As American as...

Random comment before I move on: I just thought of something else I don't know -- I don't know how to whistle. Isn't that strange? I think it's strange...

I'm watching House Hunters International -- apparently this show (and the original U.S.A.-based House Hunters) has been on for years, and I've just now discovered it. The premise of the show is pretty self-explanatory -- people hunt for houses they want to buy. If I'm to believe the show, they are shown only three places, and then they must choose one to buy. (Which seems a little unrealistic to me -- they must see more than three places... they probably just narrow it down to the three front-runners for the show.) I like the "international" version more than the U.S. version, because I already KNOW what houses in this country are like -- I've lived in quite an assortment myself. But the international show allows a glimpse into the style and architecture available in countries around the world. And I love any show that can teach me something (even minutiae like what sorts of appliances are common in kitchens or what front doors look like) about another country...

I'm sure I've talked about it before, but my favorite class when I was in sixth grade was a world cultures class. In addition to studying maps and flags (which I still do just for the fun of it), every Friday was "show and tell" day. The kids in my class had relatives and ancestors from all over the world -- some of them had even visited these places, and brought back clothing and objects to be passed around the room. I would listen and observe, completely fascinated, curious about the lives that were lived across the ocean... were the kids in Japan just as curious about where I lived? Or, as my sixth-grade self suspected, was I brought up in the most boring country in the world? To me, other countries were colorful fabrics and spicy curries and meticulously created frescoes, and America was a beige sack filled with toast points and paint-by-numbers...

Of course, I've discovered amazing things about my own country since then... we're not all blue jeans and McDonald's, although everyone does tend to wear jeans quite often, and far too many people make far too many trips to McDonald's. But we also have mountains and canyons and oceans and volcanoes... we have famous city skylines with cool architecture... Americans created ice cream cones and peanut butter and barbecue and, apparently, apple pie (which, as my brother will tell you, is pretty much the most important food EVER)... and, while the majority of countries on earth have a soccer team (or "football," depending on where you're from), WE have baseball... oh, and, uh, football... but not the one that's actually played with feet. Because we're America, and HERE, things don't have to mean what they sound like they mean...

But that sixth grade class was the catalyst for a lifelong curiosity about what ELSE is out there. When I lived in New Jersey, I once met a woman who'd never been out of the state. Not even across a bridge into New York. And New Jersey is a pretty small state, so it's not like it would be a major inconvenience to cross the border. But somehow, this person was so content with her little corner of existence that she had no desire to peek around the corner and see what was on the other side. But the way I see it is this: there's an entire WORLD out there, and I've been blessed with a place upon it... how can I not pull back the curtain and see what it has to offer? It would be like living in a mansion but never leaving the bathroom...

Speaking of which, if I go by this particular episode of "House Hunters International," Americans are pretty good with bathrooms, too...