Why Are Americans So Obsessed with Ice Cubes?

Get 25% off during Ekster's summer sale at partner.ekster.... Don't forget to use the discount code LOST.
Not many countries boast a greater love of ice cubes than the United States. In today's video, I look at why that is.
Get your 'Lost in the Pond' tee-shirt at PondLand: my-store-ccb04...
Subscribe to my channel: / @lostinthepond
- Support me on Patreon: / lostinthepond
- Follow me on Twitter: / lostinthepondus
- Follow me on Instagram: / laurence.m.brown
- Follow me on Facebook: / lostinthepond
- Visit my website: www.LostinthePo...

[@LostinthePond]

Get 25% off during Ekster's summer sale at partner.ekster.com/lostinthepond. Don't forget to use the discount code LOST.

[@iheartbinary]

I live in Washington state (US West Coast) where we have underground water, and it comes out of the tap pretty cold, so I don't personally need ice in my water. However, my office manager who lives in North Carolina (US East Coast) (Or one of those carolinas anyways) told me that they do not have underground water aquifers and the water comes out of the tap just as warm as it is outside, because it is only stored in water towers above ground.

[@JonManProductions]

Finally a modern wallet design that isn't The Ridge.

[@sergioandrade8735]

If one watches the Disney movie, Frozen, at the beginning of the film one sees a group of men harvesting ice.

[@dgalloway107]

Coz its fockin hot dag.

[@clonecommando-cn6bo]

We Americans have a consumerist hypnosis issue. That’s why we have default refrigerated beverages and foodstuffs so often. I prefer a cooled water than having a grams and grams of ice capacitating more of what I drink than I prefer and I live in one of the hottest cities in the United States

[@pistol80]

"My wife and I recently got an ice making machine. Shut up it's great." Americans: "He's beginning to believe."

[@currentsitguy]

Love mine I get a week ago It's better and cheaper than fixing the broken one in my fridge.

[@justinmaxwell4140]

@@currentsitguy it should be noted that it probably isn’t in the medium term. Those small ice makers tend to be quite energy inefficient. (And kinda annoying to keep putting water in)

[@ilandgrl]

@@pistol80 Those ice making machines are very popular for tailgating!

[@currentsitguy]

@@justinmaxwell4140 I think the comparison is probably apples to oranges. This thing makes more ice in an hour then my fridge did in a day and a half. I run it for an hour or so every 2 or 3 days.

[@SuperDrLisa]

Mine died after a year and a half of daily ice making

[@TheGreaterGrog]

You have to remember that most of the US is at the same latitudes as the Mediterranean without the benefit of a nearby sea. A substantial amount of the southern areas is at the same latitude as the North African coast. It's *hot*.

[@torfrida6663]

And the UK is on the same latitude as Canada. 🇬🇧

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@torfrida6663 And Alaska.

[@simonekeijzer7468]

Yet in hot countries they don´t use much ice. Ice just waters down your drink. If you take the ice from american drinks, you are left with a few fingers of softdrink. Also, to cool down it is better to drink a hot drink. Reason why they drink tea in India.

[@hayleyam28]

​@@simonekeijzer7468if you actually drink your drink *and* get free refills, the ice won't significantly water your drink down, and the "having less of the beverage you pay for" is also non-issue because you can add more to it.

[@heavycritic9554]

@@hayleyam28 Plus, you get to go to the toilet a lot more... bonus! I'll rather have what I paid for right away, than needing to get refills in order to get my money's worth.

[@cod-the-creator]

"my wife and I recently got an ice making machine" said with a British accent makes you sound like a time traveler from the 1800's

[@rodafowa1279]

I worked as an asphalt and concrete laborer for about 7 years. The busiest season was the summer, in the heat and humidity. Nothing is more satisfying on a 95 degree day with 70% humidity than an ice cold water. I also love an ice cold Pepsi when I eat hot food.

[@luigivincenz3843]

My cousin works in pressure washing. The staff CANNOT go on vacation during summer because every day in the hot summer sun is perfect for pressure washing. They want their homes clean before fall. It's suicide not to have ice cold drinks in 100 degree weather.

[@AsiaCasvin-yo4xm]

Hi. I want to let you know, science has shown us, that cold drinks with a meal makes digestion way more difficult on your body.

[@rodafowa1279]

@@AsiaCasvin-yo4xm Been doing it for nearly 37 years now with only rare acid reflux flareups like once or twice a year. That could just be genetics, because my dad and brother have chronic stomach issues.

[@kylezo]

@@baronvonslambertit's pointless to worry about if it doesn't affect you, like with most things. But, most of us are wise enough to sit our mouths about things that don't affect us personally

[@alansteel]

​@AsiaCasvin-yo4xm are you sure this isn't one of those Asian wive's tales. A lot of older people in Asian countries are terrified of consuming cold liquids.

[@iesika7387]

An additional historical/cultural factor: most folks got access to ice long before access to AC. My Granny’s Louisiana farm had no AC, so you can bet in the summer we were drinking constantly from what she called “nosepunchers” (glasses full to the brim with ice). So, to me, that will always be what’s refreshing.

