A Different Perspective

[Antisthenes]

To be honest, I don't think there IS a "typical" America. The country is so varied, there is no one place you can say "THIS is America!"

I was raised in the Appalachian mountains in Southwest Virginia. I left at 17, and everywhere I went - I mean EVERYWHERE, was a foreign land, in which I was treated like any other foreigner. I saw no real difference between South Carolina and Panama, New York and Amsterdam, Kansas City and London, etc. All were "foreign" places, and although folks spoke differently in every one, they all talked as funny from my perspective as I talked from theirs.

Every place, wherever you go on Earth, has it's own character stemming from culture, language attitudes, etc. It doesn't matter if it's just across the state or around the world, every place one goes will have a different character.

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I did love the article. It gives one a new perspective on just how much stuff of world-shaking impact can happen in small areas of a big world.

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Maybe because no matter where I went, I was the odd one out, but I learned to adapt very quickly. You are right that the accent was a dead give away, so I learned to pick up the local accent in just a few hours.
 A trait that I still have to this day, that I have to fight to keep in check.  A few seconds talking with someone and I start to adopted their accent. Unchecked I will have it down pack and almost flawless.

It saved me a lot of grieve as a child, but it can be kind of embarrassing as an adult.

The ability to be a chameleon like that must be an incredible and blessed asset when travelling. I envy your ear.

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

The ability to be a chameleon like that must be an incredible and blessed asset when travelling. I envy your ear.

It was survival instinct. When you are a kid that is being moved every two years or less you adapt, and you adapt quickly.

[PLOTUS]

To be honest, I don't think there IS a "typical" America. The country is so varied, there is no one place you can say "THIS is America!"

You know, thats just it. Everywhere has it's own clicks and groups you have to earn your way into. Sure there's your cities, but there anonymity afords you a lot of mouthy jerks. I suppose the friendliest was Utah.

[ChiefD]

I lived in Hawaii for a couple of years. It was my first duty station when I was active duty Navy, 1983-1985. I lived on a little tiny base outside Wahiawa in the middle of a rain forest. Most of the local cab drivers didn’t even know where the base was. It was very quiet and beautiful there. What I really enjoyed about Hawaii was that I felt it was a melting pot, so many nationalities and ethnic groups living there. I really liked all the different cultures. 

I got a chance to vacation a few days on the Big Island of Hawaii. I marveled at all the different landscapes. I drove clockwise from Hilo all around the island. There were mountains, the lava fields outside of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and an area on the northwest part of the island that reminded me of ranches I saw when I was in Texas. It was just breathtaking. 

When I was in the Navy Reserves, I got to do one of my two week annual active duty training stints in Everett Washington in 2005. I fell in love with Washington state. Seattle was so pretty and the people were so friendly. I got a chance to travel over the mountains to the north central part of Washington state. It went from mountains to a valley of high desert. In the mountains, it was like 40 degrees, and when we got over them going east, it was like 80 degrees. Just such a neat area. 

I also did a two week annual training in 2004 in Newport Rhode Island. I loved the pretty countryside. And I had the best clam chowder I ever ate there. 

So many states have so many different things that are really cool. Despite having been all over the world, I wound up back here in Wisconsin. I think I will stay in this state. The grass always looks greener elsewhere, but there’s no place like home.

[Ninurta]

Maybe because no matter where I went, I was the odd one out, but I learned to adapt very quickly. You are right that the accent was a dead give away, so I learned to pick up the local accent in just a few hours.
 A trait that I still have to this day, that I have to fight to keep in check.  A few seconds talking with someone and I start to adopted their accent. Unchecked I will have it down pack and almost flawless.

It saved me a lot of grieve as a child, but it can be kind of embarrassing as an adult.

Make no mistake - I have often used it to my advantage, There have been times when I intentionally thickened my accent, diction, and vocabulary and caused folks to associate me with the stereotypical "dumb hillbilly" that they knew nothing of, and had only heard about , thereby causing them to underestimate my intellect.

That usually worked out pretty well for me, and many a Flatlander has found themselves flat on their asses wondering what just hit 'em after their attempt at an intellectual entanglement with me.

it might not be fair, but the only "fair" fight is the one I win. I prefer to think of it as "strategy".

On the other hand, I've had Hispanics laugh and tell me I speak Spanish with a hillbilly accent, and @"BIAD" had a hard time sorting out my speech even when I tried to smooth it up and be more understandable rather than less.

.

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

Maybe because no matter where I went, I was the odd one out, but I learned to adapt very quickly. You are right that the accent was a dead give away, so I learned to pick up the local accent in just a few hours.
 A trait that I still have to this day, that I have to fight to keep in check.  A few seconds talking with someone and I start to adopted their accent. Unchecked I will have it down pack and almost flawless.

It saved me a lot of grieve as a child, but it can be kind of embarrassing as an adult.

Make no mistake - I have often used it to my advantage, There have been times when I intentionally thickened my accent, diction, and vocabulary and caused folks to associate me with the stereotypical "dumb hillbilly" that they knew nothing of, and had only heard about , thereby causing them to underestimate my intellect.

That usually worked out pretty well for me, and many a Flatlander has found themselves flat on their asses wondering what just hit 'em after their attempt at an intellectual entanglement with me.

it might not be fair, but the only "fair" fight is the one I win. I prefer to think of it as "strategy".

On the other hand, I've had Hispanics laugh and tell me I speak Spanish with a hillbilly accent, and @"BIAD" had a hard time sorting out my speech even when I tried to smooth it up and be more understandable rather than less.

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Anyone that automatically thinks that a hillbilly, redneck, or ghetto thug, is dumb, has never been around them enough to know how wrong they can be.

Forty plus years of working in areas that most people would call undesirable, has given me the opportunity to see things that many have not.

Necessity is the mother of invention, and when people have the least, is when they have the increased propensity to be the most creative.

[Wallfire]

I am tempted to tell about my experiences with people from America over my life time, but perhaps its better I dont 

[PLOTUS]

My Brother and his wife bought property a few months ago on The Big Island Hawaii in a place called Orchidlands Estates, a bit Southwest of Hilo. Bare land. In March 2021 he will go with his wife and start building a house. The land is three acres.... Jungle ? I could not tell, but it is green from satalite photos on G-maps. I have been invited to go there and to supervise construction, observe, watch from a lounge chair, OK, drink lemonade or Hawaiian punch while justttt... hanging out and guarging the site at night....... I have spent much time on the web looking at pros and cons of living in Hawaii, but this could be a few month thing or long term ? Not sure my brothers intentions He is a millionaire by inheritance and could put a medium size Airstream on the back fourty for me to live in ?

I too have been many places and currently have found North Carolina to be the best Mecca I could be in in the the lower 48. I have been to Alaska several times, all over the Western Southwest, Asia and the green grass grows frikin the fastest right here...lol.

[F2d5thCav]

@"PLOTUS" 

The only thing I would say is that living on an island can feel confining after a brief period, even just weeks.

It would be a unique experience, though.

Cheers

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

@"PLOTUS" 

The only thing I would say is that living on an island can feel confining after a brief period, even just weeks.

It would be a unique experience, though.

Cheers

Living in the woods gives me a feeling of being isolated and on an island to myself, but the moment I hit the paved road, reality comes crashing back on me. 

The article showing how large we are, compared to other countries, reminds me that we can't be summed up in a post card. Though no State is exceptionally perfect, I think each has its own, exceptional spot on the map.

I have a fond memory of every place I have ever been, but it seems the not so fond memories are the conversation starters.

[PLOTUS]

Confining............

I have heard that from more than one person.