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Source: (consider it)
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Thread: Heaven: Field Guide to Americans and the British
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Ethel Sludge
Shipmate
# 74
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Posted
Back to US lavatories: Why, in public facilities, are the doors so inadequate? The gap under the door is sufficient to allow an average 3-year old under, and there is a significant gap around the door. It's all very reminiscent of my English boarding school. Agree that you can't flush the results of a satisfactory evacuation away over there in one go.
Posts: 131 | Registered: May 2001
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Campbell Ritchie
Shipmate
# 730
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Posted
What's this got to do with lavatories? I thought they didn't have them in the States, only bathrooms and restrooms. And I thought nobody ever talked about them.
Not like my trip to Portsmouth Youth Hostel once (90 miles by bicycle on a beautiful but freezing cold winter's day). On arrival I met a transatlantic chap who asked whether I was afraid of having my bicycle stolen.
No.
Well, what if you have to leave it when you go to the bathroom? ![[Confused]](confused.gif)
No. I just lock it up.
Well, what if you're out in the country and there aren't any bathrooms? [understanding dawning smilie]
Oh, I just nip behind the nearest tree.
I was quite relieved when he moved on. ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
Of course, if the tree is in a field, it brings us back to the original subject of this thread.
CR
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The greatest problem about Christianity is that it condemns you to eternity with me.
Posts: 396 | From: Middlesbrough | Registered: Jul 2001
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ken
Ship's Roundhead
# 2460
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Zach82:
An American quirk I thought of on another thread.
Americans are quite happy to complain about the weather amongst themselves. But if a foreigner complains about the weather, it's because he needs to toughen up. Actually, it goes for anyone from a region with a differant climate from the speaker as well.
English guy- "Indiana is so bloody cold!"
Zach- *with blue lips and chattering teeth* "Nah, you Brits just need to toughen up!"
We have people like that in Britain as well. We call them Northerners.
Actually London is unpleasantly hot for most of the year. The cold in this part of Britain is much exagerrated. Look at the figures - the climate of London is more or less the same as that of Paris (though Paris is colder in winter), Melbourne (though it rains more in Melbourne) or San Francisco (though fog is more common in San Francisco).
You hardly beed a coat. You can do quite well in London for 10 months of the year in shirt sleeves with a hat or umberella to keep the occasional rain off.
The trouble is, there is no way of telling which ten months ![[Snigger]](graemlins/snigger.gif)
Here we have weather. Other people have climate.
Climate is more extreme than weather - but it is more predictable.
Yes we know it gets cold in Iowa in winter. And we know that the Iowans wrap up warm and put chains on their car wheels. That's because they know when winter is likely to be.
No-one in the south of England ever dreamed of claiming that our weather ever approaches being as nastily hot, or cold, or wet, or dry as most other countries (though it can get bloody windy). The first frost of winter is often not till after Christmas. Most years it doesn't even snow here. The hottest it ever gets is about 30 degrees C, and that typically for no more than 2 or 3 weeks a year. (Away from London it rarely gets even that hot).
But how can you tell which 3 weeks will be hot? You can't. They can come at any time between April and September. When will our rain fall? Whenever it wants to. Any time of day, any time of year. To an Englishman the very idea of a "rainy season" is humorous.
Typical English weather is not the fogs the Americans insist on putting in films. It is dry but overcast, with neither rain nor sunshine, and a temperature of about 15 degrees C, give or take 5 degrees. A bit chilly for sitting around in without a coat, but a bit too warm for walking with one. Days like that can occur in any month of the year. And usually do. Sometimes it goes on like that for weeks on end. It isn't very dramatic, it isn't at all inconvenient, it can be quite pleasant in a sort of way. User-friendly weather.
Then all of a sudden it snows, or their is a drenching rainstorm, or a heatwave, or 100-mile-an-hour winds, and everybody gets caught by surprise and moans about the weather.
All these remarks don't hold true for Scotland or the far north of England. There are places in Scotland where the average rainfall is an inch a day
Posts: 39579 | From: London | Registered: Mar 2002
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Campbell Ritchie
Shipmate
# 730
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Posted
Posted by Duchess [green]
quote:
Chester (near Wales)
Chester is in England. Not near Wales. There is nowhere in either country ![[Eek!]](eek.gif) (not even places like Chepstow where one can fling a stone into the other country ) that admits to being "near" the other country.
