Street names - where does the street, boulevard or avenue go?

One of my biggest pet peeves about my other half is when he references English road names without the suffix.  For example, I would get most perplexed when he would say that he had gone to Oxford quickly before meeting me in London.  He actually meant Oxford Street and not the city about 70 miles away. 

It was only when this English girl moved to LA LA Land that she realized that no one ever references the street, avenue or boulevard in describing places, directions or locations.   It's there on the signs for all to see but noone tends to use them. 

For me this puts on whole new meanings to discussions about other people's weekend plans, the locations of restaurants I must try and shops I just have to go to.  All the time I think people mean the city, state or country rather than the road of the same name in the next zipcode. 

Thankfully I have also realised that people are not living some sort of jetset life that I am not and that going to Vermont is a 20 minute drive and not a cross US flight to get that amazing Korean BBQ!

An American National Food Item - and I had thought it was Burgers and Fries.

I am pretty sure it is not just me either but one of this English Girl's pet peeves with American food is their love of all things cinnamon.  I can understand it (maybe) at this time of year with the festive season coming up on us, but it seems that Americans are obsessed with all things cinnamon tasting and not just at Christmas.  Unfortunately for this English Girl - it is probably my most least liked flavouring.  A little in some mulled wine - fine - but here in the US you just cannot get away from it.

Cinnamon rolls, cinnamon flavoured latter and I am yet to find an Apple Pie which has not been flavoured in some way with cinnamon.  It is like it is the American national flavouring and as such it must therefore be included in all food items.  

Only last week this English Girl decided to treat herself  to a pastry with her morning cup of coffee.  Having decided on a treat of what looked like a yummy chocolate twist - just imagine my dismay when I bit into it and yes you guessed it was cinnamon flavoured too.   You have been warned!

Saving time with Technology - thank goodness for the DVR!

Being the English Girl whose most recent television was acquired from her grandmother's upgrade it has to be said I have never really been at the forefront of technological advances.  I have to, however, say that since moving to the US, I really want to thank the person who invented the DVR. 

This English Girl has been fast forwarded a few technological centuries by my better half and due to this insistence I can now probably count on one had the number of times I have actually watched live television.    This may sound a strange advantage but here in the US the extent of television advertisements is astounding.  The networks here manage to extend the airtime of a movie by at least an hour with the amount of adverts with which they insert into the programming.  Compared to ITV and Channel 4, normal advertising programming here in the US seems to include more adverts than actual show.

With this backdrop the DVR has become my new best friend - allowing me to record the programs I want  to watch and then fast forwarding through the endless and mostly senseless advertisements that interrupt the show at a mind boggling rate.  This English Girl may be an advertisers idea of a nightmare, but at least I only spend half of the time to watch a television show.

All I can say is thank goodness for the DVR!

So everything is turning orange....

So we are coming up to Halloween - it will actually be my second since moving to the US but I have to say this English Girl is still amazed how the Americans really do take this event to their hearts.  In England, kids of course dress up and play trick and treat on neighbouring houses on All Hallows Eve, but nothing prepared me for the extent of the American love and embrace for everything Halloween related.  Maybe it's because it is described as the first of the of the three big "holidays" that gets them all excited - although the holiday tag tricks you as amazingly for America there is no actually public holiday (a.k.a day off work) attached.   

Seriously - the build up to Halloween is like the English greeting card's assault on Christmas beginning in early September.  For nearly two months now we have been orange tinted, pumpkins adorn every store front, whole Halloween stores open up dedicated to the provision of Halloween costumes, toys, tricks and every Halloween related treats you can imagine.  "Pumpkin Patches" appear -for kids to actually go and choose their own pumpkin right from the earth or any other vacant lot - my favorite being on an disused car sales lot on Wilshire.... Grocery stores import every size shape and style of pumpkin known to man and all pre-packaged cakes and biscuits seem to have orange icing or be shaped like and believe me everything from a latte to pies are all flavoured with pumpkin.  And try to find a pack of snickers bars or any other treat that has not been reduced to "funsize" packaging for the "treaters" is to be honest exhausting!

