Based on what I've seen of various royal proceedings, Britain seems to have a culture primarily centered around trying to always be the one wearing the most impractical hat.
Here in Kansas, the weather is quite reliable. 2 days ago it was almost 80°F, today the high was 54°. If you don't like the conditions outside, just wait a few days. I haven't seen snow on Christmas ten years. It has snowed in October and in April. 5 out of 10 Christmases in my recent memory have had 50° F temps.
@@qqq1q1qqqqqqq I don't know anyone named Sheldon? I just heard that joke from my dad. My dad has a shirt that says "there are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary and those who don't."
As an American, I would love to dress better. However, I live in Florida and the temperature is over 95 degrees for 5 months out of the year. Consequently, I'm often seen around town in basketball shorts and a sleeveless shirt. I once went a whole year without wearing long pants. Seriously.
I wear shorts all year long. I also wear my PJs outside to walk the dog; whether it's daylight or dark. And, now y'all keep this a secret, sometimes I wear a bra, sometimes I don't!!! 🤫🤫🤫 Momma'd whoop me if she knew that part. Nothing wrong with running around in shorts and a t-shirt. As long as you aren't going to funerals and weddings like that I see nothing wrong with it. Well, maybe not for work either, depending on your job. In the humid south, we believe in comfort. High five b-ball shorts guy!!!
If America can link an ethnic holiday with merchandising and binge drinking we're going to suddenly discover a whole new appreciation for that ethnic group.
See: Groundhog Day, which in my region is considered an excuse for a bunch of old German men to get drunk and tell dirty jokes until someone hauls out the current iteration of Punxsutawney Phil. XD
I was born in Ireland, my dad is from Africa and my mom is from Jamaica. Both of them went to Scotland for education and met in Ireland and have been together since. In Ireland we went to church on St. Patrick's Day and the bars are usually closed. It's the day of a saint.
The bars are closed in Ireland on St Patrick's Day? Ha ha ha. The reason Americans go so much for Cinco de Mayo, St Patrick's Day and Mardi Gras is it's an excuse to drink.
@@sluggo206 It's called St. Patrick's Day for a reason. Now since there are more younger people, the pubs do open but green beer isn't a thing. The pubs have limited hours though.
@@isaiahbangura4421 I was born in England I just found that out my biological mother passed away she was born in Afghanistan. I really need help I thought I was born in the US.
To listen to a style of humor, might listen to the older radio broadcasts of the Prairie Home Companion from the state of Minnesota. The original announcer retired some time ago, but that radio series was known for portraying a type of American humor. Passing forward, hope you enjoy it. And your a great observer of people and their country, countries!
Bill Bryson commented that British people see humour in every situation, even if it's a disastrous situation. We make heavy use of irony, which Brits understand instinctively but non Brits frequently take literally. And as for Laurence's comment of insulting friends, I read a comment by a US soldier, who'd served alongside UK troops, where he said "You know they like you when they insult you". Banter is a massive thing here.
Most people ignore the different immigration waves. The later Italian crossings are always ignored, until people remember that all the brutal factory jobs in the late 19th century were filled with Italian, Poles, and Russian immigrants.
Yes, there a lot of people (esp. on the East coast) of Italian/Polish/Russian or just generally Eastern European ancestry. I’m one of them!!! Just look at how many surnames are E. European!
I've generally found Americans to be exceptionally polite. A small example is "have a nice day". In Britain if someone says that we immediately think they're being cheesy or couldn't care less, whereas with Americans, they genuinely mean it.
As an American, I kind of doubt that most Americans really mean rote phrases like "Have a nice day" and "How are you?" Those phrases can be translated as "I don't want to lose my job," because you largely hear them from retail workers. I remember reading something that was written by someone who had recently moved here from another country (I can't remember where, this was ages ago that I read this) and she marveled at how this one cashier kept asking her how she was every time she came to that store. Then her dog got sick, and when this cashier asked her how she was that day, she said, "I'm a little sad today," and the cashier replied, "Great! Have a nice day!" Either the cashier genuinely misheard or else that response was supposed to mean, "This information that you're giving me about your emotional state is a little too heavy for a routine exchange between strangers." But that anecdote really resonated me to the point that I remember the basic plot, if not all of the details, all of these years later, because it reinforced my experience of what these rote phrases mean in America. I've never worked retail, but I use these rote phrases when they feel called for and when I mean them at least a little bit--or at least when I don't *not* mean them. I probably wouldn't be capable of forming my lips around the words if I was angry at someone.
Here in America people are very patriotic and they also say have a good day and God bless you very often. That is in the South where I live but I can't say so much for the people living up north because the people I did meet up there for two years in Pennsylvania were not as friendly until you got to know them. They were not the God bless you type of people. If you hear some Southern woman say " well bless your heart!" They are being sarcastic and it is time to run for your life. 😂😂 the people out west are different. The thing I've noticed about the south in the Southeast says that the people are definitely super friendly. I find the people out in the Midwest and especially in Oklahoma very friendly as well.
@@montrelouisebohon-harris7023 I would agree with all of these generalizations. I especially find the South East to be friendly and polite and very sweet-hearted.
I was once asked at a dinner party by an American "What's your ancestry?". I was taken aback by this as this is not something that anyone asks in England. I stumblingly answered "Er...well I was born in England but my family is Scottish". She replied, without pausing, "Oh, its just you look Spanish". I had absolutely no idea how to respond to that so I just said thank you and apologised for not being Spanish. Which very clearly makes me English.
What's surprising is the word "ancestry" and saying you look Spanish. Mostly people say "Where are you from?" and expect the same answer. And saying "You look Spanish" can sound derogatory because of how some Americans tend to view Latin Americans as poor and uneducated. The same person saying both of those suggest they're unusually obsessed with race, more than typical Americans.
@@amandabyrd9349 I'm not going to lie, it was one of the most left field questions I've ever been asked. The other one that left me dumbstruck was I tried to book a room in a hotel only for the desk clerk to tell me: "Sorry, but you don't look gay". There was nothing to indicate that the hotel was gay only and it wasn't in a "gay" part of town. I can only assume that the clerk was making a weird joke. But I walked next door to the next hotel and got a room, forever wondering quite what the precious clerk had meant. Fair enough, I'm not gay, but I'll wonder until the day I die what he expected his clientele to be wearing or if it is actually possible to look "gay". Why does this stuff happen to me?
My parents and grandparents all told me our whole family migrated here from Germany, so that's what I believed until I had my DNA tested. They told me that my DNA all came from Yorkshire, England. Now, I don't know what to believe.
Yup, many of the Anglo-Saxons were from Northern “Magna Germania”. People moved around Europe an awful lot during Roman rule as travel was for the first time ever, slightly easier and slightly less dangerous. There are like, many 7 hour documentaries about this on youtube.
@Conner Wine Yeah but theres a bit of a difference between 'our whole family migrated here from Germany' and 'yeah all came from germany after living in yorkshire for a few centuries'
“Weather that can kill bacteria” lol. Interesting bit of colonial history. One of the things that Fat King George did that really pissed off colonists was to outlaw knitting in the colonies. You see, this was to make American textile farmers dependent on English factories for knitted goods. Wool and cotton would be grown and ginned in the colonies. Then, by law, it had to be transported over to England in order to be spun into thread and yarn, then it could be knit or woven into blankets, garments, etc. Once it was manufactured into usable items, it would be exported back to the colonies. The reason for this was so that it would insert at least two layers of taxation into the process when it traveled to England and then back again to the colonies. The colonists were really pissed for several reasons: First off, it would take several months for American wool or cotton to be made into usable items using that process. You’ve experienced how freaking cold American winters are, so you can understand why the colonists were so irate over the delays of knitted wool goods that they desperately needed. Then, because it had to be sold to merchants to take over to England then to English factories, then to merchants to bring it back, plus at least two extra layers of taxes, the items were prohibitively expensive. The founding fathers would wear American knitted goods as expressions of defiance toward the oppressive English crown. In movies and pictures, you usually see soldiers wearing a tricorn hat. However, the actual hat worn by most colonial soldiers was a knitted cap.
Knitted/woven caps of one form or another have been the most popular hat for most of history. It was not until the industrial era that knitted hats were mostly replaced by other materials.
Very interesting. Thank you for that. So - had it not been for the greed and ridiculous restrictions imposed by England at the time, the USA might still have been a part of the Empire - and now the Commonwealth!
As a Brit, about the toilet humour: I was by coincidence in the men's urinal on my floor of the (European) company building and the new American acting CEO of the company was also there. I acknowledged him and said, "We can't keep meeting like this, people will talk" (one of my favourite silly toilet jokes) - no answer, stony silence. After a short time, I find I am on the downsizing 'letting go' list. I am convinced to this day that the two are related.
Yeah I was surprised to hear that observation, but then when he said he got a 'TMI' response I realized A) he's in the midwest and they're not really known for their humor period, and B) you're not really supposed to make toilet humor _about your own actual excretory experiences._ you're supposed to joke about some other theoretical person shitting himself, a cartoon character having to pee badly and having no access to facilities, or just making a fart noise and laughing about it. when _you personally_ have something coming out of you, I think that's when childhood shame kicks in and you're expected to joke self-deprecatingly about it and hide it all in innuendo.
Like many Americans, my ancestors came to the U.S. from more than one place, and at very different times. Most of them came in the 1600's and the 1700's - the last came from Yorkshire, in the 1820's. I took a DNA test out of curiosity, and the result was 100% European - however, from all over the Continent: Scandinavia 25%, Balkan - 4%, Iberian - 17%; and there are others from Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Ireland, Wales. . . So, Americans are a grand mixture - and proud of it! :-)
Same. I can trace my ancestry through both parents to pre revolutionary war colonies. I know I've got ancestors from England, Germany, and Switzerland for sure and I suspect you could find another dozen countries in my family tree. The only heritage that makes sense for me to claim is "American" as the most recent foreign born ancestor came over more than a century ago
I read once that in terms of numbers, the top 3 immigrant groups are #1 German, #2 Polish, and #3 Italian. However some Germans go back 10 generations or more and may not be aware of their ancestry. H Basinhe: This info was from a book published in the mid 40's. The groups you list are from more recent times. In the 1800's and up to the mid 1900's, very few Hispanic, Asian, or African immigrants came here, the vast majority were from Europe. However, in the 1970's this started to change.
I'm disappointed that in your fashion section, you didn't mention hoodies. The first time I visited UK, I was told by my British friend that "only hoods wear hoodies," and that's why people were looking at me weird. That was quite a few years ago, and I definitely saw a difference of attitude last time I was there.
As an American the observation about fashion really rings true. For me, comfort is of higher priority than fashion. If I don't feel good when I look good then what's the point? Half my clothes are also only used half the year due to halving to dress for weather.
Exactly. It is about the party and fun! The reason why St Patrick's Day and Cinco de Mayo work is because everyone is invited in to participate. Other ethnic drinking holidays don't really do that. We need more of these.
