Happy Fourth

The following is a real conversation that occurred at 7AM this morning:

Sarah: Karen, happy fourth of July.
Karen: Happy fourth of July, to you. Are you feeling very patriotic today?
Sarah: I'd be feeling more patriotic if work was cancelled and I was heading to a barbecue.

Sadly, Sarah and I (and everyone else in South Africa) spent Independence Day at work. But, I think this is a good time to write about some of the funny things that people associate with the States.

Last week, as Sarah and I were sitting down for lunch, someone at the hospital referred to us as George Bush’s daughters. Yikes. Even scarier, this launched us into an entire conversation about American politics and left Sarah and I to explaining the geography of the state of Mississippi. (That was interesting.)

Today, after I had introduced myself to one of the med student interns, he asked me if I had ever been to the hospital that’s on ER. Then he wanted to know if the weather is really as bad as it is on the show. He didn’t believe it when I told him yes.

Another friend wanted to know if everyone is really a size 0? And followed that question up with, is it true that everyone eats at McDonalds all of the time?

But, the most common question people ask me when they find out I’m from the States, and Chicago, especially: “Have you ever seen Oprah or been to her show?”

So, there you have it: Oprah, Bush, and Micky D’s. Happy Fourth, everyone.