Red Ajah: Cultural Exchange Week; Cultural Corner 6: America

[Marta Sedai]

Hello everyone, and welcome to our Culture Exchange Week!

 

We will start today, on Monday the 10th, and end this wonderful Event on Sunday the 16th!

We will have a couple of Cultural Corners (a.k.a. threads) for each country we will talk about, and each will be fun to read and post in!

 

We will also have a quiz starting on Friday so you can all see what you have learned so far about WONDERFUL cultures we will represent!

 

So, lets start!!!

 

Cultural Corner 6

 

America

by Torrie, Millon and Summer

 

The porch swing – A southern description  (Torrie)

 

Between the fried food, iced tea, southern charm, and the comfort of the famous southern bells, life in the south tends to meander down the lane with shouts of “Hey, y’all” echoing off the houses. If you travel the area people will happily wave as you drive by and can start a conversation about anything. Everything combines to make a person feel like they can sit down on the porch swing and watch the world go round without a care.

 

Life in the south, while relaxed, is full of hardworking people, who take pride in themselves and what they do. The life of a farmer is never easy but the results are always surrounded by pride. From sun-up to sun-down the fields are tended and cattle cared for, in order to produce many of the foods eaten around the country. Corn, cotton, peaches, strawberries, cherries, tomatoes and potatoes are just some of the items produced. Chickens, pigs, and cows are scattered thought-out the area and can be seen from the long winding roads adjacent to the fields. As you sit on the front porch, drinking your famous sweet iced tea, you will hear the sound of the cows being fed or the hum of the tracker as it collects the produce and you can take a deep breath and realize the world is moving along like it should.

 

Religion is another big aspect of the south. Churches can be seen almost on every block and on Sunday everyone is dressed in their finest, for a day of worship and fellowship. On any given Sunday if you drive down those country roads, where somehow a mile is so much longer than in the city, it is not unusual to see a group of people in the back yard of a church, eating lunch and laughing at the little joys of life. The community comes together to encourage each other and develop lasting relationships. Neighbors communicate and support each other, and have no problem giving someone the cup of sugar they need. Even at the church you can find a porch swing where the community comes together and for the day, not have a care in the world.

 

Hunting and fishing in the area has become a great pastime for many southern dwellers. Everything from bears to rabitts, crabs to giant catfish, and wild chickens to turkeys can be found in the south. There are even areas where alligators and snakes can be captured, eaten, and stuffed to be hung on a wall and looked upon with pride by the successful hunter. Hunting trips can last for days and can involve a comradely which cannot be found anywhere else. Beer is usually consumed and laughter can be heard, when the participants are not totally involved in the hunt. Once again, the porch swing is rocking back and forth, with the exhausted and proud hunters joining in fellowship and a tale or two about the “One that got away.”

 

The porch swing is a wonderful place to be, with the strong southern pride and the friendly nature of the people, we make a living and make it fun. We enjoy the simple pleasures and take life as it comes. We like to sit on our porches as the sun sets, with the laughter and delights of our friends, our children, our spouses and anyone else we hold dear, and know we have done a good job and that life is good.

 

[Marta Sedai]

HELLO HELLO FROM BUFFALO, NEW YORK! NORTH-EAST UNITED STATES!!(Millon)

*pauses for applause........uhhh applause...(hears crickets)* Ya see, that's the problem and that's why I am here.

 

Ceade Mile Failte' my fellow White Towerer..er..ers, uhh WT'ers! A few of you already know me farely well, but for the newmeatbies here, my name is Millon. I have had the honor of being requested to participate in this wonderful cultural exchange week sponsored by the Red Ajah. The wonderful new Red Sister, Marta Sedai, has asked that I try to throw a little light to my dark corner of the world. And I could deny Marta nothing she asks and gladly took on the task.