[@SplendidCoffee0]

As someone who originally hails from Louisiana, the tip of my nose got cold reading this lol

[@MaskedImposter]

Cold water when you've been stuck in heat for days is the most delicious amazing and refreshing drink ever.

[@GigalassII]

Not having something doesn't mean you can't access it

[@ZehChaosFlower]

"Nosepunchers" is the BEST name omg

[@gilleruadh]

My grandmother in Arizona had no access to ice, since Phoenix was just a tiny farming community at the turn of the century. The only cooling available was a homemade structure that had a solid top, a couple of shelves, but was open on all 4 sides. They tacked burlap strips at the top and the ends were draped into trays filled with water. They were the original evap cooler. They could keep some items for a couple of days. They would often haul their beds outside in the summer and dampen the sheets to sleep. Tony people had sleeping porches. I suspect that they drank their water at what passed for room temperature. Grandma became a huge fan of ice water as soon as ice became available.

[@investingingeorgia8853]

Because here 80 fahrenheit is more like an overnight low, not a heatwave.

[@OldMan_PJ]

We're excited because this weekend is supposed to get down to 95F.

[@adedow1333]

​@@OldMan_PJ we're having a bit of reprieve as it's only 93 today where I am

[@413TomaccoRoad]

that's not an overnight low here in New England, except maybe a few nights in an unusually hot summer. None this year- so far .

[@Gurra_Gforce]

Poor souls! Us Scandinavians thinking of you as we shiver in utter cold and misery at (Checking) Low 61 & high at 75 for Saturday, in Stockholm anyway

[@MaunoMato99]

"Here" being

[@Mars_doll]

It’s currently 101 degree Fahrenheit in Southern California. I definitely need my ice cube dispensing refrigerator lol

[@LindaC616]

72 (but a little sticky) here in RI

[@jasonkeith2832]

​@@LindaC616 Central Arizona won't even hit that as a low for a few more months.

[@cpavlock]

It's 109 here in Phoenix, I definitely put ice in my water

[@LindaC616]

@@jasonkeith2832 I know, my lungs would love to live in the dry desert heat. But I grew up in the midwest on a lake, I need water. I am not married to my current location any longer, so I couldn't move, but I don't know any place else where it doesn't go above 90 very often in the summer and never snows in the winter or almost never

[@jasonkeith2832]

@@cpavlock I think you need some ice for your ice.

[@jamesmorgan5671]

I've never understood why people outside the US find wanting ice in cold beverages so weird. We like cold beverages to stay cold, and ice prevents them from gradually rising to room temperature. Seems sensible to me.

[@David-hm9ic]

Also the rise in popularity of insulated metal glasses/tumblers. Pour cold liquid over ice in an insulated glass and the ice lasts a long time without unnecessary dilution. There will still be ice in the glass the next day if it's left overnight.

[@NihongoWakannai]

Because I prefer my drink to have drink in it and not be 90% frozen water.

[@fayertreijd919]

​@@NihongoWakannaiIs... is water undrinkable? Granted maybe in the lesser nations where cholera rules water might be feared, but in civilization we often find relief in drinking it

[@NihongoWakannai]

@@fayertreijd919 if I wanted water I would have ordered water. Why tf would you want to get scammed out of 90% of your drink and have the taste get watered down? You're crazy

[@Hal_142]

​@@NihongoWakannaiso then add less ice? I mean how is this an issue unless you just drink really slowly.

[@kimfleury]

My late Dad wrote about his childhood memories of eagerly awaiting the Ice Truck delivery on hot summer days in the 1940s. All 13 children sat on the porch to watch for the truck, and they stayed on their best behavior so they might be rewarded when the deliveryman arrived. They were helpful and polite to him when he brought the block of ice for the icebox, and as he returned to his truck, he would offer the children chips of ice flaked off one of the blocks. That was a huge treat for the kids. I grew up spoiled with popsicles and other frozen treats every day in the summer, so it kind of sounded lame that Dad and his siblings got so excited over ice chips. But now that I'm old myself, I realize that I should take the time to appreciate what a treat an ice chip really is.

[@Graestra]

What I'm wondering, that's ice that's been taken from a lake or river right? It hasn't been boiled obviously, so consuming it, especially as ice in a drink, would be unsafe and risk making people sick. Sure, swallowing a bit of lake water here or there probably isn't a big deal, but untreated water can contain all sorts of nasty stuff that can make someone very sick. I suppose being frozen might kill some stuff, but everything? I know parasites need to be kept below at least -4F long enough to kill them, which is what they do for fish, but water freezes at 32F.

[@badgerattoadhall]

My mid-80s father still has a scar on his shin that he got from the ice truck he used to like to jump on the back of in the 1940s to grab scraps....and slipped.

[@Emigail]

The precursor to the ice cream trucks

[@DenaInWyo]

My great grandfather delivered ice with a wagon and team of huge work horses in the early 20s in Casper Wy. My grandmother remembered one of the strictest rules in her childhood was that she was not to go near the horses because they were apparently ill tempered and might stomp her flat.

