Culturally, I'm Feeling Very Much AINO.

[stopbush]

That's, "American in Name Only," in case you were wondering.

Here's the deal: I don't watch sports beyond baseball, tennis and a few Euro-based events like the Tour de France and Le Mans. I couldn't even name 5 professional basketball or football teams. Don't care for NASCAR, or golf or bowling.

I don't watch awards shows...or reality shows...or sitcoms beyond The Simpsons, Curb Your Enthusiasm and SITC.

I don't like country music...or rock...or boy bands...or girl singers who sound like a cat in heat. I listen to classical music almost exclusively.

I find most Hollywood movies infuriatingly formula-driven, predictable and hyped beyond belief. When I go to the video store, I check out the foreign film section first.

I like going to museums and concerts. I seldom go to movie theatres.

I like international travel...outside of the major urban centers, I have little desire to "see America" as a travel option.

I don't drink very much - hardly any beer (and almost never American beer unless it's Anchor or Sam Adams). I prefer wine and martinis. I usually buy French wine...once in a while, BV California.

My ten-year-old son's favorite food is broiled salmon. Neither of my kids likes French fries. My kids' favorite TV channels are the History Channel, the Travel Channel and Food Network, followed by Discovery Kids and Cartoon Network.

I don't believe in god. I believe the Constitution defines America as a secular nation that allows for free exercise of religion, not a religious nation that tolerates non-believers.

I think gay marriage is fine and should be an absolute right in America.

Sometimes, I feel like a stranger in the land of my birth.

Has anyone else ever had similar feelings?

[mr_hat]

1. You do seem awfully aino, imo.

[veganwitch]

2. sign me up.

[Jackpine Radical]

6. Ditto.

Non-Christian, vaguely Pagan-Buddhist with no interest in organized sports of any kind. I actually like some country music (Waylon, Willie, some old stuff). Drive a pickup, rural, own guns, hunt & fish, Vietnam vet. Also leftist activist, PhD psychologist, and intermittent misanthrope.

Where do I belong, dear God(dess)? Where?

[Bill McBlueState]

3. I know lots of people like you

Nobody's ever going to make a commercial geared toward sophisticated people, but there are a lot of us. What part of the country do you live in? That could contribute to your sense of isolation.

[stopbush]

7. Yes, I'm now geographically isolated.

After living for 12 years in Manhattan, then another 13 years in the NYC metro area, we relocated to Las Vegas last year (mainly due to family obligations - sick parent to tend to).

But even before moving here, I was feeling isolated. We moved to NJ in '96, and lived about 50 minutes outside of Manhattan. I never established any deep friendships in NJ. The cultural gap was as great as if we had moved to Idaho. All of my closest friends remained - and remain - those in NYC.

So, it's really not Vegas, in and of itself. It's the cultural divide. I have a number of European friends, and I feel much more comfortable around them than I do around the so-called "average American."

In fact, I'm feeling much LESS geographically isolated here in Vegas. At least we have great restaurants and attractions, the occasional art show and a fair share of interesting visitors from home AND abroad. On Valentine's Day, my wife & I hit Bouchon, the new French bistro in the Venezia Tower. I ended up sitting at the bar next to Phil Simms (ex-QB for the Giants), which was interesting (I didn't bother him...he was already being bothered by the bar staff). And, the food was quite reasonable and a helluva lot better than anything we ever found in NJ.

[nickinSTL]

4. AINO

I do feel that way fairly often.

I spent much of my childhood/teenage years in Germany, and traveling Europe with my parents. I'd love to be able to do it again. I generally feel that there isn't much to see in the US except natural beauty. (and a very few sites in the southwest, maybe)

I am a bit more in tune with pop culture than you seem to be, but I do feel like an alien among NASCAR fanatics and Survivor watchers.

Still, as far as sports television, nothing in the US can beat Eurosport.

"I believe the Constitution defines America as a secular nation that allows for free exercise of religion, not a religious nation that tolerates non-believers.

I think gay marriage is fine and should be an absolute right in America"

I agree absolutely.

My fiancee and I have discussed moving out of the country if the RW gets a constitutional amendment passed banning gay marriage. I'm not sure we'd miss much.

[displacedtexan]

5. You sound like most Unitarians.

;-)

[amazona]

8. ha ha

That's a good one. Never thought of it that way. The only sport I watch is boxing, and I might give that one up. It's getting a little undignified. I don't watch award or reality shows either, and let's just save time and say that I hate all music. If they play it on the radio, it probably sucks. What you said about it being a secular nation, gay marriage being fine, etc. Does that really make me un-American? We used to be a nation of eccentrics, kooks, free-thinkers, and wanderers. What the hell happened?

