Random thing...

[Agent M]

*laugh* You should talk to my bf sometime Gryphon. She HATES Bush. *laugh*

[Gryphon]

M, I had to read your post twice. "You should take to my bf sometime Gryphon."

bf? Boy friend? But then:

"She HATES Bush"

Eh??? Your boy friend is a girl???? Best friend, Gryphon! Best friend!!!!!

[Zgirl]

Okay I had to explain this to db_pr:
gf=girl friend
bf=boyfriend
bff=best friend
gff=guy friend

I don't like Bush but my friends do. Her family has a pic of him on their refrigerator. I totally agree. I really don't feel 100% proud to be an American. Mostly because in different countries and here you hear all these negative remarks, always you here Europeans saying, "stupid americans." Just because we don't speak British slang doesn't mean we're stupid!
When we went to England to eat the waitress said she'd put the credit card in the 'till' (which is British for the cash register.) and this is how the conversation with my mom and her went.
W:I'll put this in the till
M:The WHAT?!
W:The till
M:WHAT?!
W:The computer...oh...*leaves to go to the cash register.
I could just imagine her saying stupid americans...

[Rysade]

The situation's particularly bad for me because I have a guy Best Friend, Nick, but no Girl Friend. So if I mention my bf, people go, you have a bf, not a gf? and I say yeah. I'm looking for a gf though, and then they might say what, you cant decide if you want a bf or a gf? And then I'm totally confused because I was talking about something completely different.

*listens to David Bowie's "I'm afraid of Americans"*

Well, that was useless. Apparently, the copy of that song I have is messed up on purpose. Damn your artistic tendencies, bowie! Oh well, the lyrics seem to be about Johnny, the American. *changes to Ziggy Stardust* Much better. Anyway. As that excursion proved useless, I'll just go with what I've got. Americans have everything geared toward the economy. Everything is some sort of advertisement. Particularly the Network news. Just about the only ad-free place is Public radio (which advertises itself) and the internet (whose ads are kinda impotent) You can see how the worldview of americans would be packaged in shrink wrapped plastic. I find it hard to identify with people because I don't buy things for fun or watch cable TV.

[Gryphon]

I find it hard to identify with people because I don't buy things for fun or watch cable TV.
-Rysade

That's funny because I don't buy things for fun or watch cable TV EITHER. Rah! I hate shopping and what's there to watch on TV? Too much of it is crap. Well, that's just a bit of my opinion, so don't yell at me!

Too many Americans are obeise too. What are the numbers? Something like a third of all adults??? Walking around public places (like the mall) it's pretty much shoved in your face. And look at the servings at resteraunts!!! HUGE!!! Aug...

[Aurora]

Mmmmmmmmmm FOOD.....

Don't diss food. Food is good. It's just you can't just eat and eat and eat... you gotta be healthy too and stuff...

I like eating big servings and stuff. ^^

But then, I'm fifteen, 5'3 or so, and less than a hundred pounds.

[Wilf]

That was so far off topic tat it was on the next one. INntersting how me complaining about the grammer on a poster led to genral anti-USA stuff, though.

[Kathy Li]

Errr.. rebuttal to the obesity thing to be read here.

[Peter Murray]

Everything is some sort of advertisement. Particularly the Network news. Just about the only ad-free place is Public radio (which advertises itself) and the internet (whose ads are kinda impotent) You can see how the worldview of americans would be packaged in shrink wrapped plastic.

Oh, I can just see it... I will guard growth and ease pain. I will fight to preserve what grows and lives well in its own way
Nervous about the Oath? Don't be! Accept the Lone Power into your life, forget about the Oath, and enjoy the rest of your life!
Offer limited to six months at most

[Aurora]

Food is good.

Don't diss food! FOOD TASTES GOOD!!!!!!!!

^^ Sorry. I like my food. I mean, I really really really like my food. Wanna know the best way to spend a Saturday morning? Stuffing yourself at the buffet. Yum. Food is really really really good. I mean, I eat when I'm BORED, for gawd's sake, but then... then I don't feel so hungry and put away the food... and yeah. ^^ I actually undereat, I think, but I really really love my food. Or it could just be that I look like I undereat because I tend not to eat three big meals a day- I eat five or six smaller meals... ^^

I agree with the article that kli6 posted the link to. I've read something very similar, but with much more emphasis on the conspiracy theory and diets, a book called No Fat Chicks by Terry Poulton. The ideas were very extreme, or so I thought, but she had good points. Some people are just meant to be big, the same way I can eat junk and eat a lot and still be thin as a rod. Being thin doesn't equate being healthy.

[Agent M]

Food is good. I took a quiz that said I was a bear because bears like food. Sounds stupid I know but it was a lot better than the duck..... *grumble* I'm not a duck!!!!

[Birdhead]

Oh, I just had to mention this, but STATES MEAL SERVIGS ARE SO BIG IT'S NOt FUNNY. :O We shared an awful lot of meals- well, I mostly didn't, but I am well-known for eating a LOT, as in, I'm never full after eating out, or very rarely, and I was full all the time. it was kinda impressive. But also scary that peopel seemed to have no trouble eating full servings, especially of dessert. (Speaking of which. You should all really try dessert nachos at the Hard Rock Cafe, because they were very good.)

*snickers* You know, the near naked people on TV thing doesn't bother me at all. And I guess I'mv ery for the civil liberties thing. I jsut think the government isn't the best in the world.

Mind you, even I have to admit there are many, many worse governments. As for till and cash register- I think you should say that cash register is American for till. I mean, English did come from Britain to start of with.... and you guys call your bills, checks! (Er, I mean as in the things you get at the end of the meal. Thise are bills. Not checks. Er, what do you call the things that come in the mail saying "You have to pay $$ or we'll cut off your phone"?)

Mmm, food is good.

[Wilf]

To me, "check" in money matters is a mis-spelling of the word "cheque". (As in the things with "Pay [Mr X] the sum of [a certain amount of money]" on them, in caes you're wondering). Intrestingly, the Greman for thing you get at the end of a meal literally translates as "the reckoning", and in French, it's "the summation". Can't remember the Welsh off-hand.

[Gryphon]

The kind from the mail we [or at least I do] call bills. However, you write a check back to them. Something like that, anyway...

The serving sizes really freak me out!!! HUGE!!! A lot of Americans really pig out. It's sick. I rarely finish anything when I go out to eat. It's like I'm wasting! And the deserts... you'd think after a meal, a person wouldn't have room!

[Aurora]

Yeah, I know that feeling- I eat small meals, usually, but I eat more of them. ^^ I can finish off quite a bit... what I learned was just never order a combo. Just order the individual thing. Or, you share- one person gets a combo, the other person the individual thing, and split the fries or whatever.