American contribution to the world

[Harleyman]

Absolutely Harly. As callipo pointed out, you can never tell just from looking at a person. No one would ever guess my nordic looking son had a drop of hispanic blood. My maternal grandfather who was fair skinned, light haired and blue eyed was born in Mexico in 1904. "Your great grandfather knew Pancho Villa!" he liked to tell us. Grandpa liked to embellish. One of my cousins always teasingly answered back, "Pancho Villas dead grandpa."

 

In contrast to my grandmother who was from SoCal and was so dark her nickname growing up was "La Morenita, which means little dark skinned girl. *Sob* Now I miss them!

 

I don't really have any famous relatives, except my mother is a distant, distant cousin of Yvette Mimieux. I saw her only once. To my child's eyes she was beautiful, like an angel. My youngest sister is named after her.

 

My dad's Irish relations are best not mentioned. From what I know, a whole lotta fighting, drinking, working on the railroads and god knows what else in the gold fields and all over northern California. Which there must be something to genetics, because my dad's family still likes to play harder than they work. Pity they didn't work a bit more and drink a bit less, I'd be typing this from a mansion on Nob Hill!

 

There was a TV show recently where they were trying to locate a maternal relative of Jesse James because they needed a DNA sample. The nearset one they found was a university professor in Connecticut who was stunned to discover he was kin to a famous outlaw.

 

You hear all kinds of stories when it comes to family histories. My English grandfather who was London born and bred was supposed to have been born on the "wrong side of the blanket" which means that he was the illegitimate offspring of someone of noble blood. Another one claiming that on his side of the family they are descended from an admiral who fought in a sea battle against the Dutch 400 hundred years ago. Since none of this has ever been proved, only suggested i've just put it all down to over inaginative bragging

 

As for the Irish side it's a fact that they were either for the law or against it.

One was a school master, another a police inspector and another a member of the Sinn Fein who with a couple of his cronies bumped off some big wig land owner sometime in the late 19th century.

 

What family doesn't have a skeleton in the closet somewhere along the line though

[Bassman62]

Nashville is so diverse in it's music but you wouldn't know that, Lionel Hampton (Benny Goodman Orchestra) Orchestra playing for free on the Cumberland river stage, Rufus Thomas (Blues Star) playing on Printers Alley, in fact just about all genres of music playing.

 

Heck yeah. I'm not a blues fan, but I wouldn't mind visiting Beale Street.

We drove accross to Memphis and stayed just up the road from 'Gracelands' which of course we visited, we went downtown in the evening and walked down Beale Street, guess what, BB Kings place was shut but I was invited to get up and play Bass with a blues band (I declined and kicked myself later).

[Harleyman]

Actually, SUPERTYKE. It's very likely bassman and his family got an excellent meal. I know I won't eat something just because it's cheap, I bet they don't either. Many restaurants in the US will offer excellent quality food for less than their cost just to bring in business. Some places have specials a certain day of the week like buy one meal get another one free or half price. Kids under 12 usually eat free, too. I know my children always loved one particular place for Sunday brunch because they offered kids up to three refills of sugary Jarritos soda. They got two each and that was it. And they could choose either second sodas or dessert. They usually picked dessert.

 

The Nevada casinos are famous for this! When the husband and I were young and poor, after a day of skiing we always ate at the casinos because where else could you get food like that for that price. They employ chefs from all over the world and I know we're not the only ones who went there just to eat. Anything to get people in and gambling!

 

I mostly avoid fast food places like the plague. With the exception of Jack in the Box tacos and state fair food like deep fried corn dogs, funnel cakes and kettle corn. It's only for one day. That's what I tell people when they give me that look. Uuugh. I feel sick. Maybe not funnel cakes this year. True. Some people are gluttons (it's human nature) and I'm personally embarrassed at times by our culture with it's fast food, all you can eat buffets, and pancakes as big as your head which is certainly to blame for indulging this unfortunate tendency. But there is good food out there too, you just have to be selective. I would encourage anyone who visits the US to research the region you're visiting as to where you can eat so you don't have to starve or eat trash. Yelp reviews are great, by real people.

 

 

 

You know Sierra before I emigrated to Canada in 1965 I thought Mounties still wore red tunics and rode horses while on regular duty.

That lumberjacks still used axes instead of chain saws

Before I came to the US that 9 out of 10 guys smoked cigars. That everyone west of the Mississippi packed a gun and wore Stetsons

That you could stroll along Hollywood Boulevard any day of the week and spot a big movie star gliding along in a Caddy convertible.

