How is life in the USA?

[Sonikkumania]

Dear North Americans,

 

I'd starting this thread to hear from you describing every day circumstances and general life in the United States

I know this might be a dumb question since I guess in the end it's very identical everywhere: school, 9 to 5, all that day to day shit.

I'm more curious about your culture, atmosphere, I dunno pretty much everything. I just have a keen interest in your lifestyle.

 

Because you guys seem very self aware and proud fellas and I kinda admire you. I don't really dream of ever migrating to US or even visiting (I would if I'd afford, lol).

But it's more like a gut feeling a kind of endless curiosity towards your big country on the other side of the Atlantic.

 

Story time : my grandgrandmother's parents emigrated to North America sometime in the 1920's I think and she was born in Detroit.

So I guess desire about US runs in blood, lol.

 

Anyway I hope this thread makes sense, and also I can reply something about my home country ( 🇫🇮 ) if anyone interested.

[RDETalus]

The US is a massive, massive country. It's very geographically and culturally diverse. It's impossible to understand the whole scope of the country unless you talk to many people from everywhere.

 

My favorite thing about the US is the national forest system. It's free access to everyone. There aren't many rules either. You can very likely legally live inside a national forest your entire life if you really wanted to. They encompass an amazing diversity from deserts to wetlands to mountains. I don't know if something like this exists in other countries. I suspect most other countries wouldn't grant their citizens that much freedom on government land.

 

When I travel across the US, I prefer to sleep in a national forest instead of a hotel or motel. I can literally just drive into one, walk into the wilderness, and setup my campsite for the night.

Edited October 9, 2022 by RDETalus

[Sonikkumania]

2 minutes ago, RDETalus said:

The US is a massive, massive country. It's very geographically and culturally diverse. It's impossible to understand the whole scope of the country unless you talk to many people from everywhere.

 

My favorite thing about the US is the national park system. It's free access to everyone. There aren't many rules either. You can very likely legally live inside a national park your entire life if you really wanted to. They encompass an amazing diversity from deserts to wetlands to mountains. I don't know if something like this exists in other countries. I suspect most other countries wouldn't grant their citizens that much freedom on government land.

That's most definately true because even asking this question I might to even comprehend how large this country is, I do know that some States can be like a night and day.

 

We have a right to visit and camp in nature here too, no matter who's lands they are - though there are some restrictions on what you can do on private lands. Don't know about living but I guess it's de facto allowed ..? Have to read from the lawbook, lol.

[Sonikkumania]

One common thing I've noticed with Americans both IRL and online are their extroverted character which I find fascinating.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

I also hope I can visit/migrate to the US&A one day. I live in a country called Florida.

[mrthejoshmon]

1 minute ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

I also hope I can visit/migrate to the US&A one day. I live in a country called Florida.

Quote

Depressed Asshole

It adds up

[Sonikkumania]

14 minutes ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

I also hope I can visit/migrate to the US&A one day. I live in a country called Florida.

All I know about Florida is

 

[heliumlamb]

a lot of people seem just angry by default, many people actually are angry by default. i often wonder what it would be like if there was a comprehensive, high frequency passenger rail system (even better if it is electrified rail!!) in place nationwide, with at least one hub per state. but nope, gm said "drive". and drive we must, or risk always risk being hit by large vehicle operator looking at and operating a personal internet terminal while operating the large vehicle. this is but one microcosm.

one thing i've started to notice is that there are rarely any sidewalks alongside car dealerships?

and if you've heard anything about a fast food obsession, i have absolutely observed that too.
 

Spoiler

my obligatory fast food hot take is that taco bell could covertly switch their entire menu to at least 100% vegetarian and nobody would notice until after it is fully digested.

 

 

[Sonikkumania]

11 minutes ago, heliumlamb said:

a lot of people seem just angry by default, many people actually are angry by default. i often wonder what it would be like if there was a comprehensive, high frequency passenger rail system (even better if it is electrified rail!!) in place nationwide, with at least one hub per state. but nope, gm said "drive". and drive we must, or risk always risk being hit by large vehicle operator looking at and operating a personal internet terminal while operating the large vehicle. this is but one microcosm.

one thing i've started to notice is that there are rarely any sidewalks alongside car dealerships?

and if you've heard anything about a fast food obsession, i have absolutely observed that too.
 

  Hide contents

my obligatory fast food hot take is that taco bell could covertly switch their entire menu to at least 100% vegetarian and nobody would notice until after it is fully digested.

 

 

Bro we're living uncertaintimes, some people are scared and thus angry. I think it's quite similar everywhere.

