Does Family Guy count in my quest for cultural immersion? Yes, yes it does.

I have actually been learning a lot about American culture to try and help me understand the US and, by extension, the UK. I recently had a chat with someone about why the 'Irish cop' is a stereotype in the US (the crappy situation in the UK meant that they were forced to be highly politicized and unionized, so when they migrated to the US they organized the shit out of the important stuff to get the communities sorted).

And having grown up with a fair bit of US tv there are reams of cultural references that I never

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understood until now, and each one helps me understand the country that I'm living in. Go for the popular culture stuff - written by the people, for the people. As an English Literature graduate I am sanctioned to say that the following can be equated with Shakespeare (his plays are littered with bawdy, rude, racist and highly topical comments on the politics of the day, and were seen by plebs and royalty alike. Yeah!! You just got schooled, son!!!) And anyway, a bit of humor makes the lesson go down a bit easier, and we know what happens when we deprive ourselves of TV:

• Book - Cimarron by Edna Ferba (about the Land Rush)
• Book - The Grapes of Wrath (about the impact of the depression. Or watch the film)
• Book - The Things They Carried (Wow. Just wow. If you watch this in conjunction with M*A*S*H, Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket you'll start to confuse the Korean and Vietnam wars, but maybe thats the point? History repeating itself, boys and girls)
• Telly - Drunk History (I have found out about so many impressive characters in American history because of this - see Claudette Colvin and her relationship with Rosa Parks. PR before the masses even knew about PR. Fascinating and powerful stuff)
• Anything by Seth MacFarlane - obvs Family Guy, The Cleveland Show, American Dad - the cultural references are rude and poignant and I'm so freaking chuffed when I get all of them. Smug mode: "Hahaha, its funny because Karl Rove was an evil spin doctor.") Also, A Thousand Ways to Die in the West - the early European settlers lived a terrifying and short existence. Life in Europe must have been fucking awful for them to prefer this. 
• Podcast - This American Life. In fact there are loads of associated podcasts and radio stations. 
• Telly - How the States got their shape (as shouty and flashy and brightly colored as most TV shows seem to be, but Henry Rollins is a pleasure to watch)
• Anything on PBS. Anything. It may not be fun, but it will damn-sure be educational. 
• Telly - any old shows like the Love Boat, The Dick Van Dyke Show
• Film - Western films (they are all incredibly culturally insensitive, which already makes them historically of interest, but watching them with even a smattering of knowledge of the politics of the early settlers and how hard life was in the actual Wild West gives them a whole new meaning)

Enjoy. And if anyone asks, call it research.

Pee 'n' peep

British toilet humor is legendary, if misunderstood. I was weened on bum jokes and, I'm pleased to see that this generation is still being entertained by Dick and Dom shouting bogies loudly in public spaces. We are a nation that is proud of our ablutions. With that in mind we don't really want to enjoy these moments with our nearest and dearest, or indeed complete strangers (well, some of us do, but there are special websites for people like that).

Maybe thats why all the public toilets I have visited in the US seem to have ill-fitting doors to allow me to see all the ladies in the queue, and walls that barely disguise the fact that I'm squatting over the porcelain, so everyone knows exactly what stage I'm at. Maybe Americans simply don't find this amusing and therefore not embarrassing or even noteworthy, so it matters not a jot that there is no privacy in the most private of moments. Maybe, as I have been informed, it makes sense to keep the space as light and airy as possible to help dispense with gross smells.

Whatevs. I have made it my mission to make eye contact with anyone outside of my cubicle while I am mid-peep. Thats clearly what is expected.

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