 

So then, I repeat Ceade Mile Failte'! Gaelic for a hundred thousand welcomes The area I live in has a very strong Irish back ground to it. Itis deep in our hearts and blood. As a matter of fact one of our local schools of traditional Irish Dance, Rince Na Tiarna, last year took the competition to it's home turf of Dublin Ireland and took the International Championship. We have one of our nations largest celebrtions for St. Patrick. We have a strong, but sadly not as large as it once was, Roman Catholic Faith here. Not to the exclusion of other reiligons mind haha. We are certainly not a bunch of Bible thumping fanatics but, by and large, very accepting of the varieties of lifestyles.

 

Buffalo also hosts THE Nations Largest Celebration of Dyngus Day! In Buffalo, Dyngus day is a day of celebration for the Polish heritage. We have, still operating, one of our nations oldest farmers markets that was established in the late 1800's. It started as a place for local immigrants to find a place of normalcy, to gossip and purchase those needful things alike to what lives were like before. Dyngus Day is a blast! Guys go around whoopin ladies with pussy willow switches and the women squirt the men with water pistols! *waits for laughter......(hears more crickets and notices the bewildered expressions* O.k., I know it sounds bizzarre, but bear with me here. Traditionally, it is a harvest/wedding festival.

 

Unfortunately, there wasn't very much running plumbing back in the day so alot of....washing didn't happen that often. So, women would spray perfume on there husbands and the family would switch the newlyweds with the pussy willows and for every bud that came of the switch was a blessing for children. Romantic and happy then but just abslutely absurd sounding now hahaa! But it sure is fun.

 

On top of these we have strong Puerto Rican lines and strong Italian lines. We had a very large population of German in our city who were nearly instrumental to the construction of our city. And we have a festival for each hahaaha! Octobre Fest! Greased Pole Festival(which I honestly don't know a thing about except for spectacular spanish food and a very tall greased pole with envelopes containing various prizes inside that people try to climb the pole to get. No clue of the history) and the Italian festival. We have been so involved with our historical origins that we have not had OUR OWN CITY festival until this past winter. "The Powder Keg Festival"! As in fine "snow" powder not the explosive or illegal kind haha. A celebration of what it is to be a Buffalonian! We shut down one of our thruway off ramps to create a down hill sled run, broke the Guinness book of worlds Records with the largest Ice maze, live music, street hockey and of course.......TONS OF FOOD!!!! YAYYYYYYYYY

 

We love to eat and drink. And here, is one of Buffalo's crowning jewels of food. The Buffalo Chicken Wing. I'll post a very easy recipe in the cook book in the Grey Ajah if anyone is interested.

With a professional football team (American football) that has made it to the Superbowl FOUR YEARS IN A ROW but to never win the title. To have one of the oldest running hockey teams and to never win the Stanley Cup, we got lots to drink about haha. Buffalo was also a crowning city in the early 1900s with one of the prime shipping locations on the Great Lakes and one of the strongest ethnic work forces in the Iron Industry. Buffalo Gleamed with prosperity but with more advanced forms of shipping and other variables, ports were no longer as strong as they once were, nor trains either, and Buffalo's gleam began to fade. So, yeah, we like to drink. But it's not all melancholic though! We deal with diversity and difficulty with celebration!!! Life is good! Family is Good! Community Strength is Everything!!!! We strive on togetherness. The Two Rivers makes me think of home. No matter how bad things get we have never stopped and will never stop!

 

So, there ya have it. Buffalo, New York. If you want to ask me anything else please feel free. I am at your disposal. And hey, best way to find out more would be to come on up. There is lots to do. Shakespeare in the Park, Our art gallery, major shopping, Niagara Falls is a stones throw away, jet skiing, fishing our newly developed up and coming water front, theaters, Hockey, bars are open until 4:30 in the morning, thousands if different dining experiences, Frederick Law Olmstead Parks, Frank Lloyd Right designed houses for you artsy people. I have tons I could give you. Wine tours along the lake great camping. I gotta stop or this is going to lapse even more than what I'm sure the Reds would prefer. Thanks for your time and, who knows, maybe I'll see you around hahaha. See ya.

