Dedication

Giggleswick is dedicated to Patrick.

Places

The geographical locations in Giggleswick are real. Radford is a quaint small city in the Appalachian Mountains of southwestern Virginia. The beautiful capital of North Carolina is Raleigh. Lancaster is a lovely small city in the northwest of England. Located in the Yorkshire Dales is the idyllic village of Giggleswick. Some of the particular places are real and a few are fictional. For example Harris Teeter is a fabulous grocery store in the American south. However, at the time of writing Giggleswick at least, there is not a Harris Teeter in Radford.

People

All the people in Giggleswick are fictional. Any resemblance to any real persons now living or otherwise is completely coincidental and unintended.

Words Translated

Giggleswick offers a translation of some of the words and phrases across American and British usage. There are quite a few words that are different between the two cultures that are not offered in the Words Translated sections because this would disrupt the flow and tone of the narrative. Although I have made reasonable effort to be accurate with the terms and their usage, this is not intended as a dictionary. It is a literary device to illuminate the strangeness of living in another culture, even when the language is ostensibly the same. This is written from a narrator’s voice and hopes to offer a bit of humor and occasional acidity towards both American and British cultures. The humor and critique are intended to be in about equal balance between the two places. I am discerningly fond of both America and Britain and find both cultures full of great richness and the occasional frustration. The intention is to offer a healthy dose of self-depreciation that does not take either culture too seriously. I intend no offense to either great nation or its beautiful and generous people. As humans, we are all mostly lovely and occasionally a little bit grumpy.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Patrick for his unfailing encouragement and untiring devotion to reading multiple revisions.

I am very grateful if you have read Giggleswick. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Sincerely.