MrsLondon

It seems strange that US power companies get away with sending 'surges.' That's never happened to me or anyone I know in the UK (that is to say, maybe there have been surges but nothing has ever been damaged from it). Could it be because all our appliances are fused over here?

doctor scrumpy

As opposed to con-fused like the rest of us Mrs L. ?

Jovially Yours

Taffyles

Yes they do expect ALL students in the class to "Pledge allegiance to the..." every morning. I call it brainwashing meself, but there you go. My daughter wouldn't and got punished. My sons were smarter and watermeloned it - they didn't get punished and didn't say it. I did complain to the school- my complaint was "noted" - IOW ignored.

jaytee

There is "The Expert Expatriate: Your Guide to Successful Relocation Abroad: Moving, Living, Thriving," but I think books dealing specifically with understanding the USA would be better.

This one looks interesting: "Put Your Best Foot Forward, USA : A Fearless Guide to Understanding the United States of America"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=books

ISBN: 0963753096

Then, there is "Culture Shock! Successful Living Abroad: A Parent's Guide"

Just plug the search into amazon.com & later try 'explore similar items'

gonecountry

first note .. i read culture shock.. it was rubbish.. might be good if you were moving from a third wrld country.. but didn't do anything to note the more subtle differences between UK and US.

second note... humph.. i am beginning to note some critcism of me here... i didn't come here for sympathy (find that between shit and syphillis in the dictionary by the way) but if you americans reading really get the impression that i'm a simpering little englishwoman just waiting to be taken advantage of then you have me very wrong
i have been married to a texan for 5 years... i have the accent pretty much down and a lot of folks around here don't realise i'm a brit already. i have totally embraced the US way of life.. i have always planned to become a citizen the first day they let me.. i know all the words to the 'Star Spangled Banner' and I can sing them with my hand on my heart and i have no problem with pledging allegience to the flag.. USA has been my home of the heart for a long long time now.
That doesn't mean i can't have a moan about some of its ways of doing business... is it 8 years of Clinton that made everyone think its ok to lie their ass off .. the president did? or is it the aftermath of 9/11 which has begun to turn the US into a nanny state where no one takes responsibility for their actions? There are things here which are not right.. there are things in Britain that are not right either.
It is my way to forcefully hold my head up and forge ahead for weeks on end and then to crumple for just a day or so when i feel the world is beating too hard on me- well i stood up again now ... i threatened the auctioneer with small claims court ..he had 24 hours. now expired so that happens today. I talked again to the VA yesterday... i spoke to a really nice woman who is obviously doing everything she can but is reaching the same brick wall we are....
Did you know that is a veterans records are lost in a VA office.. or if the office catches fire and the records are destroyed... then the veteran loses his medical cover???????
They have lost my husbands file somewhere in one of his moves.. the VA has no central computer system.. his file could basically be anywhere - i was told i would have to call every office in the country.. would cost a mint and take forever!- and get this ... they don't give the phone numbers to veterans anyay you only get the 800 number that takes you to the nearest office. So my husband who lost both his legs in the service of his country.. won a purple heart, a bronze star with V for valour, army cmmendation medal etc etc.. is basically told tough hun.. the navy can blow you up but well we lost your records so we're not gonna buy you a new wheelchair and we're not gonna help you pay for a car with all the equipment you need. Now I'm sorry but if being an 'American' involves me siting back and taking that kinda b/s then well i'm gonna have a hard time with it.. i am gonna stand up and shout and scream till he gets what he needs- and if that makes me a stroppy Englishwoman then so be it. I do love this country.. but i love my family more. I called the congressman yesterday.
By the way my daughter is fine she's 12 years old .. she'd left her father behind in England the week before and this kid hit her when she was down.. but she's a fine example.. she stood up to her even though it got her in trouble.. and she came through it smiling.. she to has the accent , pledges allegience and means it every morning and IS an American .
My son on the other hand is soo darned English!.. but we're working on him!
Anyway basically what i'm saying is .. i may be English (actually i'm Welsh) but I'm trying to be an American. I love the country and it is my home now.. but respect is earned and there's alot of ppl here at the moment who are not earning my respect- and yeah i would really ike to see some of this legendry American service!
Ginny

jaytee

That's right. There is also MY COUNTRY 'TIS OF THEE . Americans do not know the origin of the music.

link:

http://www.fiftiesweb.com/usa/mycountr.htm

robclews

I think in an open forum you will get both criticism and support when you spell out problems you are experiencing. However with all your issues you are not alone, many before you have experienced what you are going through, and many after you will do the same.

There is a culture shock, I don’t know what age you are and I guess I shouldn’t ask a woman that question but the older you are the harder it is. Personally I am 47 years old, I spent my whole life in the UK, I had a good job and money in the bank, a lovely home nice cars the usual capitalist things.

After my divorce I met and subsequently married my American wife after single handedly helping BA out of their profit slump. I gave up my job in the UK to work on my relationship in order to determine if it was going to be a success which it now is. I spent 2 years and 25k living between the 2 countries. My family all live in the UK and I miss them terribly at times, so there you have one plus that I don’t. I married in April this year after arriving permanently in Feb2003 we are now in July approaching August and like Patrick I still have no job. I have a fill in lined up now fortunately, but after waiting for my EAD and stuff I have blown another 19k on living plus car etc etc. I have a few friends but not the social group that I had in the UK.

My future pay will be half of what I was earning in the UK and my medical expenses and property tax takes care of a big chunk of that. So everything in the USA isn’t greener than the UK, far from it and it does take time to settle.

