HEY THERE!!!

So, like a lot of other people over the years I have watched a fair amount of Sex and the City. (fear not, this is not a blog about Sex and the City) but this combined with various conversations I have had with my brothers American girlfriend and other Americans I have met "around" has given me a fair insight into their differing style and approach to 'dating'. I may be wrong, but it strikes me that Americans will just approach each other and ask them out, and they'll do this ALL THE TIME and this is what constitutes dating. Kind of a sweeping net approach.

It also strikes me as standing in a very sharp contrast to the English approach, which in my experience tends to go more along the lines of:

Get wasted; Drunkenly pull someone; Get wasted, drunkenly cop off again; Maybe repeat a few times, but basically you're now going out. Only one party may be aware of this shift in relationship status, but that's ok.

To NOT BE SOBER is the key, key part of this. The thought of stone-cold soberly walking up to another person and being all: "Hi, I'm so and so etc etc, would you like to go for a drink?" is quite a terrifying prospect.

Much more familiar is to approach/be approached by a stranger, possibly fall over and redeem it all with an opening line of "HEY THERE!" accompanied with *JAZZ HANDS*

Winner!