And what ken forgot to mention is the spatial as well as temporal variability of the British weather.
I can go to work here at Linthorpe in heavy winter rain and see people who have driven in from Coulby Newham (about 3 miles away and 100 feet higher above sea-level) with two inches of snow on their car rooves.
We went to Richmond once and met somebody from Scorton, who told us it was always so much colder at Richmond. It is about 6 miles from Richmond to Scorton.
We can have rain here and see on the TV that the A66 has been closed coming out of Scotch Corner, barely 20 miles from here, by snow.
CR
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The greatest problem about Christianity is that it condemns you to eternity with me.
Posts: 396 | From: Middlesbrough | Registered: Jul 2001
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Annie P
Ship's galley maid
# 3453
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Posted
Too true Campell! and I'm glad Ken that you explained about the UK whether system. As another example: at the mo, over in Stokesley it's as clear as crystal (and you can probably see all the way to the North Sea if you were standing on top of the N York moores - say on Carlton Bank for instance). But this is no garantee (can't spell) that it will stay this way. By the afternoon we could have rain or lots of cloud or flying pigs - you just don't know.
And that's why the brits are so obsessed with weather. If you want to start a conversation with anyone, anywhere in the UK then say something about the weather because you're bound to get a reaction. Complete stranger walking into shop will be able to talk to other complete stranger by saying - "it's a bit nippy today" - full discussion on the state of the economy and what they are buying friends for Christmas will follow. Not only that, but a Brit will remember what the weather was like 2 weeks ago (esp if the sun shined) and be able to give you a full forecast for the next 48 hrs. Weather is never predictable here and always interesting.
Also, as a northerner - we do have the habit of taking the rip out of the people below us - "Soft Southerners" is a cry oftern heard north of Birmingham. Not that we're tough or anything...
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Older now, but not necessarily wiser.
Posts: 3248 | From: stockton-on-tees | Registered: Oct 2002
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Campbell Ritchie:
We can have rain here and see on the TV that the A66 has been closed coming out of Scotch Corner, barely 20 miles from here, by snow.
Bear in mind of course that it only takes about 2 inches of snow for the roads to be closed!
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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Annie P
Ship's galley maid
# 3453
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Posted
Depends what part of the country you're in. North Yorks expect snow at some point in winter. Norfolk pray that their won't be. (2 mm can grind Norwich to a halt). Who knows what the guys on the south coast would do?!
The A66 over the pennines actually has snow poles on it - good idea eh?
I'm more ashamed of how 3 leaves on the line can cancel all the trains on the whole of the East Coast Mainline.
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Older now, but not necessarily wiser.
Posts: 3248 | From: stockton-on-tees | Registered: Oct 2002
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Zach82
Shipmate
# 3208
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Posted
Indiana weather is supposedly very erratic, but I find it rather constant.
Summer- 95 degrees all summer, 75 percent humidity.
Fall- Cold.
Early Winter- O degrees at night, 33 degrees in the daytime. Cold enough to snow at night, and to melt into mud in the daytime. Lasts until January.
Late Winter- O degrees, windy, and snowy. No chance of a let up in the temp, I promise. Offices will only close if there is more than 5 feet of snow in one day.
Early Spring: Freezing cold and pouring rain.
Late Spring: Very hot, pouring rain all day, then on to summer.
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Don't give up yet, no, don't ever quit/ There's always a chance of a critical hit. Ghost Mice
Posts: 9148 | From: Boston, MA | Registered: Aug 2002
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Ultraspike
Incensemeister
# 268
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Zach82:
Those would be radiators. We have those here in Indiana, which is nice and frigid in the winter.
I don't think we have those metal plates here in the US, Zach, at least I haven't seen them. We have nice FAT pipes and coil type steam radiators here in New York. Most of the time those metal plates in Britain never seem to heat up or maybe I don't know how to turn them on.
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A cowgirl's work is never done.
Posts: 2732 | From: NYC | Registered: May 2001
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ChrisT
One of the Good Guys™
# 62
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Posted
Grrr, weather. I'm glad I have a car and no longer have to wait at the bus stop during winter.
