Culture Shock

Yes, every now and then I still get culture shock here in the middle of no where Kansas. A couple of weeks ago we had a speaker in chapel and he was talking about his move to Kansas several years earlier and about how strange everything was and how different everything was from the large city he had lived in before. It was very funny. One of the funniest things was when he was talking about living in the city and being afraid of being robbed or whatever and he was said "Now I am afraid of nothing because nothing happens here". It was funny...you probably had to be there.
But it is funny how different things are here. We never lock our doors. I lock in when I am sleeping and that is about it. You really don't have to be afraid. The other night I walked home at 2AM alone. I would never do that at home (I do live in Surrey after all). In one of my classes we were talking about homelessness and my prof was talking about where she lived (in a nearby town a little bigger than Hillsboro) where they had "one resident homeless guy". I thought to myself, "ONE?! that's it?" Can you imagine Vancouver with just one homeless guy? It was so strange to me. Or think about entertainment. The nearest mall is an hour away. Same with the Starbucks. There is a movie theater half an hour away. What do college students do for entertainment here? We go to Wal-Mart or a late night donut shop that opens at 11:30PM (best donuts ever). And it is all half an hour away. There is so much that is amusing. They call cutlery silverware. Even plastic cutlery is silverware. If you ask for cutlery at a restaurant they will look at you like you are crazy. Believe me, I've done it. And don't call the bathroom a washroom. They will also give you that crazy look. They make fun of me for how I say certain words...flag, bag. Pasta is the best. You know how we all have the debate on the correct way to say pasta? No debate here...say it wrong and they think you are saying pastor with a strange accent.
But I do love it here. The community, the friends, the safety, the weather (I mean, it is almost October and it is still in the high 20s!), the school, the education. It's a good place. I'm enjoying it. Despite my instances of culture shock.