[daveT]

I am (not really) surprised at how people react when I tell them I a from Ohio. They always say, "I'll definitely like you."

They ask me what it was like growing up there, and I tell them that all the nice people leave. It's not true. Many people have told me that they lived there for three months, found a job in less than a week, crashed with a co-worker, and partied to the break of dawn, although the bars close at 2 am.

What I do miss there is that there are no fences, all the neighbors are friends, and if you have a pretty girl with you, the clerk will compliment you.

But, I never want to see snow again, so I will never move back.

I love foreigners. The English that I have met have all been very kind, supplied with a self-depreciating humor. In fact, I have a pen pal that I have been writing with for years. I hope to see her move out here one day. Lithuanians and Turkish girls tend to be very "fun."

The only country I have an over-all problem with is Russians. I remember staying in a hostel. They never showered, stole, and talked bad to our face. I was studying the Russian language at the time. Because of these people, I quit learning. It took a few months for me to realize that there were some nice ones, but they were leaving already.

One of my best friends is Russian.

Brazilian girls are wonderful over-all, but a little to loose for my tastes.