British Mac

I did it. I bought my first British computer. Well, it's a Mac* so not technically British but I ordered if from the Apple Store UK and it comes with a British keyboard and the language is automatically set to “British English”. This is a milestone, a big moment. The native spelling of favor will be favour. Honor will be honour. My favorite applications will become my favourite programmes. Ahhh. I’m switching, I can feel the change. I’ll have to personalise – uh – personaliZe my spell check settings so I have an American English option!

At this moment I’m typing on my American keyboard connected to my old iBook G3, both bought in the US of A. I’m simultaneously excited for the change and lamenting the loss of the old standards. Above the 3, the £ will replace the #. I’ll start calling # “hash” instead of “pound key”. Where will # go, WHERE? And the @ symbol! It’s going to tumble from above the 2 to hang out near the right hand “return” button. The changes the changes.

* If you’re interested, I’m getting myself a brand spankin’ new Dual 2.3Ghz PowerPC G5. (No, not the new ones with Intel, I couldn’t wait till they came out.)

Expatriate

ex·pa·tri·ate*
v. tr.
To send into exile.
To remove (oneself) from residence in one's native land.
v. intr.
To give up residence in one's homeland.
To renounce allegiance to one's homeland.
n.
One who has taken up residence in a foreign country.
One who has renounced one's native land.
adj.
Residing in a foreign country; expatriated: “She delighted in the bohemian freedom enjoyed by the expatriate artists, writers, and performers living in Rome” (Janet H. Murray).

What is this thing I've become? I can't even mention the word in front of my mother. It sounds so final and heavy - "to send into EXILE", "to RENOUNCE ALLEGIANCE to one's homeland". Yikes. I prefer the more casual "expat" (n. chiefly British).

And speaking of which, AmericanExpats.co.uk is a wealth of useful information about all the major issues: immigration, transport, employment, money. The Forum is central to its success. During the long months when I was trying to get a work visa, I found lots of articles by people in my exact situation. There's an answer to just about any question you can think of, and if there isn't other forum members respond almost immediately.
* Source :The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

What's in a name?

Four posts in and I'm finding koshae.blogspot.com to be a tedious URL for a blog. I need something that's one or more of these: catchy, flashy, indicative of content, amusing.

Obvious domains involoving my name (that are still available):

• kosha.name - short & easy, yet the .name extension doesn’t yet have the authority of .COM or .NET
• koshaengler.net or .org - Easy enough to remember, but may be confused with my professional site koshaengler.com. Extensions .us and .co.uk are also available. That’s a tricky one. If I go with .us that indicates it’s an American website, and I’m American, although I no longer live in the states. If I choose .co.uk - common for Brits to have this for their personal sites – I begin to have an identity crisis. Am I saying I’m more Anglo than American? Or maybe I’m just borrowing .co.uk for convenience? In the end does it really matter?

And some others:

• AmericaninLondon – perfectly descriptive, but a bit boring and there’s another blog called “An American in London”. I can’t be doing with the same name.
• Yankeeinlondon or Yankinlondon - definitely descriptive but more amusing, the slang is both a term of derision and national pride. In a way appealing to both countries – self-deprecating enough for the UK and cocky enough for the states. I think my choice is made.

Canadian in London stars in House

A talented North American friend of mine is appearing in Daniel MacIvor's House at the award-winning Finborough Theatre in Chelsea from January 31 – February 25, 2006.

About the Show:
HOUSE is a wild, shocking and disturbingly hilarious ride that won the Chalmers Award for Best New Canadian Play on its debut, and stars Trevor White, is directed by Josie Le Grice and is produced by Samantha Coughlan. Visit the website here: www.suspectpackage.ca.

English Rules: Part 1

I've spent the week reading Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour by Kate Fox and thoroughly enjoying it. As Ms. Fox, an clever and witty English anthropologist, illuminates rule after rule I realize just how often I've broken them. This would explain the many awkward silences and frosty vibes that I often encounter when conversing with the English. Now, although they are so keen to obey their many intricate communication rules, no one ever bothers to tell me directly that I've committed a social sin, as that in itself would be breaking the “don’t make a scene” rule. No, they’re much more subtle. I can think of several occasions when my husband has given me the wide-eyed, glaring “I can’t believe you just said/asked that!” look across the dinner table when no one’s watching, then expertly changes the subject. I spend the rest of the conversation wondering what I’ve done wrong and treading on eggshells to avoid yet another faux pas! If this is unfamiliar to you, reader, here’s an excerpt from Ms. Fox’s book to further explain:

From Part One: Conversation Codes: The Weather
The Weather-as-family Rule
“The worst possible weather-speak offence is one mainly committed by foreigners, particularly Americans, and that is to belittle the English weather. When the summer temperature reaches the high twenties, and we moan, ‘Phew isn’t it hot?, we do not take kindly to visiting Americans or Australians laughing and scoffing and saying ‘Call this hot? This is nothing. You should come to Texas [Brisbane] if you wanna see hot!’

Not only is this kind of comment a serious breach of the agreement rule [you must agree with factual statements about the weather], and the weather-as-family rule [only the English can criticize their weather, no one else], but it also represents a grossly quantitative approach to the weather, which we find coarse and distasteful.”

I think cultural behavior is fascinating and so far every rule Ms. Fox has revealed has rung true. Finally a black and white breakdown of English rules that a simple American like me can follow! (Already I've become more self-deprecating since living here) If anyone else has read the book, I welcome your comments.

How it Began

Since 2003 my life has largely revolved around 3 things: acting, my boyfriend and Moving to London. Why London? It’s a great city and I fell in love with a British man who lives here. But before the permanent move, we agreed on a try-out period. A taster, if you will. So in October 2003 I left my swanky apartment near Washington, DC, my friends, my family, put my acting career on hold, put 95% of my worldly possessions in storage and the other 5% in suitcases and flew away. The taster that was supposed to last 6 months ended up being 9. Mostly good times were had and by the end we thought, “OK let’s do it.” I’ll move to London. Just one little thing stood in our way. A work visa.

As two university-educated (one from Cambridge, no less), resourceful adults we eventually worked it out. It only took 6 months, a couple thousand pounds in solicitor’s fees, a stint as a Crate & Barrel seasonal (great discounts!), and supreme patience. Visas came and went as I spent the months living with my parents back in Maryland. Meanwhile my boyfriend was all the way across the ocean. Finally, finally, in January 2004 all was ready. I sold nearly all of my stored stuff, packed the rest and flew away.

Fortunately all of that trouble came to some good. Soon after the move I was upgraded to fiancée and now I’m living happily in wedded bliss.

As romantic as I think the story is, my love life isn't the focus of this blog. It merely sets the scene, provides a context for what is to follow.

Now I’m here, living in the greatest metropolitan city in the world. Hooray!? As anyone who has moved to a foreign country will know, it’s a serious transition. Even though I’ve moved from one “English-speaking” country to another, it’s still completely different than life in America. It can be lonely and frustrating and sometimes it seems like I’ll always be an outsider. Desperate to fit in, adjust, understand how things work, be accepted, I’ve devoted a lot of time to making those things happen. When I first arrived, I would have been grateful to know another American in the same situation who could ease the pain – tell me what to expect, ways to meet people, how long I’d feel like a fish out of water etc. etc. Not only personally but professionally too. It’s a whole new acting community to break into, new ropes to learn, and contacts to make. And that’s why I’ve begun this blog: to share some of my experiences and offer a few shortcuts to any Americans settling in the UK, and specifically American actors who want to work in London.