Abstinence-Only

Sex education has been dropped under George Bush because the Republicans think the best thing to teach kids about sex is "Dont!".
It seems common sense to teach about predators and condoms and sexually transmitted diseases, but they think it is best left alone.

Patriotism 101

Civics is the study of the responsibilities of being a citizen in the United States or in the particular state where the class is taught. Each state works differently, so all states may have different civics lessons and others may not have the class at all and expect it to be taught at home. It covers the government and how it works. Voting, civil rights, and taxes.

Mum's the word

The standard classes in an American classroom for elementary are handwriting,reading/grammar,civics,mathematics,health/science, and history. These are taught all the way through graduation.
Towards the end, civics is replaced by some other choice and the maths and sciences get more detailedlike biology/chemistry or algebra/geometry.
Grammar and Literature are split half of a year on each.In Britain they do not learn English grammar or syntax in primary school.
Children used to be taught grammar in the first few years of secondary school (at about the ages of 11-13), but in the 1960s that requirement was dropped. Teaching children 'correct' grammar was felt to be oppressive and restricting to their 'creativity'.
The idea was that children would learn grammar by exploring and using language itself.Needless to say, this idea didnot really work.
All that happened was that the use of syntax and grammaramong native speakers of English became sloppy and incorrect.

Big Cake

The UK is entering an economic recession at the moment, triggered
by the global 'credit crunch'. Some famous supermarkets have gone bankrupt in the past few months, for example Woolworths.
This means that UK supermarkets are contracting rather than expanding into new markets. I guess the UK will be unable to challenge Wal-Mart or Carrefour in China for the next few years at least.

Warm Heart

"We had a few days at 10 degrees F last week; that is -12 C.
I wonder if it is the same cold snap that travelled around the world.
I knew I should have sent you socks with that book!"
Yeah, the temperature here is about 15 degrees F.
Because of you, Huck, I feel warm in my heart.

Hunting Season

There is plenty of wild game in the states...no shortage at all.
Because people try to take the weakest and allow the strong to procreate.The hunting would be better in the spring,but people do not hunt while mother animals are raising their newborns during that time of year. Only in the fall and winter after they have been weaned and are out on their own will people kill and eat nature's bounty.Even then, the young are left to grow.

It is official!

The spirit of U.S. constitution is protection of the individual citizens' rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness against the government's ability to restrict those rights. It limits the powers of government in all areas and dictates how the states interact and govern, also. Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president proclaimed
it a government "of the people, by the people, and for the people."
Obama is modeling his presidency after Lincoln's. I believe that President Obama will do what he can to get Americans back to
those principals.

Junk Food

I eat McDonald's about once or twice a week.
The high carbohydrate count and cholesterol are bad for anyone.
I got cholecystopathy, so the protein is bad for my gallbladder.
When I was in college, I walked from time to time.
I was in much better physical shape then than I am now.
That's why I am planning to begin a jogging program.

No Heat

It doesnot rise above 2 degrees C tonight.
I am frozen because the heater in my house has broken.
It has gotten frigid here, suddenly.
I am freezing to death. Brrrrrrrrrrrr!

Black Thursday

Everyone makes mistakes. There will always be good days and bad days in the restaurant business. Mistakes happen, and then I make good for it. The important thing to do when I make a mistake is to acknowledge it, fix it, and then make sure it doesnot happen again.

I Am Right

Honesty is the best policy. I never know when I am being watched.
In fact, many employers often deliberately leave money lying around to find out which of their workers are honest and which are dishonest. I passed the test!

Snail mail

"If necessary I can find the air mail receipt and check to this end." Hopefully he still has it. Next time Huck will use UPS and just pay the money to make sure it gets here quickly...neither of us is the world's most patient person. :)

Filled Bun

Those dumplings look delicious.
It is said they were invented in ancient Persia, and travelled West to become
'ravioli' in Italy and East to become 'baozi' in China. In fact, the Persian plateau has always been a link joining East and West, at least as important as the Silk Road. I feel hungry now.

