just good

When I was 19 years old and lived in England for two semesters I developed the most perfectly pitched English accent.

When you are 19 and 20 it's important to fit in.

When I moved to the US 15 years later people didn't understand me until I had learned to sound like an American.

I liked it. I found that American English is more relaxed. You use different muscles of the mouth, and it just feels better. Also, when you speak British English you have to have the sentence ready in your head beforehand, and be able to deliver it in one go. It's supposed to flow. With American English you get time to think.

Nowadays I get nostalgic when I hear British English. I watch Judi Dench movies by myself, and even a vague Irish accent makes me like a person.

In the summer of 2000 I traveled to Sweden for my green card interview. I was nervous. To calm those nerves I had brought REM. I love the sound of Michael Stipe's voice. He has the perfect American tone, and he sings with perfect American ease. After my interview at the American Embassy in Stockholm I walked a mile in the wrong direction, listening to that.