My Ancestry DNA test... Roughly... 30% Sioux/Cree, 15% Cherokee/Creek, 2% Iroquois/Algonquin, 25% Welsh/Irish/Scot, 20% Germanic/Norse and 7% (+/-) sub Saharan African (Matches family history fairly closely) In the Lakota language we have a saying, Mitákuye Oyás'iŋ It means - We are ALL from ONE
I found that the "wait 5 minutes" quip is highly dependent on where in the US you are. There are some states where the weather tends to be pretty consistent and others where it's much more volitile.
We have a popular saying about the weather here in Arizona: “Arizona has 4 seasons: November, December, January, and summer....” It’s so true tho, we have temperatures well above 32 degrees C well into the end of October.
I love your humor, Lawrence! It brightens my day and I try not to binge too much. Right now, I've needed it a lot. Thanks! Since we moved to AZ from Oregon, our summer clothing has gotten a real workout! Instead of 1 month of over 90 degrees, we have 7 months or more over 90. I love my wool stuff, but they reside in my cedar chest!
I think weather has a lot to do with more casual clothes in the U.S. I’m from Texas, so choosing the right clothes are all about surviving 106% heat in the summer and protecting ourselves from the bone-chilling wind sweeping down tornado alley in the winter.
I imagine people in the US need to have larger wardrobes, especially in states that see all 4 seasons. I didn't think of that until you said it! Here in Michigan in the winter it can be -20 degrees & in summer up to 100 degrees, so I need clothes for every weather in between. So we have to make our money stretch further for clothing because not all of use can afford designer clothes for every temperature. I actually think of that when I am clothes shopping. I think "Can I wear these shoes in the spring summer & fall? Or just summer? Or just winter? Can this jacket double as a house coat for chilly nights?" There is a lot of weather here, that is for sure. In the UK isnt it just rain, or clouds? jk XD PS It is so fun reading these comments about the climate in everyone's home state! Keep em' coming I want to hear about all 50 states & your wardrobes too!
I never actually took conscious note of it, but what you said about your thoughts when buying clothes is so true! I obviously have the "really cold/hot weather" sections of my wardrobe, but for the most part I evaluate it for if I can wear it during the transitional periods of the seasons or if it can layer with other clothes I own to get more use from it.
Pennsylvanian here... I totally relate. I switch out my wardrobe twice a year for winter. The rest of the year, everything else is worn for the rest of the year. I break out winter wardrobe half way through fall and put it away the first time the temp hits 70 in the spring time.
@James Williams - You only THINK you have winter in central Texas. Here in iowa we can have 70 degree swings in temperature over a 24 hour period. We range from 110 in the summer to -40 in the winter. That's not with a heat or cold index.
Living inthe southern middle of Arizona i have pretty much 1 wardrobe that gets Worn out easier, than some, i suppose. summer is march to November then we get faux winter where i add sweaters a hoodie or two maybe a beanie if it rains. 🤷♀️😊
Once, many years ago, something on my submarine broke and we had to pull into Fort Lauderdale for repairs. At the same pier we pulled into, there was a British submarine. The British sailors gave us a tour of their boat. They gave us beer in cans marked "For Her Majesty's Forces Only". This was a novelty because alcohol is not permitted on US Navy ships. We were shown a hatchway to a lower deck where the boats diesel was. One of our guys shouted down to a man working on the diesel. "What kind of diesel have you got?" He was expecting to hear Rolls Royce or some other company. Instead the man answers, "Domestic I think". To my mind that is an excellent example of British Humor.
Laurence, I've been going through your older videos and am surprised that your move to America didn't exactly happen by accident but more by design and that you've had such a longtime affection for the U.S., even back in your childhood. I have to say that I'm your polar opposite in that I'm a native of the southern portion of the U.S. (vs. your coming from the northern portion of England) who's had almost a lifelong obsession with Britain, England in particular, and would consider it my crowning achievement to move to England. London is my #1 dream city but I would also love to live in Birmingham. Also, I'm from a Mexican family and feel like if I moved to England I would love to open up an authentic Mexican restaurant there and introduce England to mole, enchiladas, tamales, menudo, caldo de res or pollo, barbacoa, salsitas, Valentina, fideo and beans, homemade corn and flour tortillas, Mexican hot chocolate, capirotada, avena, polvorones and other pan dulce, and buñuelos. Maybe I can get some British people to adopt the habit I grew up with of having barbacoa for Sunday, or every other Sunday at least.
For sure. Those people were practically Targaryens. They would marry their nieces for God's sake -- and marrying a first cousin was practically the rule. Makes for a pretty strange family get-together when your grandfather is also your father-in-law.
I think you’re spot on about the dress. I’m 77 & still wear jeans or elastic waist knit pants (not sweatpants) with running shoes. The reason is so many of us old folks have foot or joint problems that make any other shoes painful to try to walk in.
@@MrHSouthLondon I don't think he thought you actually had an equivalent. I've watched enough Mock The Week to pick it up that it exists, but most Americans probably think of the Dollar Store as an only-in-America type of thing.
I found the ancestral splits for America really interesting!!! Northeast Ohio, where I live, was settled by a lot of Germans, than Irish. But in the 60s and 70s my hometown of Cleveland (actually the greater Cleveland area) had the largest Hungarian population outside of Budapest. And the third largest Polish population outside of Warsaw. I don't know if that holds true now but I think it's still pretty high. I do love British humor!! Thank you Laurence!!
A lot of Germans were here even earlier, including thousands of Hessian mercenaries who stayed after the Revolutionary War. Many were already here in the 1600s though, along with some big waves of Swiss refugees due to religious persecution there.
I have some German (as well as British Isles, Dutch, and French) ancestors that were in NY before there was a United States, as well as ones who came in the mid 1800’s. But I’m mostly of Swedish descent, through my great-grandparents who arrived in Michigan in the 1890’s.
This is my new favorite channel and I’m not sure why😂😂 i put this channel on when i need a good laugh but you’re also informational which I appreciate. I’m high key embarrassed to be American lollll
Although I am undoubtedly of African decent, according to 23 & Me I have 16% British (both my maternal and paternal great grand mothers were of British ancestry).Also, I'm 2% Korea and 6% Pakistan. I'm pretty much like Heinz 57... a mixture of many.
That is usually how I respond, when asked my ancestry. "what is your heritage?", they ask. I reply, "I'm Heinz 57". LOL Not had my ancestry done, but there is Dutch, Welsh, Irish, Cherokee (my grandmother's mother on Dad side)Italian (it appears my family was run out of Italy at the start LOL) and possibly German. I have a niece, my sister's daughter, who does have some subsaharan lineage, most likely because my Dad's side of the family was not racist at all, they loved everyone. :)
That’s awesome! I’m a mix of northern european, scandanavian, western russian/eastern european, irish, scottish, icelandic(?), etc. i was not surprised to find my ancestry.com was all super white.
I found that when I went away to college, I had friends from every where. 2 gals I worked with were from South Korea; one of my best friends was from the UK; another friend was Spaniard & the rest from all over the U.S. When I went home, I picked up a mish mosh of all these accents and my friends and family asked me what the hell happened!!
We Aussies have the British style of self-deprecating humour, mixed with a penchant for sweatpants (which we call 'trackie daks') unless we're in a super-stylish area or are still of an age where we give a shit about our appearance 😎 As usual, we're a mix of Brit and American cultures, with a healthy dollop of our own!
@@christinaridder1451 Yes. 🐨 Love Aussie's charming way of abbreviating almost everything: bathers (swimsuit), biccy (biscuit or cookie), brekky (breakfast), dag (geek or nerd), defo (definitely), devo (devastated), chook (chicken), cuppa (tea), tea (dinner), chrissie (Christmas), prezzie (present), footy (rugby or soccer), mozzie (mosquito), no worries or no drama (no problem / it's ok), tinny (can of beer), etc. Had a flatmate from "Straya" & was fortunate to make two long visits down under (inclu. Sydney, Adelaide & Perth). 😚Friendly folks, but more reserved than the typical tourists we see in US. Gained a better sense about my own American sensibility & culture while visiting their beautiful country.🤗 ps When I visited London briefly, my exposure to actual Brits was rather limited. As an anglophile mad about their history, seeing the Queen Mother award the🏆Queen's Cup to the winning polo team🏇 (near Windsor Castle) was the highlight of my visit. Disappointed to discover that most bluebloods that I had admired from afar were very obsessed over ppl's pedigree (vs. their character, intelligence or personality). Stayed w/a lively contingent of Saudi's who were educated at several of their most esteemed institutions & who never quite fit in. (If graceful Kate Middleton was looked down as a commoner to the aristocracy, that makes someone like fellow Cali-girl Meghan Markle {& myself} closer to the bottom of any social strata😭. Had a good time, but ran into more Yanks than locals...all searching for tourist spots. The majority of cabbies, servers, etc. that we encountered were newer immigrants from all over the globe. Met more good ppl from all over the UK, at home while living intvin LA. ✌😏🤙
Did Australia just see a dictionary and go, Fuck it. We are giving everything new names that will make us laugh and not think about giant spiders and snakes that will kill us.
There are likely much more people in the US who have English ancestry than is self reported. Many people in the US who are of English descent have been here for so long they just identify as American or have ancestry that is so mixed they just identify with something else. Many most common surnames in the US are English.
“If you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes” is literally a motto here in Oregon. It’s not uncommon to go from raining to bright and sunny within that length of time. Sometimes it will rain with sunshine at the same time.
I remember in a suburb of Boulder, Colorado, it could also get really gnarly. Three feet of snow one night, 70 degrees the next day. Not just chaotic, but a major problem because all that runoff melting for the whole day would freeze solid the next night.
I have seen a family wearing pj looking clothes and slippers at a store . One had on a robe , so I think they were actually pajamas . A woman and two female teenagers ! Pretty casual . I was probably over dressed in their opinions ! 😂
Yeah, PJs in public. Which I'm saying now but, drove to town and went through a drive through yesterday with a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. i wouldn't dare step out of the car though.
Did you miss where Lawrence made a statement at the beginning that not all Americans are the same - and neither are all Brits? Yes, there are "a few" Americans who CAN do self deprecating humour. (I am not a Brit, despite the U in humour, I am a German, for me humour is a theoretical concept, and I learned BE [British English] at school) But he is also not completely wrong, when he says that Americans (mainly in the midwest) are a little too prudish for toilet humour. Of course, being a Brit he could never say that as bluntly as I can, being a rude German. Yes, some Americans are great comedians - and that includes taking themselves not too seriously! But some are not, some are as humo[u]rfree as their German ancestors.
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 I totally agree and Americans can come up with some pretty nifty ideas and create some of the most amazing things. I'm analytical & a doer. Americans are very congenial about their inventions and people can't say they're out of their minds or WE ARE. Apple products were invented here and they're great.
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 Is that what it is? I'm so disappointed in myself for spending all that time and money in therapy when the problem was that I'm intelligent and mentally well-balanced.