[@shrimpscampin]

Boi what in the "Mickey mouse cutting a paper thin slice of bread" is ts 😂😂

[@uncletoby-]

Nephew, I do hope that, like most Americans, you put your old refrigerator in the garage to keep fizzy drinks and lager cold for those occasions when you have guests over for an out of doors gathering in the garden.

[@RosheenQuynh]

The first time I've seen you in the comments! 😄

[@JoeShufferton]

My family doesn't have a garage fridge, but I've known many families who do. My family was a garage-freezer type.

[@marthawelch4289]

Where I live the garage fridge is filled with Cokes, water in bottles, and beer. Indoor or outdoor party guests, dinner guests, drop-bys, etc. all know that the garage fridge contains Cokes of all varieties - Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper, etc.- so grab what you want. Same thing for beer of all varieties. Liquor is where the bar is and will be prepared by the designated bartender.

[@uncletoby-]

@@JoeShufferton Our Freezer was in the cellar.

[@uncletoby-]

@@RosheenQuynh 😎

[@TheLobsterCopter5000]

Water is one of the few drinks I actually like with ice, mostly because the ice doesn't water down the water...because it's already water.

[@EinsteinsHair]

Looking through comments, no one seems to address the insane amount of ice that fast food places put in drinks in the U.S. I have ordered a large beverage, drank all the liquid, poured in a room temperature 12 ounce can of soda, drank all of the liquid, and had ice left over. Also, the can of soda filled the "large" drink, meaning that was all the soft drink I was getting, in the first place.

[@redram6080]

​@@EinsteinsHair you can always just ask them to give you the drink with no ice or little ice or you can go inside and pour the drink yourself

[@joecummings1260]

I make ice out of ice tea for my ice tea

[@alanmanrick5593]

I like watering down drinks. Everything is so full of sugar. Full cop of ice with some juice, 😊.

[@Dhalin]

Depends on how fast you intend to drink said drink, and how strongly flavored it is. Like, with Coke, ice works good because Coke has a strong flavor and it takes a lot to water it down and if you drink it fast enough before the ice melts much, it will be fine. But if you put ice in something else, like OJ or something, then it will taste nasty because OJ doesn't have a strong flavor, and OJ tends to melt ice a lot faster for some reason.

[@TheShootist]

what I was taught in some obscure university class 50 years ago was that iced drinks was a sign of wealth in the old south. One cannot, after all, make Mint Julips without quantities of crushed ice.

[@LawNerdAmber]

That makes a lot of sense

[@generalcodsworth4417]

That makes sense. Before refrigeration was commom, getting ice would be quite difficult and expensive in hot climates. And what ice many people could get probably was used for keeping food cold to prevent spoilage. Putting it in a drink would be quite the flex.

[@willstevenson4843]

What a strange question... Sincerely, an American Southerner.

[@rrock2025]

Yes.............I..............agree..........

[@iheartbinary]

Did you know we have underground aquifers in the Northwest where the water comes out at like 48-55F? I never understood why you guys always had iced tea in the fridge until I learned you guys don't all have underground ice water that just pours out the tap if you leave it running for a bit.

[@bandwagon240]

​@@iheartbinaryhere in Florida, it comes out cool initially and then quickly turns into water warm enough to steep tea in.

[@willstevenson4843]

@@iheartbinary it doesn't matter how cold it comes out when ambient is over 100°f

[@cc1k435]

😂

[@ST-ov8cm]

1. It’s hot in the summer 2. Cold drinks, especially sodas, taste better colder

[@LythaWausW]

Doesn't Coca Cola say "serve ice cold" right on the bottle?

[@saab9251]

Yes. And it’s from atlanta Georgia where it’s F’ing HOT for most of the year. 95 degrees with 90% humidity is no joke. Sweat effectively stops working.

[@ThatBirdLiam]

Cold drinks are good but some soft drinks advertise it be served ice cold because you actually just taste it less and they can be made more cheaply as a result

[@LythaWausW]

@@ThatBirdLiam That's pretty cynical but I bet it's true.

[@mage1439]

@@LythaWausW Funnily enough, Sprite/7 Up are really good warm. So I guess they're made pretty well.

[@naturalcambion3747]

My British relatives didn’t understand the fascination of ice until they realized it was ready made in our house. Couldn’t keep them away from it. 🤭

[@simhedgesrex7097]

Because popping an ice-cube tray (or ice-cube bags) in the freezer is so hard? Idiots!

[@jeangrissom1071]

😂😂😂

[@kst6959]

Ice, AC, and everything else 😆

[@williamcaseywells604]

I don’t know why I’m feeling this so strongly right now but I just want to thank you for having a channel that’s positive and shares honest observations about life in America and life in the UK that celebrates our differences without judgement (something I’ve been guilty of as an American who has spent significant time in England). No politics. No division. Just wholesome reliable content.

[@cattysplat]

It's OK to be different. Really it is. We can all get along. Until someone throws tea in the harbor then it's on.

