Radio Collector's Afficionado's Resource

Who Cares What Time It Is, We Have Each Other

American culture is rather dissimilar than Hispanic cultures, which are Latin in root. Obviously there are amount of energy and weaknesses amid the two cultures. American culture is work-centered, and time is linear and a conservatively divided. Hispanic culture is relationship-oriented, and time is organic and flexible. Of course, these are popular observations only and there are always exceptions.

Our friends Hal and Cheryl took us to the top of galore rugged, green El Salvadoran mountains to a restaurant concealed among the coffee plantations called Cabana de Aponeca. It was a long drive to get there and largely on narrow, winding roads. We got out to stretch our legs. Flocks of green parrots, fluttered overhead, and iridescent blue and purple butterflies magically filled the air and hundreds of them were likewise sitting on the ground with wings folded together. It was supposed to be an afternoon trip and then we would return to Oscar and Pati’s house for dinner. At least that was the plan.

We ordered colorful drinks of coconut, guava, lemon, orange, and talked and reminisced regarding old times. Hal and Cheryl were Americans who had lived in El Salvador for 25 years and had conventional a large, growing institute where people learn life skills, life principles, and values for living.

It was a privilege for me to be there to instruct on the topics of finances, stewardship, planning, and micro-businesses and home businesses. As time went on, my son Caleb got very hungry, altho we just had lunch various hours earlier. I reminded him that Oscar and Pati were having us over for dinner in a few hours.

You know, we Americans in general make a plan, stick to it, and watch the clock. If we are late to work and we see an individual we know, the tendency is to quickly say “Hi”, and say something like “I’m late for work, can’t talk now.” In America this is accepted as normal and they let us go. It says “work is more indispensable than you right now.” Time is a commodity. It is disunited up, measured, plotted, and tracked. Time is “money” and we “live to work.”

Our American values are rather dissimilar than Hispanic values, which are Latin in root. If I met a friend on the way to work then I’d have to stop and talk because the kinship is more primary that the clock, or the next meeting. The kinship is the most highly valued commodity. It would be an insult to say “I can’t talk because I have to go to work.” Why? Because the message is interpreted as “You think your work is more important than me as a person” How differently we view the world. A late worker may not even be questioned, because every one likewise agrees with the value that a kinship makes it OK to be late.

As we talked, Caleb got progressively hungry. Hal got him a menu, and I thought we were making a particular exception for him, but soon every one was looking at menus! It took a lot of years for me to learn this cultural principle, and that is the quality time expended with crucial friends or family are more crucial that being to the next scheduled commitment. Our Outlook calendars would be applied as guidelines, and would not rule over us to dictate our each minute. Time is not linear but it is organic and flows naturally, and promptness is based on the relationships and people you are with. It may be unacceptable to leave for another engagement before a natural ending time presents itself.

If you think Oscar and Pati were offended that we arrived very late, and not as hungry as we could have been, think again. They recognise this and it is adequate for the purpose to go with the flow and not be on time. In America, a late worker offends his boss and co-workers, and may be thought to be missing out in character, and had better have a good excuse. If we come late to a meeting, we apologize, and there are genuinely degrees of apologies needed, depending on how late you are! Being late by one, or two, or five, or ten, or twenty minutes warrants growingly deeper degrees of apology. It may range from a sorry look or a verbal ‘sorry’, to a verbal ‘I’m in truth sorry’ or ‘I am genuinely sorry and here is why…” It is interesting to see that a lot of persons are not ruled by the clock or calendar, but by love or obligation to friends and family.

Obviously there are intensities and weaknesses in each system. One culture may sacrifice family relationships but expeditiously formulate anything underneath the sun and dominate the economic landscape. The other culture may foster close nuclear and extended family ties that not only define who they are but gives rise to ties that becomes a strong social security safety net. One culture have a tendancy to have less-connected families and friends, and the other is has an economy that may plod along more slowly. Examining these deviations may help each culture beef up it is inherent weaknesses.

Frequent trips to Latin America have made me re-evaluate work, relationships, and other values as an American. I believe I could use a little more time with friends and family, a little more relaxing at the coffee shop, and learning more of the art of conversation. But, it’s indispensable to stay applicable to the culture one lives in, and since I live in America I’ll undertake to be on time for that dinner date. It helped me to also be more understanding when my Hispanic friends are late.

Here is a great deal of suggested reading:

Distant Neighbors – A Portrait of the Mexicans, by Alan Riding

The Germans, by Greg Nees

Au Contraire! The French, (another Latin culture…), By Gilles Asselin and Ruth Mastron

Culture American College Radio

American Cinema/American Culture looks at the interplay amid American cinema and mass culture from the 1890s to 2011. It begins with an examination of the basic narrative and stylistic features of classical Hollywood cinema. It then studies the genres of silent melodrama, the musical, American comedy, the war/combat film, film noir, the western, and the horror and science fiction film, investigating the way in which movies shape and are shaped by the more prominent cultural worries of the nation as a whole. The book concludes with a discussion of post World War II Hollywood, giving discerned chapter coverage to the effects of the Cold War, 3D, television, the counterculture of the 1960s, managers from the film school generation, and the cultural worries of Hollywood from the 1970s through 2011. Ideal for Introduction to American Cinema courses, American Film History courses, and Introductory Film Appreciation courses, this text provides a cultural overview of the phenomenon of the American movie-going experience. An modified study guide is also available for American Cinema/American Culture. Written by Ed Sikov, this guide introduces each topic with an explanatory overview written in more informal language, proposes screenings and readings, and offers self-tests.

Culture American College Radio Image

Culture American College Radio Pic

Culture American College Radio Pic

Culture American College Radio Photo