[ExI] sturgis - washington post

[spike at rainier66.com]

-----Original Message-----
From: extropy-chat <extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org> On Behalf Of Dan TheBookMan via extropy-chat

>...Among US-Americans and inside the US, when I hear people refer to as 'yanks' -- actually, it's usually 'yankees' -- they mean New Englanders. It's outside the US and usually among Britons I hear 'yanks' and, yeah, they mean US-Americans. You're the only US-American I see using it to mean US-Americans in general. And you're using it inside the US.

Ja, I am an unapologetic admirer of Britain.  I already was before I learned that most of my ancestors came from there, England, Scotland, Wales.

>From the NatGeo article:

To foreigners, a Yankee is an American.
To Americans, a Yankee is a Northerner.
To Northerners, a Yankee is an Easterner.
To Easterners, a Yankee is a New Englander.
To New Englanders, a Yankee is a Vermonter.
And in Vermont, a Yankee is somebody who eats pie for breakfast.  (EB White)

I try to write ExI posts from an international perspective.  Brits are generally OK with my referring to them as Limeys, which is about the closest to the British equivalent of Yank methinks.  I have never seen BillK complaining about my use of the term limey.  That one has a fun history: the French sailors ridiculed the Brits for requiring the British sailors to devour limes and lemons.  Turns out after long sea voyages, the French would come home with scurvy, but the limeys did not.  I love it when science and technology wins in the end.

>...This is similar to how you use 'constable,' which is actually not used in your region today. The office no longer exists in your region and hasn't for decades. I know what you mean when you use the term, but sounds either archaic or affected. Neither of these bother me all that much, but you might be giving an impression you don't want...

It is possible, but I don't worry much about that.  It is OK to be the only one doing something.  I already dress weird, and I talk weird, I am aware of it.  Example: I found a place selling army surplus wool pants manufactured in 1951 for 17 bucks a pair.  I discovered I was one of four standard sizes (!) so I bought a bunch of them and like them so well, I go around looking like a Korean War army guy.  I am the only person I have ever seen wearing these.  It is so weird, it causes me to despise myself!  The loss of self esteem is so severe that... emmm... well... eh hell with it, I will level with ya Dan: I have plenty of self-esteem.  If I lose some of it over a 17 dollar pair of archaic wool pants, I would scarcely miss it.  Were I to be a victim of social scorn, I would never notice: I have always done my own thing.  

It is easy to not care what other people think of me if they don't actually tell me explicitly what that is.  Besides that: wool works really well for me.  Some people say it causes them to itch, but it doesn't do that to me.  So... all my outer clothing is wool.  Wool is expensive.  But these pants are not.  So... on we go.  I have discarded or donated every article of clothing not made of wool.

Britain has a lotta sheep.  This is yet another reason to admire that country.  Their comedy is hilarious: I have been a big fan of it since I was a kid.  Their Monte Python was way funnier than our Laugh-In or Saturday Night Live.  Comedy has never gotten better than Jeeves and Wooster.  My bride and I shriek with laughter over that.  

I might move to Britain someday, or failing that vacation there for a few weeks or months.  Perhaps it would be like coming home after 300 years away.

spike