Guest post,10 Good Things about America

I thought this would be a cool post. I asked my bud Foxy (who has lived all over) to write me 2 posts, one telling the 10 things she likes (or are good in her opinion) about America and a list of 10 things she doesn't like about America.

My Frivolous List of American Hits
I'm doing a comparative post on the goodness of America. I've lived in India, Bahrain, Indonesia, Canada, Dubai and Singapore, so I'm only comparing it to those places. If I compared it to some Scandinavian country, it would be harder since Europe and America have similar lifestyles.
1) Freedom:
I like how I can walk down the street here in shorts and a tank top and no one will stare at me or try to grope me. This is true of Indonesia, Singapore, Dubai and Canada but not of Bahrain or India. And also that out here IF I am groped or molested in any way, I can go to the policia and they'll actually take down a report and do something about it. In India, you can pretty much forget about the cops even filing an FIR in these type of cases.
2) Flowers:
North America, because of the equinox, grows some astonishingly beautiful flowers (and pot). I'd never seen a blue flower until my first spring in Canada. Now, we have some pretty rad flowers in India (like jasmine), but the sheer array of spring and fall colours in the New World is incredibly beautiful to me.
3) Housing:
I love that when I rent houses here it comes equipped with a fridge, heat, 24 hour hot water connection, a functional shower, cooking range, washer and dryer and sometimes basic furniture. Also, all of this is usually inclusive of my rent and I don't have to worry about paying electricity bills, water bills or gas bills. Joy. Ditto for Canada and SG. Back home, most houses don't come with these things. We don't have 24 hours of running hot water. If you want hot water, you gotta get yourself an electric water heater. You also got to get yourself a gas connection for cooking and that's a pain in the ass coz they require you to have all kinds of identification. We don't have dryers coz well it's hot outside- don't need 'em. But washers don't come with your house. You either get a maid, wash it by hand yourself or get yourself a washer.
4) Traffic and Roads:
Concrete flat roads are far superior to black tar tracks, trust me. Most drivers here adhere to traffic rules and drive at specified speeds, which makes driving relatively less nightmarish. Chaos is what drives the traffic in India and Indonesia. I'm terrified of driving back home. And my hometown is notorious for its badly constructed roads. It's been a long time since I was in Bahrain, but from what I remember the capital city of Manama was kinda like Bombay after it's been hit by a disaster.
5) The Postal System:
I hate the postal system in India. They're such utter bitches at the post office and half the time you don't get your mail. I posted my cousin a 55$ Superman comic from Canada for his birthday and he never got it. I, however, did get my books from my ex-boyfriend when I returned to India. Only I had to wait in the post office for 2 hours for no reason. No body would tell me where my package was. All I got was, "Wait here." It was only when I begged and pleaded and looked like I was about to CRY, did the asswipe let me claim my books.
6) Take Out Coffee:
I'm so going to miss being able to walk into a coffeeshop early in the morning before work and get some delicious take away coffee. I'm in the minority of people in India who don't like Indian coffee. I'm from southern India and everyone there loves their strong milky coffee- except me.
7) Media and Entertainment:
This is a big deal to me because I'm in the media industry myself and I often find myself looking at American/European content in a bid to educate myself. Indian and Indonesian films/tv are very similar in that they are purely fantasy based and melodramatic. Social commentary and satire are genres rarely touched. I rarely watch Indian films unless it's a film I've heard good things about or if my friends are in it. b) Clubs and Bars: Everything in India closes by 1 am MAX. In my hometown, they banned dancing in clubs (Footloose, anyone?) and banned live bands from performing because the inept police can't deal with the crowds of kids. In Indonesia, police often raid bars/nightclubs on random drug checks. If you're a foreigner in Indonesia caught during a raid, you're fucked. Especially if you're a white foreigner. You gotta be real careful. Not so in Dubai though or SG.
8) Social Acceptance:
I get stared at a LOT in India. Reason Number One is usually because I am a girl and all girls get stared at in India by the local men. Two, because I have a lip ring and that's not very common at all in India. I have tattoos and I smoke and drink and I'm generally not the 'typical Indian girl' (whatever thaat means). Out here, I don't feel like a freak. Living with your lover is not a big deal here. I love that. Neither is moving out of your parent's house. In India, parents feel badly rejected if you want your own place before you are married. What I'm talkin about is probably nothing compared to what it is like to be openly gay in India. Most of my guy friends (my age and above) are wicked homophobic.
9) The Men:
Purely from personal experience, I've been treated best by my non-Indian boyfriends. I'm not saying my Indian BFs loved me less, it's just in the way my non-Indian BFs showed me I was special. They were less judgmental about my past and my choices. More importantly, they were better in bed and way more experimentative. ;) The average Indian male feels the need to assert his dominance all the time, esp in public places. So if his buddies see him succumbing to his girl/wife's demands, he is immediately branded a 'cuckold' and he, in turn, feels inferior. Most non-Indian boys I dated seemed more attentive and generous in their spirit. Again, this is PURELY PERSONAL. If you're an Indian male and think I'm wrong, don't so crazy and hijack my Orkut profile. It just means you aren't the average Indian male. Yay for you.
What about the girls? I secretly think the girls are waaay crazier out here. (yeah, I know it's not a secret anymore) I mean 'crazy' in a fun way and in the neurotic way.
10) Availability:
I like that I can get anything I want anytime I want within America. Example: Wine. Wine's hard to find in India. Good wine that is and it costs a bomb. I can't buy sex toys in India (they're illegal) and I usually have to order on Amazon if I want a particular book or music album.
See America? I'm not always trash talking you. (I also love the Go Phone commercial with Meatloaf in it. He's American. It counts.)

It amazes me that some things I bitch about she says are good. Also the things I take for granted she sees as good.

Thanks Foxy.
Here are inks to her blogs:
Firefoxcub
Who Put the O
You can always find her here or on Southern arguing with me too!!