Culture shock for Canadians in the US

[girl 37 7]

I just read a recipe for "Wilted Lettuce Salad" on the Central Market website. Oh-so-healthy: "Drain bacon and reserve drippings. Crumble bacon into salad. In same skillet, combine reserved bacon drippings, the dressing and sugar and heat to boiling. Pour over salad, top with green onion and black pepper and toss gently."

[girl 37 7]

I only weigh 93 pounds and feel when I am there like I need to keep moving because I could be mistaken for a snack or a rack of ribs..lol....

hmm... gigantic portions at restaurants and side salads covered with cheese and bacon bits, mass consumption of pop, people using drive-throughs for everything because they're too lazy to get out of their cars, sugar in almost *everything* (bread!!?), aisles & aisles of frozen meals and ####### like "chicken crackers". At my five-year-old stepson's elementary school they serve breakfast (e.g., donuts with biscuits and cereal) that doesn't include any fruit! Sometimes I ask myself if the medical insurance & drug companies control the food industry, so they're guaranteed a huge population of people requiring shots for diabetes, pills for high cholesterol, and a steady supply of hip & knee replacements. A Q&A medical column in our local "Parent" magazine asked "Are fad diets ok for kids aged 7-12?" [/end rant]

[littlepoem 0]

I just have to put in my 2 cents here about portion sizes here in the states. I could not possibly begin to eat the amount of food on my plate most of the time. We have a buffet here called The Old Country Buffet and I am telling you this place is a yard sale of not just overweight people but drastically obese. On the last visit there we saw people that were playing cards between heaped up platefuls. That isn't as bad as the next scene across the table from us. A huge lady was falling asleep at her table with about 3 empty plates around her and a massive plate of dessets in front of her. Now, is it just me or do you think if you are laying comatose at the buffet table that it may perhaps be time to go? lol...When I am there I feel like I have to keep moving because I only weigh 93 pounds and could be mistaken for a snack or a rack of ribs. lol.........sorry but I just had to tell you about my OCB adventure!!!

[Flames9_RN 358]

I just have to put in my 2 cents here about portion sizes here in the states. I could not possibly begin to eat the amount of food on my plate most of the time. We have a buffet here called The Old Country Buffet and I am telling you this place is a yard sale of not just overweight people but drastically obese. On the last visit there we saw people that were playing cards between heaped up platefuls. That isn't as bad as the next scene across the table from us. A huge lady was falling asleep at her table with about 3 empty plates around her and a massive plate of dessets in front of her. Now, is it just me or do you think if you are laying comatose at the buffet table that it may perhaps be time to go? lol...When I am there I feel like I have to keep moving because I only weigh 93 pounds and could be mistaken for a snack or a rack of ribs. lol.........sorry but I just had to tell you about my OCB adventure!!!

WHAT, time to go?? When she wakes up, she is going to be hungary!! lol Don't get in her way as she stomps to the buffet!!

[littlepoem 0]

I just have to put in my 2 cents here about portion sizes here in the states. I could not possibly begin to eat the amount of food on my plate most of the time. We have a buffet here called The Old Country Buffet and I am telling you this place is a yard sale of not just overweight people but drastically obese. On the last visit there we saw people that were playing cards between heaped up platefuls. That isn't as bad as the next scene across the table from us. A huge lady was falling asleep at her table with about 3 empty plates around her and a massive plate of dessets in front of her. Now, is it just me or do you think if you are laying comatose at the buffet table that it may perhaps be time to go? lol...When I am there I feel like I have to keep moving because I only weigh 93 pounds and could be mistaken for a snack or a rack of ribs. lol.........sorry but I just had to tell you about my OCB adventure!!!

WHAT, time to go?? When she wakes up, she is going to be hungary!! lol Don't get in her way as she stomps to the buffet!!

lol.........when i go there people look at me like "are you lost"

[Flames9_RN 358]

I just have to put in my 2 cents here about portion sizes here in the states. I could not possibly begin to eat the amount of food on my plate most of the time. We have a buffet here called The Old Country Buffet and I am telling you this place is a yard sale of not just overweight people but drastically obese. On the last visit there we saw people that were playing cards between heaped up platefuls. That isn't as bad as the next scene across the table from us. A huge lady was falling asleep at her table with about 3 empty plates around her and a massive plate of dessets in front of her. Now, is it just me or do you think if you are laying comatose at the buffet table that it may perhaps be time to go? lol...When I am there I feel like I have to keep moving because I only weigh 93 pounds and could be mistaken for a snack or a rack of ribs. lol.........sorry but I just had to tell you about my OCB adventure!!!

WHAT, time to go?? When she wakes up, she is going to be hungary!! lol Don't get in her way as she stomps to the buffet!!

lol.........when i go there people look at me like "are you lost"

Or ur a snack!!!! RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!

[littlepoem 0]

ha!

[Velvettt 0]

Even the one in Rockport? I was hoping that one might be okay as we try to get down to the coast whenever we can.