But have you noticed the worrying trend to cause harm to kittens?
quote:
You could flush a small kitten down the toilet by accident if you weren't careful
That sounds like a threat to me...
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Firmly on dry land
Posts: 6489 | From: Here, there and everywhere | Registered: May 2001
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Zach82
Shipmate
# 3208
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Posted
quote:
I don't think we have those metal plates here in the US, Zach, at least I haven't seen them. We have nice FAT pipes and coil type steam radiators here in New York. Most of the time those metal plates in Britain never seem to heat up or maybe I don't know how to turn them on.
She just said "those funny looking white pipes things," which I assumed to be radiators.
I must have been wrong. ![[Not worthy!]](graemlins/notworthy.gif)
Zach
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Don't give up yet, no, don't ever quit/ There's always a chance of a critical hit. Ghost Mice
Posts: 9148 | From: Boston, MA | Registered: Aug 2002
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duchess
Ship's Blue Blooded Lady
# 2764
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Posted
http://www.chestergrosvenor.co.uk/location/map3.html
(map to see Chester in England bordering Wales)
Since Chester is right next to Wales even though it is in England, I say it is "near Wales". I guess that when I came back from Wales years ago...me and my flatmates went though Chester on our way back to London. I have learned not to make this faux pas anymore...I will from now say "Chester, which is in England, bordering on Wales". ![[Sunny]](graemlins/flowerface.gif)
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♬♭ We're setting sail to the place on the map from which nobody has ever returned ♫♪♮
Ship of Fools-World Party
Posts: 11197 | From: Do you know the way? | Registered: May 2002
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ken
Ship's Roundhead
# 2460
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Annie P:
Also, as a northerner - we do have the habit of taking the rip out of the people below us - "Soft Southerners" is a cry oftern heard north of Birmingham. Not that we're tough or anything...
As my Dad was born in Jarrow I feel quite at liberty to call Stockton the Soft South.
The North starts at Consett!
Posts: 39579 | From: London | Registered: Mar 2002
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ken
Ship's Roundhead
# 2460
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Posted
I was once walking over Framwellgate Bridge in Durham at about 3 o'clock in the morning, rather the worse for drink, and I met an old man, a retired miner I guess, who was less sober than I was. He asked me where I was from. I told him I was born in Brighton.
"Ah" he said, sadly "Ah'm a stranger here meself. Been here twenty year..."
It turned out that he came from Houghton-le-Spring.
Posts: 39579 | From: London | Registered: Mar 2002
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Assistant Village Idiot
Shipmate
# 3266
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Posted
Ah, weather. A topic dear to the heart in many parts of the US as well.
Every year in February and March New Englanders comment incessantly on what a strange winter it's been, and then give a summary, e.g. "There was all that snow at first and then nothing but bitter cold for six weeks." We also like comparing winters to each other, usually inaccurately, and I believe other cold regions here do the same.
There is also a running misery competition among the cold regions, reminiscent of Monty Python's "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch. One wins by losing, so to speak. I will say this for cold, however: it does keep the riffraff out.
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formerly Logician
Posts: 885 | From: New Hampshire, US | Registered: Sep 2002
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jedijudy*
Jedi defender of ship's cats
# 1059
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Posted
Oh, dear. Cold. brrrr!
It was cold here last week. Daytime temp was in the low 80's!!! Nightime was about 64 degrees! Now, I love the heat as much as anyone, but must admit to enjoying that little bit of nippiness.
But...we're back to 90 degrees, and 73 at night. ***sigh***
jj...ducking and running before more bricks are thrown...
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ENFP...do you see a "T" anywhere??? I don't think so.
Posts: 3248 | From: Soon to be inhabiting identity # 333!!! | Registered: Aug 2001
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Alaric the Goth
Shipmate
# 511
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Posted
Posted by ken: quote:
As my Dad was born in Jarrow I feel quite at liberty to call Stockton the Soft South.
The North starts at Consett!
Aye, ken, as someone born in Sunderland and brought up north of the Wear (till Ah wez over 18), Ah used to think Stockton wez way doon sooth. But Ah mean, ye've admitted ye were born in Brighton, and live in London, so Ah think ye'r a bit of an extreme Southerner yerself!