[@lisamills3228]

And it depends on the type, regular ice, pellet ice, crushed ice, and the best of all, Flaked ice. The crunchy munchy ice

[@LindaC616]

Bartenders know this better than I!

[@loraweems8712]

And, shaved ice!!!

[@OriginalCaliKitty]

Shave ice is probably Hawaii's best known and loved foodstuff.

[@julieneff9408]

Yes exactly. I like the kind about the size of mini tater tots that crushes with just a little pressure.

[@alexlail7481]

Ah yes the Forest Gump shrimp treatment for Ice.... I am a southerner and I approve this message 😅😉

[@bernadettelawson2916]

I’m Scottish, I live in Scotland, and I love ice cold drinks, even in winter. Even our very nice drinking water is much better with ice

[@SherryHill-k5y]

Thank you from Scotland!!❤ I have many Scottish ancestors-- maybe that's why I love cold drinks with ice

[@uncleogrimacy]

What's the feeling about Scotch on ice?

[@bernadettelawson2916]

@@uncleogrimacy very popular, although the taste depends on many things

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@uncleogrimacy The best way to destroy any flavour. If that's not important to you, go ahead and waste your money...

[@wessexdruid7598]

When I lived in Rosshire, we had our own peat spring, feeding into a concrete cistern. The water was always well-chilled.

[@skival]

I have never met anyone who wanted a smaller fridge!

[@raedwulf61]

Yeah. Bizarre.

[@venomousspecifics45]

Everyone I know is focused on how to get a larger fridge without having to remodel their kitchen!

[@The_One_In_Black]

I'm only one person, and I wish I had a larger fridge so that I could actually fit things that I buy in the grocery store in it (I have to keep salad dressing in the big area for milk because it doesn't fit on the door) and so that I can stock up version things for the months I don't get paid.

[@dorothymcmahon9995]

I love small fridges.

[@Icantbelievethisshit2]

It looked like it was too big for its space at the doorway. I bought a house that came with a side by side; I can't open the door all the way. The wide trim in my 75 yo house prevents it 😒 It works and I like the bottom freezer drawer (with ice maker) so it stays for now 😁

[@catbriggs8362]

As a 16-year-old American with a group of fellow students in London, we were on a bus, moaning about the lack of ice. A British woman turned around and said with disgust, "You Americans are MAD about ice!"

[@theOlLineRebel]

My parents were traveling Europe in the ‘90s, just along the Danube Budapest and Vienna. They were dismayed by the a) small drinks and b) warm drinks/no ice. They found that local McDonald’s were still acting American and providing cold drinks with ice, so were loving McDs while they were there!

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

That British woman should spend ONE DAY in South Florida in August...🤭

[@witchdoctor4377]

​@Allan_aka_RocKITEman Jesus... why do you hate this random woman that much?? Nobody should have to be subjected to visiting Florida ever. Just send her to, like, I dunno, Georgia or something. Same climate, but without all the insane amounts of problems

[@erikm8707]

@@witchdoctor4377why did this one random lady have so much hate for people who likes eating ice?

[@CC-pj7iy]

​@@witchdoctor4377Did you just claim Georgia has less issues than Florida? Have you ever been to Atlanta, buddy?

[@daltonfitkin2536]

I’ve lived in Arizona for the majority of my life. Ice here is as coveted as the air you breathe, your air conditioner and your favorite Mexican restaurant. Just walking to the mailbox I will bring a water bottle with some cubes in it. Even in the dead of winter where it can be 50f all day I will still drink beverages with ice.

[@David-hm9ic]

That very dry air is brutal. I spent a few years in SE New Mexico; same climate.

[@JoshColletta]

Fun fact: the high school where I took my SATs (I was a student at another school across town) was built in 1927 in the Piedmont of North Carolina, well away from any beneficial ocean breeze and not in the cooler mountain region. Air conditioning was still relatively new, and central air conditioning systems were prohibitively expensive. Ice, however, was dirt cheap. So the architect of this high school came up with a rather brilliant idea: the two towers (it's a collegiate gothic style building) would be topped with chambers to hold ice blocks, and pipes would carry the cold, melted water through the building's walls, keeping the building cool while also supplying drinking water for the water fountains and other uses. I've never actually seen that system in action... it was put out of commission long ago, and where would they even get the ice blocks today? But pre-Carrier cooling and ventilation systems have always fascinated me, so when I learned about that building, it kinda stuck in my mind as a really cool -- sorry -- example.

[@BTinSF]

Interesting. I attended medical school at Duke, probably not far away, and the original hospital building had towers but neither such a system nor air conditioning while I was there (1967-1971). Couldn't have been because they lacked the money . . . .

[@misspat7555]

Americans do be coming up with creative solutions to problems a lot! 😎

[@JoPerry-by3wd]

Wow! Awesome cool thinking. (Not sorry) I wonder if there are blueprints to see.

[@freethebirds3578]

When we lived in Phoenix in 2006 I heard a news story about the invention of a cooling machine for homes that froze a large block of ice at night when electricity demands are low that would be used to cool air for the house during the day. It sounded like it would cool better than a swamp cooler, but I have never heard anything about it since. We now live in the Midwest where it's too humid to have anything other than AC, but maybe it caught on in the desert.