I would say that the reason people in the US have such a different way of social interaction is because pretty much everyone in the country has a mixed ancestry. Like i have German, Irish English, Nordic, Balkan, and Slavic. And over generations the social customs get passed down and when a grandparent of a different ethic background married the other grandparent those social customs murged together and that combination was taught and passed down to the next generation and that repeated for generations which resulted in the current way humans interact in the US.
I'm from the Midwest and in my early 70's. I, as well as my friends, have not been able to find clothing in stores that is suitable for someone my age. I would say that problem spans the last 20 years. Clothing manufacturers cater to the young generation. When I left highschool, jeans were not permitted as school dress. With the 60's, everything changed. I'm comfortable in jeans or slacks but dress up clothes are sparse. Shoes are difficult to find other than sneakers. I seldom shop but buy online and even then the materials are are not the best and the clothing is not tailored to fit. We used to have clothing made in the U.S. but that was many years ago. In other words, we buy what's available. The younger generation doesn't in my opinion know the kind of clothing styles you are probably most familiar with. It may well be our cities offer that clothing here in the U.S.but it is not common in my locale. Where I live there is no need to dress up other than for church and special occasions. I am not in a metropolitan area.
Donna, I would like to say how much I enjoyed the composition of your comment. My father always said "buy the best quality you can afford, then look after it!" I have shoes which are thirty years old and jackets (tweed and leather) which I have owned for twenty years or so. My adult children on the other hand seem to be slaves to fashion.
I agree with all you have said, Donna...and I do live in the NY area...and now with so many “Old” stores such as Lord & Taylor closing, it is hard to find more conservative clothing...which I prefer...maybe it’s my “English, Irish, German Background”, but the young people today seem to have little fashion. Sense past yoga pants and a tank top! ☺️💕
Check out on-line sites like 6pm, Macy's ( Last Act ) , Sax Off Fifth, Niemans Last Call, Nordstrom Rack. Quality brand clothes and shoes etc. that if shopped on sale can be fabulous deals! Good Luck!
I think a lot of British people have dry humor. My family is primarily scotch and French so we laughing a lot of things simply because most of us are Scottish..
Nothing but love for you, man! My landlord is from England. I am an American. (I live in the state of Maryland). One of my best friends in high school was "Ian Kenneth Heritage," from Warwickshire. Don't know if he is still alive. But.... we had so much fun reinacting Monty Pythons "Argument clinic". We once did so just as a substitute teacher came into the class room for the first time. It was her first day. The look on her face was priceless! She thought we were actually having an intellectual debate above her comprehension and later admitted she thought about leaving and going home. She was one of our best teachers ever. Keep doing your thing. Fan for life.
one big difference, one way america is different from every country in the world. if someone moves to america ... they can become an american. if an american moves to any other country in the world ... they are the american living in ...
@@docgonzales maybe the Constitution of these United States... Or maybe the countless speeches, sermons, and essays about America being a "melting pot" in regards to ethnicity AND culture... Or maybe just about any half-assed class of "Law 101" stuff. ...you can find "that rot" in a LOT of places. You only need to open your eyes. ;o)
Yes because most Americans living in the UK are here on a temporary basis,I am quite sure if I moved into a road in America I would be described as the Scottish woman at no. whatever
When I was a middle-schooler, our local PBS station used to run both Monty Python's Flying Circus, and the Benny Hill show - after watching them both I wondered how a country which gave us the brilliance of the Pythons could find Benny Hill anything but idiotic. It's probably the same sort of thing with people who love the Marx Brothers and can't stand the Three Stooges 🤷♀️.
The "sneakers with jeans = eccentric" explains so much about the 10th Doctor...I honestly thought he wore sneakers for comfort. I did not realize it was a fashion statement!
I used to claim German ancestry. My Great Grandmother spoke fluent German. They came here in the 1850s and Dad remembers her. Did the DNA , no German whatsoever. Turns out she was from Alsace-Lorraine, France and the border flipped back and forth. She was French. The rest is the UK mix.
@@rooooooby Nah, it was going on long before that. My DNA is French, there is no German. Yet living on the border g-grandmother was a French citizen at one point and spoke German. No French. It's an interesting study if you go back before 1900 "A traveler viewing Alsace today for the first time would never suspect the difficult and stormy past which has plagued this beautiful little country. The fertile plains, the vineyards, and the Vosges mountains on the French side of the Rhine are mirrored on the German side of the valley, extending to the mountains of the Black Forest. The cultures of these two great civilizations, too, mingle here, enrich and reflect each other. Language is a perfect example of this junction OI cultures. Most ihhabitants are at least bilingual, speaking both the local dialect, which is of Germanic origin, and either French or German. Many are trilingual and speak all three languages with equal facility. The situation has seldom been so tranquil, however. Alsace and Lorraine have long been disputed between Prance and Germany. Prized for their location, which is crucial militarily, and for their natural resources, the most important being coal and lron, the two provinces have su££e~ed more than their share of invasions, seizures, and changes of government. As languages, customs, races, personalities, and governments mingle without necessarily integrating, the cultural pattern of the "parent" country lS reflected. A study of Alsace-Lorraine is thus a study of the interaction of the French and the Germans"
I had exactly the same thing happen. My Great-Grandmother was from Alsace-Lorraine but moved to Munchengladbach, Germany as a child. So she emigrated to Germany but was ethnically French. When I took the DNA test I was not at all German, but part French. What is even weirder is that my Great-Grandfather also emigrated from Northern Germany, but was ethnically Scandanavian (Danish). So both of my Grandmother’s parents emigrated from Germany, but neither was ethnically German. Confusing.
My mother told me that Alsatians are French part of the week, and German the rest... one being the weekdays, the other being the weekends. Can't ever remember which is which, but it had to do with which country tended to have their businesses open vs closed on weekends.
My mother, born 1920, got a British pen pal (Connie) at age 8 and they kept up their correspondence all their lives. Connie flew out to visit us in 1973 and their friendship became even closer. After being widowed for a long time, Connie remarried & visited us once more in 1980 with her new husband. We all had a very good time and we introduced them to raccoons, as species they'd never heard of. Sadly, my mom was scared of traveling abroad so she never was able to visit Britain...I mean, what's there to be scared of in Britain? Spicy British cooking is just salt & pepper, so you're not going to suffer from Oliver Cromwell's Revenge.
Until 1990 the largest group of Americans claimed British ancestry (English and Scottish) on the census. 1990 was the year the US census included "American" as an ancestral origin. Instantly large swaths of the US, particularly in the South, ceased being of English or Scottish ancestry. I noted that on this years census form "American" is not listed as a choice for national origin, though it can still be written in. It will be interesting to see the results of this year's census.
Maybe 15 weeks but sometimes it never seems to change at all. Sunny and mild...Sunny and mild.. which is a reference to LA Story which I think is one of the funniest movies ever made.
I used to get salty about it and then went through a horrible depression... Then I realized some people may have done all they can just to leave their house and run an errand - it can be a massive victory for them and getting dressed was more than they could have done. Makes me a bit more tolerant now. But if you're not depressed and have a decent wardrobe at your disposal then it is rather shameful. Lol
As a Canadian, we clearly got our politeness from the British. Also we do the question at the end of sentences too. We use the word “eh” which is equivalent to “right?”
I think clothing choice also has to do with how much the weather varies day to day (or hour to hour). In Nevada (during the summer), the weather changes from blistering hot during the day, to bone chilling cold at night. If you're going to be out for the entire day, you might consider a variety of dress that allows for warmer days to chilled nights.
I laughed out loud so many times, Laurence! Loved the bit about laughing your a$$ off, so much so that it was now painful to sit down. You are too funny! I've got loads of English and about a quarter German in me.
That and focus. What's up with that? I'm assuming you're using a window as lighting and clouds are the culprit. It's really distracting. I thought maybe it's deliberate to give the video an edgy effect but with choppy edits it makes it very hard to watch.
@@jeffbowermaster1568 I think it was the cuts. Every time he made a cut in the "filming" the light was brighter, then toned down. An artifact of the editing software ramping up some filter or automated light control I suspect.
My dad would often make this joke every time we went past a cemetery he would point at the cemetery and say "The best neighbors you can ever have, they never complain."
There has been a drastic decline in Americans reporting British ancestry since as recently as the 1980s. It's likely that the true number of British Americans is severely underrepresented in studies based on self-reporting. This is probably due to British being seen as the "default" and therefore not worth mentioning, or simply not being as exotic sounding as calling yourself Irish, Italian, German etc.
If that's the case, I only have 1 "exotic" ancestor (German), and the rest were English, Scottish, and Irish. They cut out pretty early in the game though since I see no new entries to the US since the 1700s.
I have a lot of English ancestors. The second largest group is probably Dutch--Dutch who came to the US during the time of New Netherland. The latest immigrant ancestor I can find immigrated from Germany to Illinois, dying in 1850. My dad's ancestors before him all lived in western New Jersey for 250 years.
It's not just the Midwest. I'm from Gig Harbor Washington and can honestly say that "bathroom talk" we ofter refer to as little boy humor. Thankfully I feel that most of us left that sort of thing behind in middle school :) But, I love your channel. Plastic keep up the excellent content.
After a while of my British Bf asking me questions about Americans, and going through the explanation that it is a VERY large country - most of which I haven't even seen, I finally started beginning each thoughtful answer with, "Well, speaking for ALLLLLLLL Americans..." I loved his Self-Deprecating humour, he got my sarcasm. ;-)
I watch a lot of vlogs with British people, mostly chateau rehab and I noticed that they seem more appreciative of simple things. For instance, if I pointed out a beautiful bird or butterfly, most people I know would rudely mock me until I gave them the finger. Maybe my British genes are dominant 🤷♀️ I do love how men’s clothing fits so much nicer. As for women’s clothing I’ve gotten asked all of my life why I dress up for work. Why not?!
Humor is a major difference that I always see people comment on between Brits and Americans. As an American, my personal humor style would be more sarcastic and dry, so people always tell me that it’s more British, but I’m not the only one that has that kind of style. Also, we definitely have the ability to be self-deprecating, along with observational. I think it comes down to personality type versus nationality, since there are so many types of humor that speak to different people in the US. Just look at our comedies, they’re all over the place. Too many types, in my opinion, to say there’s a certain type we ALL like
You are hilarious. I could listen to you all day. . .if I didn't have other things to do that is. Speaking of politeness. . .when I got off the plane at Heathrow we were quickly met by a uniformed woman who ever so politely told everyone to keep to the left. Thank you. Very calm, very polite. When I returned to the US, we were met by a hulk of a man shouting keep to the right! The right! Hey you! I said the right! I thought "I guess I'm back home."
I did a study abroad trip in London for a month and it didn't take me long to spot the Americans in a crowd just by the way they dressed. I was surprised there was such a difference.
Yep, and most of us over the age of 21 have spent at least one of those days a year drinking plenty of cheap green beer, and getting wasted while very badly attempting to sing old Irish folk/drinking songs in bad Irish accents LOL!
@@sonza68 Interesting , considering thousands of years of travel , trade , war , relocation , etc. of among countries that anyone can truly be 100% aynthing . Just sayin ' ...
