Aesthetically, these photos are not the most pleasing but they capture what for me is stand-out American.

Softball and Baseball are typically American sports that I knew nothing about when I arrived in the US. I still know nothing more than that there is a difference between Softball and Baseball.

Active Shooter/Attacker Training seems to be a must-have in America. With the number of school shootings and on-campus attacks, it is reasonable to offer these types of classes and I’m sure they help students feel more secure. The problem is that students should not have to think about these issues. They should not have to think about what objects are best for throwing at the attacker if they are ever trapped in a room with one. Things like the active attacker training for me are a sign of the US’ habit of shifting the burden to solve the problem to students instead of solving its root causes.

One thing that is very American to me is the urge of people to proclaim their values and beliefs to everybody around them. To me, it seems like a lot of Americans support political figures/parties and institutions such as the police like they support sports teams. Banners and flags in the garden, vocal calls to support them, and the use of flags in different colors, shapes, and sizes for anything and everything. For the longest time, I did not know what the flag pictured above even stood for, it just seemed like people supporting a team or something.

I apologize for the photo quality but this was a spur-of-the-moment photo through a window. The plastic bag in the tree is mainly in response to what we talked about in class. The Pick-Up Truck and the red brick wall building behind it are the real American objects for me in this picture.

The wall that features faded white letters of an old business is something that I identify with the US because I’ve never seen anything like it before. It holds quite some charm because it reminds me of the looks of bustling American cities in the past.

The Pick-Up Truck is American because I’ve never seen one in Europe before. Considering the number of dirt roads in the country, I’m not surprised about its popularity.

The big social events in the US – Football games. Coming here I had never heard of the terms tailgating or First Down before but I was educated on both. I was quite surprised to find out that fans will have mini parties before games in the parking lots of all places and I was even more shocked to see people bring big flatscreen TVs with them to watch other games while tailgating. I think sitting in a parking lot and eating BBQ while still enjoying the modern comfort of a TV is typically American because it connects a want for comfort with the non-existent wish for a nice place to have the comfort in.

Something that screams American in my eyes is the sidewalks and particularly the little strips of grass between the front lawn and the street. Madsen once told us the name for those grass strips in class but I can’t remember now. The stone tiles the sidewalk is made out of are also quite iconic because from what I’ve seen, they can be found particularly in suburban parts of American cities.

The sign with the endorsement for a county attorney and the two flags in the background only add to the American flair.