Things we learned so far

If you don’t like the weather in North Carolina, wait five minutes. By then, it may have changed already.

Bull Durham is a movie about the Durham Bulls, as important to the people of Durham as the movie In Bruges is to the people of Bruges. If you admit not having seen the movie, you will hear all about it. Stressing that you have already heard repeatedly all about it, will not deter anyone from repeating it once more.

Good Friday is a bank holiday.

Barbecue in North Carolina is not what we expect it is: not a variety of grilled meat, burgers, steaks, chicken legs, sausages, … Instead, it is chopped pork with a sauce. That sauce varies from region to region, from town to town. But it may very well be something you do not expect on pork, like vinegar. Every town and region takes much pride in its barbecue, though we usually are not impressed.

When people ask “How do you pronounce your (official) first name?” (Stijn), the easiest answer is “Like stain, just a spot on the carpet”. People have less problem reading my nickname Adhemar, although they tend to excessively Americanize the pronunciation.

You can enter a federal building with a pocket knife without problems, but you shouldn’t try it at an Air Force Base.

Cary stands for Containment Area for Relocated Yankees.

Rotary may very well be an old Indian word for (older people holding a) meal or feast. Si non e vero, e ben trovato.

Really strange, yet really true: a lot of North Carolinian Rotary clubs hold their meeting at noon, during lunch, instead of at 8 pm for dinner-and-wine. Even stranger still, some meet early at breakfast! When you're finally awake, such a meeting is over.

Very few people regard themselves as rednecks, probably there is usually another group left with even redder necks.