Sugar Free

I never buy tea pre mixed...too much sugar. Americans have been putting sugar in the tea since the 1700's. It comes from the British heritage. I love green tea, but it must also be sweetened with nutrasweet or be unsweetened altogether.
So I buy the bags and make it myself on the stove. I like my
black tea with cream or milk. Hmm, I consider myself a good cook.

Commuter

It takes me 1 hour to travel to work and another 1 hour to get back. That's actually not too bad for a daily commute to work, otherwise
I would spend a lot of time online.
There was a short period I spent on the forum literally all day
every day. I literally wrote a tenth of the forum's posts.

Anti-fake

There is a lot of counterfeit currency in Britain.
The detection methods are very good, however, so the problem
is kept under control. Well, it's more difficult to detect in China.
Most shops often dont have ultraviolet lamps or other equipment
to detect fake money. And it seems harsh that cashiers have to
repay the fake money from their own salary.

Rooms for $8.88!

It has been a long time since rooms were that cheap.
Now it is more along the lines of 80 bucks per night in US. I think when they named the hotel they didnot allow for inflation! :) And the cost of hotels in China will continue to rise, as the economy improves. The same thing has happened in Russia -- Moscow is now one of the most expensive cities in which to stay in a hotel.
Soon,Shanghai will be the same.

Fashion Trends

I've never understood the fashion for very skinny women -- a woman should have curves. Skinny is overrated, but fat can be unhealthy. There is a middle ground that is just right.
In Britain they have a saying - "any more than a handful is a waste"!

McDonald's

Work is rough today.
I never realized I don't know jack shit about making hamburgers.
Anyway, I am making good progress.
Soon I'll be a Fast Food Dispensing Operative in no time!

Postcards

Britain and America are strange -- mailing address starts at the
house and then zoom out to the country; most other countries
start with the country and then zoom in to the house, which
seems much more logical, since this is the order in which it will actually be delivered.

Assault Rifle

Those look like replica Kalashnikov rifles. AK-47 to be exact. 7.62 x 39 soviet ammunition. Tough and effective, the most popular automatic military rifles in the world. But they are not guns, they're models. A real gold-plated Kalashnikov would be fucking cool.

English-influenced

I noticed every member of PoFo from Israel is very fluent in English. Well,Israel was long under British influence, and later on American influence. I agree Jews are adaptive by nature, and absorbed much
of the culture and language. English is taught from the third grade (used to be fourth). Movies and TV series are not dubbed like in other places, and instead have sub-titles.

Wu Zetian

Many of the greatest and most famous rulers of Britian have been women -- Boudicca, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria of England,
and Queen Margaret and Queen Mary of Scotland.
Margaret Thatcher is also one of the most famous Prime Ministers. There is no taboo against a woman becoming monarch or empress
of a nation in Europe.
I think women have a much higher social status in the West than
in China. The taboo against powerful female rulers in China is probably caused by the Confucian philosophy, which emphasises
the importance of the family structure.
Society as a whole is regarded as an extension of the family unit.

Year of the Rat

Alex will submit his thesis, and his viva voce is in March.
Only two monthes to go now! I wish you success, Alex.
And best of luck with the interview, Vivian.
The internet can become an addiction; it's probably better
if I develop a life outside it.
I should get out more, meet new people...

Military Hardware

Most old German Mauser rifles have cleaning rods,as do any military bolt action rifles. Mausers were made for every military power from 1889 to the present day. Huck told me the one he had was Japanese,
I guess it is actually Chinese. The characters look similar.
He'll trace the imperial markings and scan it to me.

Meal in a Glass

A half can of 3.4% abw alcohol got me drunk. lol...I am not able to hold my liquor.
Stouts are very popular in Britain.
They vary from dark brown to deep black;
Guinness is one of the best.
It's based on the porter style that originated
in London in the early 18th century.
Lagers originated in continental Europe and only bacame popular in Britain a few decades ago.