[heliumlamb]

5 minutes ago, Sonikkumania said:

Bro we're living uncertaintimes, some people are scared and thus angry. I think it's quite similar everywhere.

its been a vibe ive caught for well over 20 years at this point, and i definitely haven't seen it improve since 2020, it is best to just leave it at that. might not be the norm for many, but it's definitely has been something i've experienced and observed regularly, as far back as i can remember. might just be a perception thing due to how my brain just works. it is what it is, i'm still living.

semi-related: a whole lot of people here think that our only marsupials are aggressive little things, but they're kinda dopey precious trash babies who just waddle around. when they feel threatened they just open their mouth up, you could put your hand in there and you would be lucky if they were to even bite at all.

 

[Mr. Freeze]

I love it here, even with all the flaws. Love it or leave it, bitches. 

[dasho]

If you avoid the large cities and don't take the news seriously, it can be a nice place.

[Sonikkumania]

9 minutes ago, dasho said:

If you avoid the large cities and don't take the news seriously, it can be a nice place.

Sounds like my country except we don't have large cities lol.

[HorseJockey]

I love it here. @RDETalus makes an excellent point about the national parks system, you can find and experience all sorts of landscapes and enviroments. I personally loved when I lived in the Bronx, I was a subway ride from all kinds of different cultural, food or entertainment experiences. Our country is vast and diverse and that's what I love about it. 

[ReaperAA]

3 hours ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

I also hope I can visit/migrate to the US&A one day. I live in a country called Florida.

 

News: Florida man caught being a depressed asshole.

[fai1025]

Life in USA...hmm...

 

Honestly I have nothing to say except politics and geopolitics 

Maybe I'll bug about how terrible the fish is and how school lunch fuck up Asian food 

And the bloody enoki mushrooms inflate from 99 cent to 4 dollars per bag

 

I live in Cali btw

[Redneckerz]

I live in the Netherlands.

 

By default:

• We are the longest people in the world
• We drink proper beer (American's swear on BUD and its frankly a crime against humanity)
• We have opinions and we ain't afraid to tell you them
• We have opinions and we ain't afraid to tell you them
• We like complaining. Complaining is our way to relax. If we can't complain, then shit hits the fan
• We like to be indecisive. See our political party system: We have 18 of them. Compare to 2-4 in the USA
• Politically we align with the US
• Our country looks nicer than yours

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

43 minutes ago, fai1025 said:

mushrooms inflate from 99 cent to 4 dollars per bag

Still cheaper than what I pay!

[fai1025]

6 minutes ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

Still cheaper than what I pay!

i mean enoki mushrooms are mostly import from either China or Taiwan and if you live in like east coast or central it's probably more expensive than west coast

 

but still, 99 cents to 4 dollars (4.99) ?!

[Dark Pulse]

8 hours ago, Sonikkumania said:

One common thing I've noticed with Americans both IRL and online are their extroverted character which I find fascinating.

Not fully true. I'm pretty introverted outside of topics I'm passionate/knowledgeable about.

[Dr. Zin]

8 hours ago, RDETalus said:

My favorite thing about the US is the national park system. It's free access to everyone. There aren't many rules either. You can very likely legally live inside a national park your entire life if you really wanted to. They encompass an amazing diversity from deserts to wetlands to mountains. I don't know if something like this exists in other countries. I suspect most other countries wouldn't grant their citizens that much freedom on government land.

 

When I travel across the US, I prefer to sleep in a national park instead of a hotel or motel. I can literally just drive into one, walk into the wilderness, and setup my campsite for the night.

 

This is misleading. The actual National Parks have a shitload of rules, most charge an entrance fee and require signing up for specific camp sites. You're probably referring to the National Forest system, which is run by a completely different agency (USDA vs Dept. of Interior), and generally has fewer rules and regulations (though this varies between the different forests). There is also Bureau of Land Management land which as even fewer rules and regulations, but most of that is in desert areas of the west. In any case, all of these agencies implemented camping time limits (usually allowing only two weeks within 60 days in a particular district) to combat people squatting on the land.

 

8 hours ago, Sonikkumania said:

One common thing I've noticed with Americans both IRL and online are their extroverted character which I find fascinating.

 

This is confirmation bias, extroverted people are going to draw most attention in social situations. There are just as many introverted people in the US as anywhere else, but they aren't going to walk up and introduce themselves to you (for obvious reasons). One other common stereotype about Americans is that we talk loudly, which may also play into this idea that everyone is extroverted. That may be partially true, since at least when I was a child (in the 90s) there was a specific emphasis on clear enunciation at an early age in elementary school. For example, there were times you were required to speak in front of the class, and were instructed to talk loud enough for the entire room to hear. As students we were definitely encouraged to speak "clearly" not "mumble," which contrasts with some cultures which in my understanding encourage speaking softly to avoid appearing "rude."

