back :)

I think Americans think very highly of the British but they also have an incredibly narrow view of what Britain is (Downton, the Royal Family, Love Actually that kind of thing).

@BigBadVoodooHat

We never close our bedroom curtains as we're not overlooked, but the USA is at a lower latitude than the U.K., so it doesn't get light as early in the summer mornings. I miss the long summer days, it's dark around 9.30 even at midsummer.

We do close the downstairs ones in the winter to keep the heat in as it's flipping freezing where we are!

Americans eat pancakes with maple syrup, not cream. The US has a severe obesity problem, but the UK isn't that far behind, and I think that both the US and the UK could shake their heads in wonder at some of the food customs we might find odd. What people eat in restaurants is probably not indicative of what people eat at home, and is probably worse. Although there are some things people describe eating on Mumsnet that I find absolutely stomach turning--pot noodle sandwiches??????? Eergghhh. And chip butties? That's just wrong! They aren't the most slimming dishes in the world, so I think it should be possible for you Brits to imagine that it is possible that people could eat a fattening meal one day and a more healthy one the next.

We never close our bedroom curtains as we're not overlooked, but the USA is at a lower latitude than the U.K., so it doesn't get light as early in the summer mornings. I miss the long summer days, it's dark around 9.30 even at midsummer

Ah, that makes sense, thank you 😊

It’s light here at around 4:30am just now, and even with decent curtains the room is very light, so I was imagining everyone bouncing out of bed at an insane hour!

Sunrise is officially 5.30am where I am at the moment, but that's because I live at the eastern end of the time zone. Our bedroom curtains don't really keep out light, but I close them anyway to block out the brightest rays. People here tend to get up very early anyway. Rush hour is at 7.30am.

DD was assigned a single room in her first year at college, which was quite nice as she'd been at boarding school so she'd never really had her own room other than holidays at home.

This year she's chosen to share a double with someone she knows and likes. The university is actually converting all doubles to singles this year because of Covid, but if student insist on having a room mate they're letting them.

In her final year at boarding school she could have had a single but chose to share with two others. She's odd like that.

No, chip butties on buttered, white bread are the absolute food of the gods! Must be vinegared and HP sauced as well. Top of the list for a treat when returning to the motherland. 😋. But obvs very bad for one if eaten every day