Posts: 3322 | From: West Thriding | Registered: Jun 2001
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Annie P
Ship's galley maid
# 3453
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Posted
I can see where you both are coming from, but Stockton South? South? I don't think so! Stockton is positively north. I'll have to come clean and say that I'm actually a Lancashire girl, so finding myself on the North East side o' country is a tad strange. To think I work in Yorkshire ![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
Stockton is north and very east for me.
quote:
"Ah" he said, sadly "Ah'm a stranger here meself. Been here twenty year..."
It turned out that he came from Houghton-le-Spring.
I didn't realise it was quite that bad as I thought you only needed a passport to get in to the region of the NE!? I am an "in comer" and am at a distict disadvantage as I have NO family over this side. Visibly noticable in church as everyone is related to everyone else - I've never been in a place where there's so much inbreeding!
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Older now, but not necessarily wiser.
Posts: 3248 | From: stockton-on-tees | Registered: Oct 2002
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Campbell Ritchie
Shipmate
# 730
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Posted
Duchess [green}, I have been away so only saw the map you quoted in your post of 24th October today.
It is a very informative map, not simply geographically, but in showing the regional prejudices we have in Britain. You can tell that it is possible to drive to the Scottish border in 3 hours, but not that London is the same distance away. In fact the map doesn't show places as far south as Shrewsbury Whitchurch or Stoke-on-Trent.
Now a map of Britain with London expunged . . . ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif) ![[Cool]](cool.gif) ![[Smile]](smile.gif) ![[Yipee]](graemlins/spin.gif) ![[Killing me]](graemlins/killingme.gif) ![[Angel]](graemlins/angel.gif) ![[Heart]](graemlins/heartpump.gif)
And it is a British map, having parts of England Scotland and Wales on
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The greatest problem about Christianity is that it condemns you to eternity with me.
Posts: 396 | From: Middlesbrough | Registered: Jul 2001
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Ophelia
Shipmate
# 3136
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Posted
Ken, I think you should publish your posts. Write a book or something - they're brilliant.
Some relitaves of mine came over from Canada in the summer, and they were slightly bemused, because we told them that we lived in Bedfordshire, near Cambridge (actually our back garden is in Cambridgshire). We explained that we don't live in London, but that its easy to get to on the train (about 35-40 mins to Kings Cross).
I over heard one of them on the phone telling someone back in the states "We're staying in Bedfordshire... its in North London."
I suppose that what constitues "near" or "in" somwhere depends on the size of the country you live in.
I guess that relitavely speaking, if my house was a similar sort of distance from New York, I'd call it the suburbs? Correct me if I'm wrong.
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Just as I am, without one flea...
Posts: 523 | From: Ottery St. Catchpole | Registered: Aug 2002
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Ophelia
Shipmate
# 3136
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Posted
Sorry, sorry, sorry, I know Canada is NOT in the States, before anyone points it out.... ![[Ultra confused]](graemlins/confused2.gif)
*memo to self - check repies CAREFULY before posting*
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Just as I am, without one flea...
Posts: 523 | From: Ottery St. Catchpole | Registered: Aug 2002
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Ophelia
Shipmate
# 3136
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Posted
replies - damn it!
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Just as I am, without one flea...
Posts: 523 | From: Ottery St. Catchpole | Registered: Aug 2002
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Zach82
Shipmate
# 3208
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Posted
A thirty minute train ride is an awfully short distance in America. (And Canada, I guess.)
I've heard that Europeans think 100 miles is a long way, and Americans think 100 years is a long time.
Zach
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Don't give up yet, no, don't ever quit/ There's always a chance of a critical hit. Ghost Mice
Posts: 9148 | From: Boston, MA | Registered: Aug 2002
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RuthW
liberal "peace first" hankie squeezer
# 13
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Posted
Zach: exactly. A thirty-minute train ride would only get me halfway to downtown Los Angeles. And probably to a place where I wouldn't want to get off the train.
Posts: 24453 | From: La La Land | Registered: Apr 2001
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Paul W.
Shipmate
# 1450
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Posted
Here is a link my brother just sent me. It's a little guide to the British, written for Americans.
Oi Yanks
Disclaimer: I take no responsibility for the contents or opinions of the above linked site.
Paul W
Hoping this hasn't already been posted on the five pages of thread that I can't be bothered reading right now.
