I think three words best define living in america: choices, space and hoarding. There are thousands of choices for every product imaginable. If you dream it, someone is trying to sell it, usually in a display in a giant grocery store inside a can. Nothing is fresh here, and everything is huge. Even what could be termed fresh is weeks old. The tomato is a perfect example of this. It's a staple of most diets in the US, though most people don't really pay any attention to it specifically. The tomatoes here are larger than your fist. They are bright red, and they are tasteless.
I remember growing up and growing our own fresh vegetables and melons in a garden. Everything we grew we cooked, and what we couldn't eat we gave away. That's rare now. Very rare. In fact, in most municipalities it is illegal to have a garden on your property.
The tomato has been bred to be extremely large, and keep well without bruising. The result of irresponsible breeding has left us with crops that are extremely vulnerable to novel diseases, burgeoning individual fruits and vegetables, and a blandness that can only be described in terms of black and white. Everything is bland here. If it has taste it doesn't have a large market appeal apparently. You can still find ethnic foods (that's what everyone esle on the planet eats besides Americans, by the way) in small shops, but they are hard to come by, and generally go out of business within 5 years.
Grocery stores are gigantic. Stores here don't just sell food, they sell everything, and in large quantities. People will only go for groceries once every week to two weeks. Almost everything imaginable is in a can, or frozen. I've know some to buy until they have 6 months worth of food stored in two refrigerators, and a coffin freezer, plus a pantry that's the size of a mid-sized apartment in Japan.
And American's don't just hoard food. They hoard everything, from trash to luxury cars, to guns. It's not absolutely crazy and lawless, but parts can be. What was it that went around the news cycles recently? Some Europeans use the word "Texas" to describe acting crazy, or wildly aggressive. Yeah, hate to say it, but that's pretty much Texas.
Equality is not a thing here, but it's presented as a national ethic. America is a land of tiered social classes that are strictly enforced by soft and hard power. Despite having plummeting crime rates for the last 20 years, minorities and the poor are usually harassed by police on bi-monthly basis. I know 2 African Americans who have not had issues with police. I know a great deal of African Americans. Most Asian Americans I know don't report being hassled, but access to financing can be challenging in the southern and midwest regions. Latin Americans largely report problems with police and larger society.
Being poor in America is not comfortable, but, as with everything else here, housing is BIG. Houses are big. Apartments are big. Yards are big. Cars are big. Roads are big. Traffic jams are really big, because everyone seems to have at least one car. There are notable exceptions, but there is largely no mass transit. No trains, no buses, no trolleys and no one rides bikes. A scooter is a good way to ensure that you will never date again. Ever. It will follow you that you once owned a scooter. I'm serious.
What worries me most though is intelligence and education is generally seen as something deliberately sneaky, vile, and possibly evil. This is not the country that I grew up in. Ignorance, lately seems to be the affectation of the day. If you're smart, you'd best act as dumb as possible to make others feel smart, because dumb Americans who don't feel smart are dangerous. I hate to say it, but Donald Trump is a good example of who you will be working next to in most entry level markets. It isn't until you get into academia, STEM or tech that people start to become normal, or what I consider normal. You know, inquisitive, respectful, thoughtful, and engaged.
Social ills are not talked about. At all. Most conversations consist of bonding over what's on the TV at the moment or the local sports team. Sports are religions here. It behooves any visitor to know the local team's names, and have a definitive favorite with a well thought reason behind their selection.
The one good thing. You get to be alone when you want to. Mostly. Your car is your kingdom. Your apartment or house not so much.
Your work will be grueling but in social ways. Servitude with a smile is expected of anyone who gets paid to do anything. One is allowed to have emotions, but those emotions are limited to anger, confusion, and deliberate happy enthusiasm. There is no subtlety allowed. It's like a live action fight game manga without the blows.
What else? Everyone is in debt from the beta rich (new rich) on down, and hugely in debt, but no one will every talk about it. At all. Right now we're experiencing some pushing from right wing politics to decriminalize child labor. I expect indentured servitude, which we do have in a modern form, to be the next wave of employment system. We're already seeing a return to the apprenticeship system in certain fields, including tech, which is sad.
Oh yes, do not, ever, tell anyone how much money you make. It's seen as bad form, and will get you ostracized in your work place. Any attempt to organize worker unions, or community centers outside of religious chaperonage will be seen as communist, untrustworthy, and un-American. The older generation are particularly sensitive to "commies." The younger generation are more amenable but largely ignorant as education has been systematically defunded and debilitated in the last 40 years or so. Most universities work more like businesses now than giant libraries. The libraries still exist, but you will be hard pressed to find anyone willing to use one.
Oh yes, I almost forgot. Graft, or corruption, has been largely institutionalized. It's legal here as long as one knows the social rules that control it's use and implementation.
The greatest thing is about America, though, if I had to pick one, is a vibrant and varied conglomeration of responsible press, faction owned press, and citizen journalism. I'm afraid we'll lose it as the state is edging closer to gaining more control of content. Still, the press continues to thrive, though journalism is changing in real, and worrisome ways.
Is there anything specific that you'd like to know? Schools perhaps? University system? Relationships?