The point of this post………it may sound gloomy and paint me as unhappy with what’s happened to me….far from it I would do it all again, the weather is great the people are nice and the adventure has only just started, I adore my wife and her company makes up for the loss of my friends, and I know it will only get better. It took time and when money flows out with nothing coming in, it worries the shit out of you, it makes you feel gloomy and miserable, when your down it’s tough to come out of it.

A boss of mine once said to me ‘you make your own luck’, and Arnold Palmer the golfer once said ‘the more I practice the luckier I become’ my advice……….be aggressive, plan hard and execute easily, and come back in 6 months and tell us how things have changed for the better.

Rob

gonecountry

yep Rob i think you have a point with the age thing.. I'm 38 ... and yes sometimes i look back to where i was 10 years ago..living with husband and 2 kids in a very nice 4 bed house we owned in a leafy suburb with our Landrover Discovery and then look at what we have now hummm rented house thats killing us.. very nice truck which i pay an arm and a leg each month to Ford to be allowed to keep on my drive! and not alot else... except a much nicer new husband and a beautiful baby daughter and underneath the surface level crap i'm taking a much happier me.
As i tried to sy in the post above. I don't regret doing it.. I too have gone through every penny of savings I had to be here... 15,000 so far and we're now entering the realm of the negative!and yes in the clear light of day i would do it again... but there would be things i would do differently.. i would realise that a few more months in Britain and a few sussing out trips to US before we came would probably have saved us alot of monry and grief in the long run... i would love someone to have told me then that i neded power surge protection etc etc... thats why i posted - mostly to vent but also to let others be aware that it is only what you make it.. it isn't the promise land right off and t maybe think a little more realistically and ake off those rose coloured glasses before you come here. If i had been a little more prepared for the hard work then it might have come a little easier
Ginny

Pimpbot

Great last few posts. Us newbies in the US can learn a lot from people like yourselves, who have been here for awhile and know the various pitfalls that follow with such a big life changing decision.

I already considered myself around 50% Americanised before I moved here. I had numerous friends in various parts of the country, that I had visited over the years and during my 23 vacations to America. I'd been following the major sports over here(mainly football) since the early 80s and showed more interest in watching those games, than watching my own soccer team play on sky. One of the first websites I ever used to log onto while browsing, was CNN or Fox for the American news and once my cable provider finally started showing NASN(north American sports network) I pretty much didnt ever turn the TV off. Having now arrived here, I now realise that I'm probably working on around 10 to 15% Americanisation. Just the simple things like picking a new shower gel or deodorant because you can no longer buy the brand you used to buy back home, are the things that suddenly hit you. "We're not in Kansas any more Toto!". I too gave up a great job that paid well and that I had been in for almost 12 years. That job bought me a nice apartment and a pretty good standard of living. The one and only thing that has ever scared me about emmigrating from my homeland, was being able to find work and even more so, the whole job searching and interview process. When you've only ever worked for two companies and only ever been to two interviews, the thought of starting the whole process again scares the crap out of me, especially when I am going to be doing it in a totally different culture to what I have been used to. I do miss my friends and family and the odd interaction with a Limey, but I have the support of my wonderful fiancee and her wonderful family, who couldnt have done a better job in welcoming me to America. I know there will be more ups and downs the further I get into this process, but I'm fully commited to riding those waves and coming out on top.

lanky1980

I just read the last few posts and they really hit the nail on the head, especially with me. I left at 20 yrs old (23 now) without a pot to piss in really (i literally left with my guitar and a bag of clothes!!!) and the USA has provided me with everything i could ever want, not least the most beautiful wife a man could ask for.
I got very lucky as i had a LOT of help from her parents settling in (i lived with them for the first 2 years) and am currently in my last year of University after being a roofer's mate and general drop out in the UK. We have a stable income, a car each, a nice apartment, things i never had back home.
However that is not to say i dont miss home terribly. I haven't been back since March 2002, mainly due to cost, and i would literally give my right arm for a decent pint in my old local, or to see my parents.
Things are very different over here, and its not the land of milk and honey that it is portrayed to be back in the UK. You have to weigh up the benefits and pitfalls of each country before you can truly judge them.
Just my two-pence/cence worth

Jabba1

As an American, I am very interested in knowing exactly why the US is portrayed as a "land of milk and honey" in the UK (what's so great about milk and honey anyway, I never liked either one that much). Exactly what entities in the UK are portraying America as such? The average man on the street? Large corporations? American tourists? Or do Brits actually believe all the rubbish they see on American tv shows such as "Friends" ect.? I'm really interested in this.

Pimpbot

Maybe those Brits(or any others looking in) are just tired with what they have and where they are. Kind of "grass is always greener" maybe?.

Jabba1

Your saying that any Brit who becomes fed up with his/her life in Britian, atomatically conjurs up images of a utopian America? Where streets are paved with gold, and Americans live in mansions, lie around all day on beaches sunning themselves and drive a different car for each day of the week?

Pimpbot

I think thats slightly over doing it, and I'd also say, that most Brits have a view that things are not all they seem in America and have far more derogatory comments. I dont think there is this huge queue of Brits at Heathrow awaiting there flight to the "promise land". I'd say more Brits dream of either living or retiring somewhere in Spain or Portugal than wish to move to America.

Jabba1

Spain or Portugal eh? Good! I read all these posts about how British immigrants come here thinking the streets are paved with gold, only to find out they're not. Sometimes makes me wonder what goes on over on that side of the pond. I definately need to get the lead out, stop putting it off, and go on over to the UK for a visit. No doubt it would be VERY enlightening.

BTW, why aren't you in Spain or Portugal? Who knows, maybe the streets really are paved with gold in those countries.