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"It's just a ride" - Bill Hicks
Blog
Flickr
Posts: 2835 | From: Leeds, UK | Registered: Oct 2001
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Zach82
Shipmate
# 3208
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Posted
That site says you shouldn't talk at the train station in England. It's the same down here in the lower Midwest. From what outsiders tell me, we have a reputation of being pretty dour. Even the kids from the big cities tell me we Hoosiers always seem so unhappy.
We just like our misery. ![[Love]](graemlins/love.gif)
Zach
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Don't give up yet, no, don't ever quit/ There's always a chance of a critical hit. Ghost Mice
Posts: 9148 | From: Boston, MA | Registered: Aug 2002
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Anselmina
Ship's barmaid
# 3032
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by ken:
I was once walking over Framwellgate Bridge in Durham at about 3 o'clock in the morning, rather the worse for drink, and I met an old man, a retired miner I guess, who was less sober than I was. He asked me where I was from. I told him I was born in Brighton.
"Ah" he said, sadly "Ah'm a stranger here meself. Been here twenty year..."
It turned out that he came from Houghton-le-Spring.
20 years? Talking to a born and bred tradesman in our local town about a woman who had recently died, he shook his head and said: 'course, won't be a big funeral; she wasn't even local. Only lived here forty years.' And he was quite serious. Shades of Royston Vasey or what?
![[Darth Vader]](graemlins/vader.gif)
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Irish dogs needing homes! http://www.dogactionwelfaregroup.ie/ Greyhounds and Lurchers are shipped over to England for rehoming too!
Posts: 10002 | From: Scotland the Brave | Registered: Jul 2002
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Assistant Village Idiot
Shipmate
# 3266
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Posted
Being born in a location has an amazing cachet in New England. My brother, who was born in East hamptom MA 45 years ago, left at 4 months old, and did not return until returning to Montague last year, is regarded with relative comfort by the local Yankees, despite spending the last 25 years of his life in Southern California. They regard him as a ruined and eccentric local.
"Ebeneezah, aftah all these yeahs, don't ya think I should be c'nsidahed a native of VERmont?"
"Wal, just because my cat had kittens in the oven, I wouldn't call 'em biscuits."
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formerly Logician
Posts: 885 | From: New Hampshire, US | Registered: Sep 2002
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Janine
The Endless Simmer
# 3337
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Posted
It's nice that we can trace my father's family back to & beyond the French fishing village "we" came from; nice that there are X-number of generations of us here in South Louisiana... but, around here, no one seems to worry much about whether folks are newcomers.
Must be the way Cajun culture embraces & absorbs things, taking delight in useful bits and enjoying the esoteric bits in annual festivals meant for that purpose. For instance, there's a terrific Oktoberfest in Ponchatoula, La., and there's some sort of Powwow several times a year. You can still find pockets of older folks who speak only French, and call English-speaking folks from exotic foreign locales like North Louisiana "Americans".
You know you've been here long enough to be accepted, at least as a beloved neighbor, when we start asking you "HowzyaMaminem?" (your Mama and them, the folks back home.)
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I'm a Fundagelical Evangimentalist. What are you?
Take Me Home * My Heart * An hour with Rich Mullins *
Posts: 13788 | From: Below the Bible Belt | Registered: Sep 2002
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Cod
Shipmate
# 2643
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Posted
IMHO no-one has properly explained the regions to the Americans. Those outside London will denigrate my portioning of Britain, and - fair cop - I am from London, but now seen from afar in the distant Antipodes my view of the UK seems to be even more true.
There are three things all people in the UK tend to have in common.
1) Pessimism.
Commonly this is thought to be because of the country's declining importance over the last fifty years. Not so. It is because of the weather. It varies from fatalistic London gloominess to Glaswegian black humour. People from sunnier climes such as SA, Aus and NZ tend to slide into melancholy after a while too.
2) Conservatism
In the UK nothing is new. Even piles of litter may well contain Henry V's empty chip packet. People travel to work on ancient trains and work in ancient buildings. The government sits surrounded by mediaeval heraldic splendour. This leads to a strong sense of continuity and an aversion to try new things, but does lead to a certain ingeniousness in working within those boundaries.
