Gli Stati Uniti hanno 250 anni. Una lista personale e non esaustiva su esperienze, comportamenti, concetti, paesaggi, usanze che rendono il Paese quello che è
I am curious, Enrica, have you noticed things that are particular to California? I personally, am very attached to my progressive città natale in California partly because it feels like a different country than much of the US.
Here are examples of some of the things that make me feel like I'm in a different country when I am in California versus many other states:
I did not grow up with the bicchieroni di bibite gassate, nor did anyone in my world buy them, (not when I was in a kid in the 1970s or a teenager in the 1980s, or now) but I realize that a big portion of Americans happily consume these bicchieroni of poison daily.
I was raised with an emphasis on healthy eating. My family had a large organic vegetable garden and a fruit tree orchard. We always made home-cooked meals and never ate out. In the 1990s farmers markets became popular in my town and the emphasis on organic, healthy eating grew ever stronger.
Californians pioneered curbside recycling in the 1970s and then the state told all 400+ cities and all 58 counties that they legally had to reduce the amount of trash they sent to landfills by 50%. Since Californian cities faced massive penalties if they failed, they poured resources into public school education. This resulted in a psychological shift in the minds of Californians (by the 1990s) that was rare to see in other states. Tossing a recyclable bottle into a trash felt like a shameful act of littering. We in California (of course particularly in the progressive areas) adopted a mindset about the environment that many states still have not.
And this last one is more about the difference between my world in California and my world in Italy: I never saw ANYONE smoking a cigarette when I was growing up. Literally, even in the 1970s! And still today, no one who I know in California would dream of smoking cigarettes.
I love this so much Chandi, thank you for sharing this list! California is my first American love besides New York City (I studied abroad at UCSB in 2010-11) and it truly does stand out from the rest of the United States in so many respects. Can you remind me what your home town is? I seem to remember it’s in the north but I can’t quite recall.
That’s crazy about cigarettes even 50 years ago! But you’re so right about the massive difference in that sense between Italy and the US, not just California but the entire country from my Italian perspective. I do find that people smoke in NYC more even compared to rural areas, but also NYC is its own world.
And I’m actually surprised about the bicchieroni, which is why I genuinely enjoyed reading your list. It really goes on to show how much it all comes down to individual communities and the values they organize around.
Other things about California… lol, my favorite is the widespread lack of knowledge about the four seasons, and especially winter. Obviously this is very individual dependent (it might have been different for you) but oh my, I thoroughly enjoy how funny and naive my LA friends (but also Bay Area!) can be when it comes to grasping the meaning of winter and living in winter 😂
Grazie a te, Nicole! Sono contenta ti sia piaciuta. Sì, mi rendo conto che sul matrimonio ho dato un teaser non da poco 😅 ne scriverò volentieri in autunno, nel frattempo ti lascio questo episodio del podcast Americanate dove io e due colleghe approfondiamo il tema, se ti può interessare: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7biw8Dpsqly3DWc7RB6Ag9?si=4QHUlC0HSdWtf-uADv6AuA
Un viaggio nel cuore del paese con mille sfaccettature, ognuna delle quali merita un approfondimento.
Fra I tanti scelgo due aspetti che ritengo agli antipodi per apprezzabilita'.
Sono d'accordo sulla maestosità del paesaggio, di cui hanno scritto anche Luciana e Marta, le strade che sembrano non finire, le distese di mais e la prateria a perdita d'occhio.
Dall'altra la falsità e l'ipocrisia che si celano dietro la patina di cordialità, purtroppo un atteggiamento connaturato alla cultura statunitense.
Credo tu abbia scelto davvero due delle caratteristiche più rappresentative di questo paese. Quante volte sono rimasta senza parole, nel senso di rimasta male, perché pensavo che una persona statunitense ci tenesse davvero ad avere un rapporto, e invece era solo falsa superficialità. E quante volte sono rimasta senza parole, in senso invece positivo, di fronte a un paesaggio americano.
Ode alla calma e alle liste estive (sono felice di aver fatto quella conversazione con te 💙)
Mi hai fatto venire in mente che il saluto spagnolo "hola qué tal" viene spesso usato come "hi how are you" negli USA, uguale!
