Discussion Post: Being British

[crazyparakiss.livejournal.com]

When writing British characters I have found, as an American, that it can be rather hard to capture the language, the attitude, and most of all the traditions. Thanks to some of my amazing British friends here I have gleaned more understanding about these subtle differences between two cultures. winterstorrm suggested “Watching the English” to me and I suggest it to any author of the Harry Potter fandom who wishes to learn a bit more about English culture, whatever nationality you are.



Britspeak:

This is just a small selection as an example. Please refer to Kubrick Potter's Brit-pick guide for an almost definitive list.

Gotten—Since my first Britpick I have been constantly vigilant with this one, I went so far as to spank a Brit I know for it in a fic (funnily I didn’t KNOW she was British so this is me being embarrassed) So here is what I say to people when I see gotten in a fic! NO NO NO! I was told by the great and powerful tari_sue that this not to be used ever! Always go with got! :D

Forgotten- Forgot

Bangs –No, Fringe is appropriate. Bangs equates loud noises.

Braids—Plaits (on that note Braiding—Plaiting)

Pants—Trousers

Underwear—Pants

Panties—Knickers

Zipper-Zip

Vest—Waistcoat

Undershirt—Vest

Purse—Handbag

Sneakers—trainers

Jello—Jelly

Jelly—Jam

Pancakes—For HP specific CAULDRON CAKES

Candy—Sweets

Soda—Coke, Sprite, Pepsi (the name of the soda)

Take out—TAKEAWAY (I like this word, hence all caps XD)

Egg plant—Aubergine

Garbage or trash—RUBBISH (I like this word >.> so it must be in all caps)

Apartment—Flat

Drugstore—Chemists

Co-worker—Colleague

Elevator—Lift (The Ministry has the lifts)

Check—Cheque

Check at a restaurant—Bill

Check as in the check pattern on clothing—exactly the same, Check :D

Nightstand—bedside table

Store—Shop

Wager—Bet

Curse/Cuss—Swear

Closet—Wardrobe (Like an armoire, it is a piece of furniture.)

A walk in (built into the house) closet—A walk in wardrobe/Dressing room

Let’s talk UK Fries!

Chips=Thick cut potato wedges that are deep fried.

Fries= Julienne fries, like shoe string fries.

Crisps= THINK POTATO CHIPS (also any packaged “chips” would classify as crisps)

Chavs= Trashy uncouth people who live on benefits, have no job, lots of kids, and smoke lots
BritSlang dictionary: Here

Brit Daily Life:

No running tabs in a pub. You pay when you order, every time you order. (There are exceptions to this but as a general rule, go with this rule.)

No sitting down and waiting to be served in a pub. You would go in and find a table and get the number then go to the bar to order the food if you are not getting food you can go to the bar and then sit down wherever. Some pubs have restaurant areas and they are waiter service for drinks and food.

No sitting on the front porch, things like sitting on the porch only chavs sit in front of their house in England.

100 pence to the pound, just as American’s have 100 pennies to the dollar (I thought that was kinda handy and neat so I added it, not that it’s really all that useful when writing HP.)

BritAttitude:

Walking up to a person, thrusting out your hand, and saying, “Hi, my name is _____” is something that is a No-No.

Brits do not cheer at the end of a film (movie).

Brits do not sing often the national anthem before sport games unless it's an international and they do sing it is just as likely to be Land of Hope and Glory or Jerusalem as God Save the Queen.

Brits find patriotism embarrassing and think American's are way over the top with theirs.

BritTraditions:

MOST BRITISH MALES ARE NOT CUT! And if I have to explain what I mean by “cut” then you are FAR TOO YOUNG TO BE READING THIS BLOG. Anyways, if they are cut it is usually for religious reasons.

Brits do not 'date'. They 'go out with someone'. Usually exclusively. It is unlikely that someone would be 'dating' more than one person as this would be cheating as it doesn't work how it does in the US.

No baby showers (although this seems to have taken off a little in trendy circles).

BritGeography:

Whilst England could fit into Texas eight times this doesn't mean if someone lives twenty miles from a certain other town they are going to know the person you are asking about in that town. Yes we can drive to the sea in as little as two hours from most places.

Therefore, a two hour drive for a Brit is considered a long one (whereas a two hour drive for a Texan is a daily, one way, work commute, ah I remember those years living in Dallas XD).


