Steak and America

Yesterday we drove two hours to Lake Guntersville for a $14 all you can eat brunch that had an omelet, waffle bar, and a guy in a white uniform with a chef's hat slicing huge slaps of rib-eye. Guess what I got! Thank you America. The only thing missing from the buffet was vegetables. There

was a ton of meat, fish, chicken, beef, but veggies were really scant- a salad bar and canned green beans.

It is incredible to realize that a majority of a Chinese meal is a variety of veggies. Americans often complain that in China there are no salads. Well it is true, no lettuce salads (lettuce goes in hot pot), but there are a lot of cold dishes full of crispy raw veggies. Plus the cooked vegetables are not mushy but fresh and crunchy.

I miss the humongous chunks of beef that Americans serve.

I miss that the main portions of a Chinese restaurant's meal are crunchy vegetables.

I am not sure how I feel about American waitresses. At yesterday's buffet a blond with a Southern drawl hovered at our table asking questions every other minute:

What do you want to drink?

I like your hair. My sister has a similar haircut.

Can I refill your water glass?

How is everything?

Can I get you anything?

More coffee?

Here's your bill. (We didn't even have to ask for it.)

The people at the meat buffet eat super fast! Instead of drawing out a meal for 2-3 hours, they grab 3 plates of food, 3 plates of dessert, shovel it in and are done in 30-40 minutes, stuffed and hurting with a stomach ache. My family ate for about an hour, but because of the cold air condition we left the table earlier than I would have liked.

Commercials on American TV are driving me crazy especially the infomercials.

• For $20 and the cost of our diet food, you can lose weight. "I lost 45 lbs."
• Are you weak and unbalanced? Then buy this bracelet that will put your body into the right frequency. Look at these real people and how they become stronger and balanced when wearing this magnetic bracelet.
• Buy this juicer and you'll no longer have to eat solid unhealthy food.

I feel bombarded by false information that only costs $9.99. It gets into your head. A phone is dialled. A credit card is charged and some gimmick sits in the closet for years only being used once. How do I know? Look in my parent's closet.

One thing that I totally forgot about that is an absolutely brilliant invention that can be found anywhere is an ice cold water fountain. I love them and had totally forgotten about them until yesterday when after a two hour hot drive, I was thirsty, with no 1 RMB bottled water in sight.