I was talking to a young Lithuanian woman who was ending a stint at a local hotel. She had worked very hard in an unsympathetic environment; her boss was downright mean to her. But she didn't complain; in fact, she was happy about her experience, grateful for the lesson learned. "I'm no longer naive," she said, with an enthusiasm that was as real as it was impressive.
Her impression of Americans was that we are lazy. "Take it easy, man," she said, mimicking her co-workers in an accent both accurate and biting. Even phrases like "thanks much" - which to her astonishment she heard on TV - she took as signs of our slacking off. She would tell her co-workers that they could study, get a degree, improve their lot, but they had no interest.
I told her that Fort Lauderdale was not typical. She said she'd found the same thing (among nicer people) when she worked a few years ago on the Jersey shore. "It's also a resort," I said, and assured her that there are places - big cities, college towns - where ambition and an effort toward betterment prevail. But in general I had to agree with her.
Before returning to Lithuania she planned to visit the Everglades. I highly recommended it, though I warned her that the beauty was subtle, it didn't knock you over. She was a little concerned about alligators. I told her she had no reason to be, that they are extremely lazy creatures.
"They're American," she said, with a playful laugh.
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My sometimes-dormant sense of patriotism ignites a bit at reading that (tell that to my father who I gather thinks I'm some sort of anti-American socialist...I actually wrote my own series of blogs just about that, haha), and I'm not exactly sure I completely agree with her assessment. But I see where you guys are coming from!
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