November 11, 2010

Stuff that's Changed: Goodbye Blockbuster, Hello Red Box

This is part of on ongoing series where we examine changes that have taken place in the US since we left for Brazil in October, 2005.

God bless the genius who came up with the Red Box concept. One dollar gets you a DVD for a day. Happen to be traveling? No problemo. You can rent the DVD in one city and turn it in when you arrive at your destination. Not able to return it after one day? Once again, not an issue. You just pay one more dollar.

As we have racked up the miles on the missionarymobile, Red Box has kept our two energetic passengers in the back seat occupied with hours of entertainment--all with no membership, no deadlines, no hassles, no pressure. What more could one ask for?

It's no wonder that Blockbuster has become Blockbusted.

Talk back to the missionary: What modern innovation has made your life easier over the last five years? Give us a head's up in the comments section.

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October 16, 2010

Stuff that's Changed: "Fail" is a Noun

When we left for Brazil in 2005, the word "fail" was a verb. The noun form of said verb was "failure". Now, however, it is common to hear the phrase "That was a fail." And if the event being described is of a particularly unsuccessful nature, the word "fail" is often modified by "epic".

Example: "That guy just rode his bicycle off the roof of a barn and into a manure wagon! Epic fail, dude!"

Talk back to the missionary: Ever been witness (or party) to an "epic fail"? Tell us about it in the comments section.

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October 13, 2010

Stuff that's Changed: McDonalds Has Become Starbucks

Since arriving in the US in July, there have been several changes we have noticed in everyday life in the US--things that were different when we left in October of 2005. Over the next several weeks I will chronicle some of them here.

First up, McDonalds.

When we left for Brazil, you could get two kinds of coffee at McDonalds: regular and decaff. Now, in addition to these two, you can get mocha, ice mocha, ice coffee (in several flavors including vanilla and hazelnut), caramel frappés and mocha frappés.

What ever happened to burgers and fries.

Also, where did the super size go?

Talk back to the missionary: Can you think of anything else that has changed in the last five years? Leave it in the comments section, and we just might feature it in its own post.

Posted by Andrew at 8:43 PM // Comments: 2 // TrackBack: 0 //
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