 

1 hour ago, Redneckerz said:

We drink proper beer (American's swear on BUD and its frankly a crime against humanity)

 

The only Americans who drink Budweiser, Miller, or similar swill in the last 10 years are either over the age of 50 or college students too stupid to know better. These days almost every town in the US has a local micro-brewery, and the sales of Budweiser et al. have been in free fall for the last ten years.

[StodgyAyatollah]

As already stated it's big and diverse. In general terms though, rural US is awesome. Vast stretches of nature and some of the nicest people. Some people who live on the land their ancestors came to in search of a better life. Lot's of cultural diversity. Everything is fairly spread out so it's not too uncommon for some people to spend up to four hours a day commuting to work because they may have to travel a hundred miles one way. All my neighbors are about a mile of fairly dense forest away and things aren't too spread out here. On the other side urban US is a nightmarish hellscape where people are miserable, hate each other and everything smells terrible. Zero nature and people stacked on top of each other for miles. Everything's overpriced and takes infinitely longer to get done. It's not too uncommon for some people to spend up to four hours a day commuting to work because their short couple mile drive is packed with thousands of other people and walking isn't an option because of the crime. Many rural people tend to avoid the urban areas except for big public events like sporting events or concerts. Many urban people travel hundreds of miles every weekend with campers and ATVs, flooding into rural areas and overall making a mess of nature just to spend a few fleeting hours away from their self imposed dystopia. In the end it's a mixed bag but we tend to have some of the best Property, self defense and free speech rights in the world, still. 

[TheFocus]

for better or worse, the US is like 50 individual countries packed together, filled with people trying to judge the entire world in one sentence. we're sheltered, ignorant and (some, definitely not all) are generally intolerant of things they don't understand.

[Endless]

11 hours ago, RDETalus said:

My favorite thing about the US is the national park system. It's free access to everyone. There aren't many rules either. You can very likely legally live inside a national park your entire life if you really wanted to. They encompass an amazing diversity from deserts to wetlands to mountains. I don't know if something like this exists in other countries. I suspect most other countries wouldn't grant their citizens that much freedom on government land.

This is my favorite thing from the US, and I'm not from there, but I highly envy hikers and mountaineers from the US. The fact that you have hundreds of national parks and protected areas, and also the huge efforts to protect those areas, it's pretty damn cool. People in the upper states (Washington, Oregon, Montana, etc) have incredible landscapes pretty much next door.

[Herr Dethnout]

Just now, heliumlamb said:

semi-related: a whole lot of people here think that our only marsupials are aggressive little things, but they're kinda dopey precious trash babies who just waddle around. when they feel threatened they just open their mouth up, you could put your hand in there and you would be lucky if they were to even bite at all.

 

You know, I see one in my house recently. I'm not from the USA but we have opossums (Known as Rabi-pelao on Venezuela) on our country too. And scared the shit out of me the first time I see it. They look like a big ass rat with a Ugly Cute face heh

[7Mahonin]

I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. It’s not perfect but no country truly is. The politics sucks just like anywhere else. All sides of the political spectrum want to control those that don’t think like they do, while also acting like that’s not the case. It’s just become more obnoxious because of social media, but it’s always been this way. Every 4-8 years or so it’s the end of the country as we know it according to the media but we keep moving along and nothing major ever really happens, but it makes people watch the news and shit their pants. I’ve lived through enough of this to not care anymore because it’s all mostly for show.
 

So with that said, it is a very diverse nation as each state is quite different from each other, which I think some people who don’t live here don’t quite get the full scope of that statement. From one state to the next the local state laws can vary drastically. It isn’t all the Wild West, or the south, or the north. There’s a lot in between. So there’s a lot of people with many different backgrounds, tons of wild life that is different from one state to the next. Where I live the biggest animal is a black bear, but just a bit further north it would be the grizzly bear, and further south you’ve got to worry about alligators.

 

I live near the Atlantic Ocean and the fishing is amazing. There’s never a dull moment, and in my state, there’s a lot of history. From the first colony, to the revolutionary war, civil war, and beyond, there’s a lot of history in Virginia. 

[MTrop]

New Jersey is the best state. Abortion and weed is legal, and we have all 4 seasons and we have beaches (but don't you DARE wear shoes on them).

 

But seriously, the USA is so big that every single state is very different, even though you do get clusters of cultural alignments and whatnot centered around major city hubs. We definitely have an overarching culture, but it's usually not enough of one for people outside the USA to meet an American that embodies it fully. We function closer in spirit to the European Union, where we're a bunch of federated chunks of land joined by a need to not die. We, however, speak a common language. I get culture shock just through crossing a state border (can you believe some states sell their liquor in supermarkets? Barbarians!).

