The ups and downs of holding an American passport

There is generally not a day goes by when I am not reminded that I am an American. Its usually in a negative light or someone making a comment on my slang.

Sure I use slang all the time.
"Whats up?"
"Say what?"
"Dude" - I use that one alllllll the time.

No problems there. Everyone has their slang.

Sometimes when I meet random people they want to discuss politics with me. Whoa hold up! Americans usually don't have conversations with strangers they had just met with politics. Sure I like to express my opinions etc but not to every person I meet. Geeze, can't we talk about something else?

Often I am reminded I am American in school. Today, one of my students who is generally good, does his homework, provides feedback, just turned off. His excuse was that he didn't like poetry. I didn't like poetry in high school either but I didn't talk back to the teacher, not do my homework, or participate in class. It was a complete reversal. I chatted about it with one of the fellow staff members. He said bluntly to me "its cause you are an American. It doesn't matter what you say or do. You will always be American in his mind and he doesn't like them."


Hold up. I have never experienced stuff like this before. I am white, middle class. The worst problem I've had was because I was a girl. Not because of my nationality. I am an individual. I am educated. I have moved to a foregin country. I am an American but that is my nationality not me as an individual. Now I sort of have a feel for other groups of people that have been looked down upon because of the group of people they have belonged too.

Aren't we all people. Aren't we always united as people?

You may not like him but I think Bill was on the right path with this.
"...who taught me to look up to people others looked down on, because we're not so different after all."-Bill Clinton

We have different views, different backgrounds, etc but aren't we all people?

I promised you only light-hearted posts but this really bothered me.

Funny story of things I have seen coming to and from school.

Yesterday on a tram (street car, trolley) I saw a man in an alley literally laying facedown on the ground. Not sure if he was sleeping, passed out, or dead. This morning I saw a man not wearing a shirt and putting pants on up on some balcony. Not a pretty sight when he needed to loose about 75 pounds and it was 7am...

Friday-weekend-teachers at the pub after school-I'm out!