 

 

 

 

Hey guys!  I'm here representing the west coast of the USA (by Summer), or more specifically California!

 

Briefly, California was the 31st state to enter the union (and as far as the rest of the west coast goes, Oregon was 33rd and Washington was 42nd).  California was originally part of Mexico (along with Texas) meaning we have A LOT of Mexicans and Mexican culture here.  We're often called the "Hippy State" which isn't completely wrong, and we're also pretty well known for places such as Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Malibu... but trust me, I probably HAVEN'T met your favorite celebrity.

 

However, even though not everyone here is an aspiring movie star, performing arts plays a pretty big role in our everyday lives.  Ask pretty much anyone on the street, and they've most likely performed in a play, been taught how to sing in in another language, or taken a tap dancing class.  However, those aren't the only things we do - we're great in sports, math, religion, or really anything you throw at us ;D

 

California is pretty well known for inventing the "California Roll", sushi that doesn't involve raw meat. consisting of rice, avocado, crab meat, and cucumber.  Other then that we're pretty diverse when it comes to cuisine, we eat food from all over the world (and we're one of the only three states that has both In-N-Out Burger AND Jamba Juice Smoothies!)  and let me tell you: we LOVE to throw dinner parties!

 

West Coasters are pretty loose and friendly.  Yes, we DO have entire hippy towns, but we also have a lot of normal people, who are always willing to give you a smile  :D

 

 

 

[Charis alAslan]

Yay for Buffalo wings!!

 

I live in NYC, but my husband went to college at SUNY Buffalo. He promises to take me there sometime in the next few months. =)

[Loreina]

Great articles!  I'll add to the Southern one, if I may. You forgot the Football!  We are football fanatics.  Everything in the fall yields to football!  We have many of the top collegiate teams in the NCAA.  The SouthEast Conference teams are tough to beat.  Tailgateing is a tradition going back to before I was born.  That's where people come to the university and camp or park their RV's and grill before, during, and after the game. One night while watching the game on TV, I watched as one of the oldest buildings on the Auburn University campus burnt down due to a grill fire! Awesome! It was right next to the stadium and they didn't even stop the game! Anyway, people start rolling in Thursday night for the Saturday game. It's amazing.  And it's not just collegiate football.  We have PeeWee football in elementary school, junior high teams, junior varsity teams, and varsity high school teams. You don't have to like football to live in the South, if you don't mind being lonely...  :D

Did I come across too strongly pro football? *lol*  Believe it or not, I'm one of the milder fans.  ;)

We also GOLF!  Yes, we are almost as proud of our courses as Scotland is of theirs. Here in Alabama we have the Robert Trent Jones golf courses, which are among the world's best. My Dad loved golf, and even built a course himself. When my Dad visited me in England, he took my Mom to St. Andrews. He said it "it's a fine course, almost as good as mine." I was stunned at the man's conceit. *lol* He was joking of course. Calm down!

So, when you live in the South, if your honey's not watching the game on TV, fishing for bass in a 400 acre lake, or hunting out in the backside of beyond, he's probably on the links.  :)

[Millon]

You hold him to it! I have been to NYC a few times...and I really like Buffalo hahaha. JK ;) New York is a blast! Thanks for checkin this out!

[Torrie]

So, when you live in the South, if your honey's not watching the game on TV, fishing for bass in a 400 acre lake, or hunting out in the backside of beyond, he's probably on the links

 

 

So true! So true! But a few of us women are out there, too! Just because we are southern bells does not mean we are afraid to get down and dirty!  ;)

[Amadine]

*wants to visit the US one day....*

[Torrie]

**wants Ama to viste the US one day**  :)

[Marta Sedai]

Oh, Ama, maybe we can visit together :D I do plan to visit some time next year, or the year after that...