You'll have to drive up to San Angelo then, ours is a 'proper' one but you have to get there before 9am.

Rockport's a wee bit far to go grocery shopping from San Antonio! Let's see... 2 and a half hours to Corpus Christi, another half hour or so to Rockport from there... nope.

Edited January 10, 2007 by Velvettt

[mozplay 29]

One of the biggest culture shock experiences I had was not so much a reflection on the U.S. but on my own perceptions. I am Canadian born but so far, have lived half my live (the first half) in the Caribbean and the second half in the G.T.A. Needless to say, I am very comfortable in a multi-cultural setting. Perhaps too much so.

The area we live in in Baltimore is predominantly black, when we first moved down, I keep looking for white or Asian faces. Up to now, I have not seen one person of mixed race (like me). There is nothing wrong with this, but it was a shock for me.

Of even greater shock was my own preconcieved notion that I could find a Caribbean grocery simply by asking people. In Toronto, it has been my experience that many of the people of colour (whether it be black or Indian or whatever) have some sort of ties to the Caribbean. Either they have lived there themselves or have a parent, aunt, uncle, cousin, grandparent, friend, somebody who has. Not so in Baltimore. It took me a second to appreciate that these people truly are African-American. Just asking a black person where I could find good jerk or where I could find good curry was not going to cut it.

Just goes to show how sheltered my life has been, even though I have lived in and conquered big bad Toronto, lol.

Monique

[Galateia 1]

Gravy.

My fiance is so sick of hearing about the gravy. Gravy goes with fries. It's a brownish colour, and thin enough to dip your fry in or pour over poutine. When I was a Cracker Barrel learning about Biscuits (I wonder if things with that many calories per square inch are just illegal in Canada? ) I was gamely testing out my 'grits' when I noticed what appeared to be some sort of white pudding. Ok. Nothing too shocking there.

By then, oh then. His friend picks it up and offers me "gravy". It took me a few seconds to figure out he meant the white stuff. Now, I know that gravy is essentially pure fat but at least it doesn't look like a mound of congealed lard. Made from sausages. I've lived all over, including Montreal, and I can handle weird food, like chicken feet. But white gravy?! Gaah! Gravy shouldn't still look exactly like rendered animal fat.

And my fiance will never let me forget the time I ordered fries at Applebee's and asked for a side of gravy. The girl looked at me blankly, and asked me to repeat myself a few times. She finally offered 'Well, we have some breakfast gravy to go with the biscuits... I guess I could bring that out." Eeeagh! Not the quivering lard of doom!

And people stare at me blankly when I talk about (brown) gravy. "You know, made from turkey at Thanksgiving, or chicken, or beef? Gravy?" *still looking mystified*: "Oh, brown gravy".

And that commercial showing a vat of blubber, I mean sausage gravy, because sucked up through a straw?

Hilariously, my fiance thought that he had a bizzarely small stomach, since he only ever managed to eat 1/3-1/2 of the portions served in restaurants down there. Imagine his surprise when he came up here and managed to finish most of his meal!

And the drinks! I had never seen a Margarita the size of my head before, let alone something that big being served to a single person.

[Caladan 19]

That's definitely a regional thing. My roommate is from the South, and when she makes gravy, it's white. When my mom makes gravy, it's thin brown juices thickened slightly with flour.

[Marilyn. 340]

my mom always made "white" gravy.... I make it to sometimes....

We called it cream gravy... although we usually use milk not cream....

It is just margarine melted, mix in some flour and add 2 cups of milk and season with salt and pepper to taste... we sometimes fry up onions in the margarine too... yum!! yum!!

[kristenm 0]

How about this - There is no such thing as a "milker" for your coffee. Whenever I ask for it, they literally bring me a glass of milk. Oh, and by the way, their so called "half-and-half", is NOT half milk and half cream. No, no, no, its actually 10% cream! GRRRRRRRRrr

And another thing, maybe its me, but mayonaise is not really considered an essential condement. Maybe its like poutine, but what else goes better with your fries, excluding ketchup and/or vinegar? Oh, and somehow, the world has alterned in mysterious ways because ketchup has been replaced with salsa! That's just wrong.

That said, they still know how to throw a sale, a la max!

[hockeygal 0]

Bring on the white gravy! The single best thing on any US breakfast menu! yummers!

[Mephys 2]

I wouldnt mind trying the white gravy at all......But PLEASE whats wrong with all this ignorance toward THE brown gravy!!!

Poutine, Turkey, fries, Fried chicken, hot chicken sandwich, cant eat any of those without the brown gravy.

Ok american fellows. you dont know poutine, but how the hell do you eat all the rest? Its soooooo dry!

Ill bring these huge containers of mix for Gravy when I move. Specially poutine sauce. Ok I can live without the cheese curds, poutine is always good with mozzarella , but youll never take the poutine sauce away from me!!!!

Mephys