There is a saying that you can't really understand the fundamental assumptions of your own culture until you spend a little time outside of it. I don't think I ever really understood that until I spent a week getting blank stares from supermarket clerks in Edmonton, Alberta when I asked if they carried whole beef brisket. Alberta is famous for its beef, but these friendly Canadians don't know what brisket is? What gives, Canucks?
...and that was only the beginning of my problems. It was my ...
