It's the little things...

It's the little things that make you realise you're in a different country. The clouds look the same, the sky is the same color, people are people, but there are small things that are very important.

Many of my friends who had been to England before warned me, "Look right, then left" when crossing the street. I learned that pretty well the first couple of days, but I was still very paranoid about crossing the street. Crossing the street. Sheesh. Such a little thing, but I realised today that even though I was looking right, I wasn't looking far enough down the road to the right. This is important because in America, the pedestrian has the right of way. Not here. Cabbies have the right of way, then buses, then cars, then bicycles, then pedestrians. I'm suddenly at the bottom of the food chain, traffic-wise.

As I walk to and from work, I see shops that say "Fully Licensed" in the window. Which causes me to wonder if there are any shops that are "partially licensed." I asked at work and they said it means that they either sell alcohol or adult things. Ahh, I can stay out of those.

George Bernard Shaw said, "England and America are two countries separated by the same language." That's true on the computer too. A British keyboard is just a little bit different than an American one. The # sign is replaced on the keyboard with a £ sign. The @ sign and " are switched. The left shift key is not wide, but the same width as the letter keys and in that space is another \ sign. There are a couple of other differences, but you get the idea.

I needed a Phillips head screwdriver and asked at the front desk for one, and he said, "Oh, you mean an American one?" I had no idea that Mr. Phillips was an American. But he didn't have one the right size, so I went for another walk and got a spectacal repair kit. The screwdriver was the right size, but not strong enought to loosen the screw to upgrade my RAM.

Oh well, I'm having trouble staying awake right now, so I'm going to bed now.

Dave