3) Privacy
This is particularly so in the southern half of the country but across the rest too. Brits have a strong sense of privacy and unwittingly treat an encounter with a new acquaintance like the opening of a game of chess. It is easy for the unfortunate American to fall foul of coming on too strong. Join in the game of chess, and you will be fine. The 'chess' principle is true regardless of class or region. A Glaswegian might disagree with me on this, if comparing to a southerner, but that same Glaswegian should then compare his or herself with most people from other countries round the world.
There are only three regions - I list them in order of importance.
1) London.
Geographical area: Not just the GLA, but the entire built up area including Reading and Luton, home to roughly half the entire population of the UK.
As this is both the largest, wealthiest and most diverse region in Europe it's difficult to sum up but I will try. It is an area of dense inhabitation and a reasonably wet climate. It is slightly more Americanised than the rest of the UK. People are less reserved but also less friendly and fair-minded than popularly thought. Very conservative round the edges, slightly mad and innovative in the centre.
Its is one of the world's great centres and is a focal point for people across the Commonwealth and other areas of the world.
Capital: (inner) The West End (outer) Reading.
Religion: designer sports gear.
Language: Ali G/Queen Elizabeth II.
Sport: football, with cricket a distant second.
Food: Fashion food (overpriced) Curry (underpriced). Australian wine.
Regional Film: Bend it like Beckham.
2) The Provinces
Geographical area:
England outside of London.
Also known as 'Middle England' I have included Yorkshire in with it as typical Yorkshire parochialism is typical of the rest of the region. Home to post-industrial cities which have always, and continue to, generate wealth for London. Countryside in the Provinces contains the lion's share of Britain's wealth of historic and beautiful buildings. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier, a dog bred for fighting, comes from this region.
Capitals: Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and possibly Bristol.
Religion: Patriotism.
Language: Urdu.
Sport: football; rugby league in the north and rugby union in the south, and cricket.
Food: Fish and chips; and curry. Bitter beer.
Film: The Full Monty.
3) The Celtic Fringe.
Geographical area: Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Generally post industrial and impoverished areas which have started to rediscover their past identity (Scotland was independent less than three hundred years ago). Home to post-industrial cities which have ceased to generate any wealth for London with the exception of Aberdeen which is a cold, grey town sitting on a lake of oil and is to be avoided unless you work for BP. However, these areas may in time generate wealth for Brussels. Home to the best hillwalking in the UK. People in Northern Ireland are very friendly... to outsiders.
Capital (Scotland) Glasgow, (Wales) Cardiff, (N.I) Belfast.
Religion: Nationalism.
Language: Not English.
Sport: Football, and rugby union. In Glasgow- stealing cars.
Food: Anything fried. Vodka.
Film: Trainspotting.
Posts: 4229 | From: New Zealand | Registered: Apr 2002
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Annie P
Ship's galley maid
# 3453
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Posted
Hi TimTim. Thanks for your condensed desciption of the UK. Just wondered if you'd had a chance to look at Ken's more ellaborate post ( ) which I think you'll find highly amusing. It's on page 2 (and since I'm a pathetic person who can't do links) you'll have to find it on your own. Sorry!
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Older now, but not necessarily wiser.
Posts: 3248 | From: stockton-on-tees | Registered: Oct 2002
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Eanswyth
Ship's raven
# 3363
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Posted
Question for Brits:
What are O levels and A levels? I know they are levels of education, but what specifically?
Posts: 1323 | From: San Diego | Registered: Sep 2002
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Mrs de Point
Shipmate
# 1430
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Posted
Eanswyth 'O' levels were the exam taken at 16 these were ordinary level exams. They were used alongside CSE (certificate of secondary education) which required a lower standard to pass. They have now been replaced by GCSE - general certificate of secondary education. This is supposed to be a fairer more equal system.
A levels (advanced levels) still exist and are generally sat at 18 after 2 years of further study. This is what is required for entry to university.
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Beware I am not in control of my hormones..... or my mind
Posts: 602 | From: Across the road from Calvin | Registered: Sep 2001
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Cod
Shipmate
# 2643
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Posted
I did read Ken's post and it was most amusing, but I think he split the UK into too many regions.
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"I fart in your general direction."
