Whenever I tell folks that I was born and raised in Germany, I inevitably get the questions... "What's it like over there? Is it really different? How come you don't have an accent?" Stuff like that... Which is a little strange to me, because I don't think about these things.

Yes. I was born and raised in Germany and yes, I lived and moved and travelled all over Europe before I moved to the U.S. I suppose I still have the old world thingy in me. It truly is not in the realm of definition..hence I will not attempt to do so. Define it, that is.

In the recent developments with all the illegals coming in etc. it got me thinking back to the the very first days, weeks, even months that I experienced the good ole' US of A. And it was a hoot. No. More like a shock!

Anyway..I thought I would share my very first experience in an American grocery store. As I was made fun of many, many times after this...so it must be funny.

When I first came over my ex and I were stationed at Ft. Benning. We rented an apartment off base complete with the obligatory vinyl couch etc. Yum. Anyway. On one of my very first trips to the PX (grocery, to those outside military folks) nothing seemed amiss. Just a store. However! When we got to the checkout, some guy took the groceries off the belt, put them in a cart and walked off with them! I freaked!!!!! I yelled, I pointed... I went ballistic. Truly.

My husband seriously had to subdue me because I was about to call the cavalry to take care of this lowlife!

You see, where I came from - you bagged your own groceries, took them to the car (or the teaxi, or the bus..whatever)....and nobody else ever touched them.

So, to see this man walking off with my cart full of food completely freaked me out. I think it took a lot of convincing of my ex and the Sgt on staff that day to assure me that this was normal. Huh?

I wonder if any of you have stories like to tell?