@@unclejoeoakland why are you two Italians both sound mildly racist? it is just a way of honoring Irish immigrants for a day, a lot of us non Italian Americans honor Italian Americans by eating Italian dishes 1-2 times a week, and ignore that there were an ungainly amount of Italian and Sicilians in the criminal mafias. There are good and bad eggs in every basket.
Actually, you've just shed some light on the "yeah uh-huh uh-huh" behavior that has baffled and infuriated me for years coming from someone "over the pond". To me, it's not a display of engagement in the conversation at hand. It's a display of impatience, of already knowing the answer, or of complete disinterest in the discussion. So, good food for thought and knowing this will hopefully make me a better conversationalist moving forward. Thank you.
Yeah, never knew I've been taking silence for granted every time I've talked to someone my whole life! The behavior he described can easily cross the line and be experienced as rudely interrupting me, as far as I'm concerned. I would find it very annoying. Some polite and quiet responses (like, "ahas" or "huh!" or maybe a "yes, I see") peppered occasionally is how I expect people to communicate that they've been listening to me and actually understand what I'm saying. (A) How can they listen if they're talking the whole time? (B) How can they communicate they actually MEAN the words they're using in their responses (like, "yes")...if by the time the conversation has reached the point where their response is meaningful & expected, they've already repeatedly said the same words throughout the whole conversation while I was talking? /end ramble sorry lol 😅✌ _(It's like people who don't want me to say "Happy Holidays" for the first 23 days of December - only "Merry Christmas" allowed!)_ 😂 _(If I use "Merry Christmas" exclusively, every day starting on Thanksgiving, then by the time December 24 finally rolls around....How do I communicate that it's actually Christmas?? The phrase has been rendered meaningless due to constant overuse.)_
Whenever I am down or need a pick up...I go to you. Informative and funny ...such a gift . Thanks for coming to America and knowing us and loving us. I am glad your here. ✌
😂 Hello Lost in the Pond - I absolutely love , love , love your humor 😁❤ ( " and having lived in both countries now for at least a hundred years " 😂😂😂 ) !! Wish you much success with your channel 👍❤ .
Hello, fellow mutt! When I was a child, I always thought it was cool that I came from a huge, diverse group of (European) people. It wasn't until I was well into my twenties that I first heard that some people think it's bad to have varied ancestry. I'm not talking about racial bigots, but normal people who think it's bad to have originated from three or more countries. I still don't get it.
Haven't done the DNA test, but according to my family, I'm Swedish, English, Dutch, Irish, Welsh, Spanish, German, and French, and I've been accused of being Asian (as in far east, not middle eastern), Russian, African, and Jewish (I'm not sure how serious the last two were). I don't have enough info to be able to confirm or deny any of those accusations.
I have not had a DNA test but based on my research with the help of my grandparents who have kept records of our ancestors in America, I am: Russian, Polish, German, Dutch, French Canadian, & a little bit of Native American. I think at least up here in Michigan many people have Native heritage to some degree since there were (& still are) many tribes/reservations. I love visiting the Indian Owned casinos here! Very fun places so long as you dont have a gambling problem lol. I know that there are other regions who have a lot of Native American descendants also which I think is just awesome.
@@sluttymctits4496 I too am a mutt! And proud of it! I've been told by others of mixed ancestry that it is unacceptable "othering" to say that, but I love it! It makes culture & customs fun. Also, no one can tell you to go back where you came from because that would require you to split into bits. I'm an American mutt, a piece of the melting pot.
You've made this American girl (with 99% Anglo-Saxon heritage) smile. This is legitimate medicine in these dark days. All said, thanks "mate." (See what I did there?)
‘lf you don’t like the weather then wait 5 minutes’ isnt very funny in states where that just a fact of life but the tornado joke was brilliant. Like a chameleon you’re adapting.
![[UA] NAVI проти G2 Esports | Blast Premier Fall Final](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QWlIm4FGESQ/mqdefault.jpg)
"Unlike America, we don't have weather that can kill bacteria!" I don't know why, but that statement made me LMFAO! Never heard it explained that way!
... and it's depressingly true
Nick Hansen... It's true... Ask any British Military member who went to an extended CBN (Chemical, Bio and Nuclear) warfare school.
@Angry Combat Wombat your car? The sidewalk and driveway
*Laughs in Nordic heritages, as strips down to breeches * 'Nice breeze out today!!!'
That line got me too!
Based on what I've seen of various royal proceedings, Britain seems to have a culture primarily centered around trying to always be the one wearing the most impractical hat.
What about the Kentucky Derby?
Weather humor...."The wind stopped blowing in Kansas once, and everybody fell down".
I went to Kansas City once in November, so I tend to agree with that. And Chicago thinks they have the windy city!
🤣
😂😂 It is a rare day when the wind isn't blowing here in Kansas.
rofl
Here in Kansas, the weather is quite reliable. 2 days ago it was almost 80°F, today the high was 54°. If you don't like the conditions outside, just wait a few days. I haven't seen snow on Christmas ten years. It has snowed in October and in April. 5 out of 10 Christmases in my recent memory have had 50° F temps.
"One thing I can say about British people is we don't generalize."
I see what you did there 😂
There are two kinds of people. Those who group the world into two kinds of people, and those who don't.
@@sluggo206 there are two types of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data
@@lucybronkema6486 Poor Sheldon 😂😂😂😂😂
@@qqq1q1qqqqqqq I don't know anyone named Sheldon? I just heard that joke from my dad. My dad has a shirt that says "there are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary and those who don't."
@@lucybronkema6486 Sheldon Cooper from Big Bang Theory. He couldn't stand it if something was incomplete. It would throw his world into a tailspin.
As an American, I would love to dress better. However, I live in Florida and the temperature is over 95 degrees for 5 months out of the year. Consequently, I'm often seen around town in basketball shorts and a sleeveless shirt. I once went a whole year without wearing long pants. Seriously.
You're using the temperature as an excuse. It was hot in the '40s and '50s, too, and men didn't dress the way you do. Admit it, you're just a hick.
It was hot in the past too and they didn't have air conditioning, you're just trashy.
That sounds sensible to me! Especially with the humidity.
I did that once. Then I tuned 2.
I wear shorts all year long. I also wear my PJs outside to walk the dog; whether it's daylight or dark. And, now y'all keep this a secret, sometimes I wear a bra, sometimes I don't!!! 🤫🤫🤫 Momma'd whoop me if she knew that part.
Nothing wrong with running around in shorts and a t-shirt. As long as you aren't going to funerals and weddings like that I see nothing wrong with it. Well, maybe not for work either, depending on your job. In the humid south, we believe in comfort. High five b-ball shorts guy!!!
My old man:
"There are two seasons in Wisconsin- Winter and road construction"
💯 truth lol
Very true, from the Illinois/Wisconsin border.
You must live in the fancy part with roads. Here it's mostly just skeeter and warm beer season.
I've heard the same be true in Illinois but you actually see construction workers and equipment working in Wisconsin
And indiana
If America can link an ethnic holiday with merchandising and binge drinking we're going to suddenly discover a whole new appreciation for that ethnic group.
See: Groundhog Day, which in my region is considered an excuse for a bunch of old German men to get drunk and tell dirty jokes until someone hauls out the current iteration of Punxsutawney Phil. XD
I was born in Ireland, my dad is from Africa and my mom is from Jamaica. Both of them went to Scotland for education and met in Ireland and have been together since. In Ireland we went to church on St. Patrick's Day and the bars are usually closed. It's the day of a saint.
The bars are closed in Ireland on St Patrick's Day? Ha ha ha. The reason Americans go so much for Cinco de Mayo, St Patrick's Day and Mardi Gras is it's an excuse to drink.
@@sluggo206 It's called St. Patrick's Day for a reason. Now since there are more younger people, the pubs do open but green beer isn't a thing. The pubs have limited hours though.
If you’re from Ireland, you’d say Mum or Mam not “Mom”
@@isaiahbangura4421 I was born in England I just found that out my biological mother passed away she was born in Afghanistan. I really need help I thought I was born in the US.
@@isaiahbangura4421 could u help me especially if u were born in Ireland I have been houseless a long time
Laurence is basically the only person on the internet capable of making a video like this, being funny and interesting, and not offending anybody.
@jpoopist: Yes, because he's British. Lol!
The self-deprecation is inimitable. Perfect niche.
He doesn't offend. I like his delivery so much better than Those Two Twits, I mean, Brits.
Right? I love this guy.
To listen to a style of humor, might listen to the older radio broadcasts of the Prairie Home Companion from the state of Minnesota. The original announcer retired some time ago, but that radio series was known for portraying a type of American humor. Passing forward, hope you enjoy it. And your a great observer of people and their country, countries!
Bill Bryson commented that British people see humour in every situation, even if it's a disastrous situation. We make heavy use of irony, which Brits understand instinctively but non Brits frequently take literally. And as for Laurence's comment of insulting friends, I read a comment by a US soldier, who'd served alongside UK troops, where he said "You know they like you when they insult you". Banter is a massive thing here.
Dude, you're in Chicago. You can't stop listing ethnicities until you cover Italians and Poles.
I'd rather he talk about the less well known !)
Most people ignore the different immigration waves. The later Italian crossings are always ignored, until people remember that all the brutal factory jobs in the late 19th century were filled with Italian, Poles, and Russian immigrants.
Yes, there a lot of people (esp. on the East coast) of Italian/Polish/Russian or just generally Eastern European ancestry. I’m one of them!!!
Just look at how many surnames are E. European!
As someone who's family came over from Italy , we are important! We invented good pizza! :P
Yeah I’m from NJ and it’s hugely Italian in that whole tristate area and decent amount of Polish.
I've generally found Americans to be exceptionally polite. A small example is "have a nice day". In Britain if someone says that we immediately think they're being cheesy or couldn't care less, whereas with Americans, they genuinely mean it.
lol yeah when i'm paying for something at a store i always throw in a " thanks, have a good one " before leaving, It feels wrong without doing so.
As an American, I kind of doubt that most Americans really mean rote phrases like "Have a nice day" and "How are you?" Those phrases can be translated as "I don't want to lose my job," because you largely hear them from retail workers.
I remember reading something that was written by someone who had recently moved here from another country (I can't remember where, this was ages ago that I read this) and she marveled at how this one cashier kept asking her how she was every time she came to that store. Then her dog got sick, and when this cashier asked her how she was that day, she said, "I'm a little sad today," and the cashier replied, "Great! Have a nice day!"
Either the cashier genuinely misheard or else that response was supposed to mean, "This information that you're giving me about your emotional state is a little too heavy for a routine exchange between strangers." But that anecdote really resonated me to the point that I remember the basic plot, if not all of the details, all of these years later, because it reinforced my experience of what these rote phrases mean in America.
I've never worked retail, but I use these rote phrases when they feel called for and when I mean them at least a little bit--or at least when I don't *not* mean them. I probably wouldn't be capable of forming my lips around the words if I was angry at someone.