Lucky for me there was no internet back then and I did not make a damned fool of myself posting comments on my preconceived notions about places I had yet to visit.

Seems like a few who post all this anti-American stuff have already done that

[Sierra]

Do I REALLY have to point out to you that air con and closing doors does very little to deter flies from entering food outlets? And; (your little counter attack didn't go unnoticed Harl) we Europeans know that closing doors only traps flies inside and makes them more likely to lay eggs on the premises.

 

It traps the odd fly inside, but mostly it keeps them OUT. If you've ever lived in a hot climate and I mean lived, not just visiting you'd see that closed doors and screens are essential during long, hot summers. Without them life would be intolerable. The bugs are huge here. Wasps, fire ants, horseflys which make regular flies look positively puny and which bite, mosquitos and black widows. The southern US is even worse with the humidity. It's horrible. Even when it's dry here, there are cockroaches in the storm drains.

 

As far as I'm concerned, the invention of air conditioning is right up there with penicillin. Just last weekend, a neighbor came over with her two young children while her air was being repaired. Her house was over 90 degrees and the baby just couldn't take the heat, and a car with broken A/C is a special kind of hell. Rolled down windows don't begin to help.

[Sierra]

American contribution to the world ...

 

... members who can make a dignified reply to the most demeaning and childish outpourings of fools. ^^

 

 

and the Space Shuttle.

 

Phan, you know I love you.

[Harleyman]

Nashville is so diverse in it's music but you wouldn't know that, Lionel Hampton (Benny Goodman Orchestra) Orchestra playing for free on the Cumberland river stage, Rufus Thomas (Blues Star) playing on Printers Alley, in fact just about all genres of music playing.

We drove accross to Memphis and stayed just up the road from 'Gracelands' which of course we visited, we went downtown in the evening and walked down Beale Street, guess what, BB Kings place was shut but I was invited to get up and play Bass with a blues band (I declined and kicked myself later).

 

 

 

You visited Graceland? What did it feel like to walk on hallowed ground?

Maybe next year I'll get to make the pilgrimage.

There is a pretty decent dispay of the King's memorabelia at Bally's in Vegas in case you ever go there.

[Bulgarian]

Wasn't air conditioning invented in Arizona ?

They do say necessity is the mother of invention, and they need it in Arizona.

[Sierra]

Nashville is so diverse in it's music but you wouldn't know that, Lionel Hampton (Benny Goodman Orchestra) Orchestra playing for free on the Cumberland river stage, Rufus Thomas (Blues Star) playing on Printers Alley, in fact just about all genres of music playing.

We drove accross to Memphis and stayed just up the road from 'Gracelands' which of course we visited, we went downtown in the evening and walked down Beale Street, guess what, BB Kings place was shut but I was invited to get up and play Bass with a blues band (I declined and kicked myself later).

You declined! Why?

 

It would be such fun to visit Graceland, and I would be beyond thrilled to run into Dolly Parton. OMG, beyond thrilled. Did you know she has her own theme park?

 

Years ago, her manager bought a run down amusement park as an investment. She said she didn't know a thing about amusement parks, but "darn if all her kinfolk didn't need a place to work!" And I believe she does employ a large number of family.

[Sierra]

Wasn't air conditioning invented in Arizona ?

They do say necessity is the mother of invention, and they need it in Arizona.

 

I don't know where it was invented, but whoever invented it should've received the Nobel prize. Oh boy. A work colleague of my husband moved with his family to Tucson a couple years ago. He said his kids want to come back to California because they can't take the heat there. That's when you know it's bad.

[Sierra]

You hear all kinds of stories when it comes to family histories. My English grandfather who was London born and bred was supposed to have been born on the "wrong side of the blanket" which means that he was the illegitimate offspring of someone of noble blood. Another one claiming that on his side of the family they are descended from an admiral who fought in a sea battle against the Dutch 400 hundred years ago. Since none of this has ever been proved, only suggested i've just put it all down to over inaginative bragging

 

As for the Irish side it's a fact that they were either for the law or against it.

One was a school master, another a police inspector and another a member of the Sinn Fein who with a couple of his cronies bumped off some big wig land owner sometime in the late 19th century.

 

What family doesn't have a skeleton in the closet somewhere along the line though

 

There was a show on BBC America where they went looking for descendants of royalty and found all sorts of ordinary people. Some were gobsmacked to learn their roots and some like you, had a suspicion but no proof. I love shows like that.