M Barnier
Posts: 4229 | From: New Zealand | Registered: Apr 2002
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Annie P
Ship's galley maid
# 3453
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Posted
I actually quite liked the way ken broke them up as living in the north of England I don't consider myself part of middle England. I suspect that most of Yorkshire think the same!! Also, Lancs and Yorks don't always like being grouped together. Sorry mate!
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Older now, but not necessarily wiser.
Posts: 3248 | From: stockton-on-tees | Registered: Oct 2002
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Astro
Shipmate
# 84
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Posted
In politics I have discovered that roads round a capital are important in both countries so
inside the beltway (US)
and inside the M25 (UK)
mean the same time when talking about politics (as distict from geographic location when they are an ocean apart)
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if you look around the world today – whether you're an atheist or a believer – and think that the greatest problem facing us is other people's theologies, you are yourself part of the problem. - Andrew Brown (The Guardian)
Posts: 2723 | From: Chiltern Hills | Registered: May 2001
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ken
Ship's Roundhead
# 2460
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Posted
M25? That's the outer darkness mate! What London Transport Zone is it in? 6-and-three-quarters or something.
Never trust anyone who lives beyond Zone 2. Maybe Zone 3 if they have to...
Posts: 39579 | From: London | Registered: Mar 2002
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Mrs de Point
Shipmate
# 1430
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Posted
Ken I live in zone D - what do you make of that
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Beware I am not in control of my hormones..... or my mind
Posts: 602 | From: Across the road from Calvin | Registered: Sep 2001
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ken
Ship's Roundhead
# 2460
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Posted
Zone D? Is that the one with Moose Jaw in it? About 13 days out on the Metropolitan Line, beyond the Chilterns? You probably need an escort of Cossacks to get there safely without being ambushed.
Posts: 39579 | From: London | Registered: Mar 2002
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Robert Porter-Miller
Tiocfaidh Separabit
# 1459
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Posted
Got this in my inbox recently:
State Motto's
Alabama: Hell Yes, We Have Electricity
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Alaska: 11,623 Eskimos Can't Be Wrong!
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Arizona: But It's A Dry Heat
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Arkansas: Literacy Ain't Everything
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California: By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic Than Your Honda
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Colorado: If You Don't Ski, Don't Bother
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Connecticut: Like Massachusetts, Only The Kennedy's Don't Own It -- Yet
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Delaware: We Really Do Like The Chemicals In Our Water
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Florida: Ask Us About Our Grandkids
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Georgia: We Put The "Fun" In Fundamentalist Extremism
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Hawaii: Haka Tiki Mou Sha'ami Leeki Toru
(Death To Mainland Scum, But Leave Your Money)
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Idaho: More Than Just Potatoes ... Well Okay, We're Not, But The Potatoes Sure Are Real Good
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Illinois: Please Don't Pronounce the "S"
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Indiana: 2 Billion Years Tidal Wave Free
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Iowa: We Do Amazing Things With Corn
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Kansas: First Of The Rectangle States
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Kentucky: Five Million People; Fifteen Last Names
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Louisiana: We're Not ALL Drunk Cajun Wackos, But That's Our Tourism Campaign
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Maine: We're Really Cold, But We Have Cheap Lobster
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Maryland: If You Can Dream It, We Can Tax It
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Massachusetts: Our Taxes Are Lower Than Sweden's (For Most Tax Brackets)
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Michigan: First Line Of Defense From The Canadians
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Minnesota: 10,000 Lakes... And 10,000,000,000,000 Mosquitoes
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Mississippi: Come And Feel Better About Your Own State
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Missouri: Your Federal Flood Relief Tax Dollars At Work
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Montana: Land Of The Big Sky, The Unabomber, Right-wing Crazies, And Very Little Else
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Nebraska: Ask About Our State Motto Contest
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Nevada: Hookers and Poker!
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New Hampshire: Go Away And Leave Us Alone
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New Jersey: You Want A ##$%##! Motto? I Got Yer ##$%##! Motto Right Here!
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New Mexico: Lizards Make Excellent pets
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New York: You Have The Right To Remain Silent, You Have The Right To An Attorney ...
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North Carolina: Tobacco Is A Vegetable
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North Dakota: We Really Are One Of The 50 States!