[@BTinSF]

@@freethebirds3578 My house near Tucson is concrete block parged (spread with like butter) with concrete mortar. The walls are around 15" thick. And the roof is plastic foam covered with an elastomeric substance that claims to reflect 98% of solar energy impacting it. I have got wicked sunburns from reflected light while up on the roof. I cool the house using the A/C to 68 degrees F at night when I'm in bed but I shut it off when I get up in the morning and, when the outside high is around 105 degrees F, the house stays below about 76 degrees F until around 3 PM at which point I turn the A/C back on.

[@trejea1754]

My grandma born in 1899 lived to age 96 & always had an “ice box”, never a “refrigerator” in her kitchen.

[@LindaC616]

Mine in 1904, same

[@scotty3114]

So did mine and my parents, so most of the time, it's an 'ice box' to me as well.

[@kathyastrom1315]

Back in 2000, I lived in a 100-year-old apartment building. I couldn’t figure out why there were two doors going into the unit. The second door, permanently locked, was very thin, definitely not regulation, and right next to the main door from the hall. I finally figured out that the thin door would open onto the back of the refrigerator. That’s when I realized it was for the iceman bringing the block to the back of the icebox a hundred years ago.

[@misslayer999]

@@kathyastrom1315 that sounds kind of cool!

[@misslayer999]

Mine too

[@kathleenpainter4389]

As an ex-pat Yank living in the UK, your explanation of rectangles is spot on! I have run into incredulity trying to explain navigating a grid to British cab drivers! And the idea that a street can have the same name for miles is beyond comprehension! Great video!

[@cindystrachan8566]

Back in 1978 when I was in England, we stopped at a pub somewhere around Bradford. Trying to bury myself in as much English culture as possible, I went to the bar and asked for a gin and orange. When I got the beverage, which was made with a flat orange liquid and gin, I took a sip. It was warm. I then requested some ice. The barkeep looked at me as if I’d insulted the Queen, and grudgingly dropped one sad little ice cube into my drink. It was about the size of a sugar cube. Never tried the drink again. But I load my glasses with ice.

[@lookoutforchris]

Lol how sad of a country. You can’t be any sort of mixologist without ice as a major tool and ingredient. Strange that they fancy themselves civilized.

[@captbloodbeard]

I wonder if the bar keep wouldn't have minded so much if you ordered the drink on the rocks? I don't know if that's a common way to order liquor in the UK, but maybe the bar keep was annoyed because you just didn't order it properly?

[@cindystrachan8566]

@@captbloodbeard The friend I’d gone there with was born and raised in Bradford. She warned me not to ask. But the drink was so vile warm.

[@robinlyon-mccarthy7709]

About two weeks in to our trip to the UK, I was desperate for ice. I asked for extra ice with my drink. They gave me two small cubes instead of one. I could have cried.

[@captbloodbeard]

@@cindystrachan8566 I can't drink warm alcohol, it brings back bad memories of teenage binge drinking tequila that sat in a hot truck all day in summer and other such fun memories. The thought of warm alcohol makes me gag.

[@simhedgesrex7097]

As a Brit, I found it hard to believe that 3% of UK homes don't have a fridge. So I checked this, and it's actually less than 2%. Still far higher than I would have thought.

[@JoPerry-by3wd]

Homes without a fridge?!? 😮

[@simhedgesrex7097]

@@JoPerry-by3wd Exactly. Maybe students who eat in halls? Or people in sheltered accommodaton who eat in common dining rooms?

[@EwanMarshall]

how many of those are currently for sale or otherwise not have anyone living in?

[@chaos.corner]

@@EwanMarshall Has to be something like that but does that even count as a 'home'?

[@wombat4583]

@@simhedgesrex7097 and people who can't afford to replace/repair one

[@darcyjorgensen5808]

Ice is life. Even my dogs go bonkers for ice in their water bowls.

[@KJ-xx6xr]

One of mine knows how to hit the ice dispenser in the freezer door and serve himself icecubes.

[@LastbutNotFirst]

@@KJ-xx6xr your fridge is never gonna have hot dogs

[@Lauren.E.O]

Mine loves ice cubes as a treat, often more than he likes actual dog treats.

[@LJBSullivan]

​@@LastbutNotFirstmine too

[@robinholmes2065]

Because when it’s over 95 degrees for half the year, nothing, and I mean NOTHING, is better than coming inside to a huge glass of iced tea or soft drink or water. I live in Austin, Texas so we would probably die down here without our iced drinks. I travel a lot and one of my fondest memories was visiting Ireland and a waiter, discovering we were from the U.S. and craving iced tea, made us a (weak) pitcher of tea and brought out a pitcher of ice with it and we didn’t even have to ask for it. The tea may have been weak, but we fell in love with Ireland because they are the friendliest group of people in the world. The rest of Europe have always looked at us as though we had two heads… well, not the touristy places, but the more rural areas we tend to visit don’t get our obsession with ice. I absolutely love Europe though and can’t wait to go back - it’s been too long since our last visit.