Here in America people are very patriotic and they also say have a good day and God bless you very often. That is in the South where I live but I can't say so much for the people living up north because the people I did meet up there for two years in Pennsylvania were not as friendly until you got to know them. They were not the God bless you type of people. If you hear some Southern woman say " well bless your heart!" They are being sarcastic and it is time to run for your life. 😂😂 the people out west are different. The thing I've noticed about the south in the Southeast says that the people are definitely super friendly. I find the people out in the Midwest and especially in Oklahoma very friendly as well.
Montre' Louise Bohon-Harris can’t say “God bless you” up North. Might get sued by the local Atheist club.
@@montrelouisebohon-harris7023 I would agree with all of these generalizations. I especially find the South East to be friendly and polite and very sweet-hearted.
I was once asked at a dinner party by an American "What's your ancestry?". I was taken aback by this as this is not something that anyone asks in England. I stumblingly answered "Er...well I was born in England but my family is Scottish". She replied, without pausing, "Oh, its just you look Spanish". I had absolutely no idea how to respond to that so I just said thank you and apologised for not being Spanish. Which very clearly makes me English.
What's surprising is the word "ancestry" and saying you look Spanish. Mostly people say "Where are you from?" and expect the same answer. And saying "You look Spanish" can sound derogatory because of how some Americans tend to view Latin Americans as poor and uneducated. The same person saying both of those suggest they're unusually obsessed with race, more than typical Americans.
Oh my gosh, I laughed out loud at this. I can't imagine being asked this, and you handled it beautifully... Too good.. :D
Heck, I’m American, and that woman’s question was rude. Wow.
@@janjackson7732 You're very kind! Thank you!
@@amandabyrd9349 I'm not going to lie, it was one of the most left field questions I've ever been asked. The other one that left me dumbstruck was I tried to book a room in a hotel only for the desk clerk to tell me: "Sorry, but you don't look gay". There was nothing to indicate that the hotel was gay only and it wasn't in a "gay" part of town. I can only assume that the clerk was making a weird joke. But I walked next door to the next hotel and got a room, forever wondering quite what the precious clerk had meant. Fair enough, I'm not gay, but I'll wonder until the day I die what he expected his clientele to be wearing or if it is actually possible to look "gay". Why does this stuff happen to me?
My parents and grandparents all told me our whole family migrated here from Germany, so that's what I believed until I had my DNA tested. They told me that my DNA all came from Yorkshire, England. Now, I don't know what to believe.
Yup, many of the Anglo-Saxons were from Northern “Magna Germania”. People moved around Europe an awful lot during Roman rule as travel was for the first time ever, slightly easier and slightly less dangerous.
There are like, many 7 hour documentaries about this on youtube.
@Conner Wine Yeah but theres a bit of a difference between 'our whole family migrated here from Germany' and 'yeah all came from germany after living in yorkshire for a few centuries'
So you're actually a Yorkshire pudding, and not a strudel. Guten Appetit.
Witness protection?
@@markkringle9144 I hadn't thought of that!
"The sweatpant people" Title of the next B grade horror flick
“Weather that can kill bacteria” lol.
Interesting bit of colonial history. One of the things that Fat King George did that really pissed off colonists was to outlaw knitting in the colonies. You see, this was to make American textile farmers dependent on English factories for knitted goods. Wool and cotton would be grown and ginned in the colonies. Then, by law, it had to be transported over to England in order to be spun into thread and yarn, then it could be knit or woven into blankets, garments, etc. Once it was manufactured into usable items, it would be exported back to the colonies. The reason for this was so that it would insert at least two layers of taxation into the process when it traveled to England and then back again to the colonies. The colonists were really pissed for several reasons: First off, it would take several months for American wool or cotton to be made into usable items using that process. You’ve experienced how freaking cold American winters are, so you can understand why the colonists were so irate over the delays of knitted wool goods that they desperately needed. Then, because it had to be sold to merchants to take over to England then to English factories, then to merchants to bring it back, plus at least two extra layers of taxes, the items were prohibitively expensive. The founding fathers would wear American knitted goods as expressions of defiance toward the oppressive English crown. In movies and pictures, you usually see soldiers wearing a tricorn hat. However, the actual hat worn by most colonial soldiers was a knitted cap.
Never knew that.
Thanks for another tidbit I can use in our American history homeschool curriculum!
Knitted/woven caps of one form or another have been the most popular hat for most of history. It was not until the industrial era that knitted hats were mostly replaced by other materials.
Damn I love history!!
Very interesting. Thank you for that.
So - had it not been for the greed and ridiculous restrictions imposed by England at the time, the USA might still have been a part of the Empire - and now the Commonwealth!
As a Brit, about the toilet humour: I was by coincidence in the men's urinal on my floor of the (European) company building and the new American acting CEO of the company was also there. I acknowledged him and said, "We can't keep meeting like this, people will talk" (one of my favourite silly toilet jokes) - no answer, stony silence. After a short time, I find I am on the downsizing 'letting go' list. I am convinced to this day that the two are related.
He sounds like a stick in the mud. I'm American and I would have thought it was cute. Probably better not to work with him anyway.
Yeah I was surprised to hear that observation, but then when he said he got a 'TMI' response I realized A) he's in the midwest and they're not really known for their humor period, and B) you're not really supposed to make toilet humor _about your own actual excretory experiences._ you're supposed to joke about some other theoretical person shitting himself, a cartoon character having to pee badly and having no access to facilities, or just making a fart noise and laughing about it. when _you personally_ have something coming out of you, I think that's when childhood shame kicks in and you're expected to joke self-deprecatingly about it and hide it all in innuendo.
If so, he really did not have any sense of humour. Sorry :(
I think you just got unlucky, a lot of people here in the us would definetly laugh at that joke
Yup. The informality was probably not appreciated there.
Like many Americans, my ancestors came to the U.S. from more than one place, and at very different times. Most of them came in the 1600's and the 1700's - the last came from Yorkshire, in the 1820's. I took a DNA test out of curiosity, and the result was 100% European - however, from all over the Continent: Scandinavia 25%, Balkan - 4%, Iberian - 17%; and there are others from Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Ireland, Wales. . . So, Americans are a grand mixture - and proud of it! :-)
Those Vikings, got around. 😊
Same. I can trace my ancestry through both parents to pre revolutionary war colonies. I know I've got ancestors from England, Germany, and Switzerland for sure and I suspect you could find another dozen countries in my family tree. The only heritage that makes sense for me to claim is "American" as the most recent foreign born ancestor came over more than a century ago
I read once that in terms of numbers, the top 3 immigrant groups are #1 German, #2 Polish, and #3 Italian. However some Germans go back 10 generations or more and may not be aware of their ancestry.
H Basinhe: This info was from a book published in the mid 40's. The groups you list are from more recent times. In the 1800's and up to the mid 1900's, very few Hispanic, Asian, or African immigrants came here, the vast majority were from Europe. However, in the 1970's this started to change.
I'm from Yorkshire lol. I don't blame them leaving, the weather's terrible.
@@FALslayer LOL!!!
I'm disappointed that in your fashion section, you didn't mention hoodies. The first time I visited UK, I was told by my British friend that "only hoods wear hoodies," and that's why people were looking at me weird. That was quite a few years ago, and I definitely saw a difference of attitude last time I was there.
As an American the observation about fashion really rings true. For me, comfort is of higher priority than fashion. If I don't feel good when I look good then what's the point? Half my clothes are also only used half the year due to halving to dress for weather.
St Patricks Day and Cinco de Mayo are what I call "Monthly Ethnic Drinking Holidays". We need more.
Oktoberfest??
@@elizabetheleck1246 Halloween parties, Thanksgiving(Turkey Day) etc.
Exactly. It is about the party and fun! The reason why St Patrick's Day and Cinco de Mayo work is because everyone is invited in to participate. Other ethnic drinking holidays don't really do that. We need more of these.
@@elizabetheleck1246 I guess he forgot to put that in his comment
♥
My Ancestry DNA test... Roughly...
30% Sioux/Cree, 15% Cherokee/Creek, 2% Iroquois/Algonquin, 25% Welsh/Irish/Scot, 20% Germanic/Norse and 7% (+/-) sub Saharan African
(Matches family history fairly closely)
In the Lakota language we have a saying,
Mitákuye Oyás'iŋ
It means - We are ALL from ONE
I'm 98% Chimpanzee. That scares me.
I love that with all that background, you go by Bubba 😂
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 I thought humans shared 99% of their DNA with chimps, so what's your other 1%???🦄🐲
Or, as an ancient Roman might say in Latin, "E pluribus, unum."
@@jenniferpearce1052 alien.
This was a great one! "Sweatpant people are another ancestry group I forgot to mention..." 😂
Beware the Sweatpant People... the next one you see may be YOU!
😂
I once bought a pair of sweatpants and I won't even wear them at home--and I live alone.
Is that the same as Wal-Mart people?
@@eleveneleven572 Not if you only wear them at home.
I found that the "wait 5 minutes" quip is highly dependent on where in the US you are. There are some states where the weather tends to be pretty consistent and others where it's much more volitile.
That quip is usually used in Wisconsin.
We have a popular saying about the weather here in Arizona:
“Arizona has 4 seasons: November, December, January, and summer....”
It’s so true tho, we have temperatures well above 32 degrees C well into the end of October.
I love your humor, Lawrence! It brightens my day and I try not to binge too much. Right now, I've needed it a lot. Thanks!
Since we moved to AZ from Oregon, our summer clothing has gotten a real workout! Instead of 1 month of over 90 degrees, we have 7 months or more over 90. I love my wool stuff, but they reside in my cedar chest!
I think weather has a lot to do with more casual clothes in the U.S. I’m from Texas, so choosing the right clothes are all about surviving 106% heat in the summer and protecting ourselves from the bone-chilling wind sweeping down tornado alley in the winter.
This ain't no joke. Seriously you will marinade in your own juices in the summer time and freeze solid in the winter time.
Legit was 110F earlier today 🥵
@@fallen_aether The UK's record temperature is 101.7F set last year about 35 miles from where I work and that was far too hot for me.
Freshfish111 music 🎶 “when the wind comes sweeping down the plain” 🎶 Wrong state, but still applies.
@@themermaidstale5008 LOL!!!! DEFINITELY FIGHTING WORDS!
I imagine people in the US need to have larger wardrobes, especially in states that see all 4 seasons. I didn't think of that until you said it! Here in Michigan in the winter it can be -20 degrees & in summer up to 100 degrees, so I need clothes for every weather in between. So we have to make our money stretch further for clothing because not all of use can afford designer clothes for every temperature. I actually think of that when I am clothes shopping. I think "Can I wear these shoes in the spring summer & fall? Or just summer? Or just winter? Can this jacket double as a house coat for chilly nights?" There is a lot of weather here, that is for sure.
In the UK isnt it just rain, or clouds? jk XD
PS It is so fun reading these comments about the climate in everyone's home state! Keep em' coming I want to hear about all 50 states & your wardrobes too!
Well said fellow Michiganian/Michigander!