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Ohio: At Least We're Not Michigan
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Oklahoma: Like The Play, Only No Singing
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Oregon: Spotted Owl... It's What's For Dinner
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Pennsylvania: Cook With Coal
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Rhode Island: We're Not REALLY An Island
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South Carolina: Remember The Civil War? We Didn't Actually Surrender
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South Dakota: Closer Than North Dakota
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Tennessee: The Educashun State
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Texas: Si' Hablo Ing'les (Yes, I Speak English)
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Utah: Our Jesus Is Better Than Your Jesus
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Vermont: Yep
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Virginia: Who Says Government Stiffs And Slackjaw Yokels Don't Mix?
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Washington: Help! We're Overrun By Nerds And Slackers!
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Washington, D.C.: Wanna Be Mayor?
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West Virginia: One Big Happy Family... Really!
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Wisconsin: Come Cut The Cheese
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Wyoming: Where Men Are Men . . . and the sheep are scared!
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It's a beautiful day - don't let it get away - Bono and the boys
Let's all "Release Some Tension"
Posts: 1231 | From: Washington, D.C. | Registered: Oct 2001
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Mrs de Point
Shipmate
# 1430
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Posted
Ken those of us from outside the M25 deep in the Chilterns know no fear on that old Met Line or the good old A40. ![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
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Beware I am not in control of my hormones..... or my mind
Posts: 602 | From: Across the road from Calvin | Registered: Sep 2001
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ChrisT
One of the Good Guys™
# 62
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Posted
After Robert Millers appraisal of US STates, how about a list for UK Counties?
Yorkshire: We welcome foreigners, as long as you leave quick
Lancashire: Not all black pudding and coal, we have hills as well
Any more...?
London, Cambridgeshire, Scotland, Wales, Devon/Cornwall etc etc...
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Firmly on dry land
Posts: 6489 | From: Here, there and everywhere | Registered: May 2001
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Mrs de Point
Shipmate
# 1430
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Posted
Buckinghamshire - not in my backyard
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Beware I am not in control of my hormones..... or my mind
Posts: 602 | From: Across the road from Calvin | Registered: Sep 2001
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Campbellite
Ut unum sint
# 1202
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by jedijudy:
Oh, dear. Cold. brrrr!
It was cold here last week. Daytime temp was in the low 80's!!! Nightime was about 64 degrees! Now, I love the heat as much as anyone, but must admit to enjoying that little bit of nippiness.
But...we're back to 90 degrees, and 73 at night. ***sigh***
jj
I'm with you on this one, Sister Judy. Any place you cannot grow cotton is not fit for year round human habitation.
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I upped mine. Up yours.
Suffering for Jesus since 1966.
WTFWED?
Posts: 12001 | From: between keyboard and chair | Registered: Aug 2001
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Erin
Meaner than Godzilla
# 2
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Posted
It's not going to make it out of the 60s here today. That is just wrong, man.
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Commandment number one: shut the hell up.
Posts: 17140 | From: 330 miles north of paradise | Registered: Mar 2001
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Mrs de Point
Shipmate
# 1430
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Posted
Dipped below 40 today at my house - nice & fresh
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Beware I am not in control of my hormones..... or my mind
Posts: 602 | From: Across the road from Calvin | Registered: Sep 2001
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sharkshooter
Not your average shark
# 1589
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Posted
Current temperature -9° C (that is approx. 16° F). ![[Frown]](frown.gif)
I'd take mid-60's right now.
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Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. [Psalm 19:14]
Posts: 7772 | From: Canada; Washington DC; Phoenix; it's complicated | Registered: Oct 2001
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Assistant Village Idiot
Shipmate
# 3266
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Posted
I loved the state mottoes. We do need to get some variety for the southern sates. One joke isn't enough. I think "It's not the heat, it's the humidity," should go in there, as well as the northern version "But it's worse with the wind chill."
Canadians care to have a go?
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formerly Logician
Posts: 885 | From: New Hampshire, US | Registered: Sep 2002
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by ChrisT:
After Robert Millers appraisal of US STates, how about a list for UK Counties?
Yorkshire: We welcome foreigners, as long as you leave quick
Lancashire: Not all black pudding and coal, we have hills as well
Any more...?
London, Cambridgeshire, Scotland, Wales, Devon/Cornwall etc etc...
Cumbria: Would you like some rain?
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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