Medusa at the 2009 Parade

That's not to say this English girls hasn't got caught up in the frenzy - as anyone who knows me knows I am partial to a spot of fancy dress like the next woman.  And with that in mind - The Annual West Hollywood Fancy Dress Parade is it has to be said awesome - the creativity and thought that goes into the costumes which are paraded up and down Santa Monica Blvd in West Hollywood is a definite sight to be seen and probably where this English Girl will end up this years Halloween's evening too.  Although after last year's choice of costume had many random women stranger asking my better half (who was dressed as Zorro) for pictures with him every two minutes - I may relegate his costume to a more conventional zombie one.....!

Hope to see you there - Just don't even think about giving me another slice of pumpkin pie.

"We all adore a Kia-Ora" - just not including America

I think I have mentioned previously that it is the weird things about England that this English Girl misses the most.  However since moving to Los Angeles I have been actually amazed by some of things that you just cannot get in this country.  It's not just quirky English stuff, but there are some things lacking and I just don't understand.  For example orange squash in fact any squash be it lemon blackcurrant (mmm Ribena....) or even mixed fruit.  It's just not available here. 

Huge cartons of concentrate - check.  Powder you mix with water in the realm of Tang (creates something like squash but not really and they don't have any normal flavors) - check!  Vats of Iced Tea - check.  But good old orange or lemon squash which you mix the requisite parts with water - nada.  The question really is how can the mum's of America go without it - admittedly the nutritional benefits (or after effects) of all the E numbers consumed by children of the Generation Y is still likely under scrutiny by some European scientists somewhere but then again that's another story.   This English Girl just can't recall a birthday party, school race day or day of my life in England where you couldn't get an orange squash if you wanted one.    Now don't feel too sorry for me as all is not completely bleak here as you can obtain (stashed next to the tequila in US supermarket chains) Rose's lime cordial.    Although the checkout girl in the local Ralph's probably thinks I probably make the weakest margarita's considering my purchasing regularity of a bottle most weeks. 

To me this is one grocery item's unavailability that makes no sense - the ease of making a soft drink, the relative inexpensiveness - all would seem to be an easy marketing play here in the US of A - but sadly no.  However, all may be forgiven since this is the country of the invention of the Tide pen - which is yet to arrive on UK shore and which is something I now cannot live without.  Somehow this English Girl needs to work out how to start an import business as I know for sure that this English Girl's friends back home would love them to bits. 

Of course they would be especially useful for getting those spots of Ribena off a white top!  

No offense but we're all just foreigners.

Okay so it's stating the blatantly obvious but being an English Girl, I am classified as a foreigner in this town.  Even worse than that I am described for all official purposes as an alien  - but that's another story.    Obviously I know this and,  as I have alluded to, I try to prepare the general public when I am out and about in my new adopted town.  However, from time to time, I forget that I speak "a bit funny" in the minds of the general Los Angeleno population. 

So, for those of you who don't know me, I don't have a strong regional accent, in fact I don't really have an accent other than an English one - and admittedly I smile when I'm told that they "love my accent it's so cute"!  But imagine my surprise when, quite often and usually when I am being my most polite, whoever I am speaking to looks at me quizzically.  Seriously!  I don't know if anyone else from my homeland finds this but, more often that not I could be speaking the language of the martian (that I am categorised as) rather than the good old Queen's English.   It has even got to the point where I have had to ask my better half to translate in order to get a glass of water.  True story and I think I can manage to order that in most European languages.

Whilst occasionally annoying that I can't make myself understood when speaking English in America, it does slightly amuse me, especially as I have mentioned that I am trying to keep as much of my English language and accent as possible.   However what makes me laugh out loud is the responses I get when I am asked where I come from.  For some reason Americans love to make a guess.  Often, as I am sure others are, this English Girl is asked whether she's from Australia.  Now don't get me wrong, I have lots of Aussie mates and am by far from offended that someone would think I am from the glorious land down-under.  But after I shake my head and am just about to confirm my Englishness, it's the next guess that gets me:  

"No - Oh you must be German then!"  

Giant things.....

So one of this English Girl's obsessions is about visiting all things big!   It started with the Giant Lobster near murry river in South Australia when I visited my friend Jenni in Oz and she took me on a road trip to Mundala!  Since then there's been the giant pineapple, mango, and giant Wellington boot in Australia and of course the giant thermometer on the way to Vegas!   One of my faves is the giant donut at Randy's drice thru donut - what's not to love.  Giant donuts.  But it was in the elevator at work that I found out about the giant "fork in the road" in Pasadena.  Looks like this English Girl has a detour on the way to the office!