I was reading a UK-set fanfic
Dec. 27th, 2022 11:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
conulywherein somebody sits on a twin bed, and for some reason the question asked itself: are mattress sizes the same in the UK, and do they have twin beds over there?
And the answer is no, no they don't!
So now I know, and you do too, and that about sums up what I know about the UK, so I'll also tell you something about NYC if you ever write something set here. I'll tell you two things.
First, of course, is that there are (virtually) no alleys in Manhattan. I don't care what you've seen on TV and in movies, you should hold yourself to a higher standard.
Secondly, wind patterns in Lower Manhattan before 9/11 were intense. Like, omg whoa. Those towers had one hell of an effect.
Thirdly, I can't count, and also, cashiers in the city can say "next", but more often ask the following customer to step down, which may be realized upon occasion as "following" or "step down" rather than "following (customer), please step down". This is something I didn't notice at all until somebody happened to mention it once on reddit, and immediately I was beset by the twin feelings of "wait, yeah, they do say that" and "hold on, that's not what they say everywhere!?"
Fourthly, I still can't count, and this may not be accurate to school today, but when I was a kid and when my mother was a kid, public schools in NYC spent time teaching students three chords on the piano - get ready, stand, sit down - so we could all stand and sit in unison at assembly. Mommy didn't realize it was not a universal practice until the first time she and my father went to a school thing in Brooklyn and he was left sitting after the entire audience of adults and students had stood up. And then he was left standing after they'd all sat down, having failed even the second time to recognize the musical cue.
And the answer is no, no they don't!
So now I know, and you do too, and that about sums up what I know about the UK, so I'll also tell you something about NYC if you ever write something set here. I'll tell you two things.
First, of course, is that there are (virtually) no alleys in Manhattan. I don't care what you've seen on TV and in movies, you should hold yourself to a higher standard.
Secondly, wind patterns in Lower Manhattan before 9/11 were intense. Like, omg whoa. Those towers had one hell of an effect.
Thirdly, I can't count, and also, cashiers in the city can say "next", but more often ask the following customer to step down, which may be realized upon occasion as "following" or "step down" rather than "following (customer), please step down". This is something I didn't notice at all until somebody happened to mention it once on reddit, and immediately I was beset by the twin feelings of "wait, yeah, they do say that" and "hold on, that's not what they say everywhere!?"
Fourthly, I still can't count, and this may not be accurate to school today, but when I was a kid and when my mother was a kid, public schools in NYC spent time teaching students three chords on the piano - get ready, stand, sit down - so we could all stand and sit in unison at assembly. Mommy didn't realize it was not a universal practice until the first time she and my father went to a school thing in Brooklyn and he was left sitting after the entire audience of adults and students had stood up. And then he was left standing after they'd all sat down, having failed even the second time to recognize the musical cue.
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Date: 2022-12-28 05:07 pm (UTC)Another odd event to do with parallel street names is that, a few years ago, I received a letter from the city planning department, where I live. It was addressed to someone else, at my address. A bit of investigation turned up that the person is very wealthy from owning a dozen car dealerships, in this area, and was leading a multibillion-dollar development project, adjacent to down-town. It seemed as though it might be a very important letter. Eventually, I figured out that it wasn't. The city department had messed up an ordinary mail merge. The person's address is the same street and number as mine but in one of the fanciest neighbourhoods of next city over. The postal code was somewhere in the middle of the continent.