I never actually took conscious note of it, but what you said about your thoughts when buying clothes is so true! I obviously have the "really cold/hot weather" sections of my wardrobe, but for the most part I evaluate it for if I can wear it during the transitional periods of the seasons or if it can layer with other clothes I own to get more use from it.
Pennsylvanian here... I totally relate. I switch out my wardrobe twice a year for winter. The rest of the year, everything else is worn for the rest of the year. I break out winter wardrobe half way through fall and put it away the first time the temp hits 70 in the spring time.
@James Williams - You only THINK you have winter in central Texas. Here in iowa we can have 70 degree swings in temperature over a 24 hour period. We range from 110 in the summer to -40 in the winter. That's not with a heat or cold index.
Living inthe southern middle of Arizona i have pretty much 1 wardrobe that gets Worn out easier, than some, i suppose. summer is march to November then we get faux winter where i add sweaters a hoodie or two maybe a beanie if it rains. 🤷♀️😊
Many German immigrants settled in Texas, too.
But did you see how red Wisconsin and South Dakota were?
Yes, but we don't talk about them.
Chester Nimitz, famous Admiral (CINCPAC) of WWII grew up speaking German in a small Texas town.
And first in Pennsylvania!
Definitely many of German heritage in and around Hays, KS! 💖
Once, many years ago, something on my submarine broke and we had to pull into Fort Lauderdale for repairs. At the same pier we pulled into, there was a British submarine. The British sailors gave us a tour of their boat. They gave us beer in cans marked "For Her Majesty's Forces Only". This was a novelty because alcohol is not permitted on US Navy ships. We were shown a hatchway to a lower deck where the boats diesel was. One of our guys shouted down to a man working on the diesel. "What kind of diesel have you got?" He was expecting to hear Rolls Royce or some other company. Instead the man answers, "Domestic I think". To my mind that is an excellent example of British Humor.
Nothing something you hear everyday---"something on my submarine broke".
Laurence, I've been going through your older videos and am surprised that your move to America didn't exactly happen by accident but more by design and that you've had such a longtime affection for the U.S., even back in your childhood. I have to say that I'm your polar opposite in that I'm a native of the southern portion of the U.S. (vs. your coming from the northern portion of England) who's had almost a lifelong obsession with Britain, England in particular, and would consider it my crowning achievement to move to England. London is my #1 dream city but I would also love to live in Birmingham. Also, I'm from a Mexican family and feel like if I moved to England I would love to open up an authentic Mexican restaurant there and introduce England to mole, enchiladas, tamales, menudo, caldo de res or pollo, barbacoa, salsitas, Valentina, fideo and beans, homemade corn and flour tortillas, Mexican hot chocolate, capirotada, avena, polvorones and other pan dulce, and buñuelos. Maybe I can get some British people to adopt the habit I grew up with of having barbacoa for Sunday, or every other Sunday at least.
Oh man, I feel sorry for anyone who doesnt have authentic mexican food handy.
Get out.
you have to find an English person to marry you first.😂
You must do soas soon as possible, so you can spread the joys of Mexican cuisine with as many people as possible! Especially enchiladas.
Not many Mexican restaurants in the UK. People here refer Indian or Chinese food
"Incestral"? European royals. The Hapsburgs.
For sure. Those people were practically Targaryens. They would marry their nieces for God's sake -- and marrying a first cousin was practically the rule. Makes for a pretty strange family get-together when your grandfather is also your father-in-law.
There's a song called "I am my own Grandpa".
And Southern families (my uncle & aunt are first cousins)
Yasssss!
It’s classy when rich people do it. Just like theft.
I think you’re spot on about the dress. I’m 77 & still wear jeans or elastic waist knit pants (not sweatpants) with running shoes. The reason is so many of us old folks have foot or joint problems that make any other shoes painful to try to walk in.
We have the Dollar Store here. In the UK they have their Version. Pound Town!!!! Sounds Like Fun!!!!
Canada has ' Dollarama ' Sounds like a place where the sweatpants people would shop 😂
Sounds like a brawl.
🤣 it's 'Pound-LAND' you bellend!!!
@@MrHSouthLondon I don't think he thought you actually had an equivalent. I've watched enough Mock The Week to pick it up that it exists, but most Americans probably think of the Dollar Store as an only-in-America type of thing.
Ah yes, Pound Town, another title I use for your mother's place.
Australians don’t tack on questions, we just make the ends of our sentences sound like questions.
That's what some people from Ireland do.
I wonder if that's where I got it from... I spent some early formative years in the Aussie-lands. Y'all have a great country.
I found the ancestral splits for America really interesting!!! Northeast Ohio, where I live, was settled by a lot of Germans, than Irish. But in the 60s and 70s my hometown of Cleveland (actually the greater Cleveland area) had the largest Hungarian population outside of Budapest. And the third largest Polish population outside of Warsaw. I don't know if that holds true now but I think it's still pretty high. I do love British humor!! Thank you Laurence!!
A lot of Germans were here even earlier, including thousands of Hessian mercenaries who stayed after the Revolutionary War. Many were already here in the 1600s though, along with some big waves of Swiss refugees due to religious persecution there.
unchainedmelody67 my family were hessians rewarded land for their service in South Carolina
That is why we have such a strong fascist streak in our government.
@@Ekkis25 the area around Orangeburg were settled in the early 1700's by 'Germanic' immigrants. German, Swiss .. and everything in between
@@tedmartin5239 well operation paperclip really brough some nazis here. Not those earlie settelers😂
I have some German (as well as British Isles, Dutch, and French) ancestors that were in NY before there was a United States, as well as ones who came in the mid 1800’s. But I’m mostly of Swedish descent, through my great-grandparents who arrived in Michigan in the 1890’s.
I’m impressed with your wealth of knowledge. Also, I enjoy hearing your perspective on Americans. You’re very gracious.
I'm of South Asian descent, but I'm Irish on St. Patrick's day!
Same. I am now 100% Portuguese but was 11% Irish and British before ancestry became useless. So I always celebrate st. Patrick’s Day! LOL
trublgrl I’m half East Asian but I was always Irish on St. Paddy’s Day, then I did my DNA and I’m 17% Scots-Irish’ 😄
Faith and begorrah ! If it isn't dear ol' Mr. McShivdasani.
Nice!
Aren't we all? Any excuse for a party!
I was chuffed when Lawrence made the Mike Myers reference: He’s Canadian.
This is my new favorite channel and I’m not sure why😂😂 i put this channel on when i need a good laugh but you’re also informational which I appreciate. I’m high key embarrassed to be American lollll
Although I am undoubtedly of African decent, according to 23 & Me I have 16% British (both my maternal and paternal great grand mothers were of British ancestry).Also, I'm 2% Korea and 6% Pakistan. I'm pretty much like Heinz 57... a mixture of many.
That is usually how I respond, when asked my ancestry. "what is your heritage?", they ask. I reply, "I'm Heinz 57". LOL
Not had my ancestry done, but there is Dutch, Welsh, Irish, Cherokee (my grandmother's mother on Dad side)Italian (it appears my family was run out of Italy at the start LOL) and possibly German. I have a niece, my sister's daughter, who does have some subsaharan lineage, most likely because my Dad's side of the family was not racist at all, they loved everyone. :)
@@elizabeths50 why would your niece's subsaharan lineage not show up in you as well? Did you mean HER dad's family...
That’s awesome! I’m a mix of northern european, scandanavian, western russian/eastern european, irish, scottish, icelandic(?), etc. i was not surprised to find my ancestry.com was all super white.
Ain't we all? Glorious mongrels, every one.
@JW McCabe Unless you're the last Denisovian, yep.
I found that when I went away to college, I had friends from every where. 2 gals I worked with were from South Korea; one of my best friends was from the UK; another friend was Spaniard & the rest from all over the U.S. When I went home, I picked up a mish mosh of all these accents and my friends and family asked me what the hell happened!!
We Aussies have the British style of self-deprecating humour, mixed with a penchant for sweatpants (which we call 'trackie daks') unless we're in a super-stylish area or are still of an age where we give a shit about our appearance 😎 As usual, we're a mix of Brit and American cultures, with a healthy dollop of our own!
And the Australians are hands down way better at nicknames! Trackie daks! Awesome!
@@christinaridder1451 'Trackie daks' is one of my fave Aussie slang phrases 😊 but then I am a bit biased 😅🇦🇺
Why are Aussies wearing sweatpants it's hot there it's always hot there everyone and everything is always melting
@@christinaridder1451 Yes. 🐨 Love Aussie's charming way of abbreviating almost everything: bathers (swimsuit), biccy (biscuit or cookie), brekky (breakfast), dag (geek or nerd), defo (definitely), devo (devastated), chook (chicken), cuppa (tea), tea (dinner), chrissie (Christmas), prezzie (present), footy (rugby or soccer), mozzie (mosquito), no worries or no drama (no problem / it's ok), tinny (can of beer), etc. Had a flatmate from "Straya" & was fortunate to make two long visits down under (inclu. Sydney, Adelaide & Perth). 😚Friendly folks, but more reserved than the typical tourists we see in US. Gained a better sense about my own American sensibility & culture while visiting their beautiful country.🤗
ps When I visited London briefly, my exposure to actual Brits was rather limited. As an anglophile mad about their history, seeing the Queen Mother award the🏆Queen's Cup to the winning polo team🏇 (near Windsor Castle) was the highlight of my visit. Disappointed to discover that most bluebloods that I had admired from afar were very obsessed over ppl's pedigree (vs. their character, intelligence or personality). Stayed w/a lively contingent of Saudi's who were educated at several of their most esteemed institutions & who never quite fit in. (If graceful Kate Middleton was looked down as a commoner to the aristocracy, that makes someone like fellow Cali-girl Meghan Markle {& myself} closer to the bottom of any social strata😭. Had a good time, but ran into more Yanks than locals...all searching for tourist spots. The majority of cabbies, servers, etc. that we encountered were newer immigrants from all over the globe. Met more good ppl from all over the UK, at home while living intvin LA. ✌😏🤙
Did Australia just see a dictionary and go, Fuck it. We are giving everything new names that will make us laugh and not think about giant spiders and snakes that will kill us.
There are likely much more people in the US who have English ancestry than is self reported. Many people in the US who are of English descent have been here for so long they just identify as American or have ancestry that is so mixed they just identify with something else.
Many most common surnames in the US are English.
“If you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes” is literally a motto here in Oregon. It’s not uncommon to go from raining to bright and sunny within that length of time. Sometimes it will rain with sunshine at the same time.
Head a little further north into Canada 🇨🇦
Heat on in the morning, air conditioning by the afternoon, rain/ snow in the evening/ overnight!
@@ANNEWHETSTONE I know the feels sometimes haha
I remember in a suburb of Boulder, Colorado, it could also get really gnarly. Three feet of snow one night, 70 degrees the next day. Not just chaotic, but a major problem because all that runoff melting for the whole day would freeze solid the next night.
We Americans have taken the casual dress thing way too far. that’s just my opinion for whatever it’s worth.
I completely agree with you.
