Do You Speak American?

To all the Talledega Nights fans out there, Ricky Bobby was not lying when he said, "In America we speak American." I learned this when I went with Christophe (M. Pecqueur, my host dad) to an amature Lievin versus Vermelles 19-year-old soccer game. There was what seemed to be an abandoned announcer's box next to the field where a young boy was playing. I climbed up the steps and we started talking. He told me he had a brother. Minutes later, another kid with long blonde hair came up. I asked the first boy if the blonde was his sister... It was his brother, of course. They asked how old I was, and I told them. The first boy was eleven and the second, ten. Then the blonde said, "Hello. My-name-is-Alexander" in English. I automatically felt stupid. They told me I had an accent, which I already knew, thank you very much, and asked if I was English. I replied that I was American. A while later, the first boy (whose name I never learned) asked me if I spoke American. I said yes, then proceeded to inquire whether there was a difference between English and American as a language. Apparently, American is a mixed-up English. D'accord. I learn something new everyday here. I did not, however, learn the score of the soccer game. I think it was a tie.