[@michaelbartjen3406]

I work outside, sometimes it's gets very hot, in the morning I fill my thermal bottle halfway with ice, by lunch time my water is still cool, and not warm water, I love my ice!

[@LythaWausW]

I used to put my sports bottles in the freezer half full of water. The next day I'd top them off with water and I'd have cold water all day long.

[@freethebirds3578]

@@LythaWausW I do that, too. It's not as good as an insulated bottle of ice water, but it's better than lukewarm water that I would be inclined to spit out.

[@mlyon1476]

Because room temperature drinks are gross. And when you live in AZ, ice cold water is the best thing in life.

[@Austinsairplanes]

I traveled to AZ recently and I wasn't used to the warm tap water

[@mlyon1476]

@@Austinsairplanes Yup. There's no cold water from the faucet for about 5 months, sometimes more. There's hot water tank hot and boiled by the sun hot.

[@cc1k435]

​@@mlyon1476That's the truth. Never set your hot water tank to a reasonable temp, because you won't be needing it anyway. The water is hardly ever cold. 😂

[@cloudsn]

I agree, I want most of my drinks ice cold. It's so refreshing that way. I used to work with several people from Asia, Thailand and the Philippines, and they both preferred tepid or warm water. They were raised being told that very cold water is bad for your digestion.

[@mlyon1476]

@@cloudsn one of my best friends is from England. She and I argue about it often (Lovingly giving each other crap.) She tries to tell me hot tea cools you off better. We're on our way home after a long hot day of adventure and she's calling her husband to put the kettle on! That's not thirst quenching!! Or we get Starbucks together (iced drinks) and she leaves her full cup to sit for hours and continues to drink it. 😝

[@SoleaGalilei]

When I saw this video had been posted, I'd just sat back down at my desk after having gotten a glass of water with ice cubes.

[@allenseeallendo5844]

He’s almost done transcending. Now you just need to believe you’re better than every other country in the world no matter any facts or statistics. ONE OF US!

[@finned958]

Britain is largely a cold climate country. I don’t use ice much in the winter, but summer is a must. I quite enjoy using the automatic ice maker in my refrigerator. I highly recommend buying a refrigerator with this feature

[@10beachbum22]

I live in the Deep South and I want as much ice that will fit in my glass, topped off with water; if it’s not so cold that I don’t feel it going down my esophagus and hit my stomach it needs more ice!

[@bigthing75]

I live in the north, and that water better make my teeth hurt because it's so cold.

[@rjmwilliams1659]

Agreed, dammit!

[@heathermichael3987]

Well said !!!

[@jmi5969]

Watch it.. I mean the esophagus. Seriously, drinking ice-cold stuff, especially carbonated soda, may cause catastrophic damage to the esophagus... and there's no free healthcare in the Deep South. But perhaps the people there are naturally adapted to ice-cold water and are quite safe with it. I never understood American obsession with freezing water and air conditioning (which, again, often cripples me for weeks so I have to avoid places with AC, including public transportation).

[@laurieday9976]

Oh, how I LOVE ice water!

[@TesserId]

Having drank from a mountain spring, it's so clear that drinking water chilled is something special.

[@theodoresmith5272]

In many places in Spain and the alps, don't throw an empty water bottle away. They have springs all over the mountain roads with a station and signs if it's good to drink.

[@masterofallgoons]

*Having drunk...

[@Mark-Rain]

@@theodoresmith5272 Until you look up and see the goats and pigs piss in the area.

[@theodoresmith5272]

@@Mark-Rain read a book on aquifers.

[@Mark-Rain]

@@theodoresmith5272 "Nearly half of Spain’s hundreds of underground springs and wells are polluted with nitrates and other toxins, as slurry from industrial pig farms seeps beneath the soil." -Jan. 16, 2024

[@lillieberger2883]

I lived in an old apartment building that was built in the 1930s. It had a back door in every apartment leading to outdoor steps down to the alley where the garbage bins were. Outside every apartment wad a small 2x2 ft door where the ice was delivered directly to your icebox, before there were electric refrigerators. The interior hallways still had the fixtures for gas lamps.

[@maurinedeen8502]

July 2019, Oxford. While others punted, some of my friends and I discovered a Five Guys where, on that sweltering day, we could fill out cups with the best crushed ice in the whole of the UK. Never had this American seen a finer sight than those bits of crushed ice filling my cup.

[@savannah115]

The way you described it...a tear came to my eye. 🇺🇸 🫡

[@Caseyuptobat]

Dear Europeans: most of America is further south than Italy or Spain. It gets significantly hotter here, for longer periods of time, than y'all are accustomed to. Ice is part of the culture here because it's fucking warm here.

[@MasterGhostf]

its also why new england is colder than europe despite being same latitude as spain.

[@drewharrison6433]

I didn't even watch the video. Just from the title. Did you know that the average high in London in July is 74°?