[Millon]

Who's comin to the US?! Gotta let me know where you're at.

[Marta Sedai]

Oh, Millon, don't worry... You'll be informed!

[Millon]

SWEET!! This is goin to be bad ^&^!

[Bela_theDo]

I might be coming the next year's summer,too  :D

[Tharengore]

Might be fun if you do Bela esp to Cali! lol.

 

Here I will add in something else....Wisconsin...(I live in Cali now but grew up in WI)

 

The state is best known for its cheese, drinking, and fun love of the game football (NFL, American Football for those euro people). We are a big dairy state so yes we have farms everywhere. The nice part is you can get meats, milk, cheese, all freash and off the farm.  We also have several Buffalo farms as well. Wisconsin does have a big german heritage so a lot of foods is very german...the fav is bratwurst's.

 

The drinking part is easly seen by the number of bars in a give 3 blocks...think averg was 6 on the main street (the small town I lived in we counted 35 places with a bar inside in 15 blocks roughly). Along with a ongoing joke (mostly cause its true) that if ever in need of drink look for a church. Everychurch has a bar about a block away. That goes for any religons church.

 

Finally the football is soooo big in Wisconsin you can easly tell when a game is on (esp in Green Bay) as thier would hardly be a soul on the street. Churches make sure to get done before kickoff, malls go dead, and traffic jams vanish. Then if the Green Bay Packers make it to big playoff games, business close early, grocery stores/restraunts/bars/etc...put out specials like it was a holiday. Then if the Packers make it to he super bowl, everything is a half day...and if they win Governer declares it a holiday when the team comes home and busniess,schools,etc...close lol.  Thats Wisconsins love of the game...best fans in the world, and most fun!

 

 

[Loreina]

So, when you live in the South, if your honey's not watching the game on TV, fishing for bass in a 400 acre lake, or hunting out in the backside of beyond, he's probably on the links

 

So true! So true! But a few of us women are out there, too! Just because we are southern bells does not mean we are afraid to get down and dirty!  ;)

 

*lol*  True, but not me...I'd rather be nestled in a hammock reading a good book!  ;D

 

Tharengore, Wisconsin sounds so pretty!  :)

[Tharengore]

It is Loreina...esp in the upper north part of wisconsin as its all state forests. Sooo very beatuifull...one of the few places where you will see the American Bald Eagle going down the road. I never really understood why it was the nations bird till I saw one in the wild. It was sitting in a clearing. Standing I would say about 4-5ft tall from foot to beak with its wings spread, they had to be a good 10ft in length at least. It was drying off in the sun as it rained earlier in the day. Oh and I was maybe 20-25ft away from it as it watched me. I have to say after seeing it soo close its the most majestic, beautiful animal I have ever seen. Just mezmerizing to see in the wild and open.

[Adella]

I feel kind of sad for the lack of love for Oregon and Washington... Although, most people forget about us, so I guess it's to be expected.. :(

[Tharengore]

Dont feel bad Adalla at least your not Arkansa or Delaware...they really get forgotten hahaha...

[Adella]

Haha, but everyone thinks OR and WA are just farms and forest.. Which is MOSTLY true, but not ONLY!

[Millon]

Then tell us more about it Adella....

[Taei]

Can add Northern California in there too Adella. It's a lot more like Oregon than the Southern part California.

[Summer]

Can add Northern California in there too Adella. It's a lot more like Oregon than the Southern part California.

 

Hey, I'm from NorCal, and I totally get what you're saying :)

[Karasayl]

Having used to live in SoCal and never been to NorCal, can someone explain the "Hella" thing to me?  ;D

[Taei]

o.0 Hella?

[Karasayl]

Well...maybe I should explain. When I was living in Southern California it was a noticed trend that people from Northern California would replace the word 'very' often with 'hella'.

 

ex: Its hella hot today!

 

Just not sure why ! ^_^;;