 

That being said, we do have some outstanding national characteristics:

• The Civil War never ended. There are too many Americans that still cling to the sins of the past with a prejudice that endures to this day between the Southern states that were once part of the Confederacy, and the Northern states of the Union. While this has become a lot more tame and is the source of political jokes and the like, the divide and the scars still exist, reopening around certain political topics and the question of preserving history. It is not an easy subject.
• We have the best Beer Culture in the world. I've been to other countries. I've had their local offerings. It's not even close to America's. At some point in the early 2000s as the Millennial generation (my generation) hit the drinking age, our tastes migrated to everything that wasn't the plain swill that our parents grew up with. Every state has several microbreweries (even some towns have several), and every year has a new trend. We also have craft wineries, and soon, we'll get craft distilleries. We're still a young country, so we do not lean into a national identity through a single style of brew or a technique to call our own. Imports are rare, with exports on the rise. All of the major brewers in America now partner with microbreweries for distribution and are slowing production of their own product. They see the trend. They aren't stupid. I've seen American beers in other countries, now. We have the current crown though production and variety alone.
• We're loud. This is the only commonality that I've heard from all foreigners about Americans. I think it's more because of the fact that we are careful about how we specifically say things (enunciation) or maybe its our outgoing, curious personalities. The Americans that leave the country want to experience other cultures. However, we tend to care more about decorum rather than bluntness (since we are aware of our stereotypes), but even then, that's not true of all Americans inside the country. The eastern parts of the continent are far more brash, honest, and reserved than the western parts, and the further west you go, the less brash, honest, and reserved you get. Small talk with strangers is a thing out west. I don't get it.
• The Guns. Yeah, that's no secret. But what is a secret is that it is not a partisan issue. You'll have states with strict gun laws and gun violence, and states with few laws and very little violence (it's down to local culture). There are people on left and the right of the political spectrum everywhere that see the 2nd Amendment as important. And gun owners that have gone through certification hate the "gun nuts." It's not gonna go away. I don't own a gun, but I know a lot who do, and all of their reasons for owning one are different. We're all waiting for the moment when we get invaded by some hostile, foreign nation and we get to use our guns. Guaranteed.
• Our landscapes are beautiful. Yes, even in New Jersey. There's more insane beauty out west, but man, there's a lot of nature in here to explore outside of urban areas. Even underground. This is true of a lot of other nations, but it's still a thing, here.

So yeah, we're weird. I love this place. And for every shitty place, there's a better one, nearby. USA, baby!

[Ralphis]

3 hours ago, MTrop said:

New Jersey is the best state. Abortion and weed is legal, and we have all 4 seasons and we have beaches (but don't you DARE wear shoes on them).

 

Counter-points:

• Jug handle intersections. WTF is going on here?
• Landfills everywhere
• The turnpike above exit 6 or 7
• It's home to the worst football teams in the country and the residents don't even have the guts to tell them not to claim they're in "New York"
• The taxes are ridiculously high. I imagine the highest in the country. I'm not opposed to this in general but having spent a ton of time in NJ, I don't think they're getting their money's worth. You probably don't make more than you would in Philly or NYC (many are commuting to work there anyway).
• Let's talk more about taxes. Used to have cheap gas because their gas tax was very low. They raised it and the roads never got noticeably better. Half of the roads are tolled. NJ DOT stinks
• Camden
• Newark Airport stinks
• Can't fill up your own vehicle with gas. Some dumbass in Ramsey NJ scratched my truck up once.
• The Jersey Devil could appear and murder you at any time, without notice
• An entire coastline of brown ocean water. Dirtiest beaches on the east coast

Concessions:

• Northwest NJ is beautiful

[Herr Dethnout]

3 hours ago, MTrop said:

New Jersey is the best state. Abortion and weed is legal...

I disagree...

Also, is the "Shore realitys" place of origin. So...

[Caffeine Freak]

7 hours ago, Dr. Zin said:

The only Americans who drink Budweiser, Miller, or similar swill in the last 10 years are either over the age of 50 or college students too stupid to know better. These days almost every town in the US has a local micro-brewery, and the sales of Budweiser et al. have been in free fall for the last ten years.

 

This is true. Although where I live (a town with two big colleges that has a reputation for partying) Seltzers have kind of become the go-to beverage that IPAs and the like were 10-15 years ago. Most of my drinking these days is either with friend groups or social events, so my partying days are behind me at this point, but I can't express the level of contempt I felt when I would bring a 12 pack of Torpedo or something to a party, and people would completely ignore it in favor of the case of Coors or Dos Equis or Bud Light or whatever generic beer some fuckwit had brought.