Have you got a rubber?

I have been discovering a new pet peeve that is growing stronger and stronger as time goes by- having to always distinguish between the United States and Great Britain. This includes: comparing and contrasting the English (theirs is obviously much better, because it originates from England, right?), correcting geographical errors, and just putting up with general ignorance about the two countries. 


For example, I had one of those “did that conversation just happen?” moments the other day. I was in class with about 6-7 students at the end of class. We were chatting about random cultural aspects of the United States. Everything was good until one girl told me that she wanted to go to the United States because she wanted to go to Oxford. Hmmm… I let that one slide while rolling my eyes on the inside. However, it was impossible to ignore when only 2 minutes later the same girl asked me if the meat smelled bad where I live. At first I thought it was just a weird question, and began to say, “no.. I have never really noticed that the meat smells bad in our supermarkets…” She than begin to explain the reasoning for her question.. She has a friend from London who told her that the meat smells bad there. Ahhh THAT explains it. Totally logical. If the meat smells bad in London, then it must smell bad in Albuquerque also. We both speak English, so that is a totally logical connection. 


I respect the fact that England probably is a very nice country, but I honestly wouldn't know! I do know that while there are some differences in language ("Have you got a rubber?" vs "Do you have an eraser?") it is the same language and British people, Americans, Canadians, Australians, Irish, etc are all equally qualified to teach it. The next time somebody 1. Asks me about British culture,  or 2. Trys to explain to me that they can't understand me because I'm American, I might just cry. Or sigh and do what I always do: smile while rolling my eyes on the inside.