[@raifsevrence]

@@drewharrison6433 Meanwhile in Missouri it is 10-20° hotter on average from June to September with an *_average_* relative humidity of 76% and highs of 90% and above.

[@westrim]

And yet we don't siesta to beat the heat like in Italy or Spain.

[@Milesco]

Damn right. We here in central California just got through a two-week heat wave where the temperature _averaged_ about 106° F, topping out at 111°. That's 41° and 44° C, respectively, for you ice and air conditioning-eschewing European folks. (Which frankly doesn't sound nearly as hot, which is yet another reason why Fahrenheit is better than Celsius!)

[@inlandwatchreviews5745]

Sitting in New Orleans sipping ice water, baby it’s hot outside. That’s why we still call the fridge the ice Box

[@janmcguire5268]

lol, yes we love our ice! When I visited a pub in London, my server filled my glass to the rim with ice. I expressed my surprise and happiness, and she said I have had lots of American tourists in here, so I’ve learned that you really love your ice! I tipped her well.

[@Rambam1776]

Cold water tastes good. I've never understood why the British are so insistent upon being warm and uncomfortable. Tepid drinks do not taste as good as cold drinks.

[@brettbuck7362]

Inferiority complex, anything pleasant or comfortable, they feel guilty about.

[@fbiagentmiyakohoshino8223]

true

[@fluffyduckbutt24]

Especially the BEER!! It should be a crime to serve it that warm. I was in London and York, and no place we went to served ice cold beer.

[@johnl5316]

I never use Ice. In restaurants I ask for no ice

[@kevinbarry71]

@@brettbuck7362 I agree. Something in the culture just makes them feel guilty about being comfortable. They are however, very comfortable with oppressing others

[@theoryman1]

In the middle of nowhere South Dakota there's a huge tourist trap called Wall Drug. It became popular when it started offering free ice water in the 1930s for people traveling west. They still advertise that fact on numerous road signs as you drive west towards it.

[@JustMe-dc6ks]

Wall drug is a neat experience. As is all the billboards advertising it on the highways for hundreds of miles around.

[@EXROBOWIDOW]

We visited the Badlands nearby. Just for fun, we made sure to avoid Wall Drug. Our son was attending college in Rapid City, and whenever we went to see him, we visited some of the tourist trap-- I mean, sightseeing adventures-- in the Black Hills area. That area has plenty of things to do. We always stayed in a hotel with an indoor water slide. Of course, the hotel also featured the solid form of water, like every decent American lodging.

[@raedwulf61]

Been there.

[@freethebirds3578]

My husband's family went there on a road trip once, so when we moved across country, we had to stop. Not as big as South of the Border, but still neat if you like that kind of place.

[@KJ-xx6xr]

@@EXROBOWIDOW you missed out on really decent priced rather good food. i always make sure to time my trip so i hit Wall Drug about breakfast time, and take a bunch of donuts for the road. otherwise i make sure its dinner time their bison burgers are amazing.

[@DerekCroxtonWestphalia]

One of the differences I noticed when I first when to Germany in the 1990's: In the U.S., I would ask for very little ice in my drinks (this was before all the self-serve drinks in fast food restaurants) and I would still get half a cup of ice. In Germany, I would ask for a lot of ice cubes, so they would give me 4 tiny ice cubes floating on top of my soda instead of 3.

[@Cricket2731]

4 ice cubes? Hardly worth the bother!

[@Songfugel]

I love how much your content has improved by leaps and bounds lately, keep up the good work :)

[@Camooses]

In my state of Maine, Ice Harvesting was a major part of our local economy, with statues and monuments honoring it.

[@JohnWilliamNowak]

Agreed. I've seen exhibits about it. In a sense, Americans invented ice. Well, the international ice trade, where ice was cut from ponds and shipped all over the world. It's referenced by Kipling, and Jules Verne said Pileas Phogg enjoyed "drinks cooled with American ice."

[@doomsdayrabbit4398]

You mean Massachusetts.

[@Camooses]

@@doomsdayrabbit4398 No, Mass of two shits smells.

[@stacithompson5016]

Maine used to be a part of mass so i guess we can say both.

[@uncletoby-]

@@Camooses I was just watching a KZbin video about that. It was quite interesting.

[@leelastarsky]

I'm from Melbourne, Australia. Even when it's 45C here, the water out of our kitchen tap runs nice and cold. This is not the case in the lower half of the USA. In Florida the water comes out of the tap at 25C! That's where I learned the true value of ice, and why they all have ice-makers in their fridges!

[@noahk8158]

My mom is French, my dad is American. He's the only one in the house who puts ice in his drinks lol. When I worked in food service, I had European customers who specifically asked for room temperature soda.

[@safffff1000]

Yech, gross

[@David-hm9ic]

When a family member was in a hospital I met a nurse from Scotland. She felt like people were shafting her by giving her ice. She was also used to keeping things cool by keeping them exposed to the outside temperature when she was in Scotland.