I have seen a family wearing pj looking clothes and slippers at a store . One had on a robe , so I think they were actually pajamas . A woman and two female teenagers ! Pretty casual . I was probably over dressed in their opinions ! 😂
Yeah, PJs in public. Which I'm saying now but, drove to town and went through a drive through yesterday with a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. i wouldn't dare step out of the car though.
I agree with you
Yeah, the PJs in public thing is pretty crazy here in the US. And “flip flop” footwear!
In the Midwest, we often use self deprecating humor.
Most people who are thinkers, do so. It's a sign of intelligence. If you can laugh at yourself, you are a balanced person.
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 Exactly!
Did you miss where Lawrence made a statement at the beginning that not all Americans are the same - and neither are all Brits? Yes, there are "a few" Americans who CAN do self deprecating humour. (I am not a Brit, despite the U in humour, I am a German, for me humour is a theoretical concept, and I learned BE [British English] at school) But he is also not completely wrong, when he says that Americans (mainly in the midwest) are a little too prudish for toilet humour. Of course, being a Brit he could never say that as bluntly as I can, being a rude German.
Yes, some Americans are great comedians - and that includes taking themselves not too seriously! But some are not, some are as humo[u]rfree as their German ancestors.
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 I totally agree and Americans can come up with some pretty nifty ideas and create some of the most amazing things. I'm analytical & a doer. Americans are very congenial about their inventions and people can't say they're out of their minds or WE ARE. Apple products were invented here and they're great.
@@georgesakellaropoulos8162 Is that what it is? I'm so disappointed in myself for spending all that time and money in therapy when the problem was that I'm intelligent and mentally well-balanced.
What's with your studio's lighting? I have an old Disco Ball if you want it.
Lol!!!
Might be a bit more even
I am a descendent of the sweat pant people myself.
I would say that the reason people in the US have such a different way of social interaction is because pretty much everyone in the country has a mixed ancestry. Like i have German, Irish English, Nordic, Balkan, and Slavic. And over generations the social customs get passed down and when a grandparent of a different ethic background married the other grandparent those social customs murged together and that combination was taught and passed down to the next generation and that repeated for generations which resulted in the current way humans interact in the US.
I LOL'd at "Britain does not have weather that can kill bacteria". Being from the deep south I felt that remark deep in my soul.
Virginian self-reporting English, Scots, and German here. I am also easily amused. Thank you so much for the fun!
A Dedow, Virginian cancels all the others. I don’t know why they don’t have it on the census as a choice.
You left out Mexicans and African Americans ,Indian.. northern Virginia has any and everything..
Hello fellow Virginians! Reporting from central Virginia here.
Born and reared in Virginia. Scottish, English and German.
I'm Virginian, but African American. Don't know my ancestry, though.
I'm from the Midwest and in my early 70's. I, as well as my friends, have not been able to find clothing in stores that is suitable for someone my age. I would say that problem spans the last 20 years. Clothing manufacturers cater to the young generation. When I left highschool, jeans were not permitted as school dress. With the 60's, everything changed. I'm comfortable in jeans or slacks but dress up clothes are sparse. Shoes are difficult to find other than sneakers. I seldom shop but buy online and even then the materials are are not the best and the clothing is not tailored to fit. We used to have clothing made in the U.S. but that was many years ago. In other words, we buy what's available. The younger generation doesn't in my opinion know the kind of clothing styles you are probably most familiar with. It may well be our cities offer that clothing here in the U.S.but it is not common in my locale. Where I live there is no need to dress up other than for church and special occasions. I am not in a metropolitan area.
Donna, I would like to say how much I enjoyed the composition of your comment. My father always said "buy the best quality you can afford, then look after it!"
I have shoes which are thirty years old and jackets (tweed and leather) which I have owned for twenty years or so. My adult children on the other hand seem to be slaves to fashion.
I agree with all you have said, Donna...and I do live in the NY area...and now with so many “Old” stores such as Lord & Taylor closing, it is hard to find more conservative clothing...which I prefer...maybe it’s my “English, Irish, German Background”, but the young people today seem to have little fashion. Sense past yoga pants and a tank top! ☺️💕
1642- Nemo Me Impune Lacessit My mother always told me the same thing! ;)
Same in Dallas.
Check out on-line sites like 6pm, Macy's ( Last Act ) , Sax Off Fifth, Niemans Last Call, Nordstrom Rack. Quality brand clothes and shoes etc. that if shopped on sale can be fabulous deals! Good Luck!
I wanted to say that your dry sense of humor makes me laugh, but you’ve taken that away from me. Thanks.
I think a lot of British people have dry humor. My family is primarily scotch and French so we laughing a lot of things simply because most of us are Scottish..
@@montrelouisebohon-harris7023 really? Many Scottish people here really don't appreciate being called scotch - that's a drink not a person.
As a midwesterner, the “if you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes” is very true, also quite funny
I *love* British politeness. Just love it. You're such lovely people 💜💜💜
Nothing but love for you, man! My landlord is from England. I am an American. (I live in the state of Maryland). One of my best friends in high school was "Ian Kenneth Heritage," from Warwickshire. Don't know if he is still alive. But.... we had so much fun reinacting Monty Pythons "Argument clinic". We once did so just as a substitute teacher came into the class room for the first time. It was her first day. The look on her face was priceless! She thought we were actually having an intellectual debate above her comprehension and later admitted she thought about leaving and going home. She was one of our best teachers ever. Keep doing your thing. Fan for life.
Argument Clinic? That's Room 12A ua-cam.com/video/xpAvcGcEc0k/v-deo.html
I'm from Warwickshire lol
one big difference, one way america is different from every country in the world.
if someone moves to america ... they can become an american.
if an american moves to any other country in the world ... they are the american living in ...
They dont become American but rather an American citizen.
@@reginafontenot600 semantics.
according to the constitution it is the same thing.
gray man where did you get that rot from?
@@docgonzales maybe the Constitution of these United States...
Or maybe the countless speeches, sermons, and essays about America being a "melting pot" in regards to ethnicity AND culture...
Or maybe just about any half-assed class of "Law 101" stuff.
...you can find "that rot" in a LOT of places. You only need to open your eyes. ;o)
Yes because most Americans living in the UK are here on a temporary basis,I am quite sure if I moved into a road in America I would be described as the Scottish woman at no. whatever
I wish I could just say "TMI" and get tickled til I went insane.
Only if it was pretty girls doing the tickling.
@@odysseusrex5908 pssh, speak for yourself. I wanna be tickled by mall Santa Clauses!
@@JJStarcade Ha, that's child's play! I want to be tickled insane by 1940's Easter Bunnies!
When I was a middle-schooler, our local PBS station used to run both Monty Python's Flying Circus, and the Benny Hill show - after watching them both I wondered how a country which gave us the brilliance of the Pythons could find Benny Hill anything but idiotic. It's probably the same sort of thing with people who love the Marx Brothers and can't stand the Three Stooges 🤷♀️.
Almost all.mem I know love the Three Stooges and almost all women i know hate it lol
Thank you :) Benny Hill vs Monty Python.
The "sneakers with jeans = eccentric" explains so much about the 10th Doctor...I honestly thought he wore sneakers for comfort. I did not realize it was a fashion statement!
I used to claim German ancestry. My Great Grandmother spoke fluent German. They came here in the 1850s and Dad remembers her. Did the DNA , no German whatsoever. Turns out she was from Alsace-Lorraine, France and the border flipped back and forth. She was French. The rest is the UK mix.
Alsace is German. Even French politicians sometimes accidentally call it Germany. It's one of the territories gained by France after WWII.
@@rooooooby Nah, it was going on long before that. My DNA is French, there is no German. Yet living on the border g-grandmother was a French citizen at one point and spoke German. No French. It's an interesting study if you go back before 1900 "A traveler viewing Alsace today for the first time
would never suspect the difficult and stormy past which has
plagued this beautiful little country. The fertile plains,
the vineyards, and the Vosges mountains on the French side
of the Rhine are mirrored on the German side of the valley,
extending to the mountains of the Black Forest. The cultures
of these two great civilizations, too, mingle here, enrich
and reflect each other. Language is a perfect example of
this junction OI cultures. Most ihhabitants are at least
bilingual, speaking both the local dialect, which is of
Germanic origin, and either French or German. Many are trilingual and speak all three languages with equal facility.
The situation has seldom been so tranquil, however.
Alsace and Lorraine have long been disputed between Prance
and Germany. Prized for their location, which is crucial
militarily, and for their natural resources, the most important being coal and lron, the two provinces have su££e~ed
more than their share of invasions, seizures, and changes of
government. As languages, customs, races, personalities,
and governments mingle without necessarily integrating, the
cultural pattern of the "parent" country lS reflected. A
study of Alsace-Lorraine is thus a study of the interaction
of the French and the Germans"
I had exactly the same thing happen. My Great-Grandmother was from Alsace-Lorraine but moved to Munchengladbach, Germany as a child. So she emigrated to Germany but was ethnically French. When I took the DNA test I was not at all German, but part French. What is even weirder is that my Great-Grandfather also emigrated from Northern Germany, but was ethnically Scandanavian (Danish). So both of my Grandmother’s parents emigrated from Germany, but neither was ethnically German. Confusing.
@UC0k2XIkpYmF_WU38bu7S6qg Yeah, but my grandmother was French according to the DNA. She just spoke German. That's the border areas for you I suppose.
My mother told me that Alsatians are French part of the week, and German the rest... one being the weekdays, the other being the weekends. Can't ever remember which is which, but it had to do with which country tended to have their businesses open vs closed on weekends.
Yes, the single greatest bit of advice I've ever been given was, "Don't wear sweat pants in public."
My nephew says, "Stretch pants are not a right -- they're a privilege."
You know you've aged very well for 1500 years old!😂
What is his secret?
senility.
@@scottjohnson7244 😂
Doesn't look a day over 900 if you ask me.
@@kathleenmuchka2559 Remember Dorian Gray?
My mother, born 1920, got a British pen pal (Connie) at age 8 and they kept up their correspondence all their lives. Connie flew out to visit us in 1973 and their friendship became even closer. After being widowed for a long time, Connie remarried & visited us once more in 1980 with her new husband. We all had a very good time and we introduced them to raccoons, as species they'd never heard of. Sadly, my mom was scared of traveling abroad so she never was able to visit Britain...I mean, what's there to be scared of in Britain? Spicy British cooking is just salt & pepper, so you're not going to suffer from Oliver Cromwell's Revenge.
Until 1990 the largest group of Americans claimed British ancestry (English and Scottish) on the census. 1990 was the year the US census included "American" as an ancestral origin. Instantly large swaths of the US, particularly in the South, ceased being of English or Scottish ancestry. I noted that on this years census form "American" is not listed as a choice for national origin, though it can still be written in. It will be interesting to see the results of this year's census.
My mother would have grounded me if I left the house wearing sweatpants!
In SoCal, the saying is, "If you don't like the weather, just wait 15 weeks."
Maybe 15 weeks but sometimes it never seems to change at all. Sunny and mild...Sunny and mild.. which is a reference to LA Story which I think is one of the funniest movies ever made.
