How does one do as the Britons do?

I would like to take this time to address the question that is the very title of this blog.

What does it mean to live like a Briton, as an American?

So far, not much. Sure I've been here for a wee bit more than a month now, but I don't feel like I'm living in a different country. The superficial signs are there -- British accents, cars driving on the opposite sides of the road, dates being represented as day/month/year, the general preference to use military time instead of regular time, and the currency. Beyond that are less obvious signs like slight differences in cuisine (they LOVE potatoes here) and whatnot. But beyond even that, there's nothing markedly different about England compared to the US, as far as everyday life goes.

So I wonder, am I getting anything out of being in this country? I buy my groceries from Asda, which is owned by Walmart (yes, the same Walmart). I go to a puny Chinatown every couple of weeks to buy sweet breads and Chinese vegetables (something, I admit, I couldn't do in Pittsburgh, but I could easily do back in NJ).

I go clubbing about once a week on average, dancing to the lovely mainstream hip hop that I hear all the time in the US. Aside from the nicer facilities and lighting, and the occasional mechanical penis ride, it felt no different than going to an AEPi or Sig Tau party. I was surprised by the proportion of people who weren't getting into it at all -- hey that sounds a lot like a High Tech dance (and those were the most unspirited social functions ever)! Most people at the club can be categorized into two categories: too trashed and unable make complicated simple movements without risk of physical injury or not trashed enough and thus too self-conscious to make any complicated movements either. End result: lots of people just loitering on the dance floor, screaming things into each other's ears or adjusting their strapless dresses (at least people dress up nicely for these things). Such a pity, really. And it costs £4-5 to get in. A clubbing experience entirely depends on what one makes of it, but I have the feeling that I'm among the people in there getting the most bang for the buck (or sterling?), most shine for the sterling? most shit for the sterling? most ... ok you get the idea. Anyways, final verdict on clubs: swanky frat dance party.

So clubbing's not an exotic experience. I have a feeling raves are a different story, but I don't particularly want to go to those.

Back to the matter at hand. What exactly do the Britons do differently? Everyday life.. not much different, being a first world country in the western hemisphere. People get up every morning, drive or ride public transit to work/school, etc. College kids are the same everywhere, with an insatiable appetite for social events, like parties on weekends (weekends start on Thursday here, btw), and means of procrastination. People here do dress a little differently, a lot less jeans and t-shirt and a lot more black peacoat+black trousers for the guys and peacoat+skirts for the ladies. Should I rewrite that as (black peacoat)(black trousers + skirts)? Yea I think that works. It's all about compactness -- I'll let the distributive property take care of that.

In an effort to remedy this appalling lack of uniqueness in everyday culture, I figured I needed to get involved somehow and meet British people. Perhaps my problem is hanging out with Americans all the time? Perhaps. In any case, it'd be a good idea to make friends with some natives since I came all the way over here. Thus, I joined the university's radio station. Sorry, I don't have a radio show nor even a deejay name. I'm actually writing album and single reviews. As far as an avenue for meeting people, it's not terribly great since meetings are only once a week with the sole purpose of doling out CDs. However, I might get involved with other aspects of the station once I get more comfortable.

During orientations (CMU's and Arcadia's), the presenters discussed the progressive stages of culture shock. The talks were identical, which leads me to believe that they were pulling material off the same websites, but I digress. The stages go something like this:

1. enthusiastic ("OMG I LOVE THIS PLACE! I CAN'T IMAGINE LEAVING!")
   
2. slightly annoyed and homesick ("I can't understand their stupid accent.")
3. really annoyed and extremely homesick ("I hate the food here, I hate my classes. I miss my mom!)
   
4. slightly accepting ("Bangers and mash ain't bad.")
5. fully accepting ("OK, I got a lot out of this.")

Everyone knows that these talks are mostly BS, but I went ahead and wondered if I would be miserable. And if so, I thought about ways to prevent/prepare for it. However, since the culture here is PRETTY MUCH THE SAME as back in the US, I haven't felt any of these stages of culture shock. Sure, I'm having fun in England, but I also had fun in Pittsburgh the first few weeks (that's kind of generous) and eventually I neither felt enthusiastic nor miserable -- just indifferent. Sure everyone complains about Pittsburgh, but no one is actually miserable. So far the trajectory of my attitude towards Manchester resembles Pittsburgh's, so I'm not too worried. Slightly disappointed because it'll probably result in me not fully immersing in a different culture, but it's not a huge deal for me. I'm here to have fun.

It's only been one month though. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the semester plays out. Hey, at least I can say I'm here during England's worst economic situation in 20 years? That should count for something.