Ma dai, non sapevo! Super interessante! E si, quella conversazione via messaggi e poi anche quella vis-à-vis mi hanno proprio riempito il cuore 🩵
💜
I am curious, Enrica, have you noticed things that are particular to California? I personally, am very attached to my progressive città natale in California partly because it feels like a different country than much of the US.
Here are examples of some of the things that make me feel like I'm in a different country when I am in California versus many other states:
I did not grow up with the bicchieroni di bibite gassate, nor did anyone in my world buy them, (not when I was in a kid in the 1970s or a teenager in the 1980s, or now) but I realize that a big portion of Americans happily consume these bicchieroni of poison daily.
I was raised with an emphasis on healthy eating. My family had a large organic vegetable garden and a fruit tree orchard. We always made home-cooked meals and never ate out. In the 1990s farmers markets became popular in my town and the emphasis on organic, healthy eating grew ever stronger.
Californians pioneered curbside recycling in the 1970s and then the state told all 400+ cities and all 58 counties that they legally had to reduce the amount of trash they sent to landfills by 50%. Since Californian cities faced massive penalties if they failed, they poured resources into public school education. This resulted in a psychological shift in the minds of Californians (by the 1990s) that was rare to see in other states. Tossing a recyclable bottle into a trash felt like a shameful act of littering. We in California (of course particularly in the progressive areas) adopted a mindset about the environment that many states still have not.
And this last one is more about the difference between my world in California and my world in Italy: I never saw ANYONE smoking a cigarette when I was growing up. Literally, even in the 1970s! And still today, no one who I know in California would dream of smoking cigarettes.
I love this so much Chandi, thank you for sharing this list! California is my first American love besides New York City (I studied abroad at UCSB in 2010-11) and it truly does stand out from the rest of the United States in so many respects. Can you remind me what your home town is? I seem to remember it’s in the north but I can’t quite recall.
That’s crazy about cigarettes even 50 years ago! But you’re so right about the massive difference in that sense between Italy and the US, not just California but the entire country from my Italian perspective. I do find that people smoke in NYC more even compared to rural areas, but also NYC is its own world.
And I’m actually surprised about the bicchieroni, which is why I genuinely enjoyed reading your list. It really goes on to show how much it all comes down to individual communities and the values they organize around.
Other things about California… lol, my favorite is the widespread lack of knowledge about the four seasons, and especially winter. Obviously this is very individual dependent (it might have been different for you) but oh my, I thoroughly enjoy how funny and naive my LA friends (but also Bay Area!) can be when it comes to grasping the meaning of winter and living in winter 😂
My home town is Santa Cruz 😀
Bellissima scarellata grazie 🙏 ps: faresti un approfondimento sul discorso del matrimonio?
Grazie a te, Nicole! Sono contenta ti sia piaciuta. Sì, mi rendo conto che sul matrimonio ho dato un teaser non da poco 😅 ne scriverò volentieri in autunno, nel frattempo ti lascio questo episodio del podcast Americanate dove io e due colleghe approfondiamo il tema, se ti può interessare: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7biw8Dpsqly3DWc7RB6Ag9?si=4QHUlC0HSdWtf-uADv6AuA
Sull'ossessione per il matrimonio, consiglio il datato, ma ben scritto saggio divulgativo "Storia dei costumi sessuali" di Richard Lewinsohn
Grazie mille per il suggerimento!
Un viaggio nel cuore del paese con mille sfaccettature, ognuna delle quali merita un approfondimento.
Fra I tanti scelgo due aspetti che ritengo agli antipodi per apprezzabilita'.
Sono d'accordo sulla maestosità del paesaggio, di cui hanno scritto anche Luciana e Marta, le strade che sembrano non finire, le distese di mais e la prateria a perdita d'occhio.
Dall'altra la falsità e l'ipocrisia che si celano dietro la patina di cordialità, purtroppo un atteggiamento connaturato alla cultura statunitense.
Credo tu abbia scelto davvero due delle caratteristiche più rappresentative di questo paese. Quante volte sono rimasta senza parole, nel senso di rimasta male, perché pensavo che una persona statunitense ci tenesse davvero ad avere un rapporto, e invece era solo falsa superficialità. E quante volte sono rimasta senza parole, in senso invece positivo, di fronte a un paesaggio americano.