I wish that my fellow Americans would be a little LESS casual with clothing. I am so tired of seeing people in town in their pajama bottoms....
And jeans that are so ripped the legs may fall off when they walk. Lol.
hey so long as your underpants are covered and you dont see any crack, im cool with it.
Pyjama.
I used to get salty about it and then went through a horrible depression... Then I realized some people may have done all they can just to leave their house and run an errand - it can be a massive victory for them and getting dressed was more than they could have done. Makes me a bit more tolerant now. But if you're not depressed and have a decent wardrobe at your disposal then it is rather shameful. Lol
I find the ones who wear houseshoes in public odd.
I love dry humor. If I use it in different areas it's interesting how many people don't understand it.
As a Canadian, we clearly got our politeness from the British. Also we do the question at the end of sentences too. We use the word “eh” which is equivalent to “right?”
I think clothing choice also has to do with how much the weather varies day to day (or hour to hour). In Nevada (during the summer), the weather changes from blistering hot during the day, to bone chilling cold at night. If you're going to be out for the entire day, you might consider a variety of dress that allows for warmer days to chilled nights.
I laughed out loud so many times, Laurence! Loved the bit about laughing your a$$ off, so much so that it was now painful to sit down. You are too funny! I've got loads of English and about a quarter German in me.
Dude - your lighting is so variable in this video.
That and focus. What's up with that? I'm assuming you're using a window as lighting and clouds are the culprit. It's really distracting. I thought maybe it's deliberate to give the video an edgy effect but with choppy edits it makes it very hard to watch.
@@jeffbowermaster1568 I think it was the cuts. Every time he made a cut in the "filming" the light was brighter, then toned down. An artifact of the editing software ramping up some filter or automated light control I suspect.
Have to agree with the comments about all the obvious cuts. It's distracting. They come after almost every sentence. Otherwise, informative.
My dad would often make this joke every time we went past a cemetery he would point at the cemetery and say "The best neighbors you can ever have, they never complain."
I can’t afford a trip to Europe. Your videos are the next best thing, aren’t they?
Great! We just came here to find something to watch over a bite, and are thrilled to stumble onto a fresh one from you! 👏
There has been a drastic decline in Americans reporting British ancestry since as recently as the 1980s. It's likely that the true number of British Americans is severely underrepresented in studies based on self-reporting. This is probably due to British being seen as the "default" and therefore not worth mentioning, or simply not being as exotic sounding as calling yourself Irish, Italian, German etc.
If that's the case, I only have 1 "exotic" ancestor (German), and the rest were English, Scottish, and Irish. They cut out pretty early in the game though since I see no new entries to the US since the 1700s.
Chanchito I’m of English descent and not British. My ancestors were here in the early 1600’s before there was a British establishment.
Many people will just describe themselves as "American" in that case.
I have never thought of Germans being exotic before.
I have a lot of English ancestors. The second largest group is probably Dutch--Dutch who came to the US during the time of New Netherland. The latest immigrant ancestor I can find immigrated from Germany to Illinois, dying in 1850. My dad's ancestors before him all lived in western New Jersey for 250 years.
1,600 views in 20 minutes! Lawrence has achieved something unheard of in the UK. Popularity!
It's not just the Midwest. I'm from Gig Harbor Washington and can honestly say that "bathroom talk" we ofter refer to as little boy humor. Thankfully I feel that most of us left that sort of thing behind in middle school :)
But, I love your channel. Plastic keep up the excellent content.
After a while of my British Bf asking me questions about Americans, and going through the explanation that it is a VERY large country - most of which I haven't even seen, I finally started beginning each thoughtful answer with, "Well, speaking for ALLLLLLLL Americans..." I loved his Self-Deprecating humour, he got my sarcasm. ;-)
I think that may be the only truly funny use of the word "tectonics" in the history of mankind. Fine work.
Not a reference to the A-Team 😂
Maybe he loves it , when his plan comes together. LOL
the loose/baggy shirts are also helpful in the summertime when it is especially hot and humid
I watch a lot of vlogs with British people, mostly chateau rehab and I noticed that they seem more appreciative of simple things. For instance, if I pointed out a beautiful bird or butterfly, most people I know would rudely mock me until I gave them the finger. Maybe my British genes are dominant 🤷♀️ I do love how men’s clothing fits so much nicer. As for women’s clothing I’ve gotten asked all of my life why I dress up for work. Why not?!
Bill Bryson said "The British are the most easily pleased people on earth. Give them a cup of tea and a bun and they are happy".
Humor is a major difference that I always see people comment on between Brits and Americans. As an American, my personal humor style would be more sarcastic and dry, so people always tell me that it’s more British, but I’m not the only one that has that kind of style. Also, we definitely have the ability to be self-deprecating, along with observational. I think it comes down to personality type versus nationality, since there are so many types of humor that speak to different people in the US. Just look at our comedies, they’re all over the place. Too many types, in my opinion, to say there’s a certain type we ALL like
You are hilarious. I could listen to you all day. . .if I didn't have other things to do that is. Speaking of politeness. . .when I got off the plane at Heathrow we were quickly met by a uniformed woman who ever so politely told everyone to keep to the left. Thank you. Very calm, very polite. When I returned to the US, we were met by a hulk of a man shouting keep to the right! The right! Hey you! I said the right! I thought "I guess I'm back home."
That, "If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes" is used in Michigan
Also anywhere in New England.
And in Southeastern North Carolina.
@@YooLookMarvelous Amen! I grew up in Springfield MA, and it's absolutely true.
And here in Oregon. Washington, I think, too.
In Oklahoma as well, honestly just about anywhere in america to be honest, we have weird weather.
When my Grandmother came to America in1907 was a Monarchist, than she discovered Baseball. I think that was the tipping point.
I did a study abroad trip in London for a month and it didn't take me long to spot the Americans in a crowd just by the way they dressed. I was surprised there was such a difference.
I’m 6 months late but this video was great man.
My parents were Czech immigrants, but my mother's family was mostly German, so yeah, I am of German ancestry.
ALL Americans are Irish at least 1 day a year.
Yep, and most of us over the age of 21 have spent at least one of those days a year drinking plenty of cheap green beer, and getting wasted while very badly attempting to sing old Irish folk/drinking songs in bad Irish accents LOL!
@@sonza68 THANK YOU. I need to claim being 1/365 irish like I need another hole in the head. And yes, another Italian here.
@@sonza68 Interesting , considering thousands of years of travel , trade , war , relocation , etc. of among countries that anyone can truly be 100% aynthing . Just sayin ' ...
nice thought but not entirely accurate.
@@unclejoeoakland why are you two Italians both sound mildly racist? it is just a way of honoring Irish immigrants for a day, a lot of us non Italian Americans honor Italian Americans by eating Italian dishes 1-2 times a week, and ignore that there were an ungainly amount of Italian and Sicilians in the criminal mafias. There are good and bad eggs in every basket.
I do enjoy your videos & the humor. I hope to make it “across the pond” someday. Hello from Pittsburgh, PA
Actually, you've just shed some light on the "yeah uh-huh uh-huh" behavior that has baffled and infuriated me for years coming from someone "over the pond". To me, it's not a display of engagement in the conversation at hand. It's a display of impatience, of already knowing the answer, or of complete disinterest in the discussion. So, good food for thought and knowing this will hopefully make me a better conversationalist moving forward. Thank you.
I thought the same thing. TY that I’m not alone.
Yes! It’s as though they’re trying to hurry you along.
Yeah, never knew I've been taking silence for granted every time I've talked to someone my whole life!
The behavior he described can easily cross the line and be experienced as rudely interrupting me, as far as I'm concerned. I would find it very annoying.
Some polite and quiet responses (like, "ahas" or "huh!" or maybe a "yes, I see") peppered occasionally is how I expect people to communicate that they've been listening to me and actually understand what I'm saying.
(A) How can they listen if they're talking the whole time?
(B) How can they communicate they actually MEAN the words they're using in their responses (like, "yes")...if by the time the conversation has reached the point where their response is meaningful & expected, they've already repeatedly said the same words throughout the whole conversation while I was talking?
/end ramble sorry lol 😅✌
_(It's like people who don't want me to say "Happy Holidays" for the first 23 days of December - only "Merry Christmas" allowed!)_ 😂
_(If I use "Merry Christmas" exclusively, every day starting on Thanksgiving, then by the time December 24 finally rolls around....How do I communicate that it's actually Christmas?? The phrase has been rendered meaningless due to constant overuse.)_
Just love that British "self-deficating" humour. Might have spelled that wrong.
Deprecating. To "defecate" is to discharge feces from the body, where as to deprecate is to to express disapproval of.
@@MrSirwolf2001 - that was the punchline. It went right over your head.
@@tlandry9689 That could be because it isn't funny and only sounds ignorant.
😂😂😂
Lol! Exactly.
Whenever I am down or need a pick up...I go to you. Informative and funny ...such a gift .
Thanks for coming to
America and knowing us and loving us. I am
glad your here. ✌
😂 Hello Lost in the Pond - I absolutely love , love , love your humor 😁❤ ( " and having lived in both countries now for at least a hundred years " 😂😂😂 ) !! Wish you much success with your channel 👍❤ .
English, Irish, Swedish, Portuguese , Spanish , German , Native American was my DNA test
Hello, fellow mutt!
When I was a child, I always thought it was cool that I came from a huge, diverse group of (European) people. It wasn't until I was well into my twenties that I first heard that some people think it's bad to have varied ancestry. I'm not talking about racial bigots, but normal people who think it's bad to have originated from three or more countries. I still don't get it.
Haven't done the DNA test, but according to my family, I'm Swedish, English, Dutch, Irish, Welsh, Spanish, German, and French, and I've been accused of being Asian (as in far east, not middle eastern), Russian, African, and Jewish (I'm not sure how serious the last two were). I don't have enough info to be able to confirm or deny any of those accusations.
I have not had a DNA test but based on my research with the help of my grandparents who have kept records of our ancestors in America, I am: Russian, Polish, German, Dutch, French Canadian, & a little bit of Native American. I think at least up here in Michigan many people have Native heritage to some degree since there were (& still are) many tribes/reservations. I love visiting the Indian Owned casinos here! Very fun places so long as you dont have a gambling problem lol. I know that there are other regions who have a lot of Native American descendants also which I think is just awesome.
@@sluttymctits4496 I too am a mutt! And proud of it! I've been told by others of mixed ancestry that it is unacceptable "othering" to say that, but I love it! It makes culture & customs fun. Also, no one can tell you to go back where you came from because that would require you to split into bits. I'm an American mutt, a piece of the melting pot.
@@rowynnecrowley1689 I was always told I was German , English and Scottish you never know until you get tested
You've made this American girl (with 99% Anglo-Saxon heritage) smile. This is legitimate medicine in these dark days. All said, thanks "mate." (See what I did there?)
‘lf you don’t like the weather then wait 5 minutes’ isnt very funny in states where that just a fact of life but the tornado joke was brilliant. Like a chameleon you’re adapting.