"You're so English!"

One day, when I was in the security office, talking with my boss. I said, "My mom will fetch me my lunch..."

After I had said that word, my boss, a Canadian who is official bilingual (he has a Scottish root, had joined the Black Watch, but he learned French rather than English when he was a kid), said, "You're so English!"

"Of course! I'm from Hong Kong, right?"

This brings up my another experience while I was new in Canada, studying ESL in high school:

It was the beginning of the term and I was busy on getting student union card and the student discount card of TTC (Toronto Transit Commission). And I was late to my English class. I went into the classroom and said, "I'm sorry being late. I'd been queuing up for nothing!"

When I said this out, my ESL teacher took this as an example: the different vocabulary use between American way and British way.

At that time, I realized using the word "queue" is the British way of saying. The American way saying is "I'd being lining up for nothing!"

(Even though we use the word "queue" for data analysis, describing the situation "first in, first out")

Well well, I need to talk about my "nightmarish" primary school life (that's why I'm cynical! Also, except for the knowledge I'd absorbed, I am not grateful for that).

This is a school that is run by some nuns, previous by British convert. When I was studying there, an American convert started taking care the management (no change of teaching staff) and the school became an all girl school (it was a boys and girls school previously).

I remember we used mathematics textbooks from the States (which introduced me to some American history), and penmanship book from States too! When I was in Grade 4, we used the simplified Readers' Digest textbook for English literature class (I still remember we came across a story about Philippe Petit did the tightrope at the World Trade Center). Yes, it is also from America! Therefore, we came across the American spelling like "color", "neighbor", "harbor" and "center", the teacher would said, "Add the 'u' between 'o' and 'r'."

It was quite ridiculous. However, we still lived under the British flag, right?

You can still notice such kind of mingling when I speak. "Tissue" versus "Kleenex"/"Napkin", "'Left'-tenant" versus "'Lou'-tenant" (both are for rank "Lieutenant", but different pronunciation)...

Canada is pretty strange in speaking English: Even she is in North America, the people keep in "British" way. But you still can't avoid the "American" way: Because when we talk about "Pearl Harbor", we spell "Harbor", not "Harbour", since it is a place in the States.

There was one time and one occasion that I have heard that American culture is dominating the world. Actually, it is quite true, since my mom listened to songs sang by Patti Page, Doris Days etc. when she was a teenager. And then she introduces me to those classic songs. Not to mention my dad is keen on movies and stars from Hollywood.

Thanks God that I have a chance to watch "Law and Order: UK" (since I'm a fan of Law and Order franchise) and notice the significance difference between the dialogs. It gives some insight of writing.

I know I cannot mock my way as a British writer, but my mingle sells me out...

This is just a part of me.