[demnan]

9. Depends on where you live

If you live close to one of the coasts you'll probably find lots of people who think like you.

Regardless of what is betrayed on television, we're not all idiots.

Another interesting habit I have that is European: I drink loose leaf tea.

[silver state d]

10. I feel your pain

although i do like football but in my own nerdy dont wear stupid hats or shirts aficianado kind of way

[a_random_joel]

11. Interesting.

The beauty of this nation is that ALL should be welcomed and appreciated. I understand your frustration and I feel this way too, many times... but then I realized: this is my country as much as "theirs." So screw 'em.

Key word that defines America: Freedom. Perhaps some day they will figure out what freedom truly means. If they don't lose it first.

Proud LIBERAL American.

[CarlWoodward]

12. Be proud of who you are

You're as "American" as anyone else. Personally, the ones I find to be AINO are the gay bashers, the religious zealots, those who would roll back our civil rights in the name of "security" and their ilk.

Not liking NASCAR, rock music or Hollywood movies doesn't make you any less of any American than anyone else. You should be proud of your tastes, your sophistication and your beliefs - and the fact that you're an American.

[jpgray]

13. America has a massive population of people just like you

Whisper-thin Bohemian types whose smokes are made from Belgian cigarette papers can be your new friends!

edit: Just kidding, of course. But any major city will have a big group of you people. You could count me in, but I enjoy our crass culture sometimes.

[Spider Jerusalem]

14. I've felt that way for years.

Let's see: I don't watch sports, outside of the occasional boxing or tennis match. Don't really watch television, at all. Don't listen to commercial radio, preferring NPR and college stations (my tastes in music are decidedly non-mainstream and non-corporate). Don't eat fast food. Don't drink much at all, and when I do it tends to be English beer or Irish whisky. I feel like a stranger in a strange land most of the time, and it can be a bit overwhelming...waves of alienation crashing over me, to the point where I've been seriously wondering if there's someplace I might find more congenial. I've been seriously considering an eventual move to Northern Europe. I'm almost at the point of setting a target date for being out of the country. IF I do it, I'm thinking within the next 5 years...and if I leave, I know I won't be back.

[Loonman]

15. Ahhh, so you're better than everyone else, then

:evilgrin:

[stopbush]

18. Who said anything about "better?"

Your words, not mine.

[liberalpress]

16. Actually...

... while I agree with you on sports and reality shows, I'm exactly the opposite of you on almost everything else. We're both true Americans... and that is what makes this country the greatest nation on earth!

[earthman dave]

17. Don't believe the BS on TV

If DU's taught me anything, it's that "america" isn't the ignorant, bigoted monolith that the mainstream media depict. There's probably millions like you. In a country of, what, 300 million people or so, there must be plenty of different worldviews and lifestyles. The relentless pap ground out by the media is the thing that's unamerican, if this briton is any judge. Your country was founded on the idea of freedom, no? Faux "News" does not speak for the people of that country, just a small small-minded minority. The feeling that you are an alien in your own land is one of the most effective propaganda tools ever devised - if you believe that your fellow americans support the lies and hate, you won't air your views - score one for the bad guys.

[Nay]

19. Sister, is that you? We must have been separated at birth.

I am exactly the same, except I prefer NO music.

[stopbush]

22. This "sister" happens to be male...

but I appreciate your kindred spirit.

[SmileyBoy]

20. I feel like an AINO too sometimes.

I can't fucking STAND REALITY SHOWS!!!

I HATE baseball.

I hate golf.

I hate boy bands, girl singers and almost all music played on the radio except for a few songs.

I think shopping at Wal-Mart is repulsive.

I HATE beer. I'm a vodka drinker.

I'm not into cars, NASCAR, Fox Racing or any of that North Dakota hick kids crap. I do love the show "American Chopper", tho.

I hate Coca-Cola. For pop, I drink either Mountain Dew or Mello Yello.

I LOOOOVE watching English Premier League soccer.

I love communicating with people from other countries.

I can name all the countries in the world, and most of their capitols (I used to know them all back in high school).

The only TV I watch is either sporting events, an interesting documentary or several cartoons. I don't even watch three hours of TV a day. I used to watch seven or eight when I was a kid.

I know all the rules of Canadian Football.

[NightTrain]

21. What are you, some kinda pinko?

You do know I'm just kidding, right? ;)

[KCDem]

23. don't let the "rules" make you feel less American

(unless you want to, that is).

I fit most of your description, although I do consider myself kinda Christian. Other than that (oh yeah, and I do enjoy good beer, esp. my husband's homebrew)), we're very similar. My 4-y-old asks for Chinese food and calamari all the time. :shrug:

American is as American does.