Now we are trying to keep the post short because we would love to have questions. On anything! British culture, slang, pastimes, married life, not-so-married life, raising children, schooling, working, etc. If you can think it you can ask it! Also if you are British and want to contribute to what winterstorrm and I have here then I encourage you to do so! We can always use more knowledge while we journey to write better. :D So come one, come all!

Comments

[winterstorrm.livejournal.com]

A request has been sent!

[savagesnakes.livejournal.com]

COFFEE IN THE US!

Okay, so.

I can't say much about other places, but in Seattle if you go to a proper coffee shop and order in, they will serve you in a proper cup - not a takeaway cup. This is not the same for int'l chains like Starfucks or Tully's or Seattle's Best (all owned by Starfucks, btw), Dunkin Donuts, etc.

Depending on how expensive your coffee is, the more likely you are to get a pretty picture drawn in the foam. I've recently learned how to do this (which makes me really excited!) but I'm still quite bad at it. Most coffee places - and even coffee stands - will actually hire someone to come in and teach people how to steam the milk properly to achieve this (because milk has to be steamed in a certain way to be able to make a good foam drawing).

In the U.S. we use quite a few different types of milk, too. We use non-fat (or skim which is zero milkfat and people order it like a non-fat ______ or a skinny _____), 1% or 2% milk (depending on the shop they'll stock one or the other. 2% is semi-skim milk for you Brits!), whole milk (you'll have to ask for this - some places have it, some places don't. It's about the same milkfat content as British whole or full-fat milk), half & half (a very long email convo with winterstorrm led to the conclusion that Brits don't have half & half! it is about 11 - 18% milkfat content milk and you would order it as a breve instead of a latte). We don't have real cream in U.S. coffee shops. When we say cream we mean half & half, generally. In a coffee setting. A lot of places will also have Soy or Almond milk, too, that you can substitute milk for, usually for a small fee (50 cents is typical - about the same as 30p).

For the actualfax drinks -

Americano is 1 or 2 shots of espresso with hot water, usually coming in 8, 12, 16 and 20 fl.oz..

Latte or Breve is 1 or 2 shots of espresso with milk/half & half and a little bit of foam, usually coming in 8, 12, 16 and 20 fl.oz.

Cappuccino/ Breve cappuccino is 1 or 2 shots of espresso with half milk/half&half and half foam (though this could be more or less depending on if they order it wet or dry - a wet cappuccino has more milk than foam and a dry cappuccino has more foam than milk) usually coming in 8, 12, 16 and 20 fl. oz.

Mocha is 1 or 2 shots of espresso with milk and chocolate. They use chocolate milk, chocolate powder or chocolate syrup, depending on the shop. Usually comes in 8, 12, 16 and 20 fl. oz.

Some places serve sizes over 20 fl. oz. which kind of makes me want to cry. I can't imagine drinking more than 12oz. of a hot drink, let alone 24 and 32 oz. Which starfucks has now. 24 oz. drinks are really difficult to make because you have to steam so much fucking milk.

If you're in a fancy shop, you could order a macchiatto and actually get a macchiatto - which is a shot of espresso with just a spoon or two of foam. Or a doppio, which is 2 shots of espresso with a bit of cold half & half/milk. or just an espresso - straight shots. We also usually say how many shots we want in the drink when we order - single, double, triple, quad, etc.

A lot of places will also have drip coffee...which I'm assuming is what you call filter coffee in the UK?

Also, most places in Seattle will roast their own beans.

Also also, if you want tea in the U.S., you should either make it yourself or go to an actual tea shop. When you order tea, they'll fill a paper cup 2/3 up with hot water and give you a tea bag on the side. Good places will offer to put the tea bag in for you so it will start to steep before you get it.

Any questionnnns?

[winterstorrm.livejournal.com]

You are going to haaaaaaate it here then!

[savagesnakes.livejournal.com]

uht ohes - why? I know I made it seem all complicated, but really a drink order can be as simple as a 12 oz soy latte (my usual drink) or as complicated as a 16 oz quad non-fat, no foam, caramel macchiatto (a lot of other peoples drinks).

[thisgirl-is.livejournal.com]

Depending when you get into Bath, if you're after a decent coffee (or nice teas), I can recommend JikaJika on George Street, which runs along the top of Milsom Street.