Hit the Road, Jack
See the exotic land of the Americans
Road trips have been on my mind, because in the last two months, I have made three round trips (800 or so miles each) to see family. Back in January, my husband and I did our second annual snowbird trip. We drove to Florida, where were rented a house, worked remotely, saw friends, and avoided another Chicago winter. At the end of the trip, we went to Orlando where I attended a work conference. I was discussing the trip with some colleagues from the UK, and they were floored by how much time we were spending in the car.
The road trip is quintessentially American. My British co-workers were amazed by such concepts as car snacks, the license plate game, and going to Buc-ees. For some, the longest car ride they had ever taken was the four-hour drive from Miami to Orlando for the conference in question.
I started thinking about other things that seem perfectly ordinary to Americans but that surprise people from other places:
Satellite radio: This goes with having long distances to drive. It gives me so much joy for $12 or whatever a month. We had an exchange student from France one summer who was freaked out by the French-Canadian channels and, in fact, the very idea that we could listen to programming originating in Montréal in Chicago.
Carbon monoxide detectors: When I was teaching in Mexico, I had a student ask me about indoor heating in cold climates. He heard that it was dangerous because a gas could accumulate that could kill you, and that people had to have special monitoring devices to protect them. He was so earnest and concerned! At first, I thought he had heard something very wrong. And then I remembered that indoor heating is dangerous, and carbon monoxide kills people, and we have a carbon monoxide detector.
The Amish: Several years ago, French writer Bernard-Henri Lévy took a road trip of the United States and was fascinated with the Amish in Iowa. “They are witnesses not of God, but of America,” he wrote. “The real, final pioneers. The only ones who haven't given in, haven't summed up their religion as the ‘In God We Trust’ of banknotes. They are witnesses to a lost purity. The heirs of the Mayflower. The silent witnesses, truly silent, since, unlike the Indians or the blacks, they don't say anything, don't demand anything, and above all don't reproach others for anything. Silent witnesses, then, to the values that were those of America but on which America has turned its back since it sold itself to the religion of commodity.” I grew up near Amish communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania, and you know what? The Amish are just people. They have their issues, like everyone else. But I would kill for a shoo-fly pie right now.
Pep rallies: My niece is an American living in Australia, and she teaches high school there. She said that her students are fascinated by cheerleaders, pep rallies, and letter jackets. They ask her about these things all the time.
Things that caught my eye recently:
Things to Do
Bake: If you are not familiar with shoo-fly pie, it’s basically molasses in pie crust. I love a good shoo-fly pie, but there isn’t an Amish neighborhood in Chicago and I have never been able to master a pie crust. A good, easy alternative is a shoo-fly cake. (Bunny’s Warm Oven)
Survive: If you lose your job or another key revenue source, you’ll have to rearrange things so that you are in a good place. This article by the lovely and talented Emily Guy Birken has great ideas for what to do. (Fast Company)
Gesticulate: Talking with your hands. It’s effective! (Salon.com)
Things to Read
Scams Against the Elderly: There aren’t many bad guys out there, but they manage to cause a disproportionate amount of pain and chaos. This article describes common scams and why the elderly are so vulnerable. (The Atlantic)
Scams Against Landowners: A lot in Connecticut was subdivided and sold to a developer without the owner’s knowledge. It’s a wild story that is still evolving. (CT Insider)
What do you think is exotic about the US? Please share in the comments!