[@fabianmckenna8197]

Perhaps in "ye olde days"​ when bottles of milk left on the doorstep froze solid but nowadays as global warming kicks in, we embrace ice........ Worked in hotels in the 70's and 80's when we were woefully ill prepared for the influx of American visitors demanding buckets of ice in their rooms as well as lashings of iced water with meals. Our ancient ice machines couldn't cope with it and regularly surrendered! Fast forward 44 years and my daughter is married to an American meaning we turn the top freezer drawer into an ice drawer for their visit. Back in the US, you move from AC home to AC car to AC mall to AC restaurant etc, etc, etc.

[@witchdoctor4377]

​@@fabianmckenna8197yup, because it's actually HOT here. As in your average summer day in southern parts is going to be 100-120 F depending on the state you're in. Yall Europeans just don't know the meaning of "hot and humid". For perspective, we are more like visiting Northern Africa than we are Southern Europe, it's a noticeable and significant difference. Yall call 80°F a heat wave, we call it a cool summer night haha (For additional reference, California is home to literally the hottest place on the planet: Death Valley. The AVERAGE temperature there in the summer is 113°F (45°C), and the highest ever recorded temperature in the world was recorded there at 134°F (56.7°C).)

[@spamlessaccount]

Because they know it's better, and won't be able to get it back home. They'll be ruined once the have it.

[@googull4778]

California here. It’s been above 100°F for almost all of July, some days around 115°F. Now that it’s 90° for a few days I feel relaxed. It’s all about getting used to it. I’d imagine a person from a cooler climate would struggle at first. Then you learn to dress down, dress light, cold drinks, pools, lakes, beaches, canping and enjoy that occasional breeze. Summer is fun if you do it right. 😎🍺🌭🏊‍♀️🏄‍♂️⛵️🏕️

[@misspat7555]

Ooh, Lawrence, I hadn’t realized my country’s unusual fondness for ice cubes or its history! The fact that at one point ice was our second biggest export is completely a little bit wild and not something I’d ever heard before! Thank you for educating me regarding my native (well, a few generations back, at least) land! 🇺🇸

[@tonyfix8739]

One topic on Ice that I wish some of these videos would address when they talk about the cultural differences or why Americans use more ice. If you only put a small amount of ice in a glass, the temperature of the drink averages out far above the freezing point and the ice quickly melts, diluting the drink. If you add a large amount of ice to the drink, the temperature of the drink averages out to be much closer to the freezing point, and the ice in the glass stays in its solid form and does not dilute the beverage. With most restaurants giving free refills, the smaller amount of drink in the glass doesn't matter, and the Integrity of the beverage stays excellent. You don't get watery Coke.

[@David-hm9ic]

Something else that is not well understood is the importance of ice in adult beverages. Obviously, one consideration is that most liquor (not liqueur) tastes better cold. The other is that the water from the melted ice is an important part of the overall taste of the finished drink. If an Old Fashioned is made with no water and no ice, it's just bourbon with some bitters and a little sugar; still basically straight bourbon.

[@cattysplat]

As British, we have a rather miserly attitude to using things like ice, because it seems like a waste to put a lot of ice in one drink. We often don't have the facilities to make and store large amounts of ice either. Strange perhaps considering it's just frozen water, but we carry this attitude for most things with food. Much of it comes back to the rationing during WW1 and WW2.

[@BockwinkleB]

Cause today was a good day.

[@arliss35]

I lived in the south for many years, and on some really bad summer nights, our LOW temperatures were in the mid 90s. I would go to work at four in the morning and it was already 95 degrees Fahrenheit. It was absolutely ridiculous to have an outside job. I definitely learned the value of getting plenty of water, though there was absolutely no way to keep it cold past like eleven in the morning.

[@lisacrews3060]

It's not only that we like the lower temperature, it's that some of us like the physical sensation that comes with very icy drinks-that delightful "burn." A coke chilled so cold that the first few sips are slushy is fantastic! Also, we salt our ice bins full of drinks to drop the temp even more. I'm from Phoenix where it can be more that 100 consecutive days of over 100 degree temperatures and the nights don't cool off because the city is a heat island. We love our ice drinks.

[@benbaker2965]

My father called the refrigerator the ice box. That is a leftover from the days when the ice man daily delivery of a block of ice that went into the insulated box in the kitchen. Although replaced by refrigeration, he still referred to it as the ice box.

[@BTinSF]

I grew up calling it that and we also had insulated boxes on the front stoop where several times a week the "milk man" would deposit a few (glass) bottles of the stuff along with ice to keep it cool. You may be able to tell I'm older than dirt.

[@safffff1000]

Modern day refrigerators are technically ice boxes, they are a box holding ice.

[@paradoxical_taco]

A fine tradition that spans five generations at least: from the Lost Generation to GenX. As a GenXer myself, it was only after my grandparents passed that I started using the term less and less, though not completely.

[@CocoaBeachLiving]

Ice is nice😊 I was visiting Ireland where I went to the local Tesco, and I asked where the ice was..blank stares, then one gal said, come over here, she led me to the end of counter, away from the others and she said in a very low voice, go to the off-license down the road, she gave me complicated directions and said, now go, we have no ice... I got to the off-license, down a side street, then another... The shop keeper, said we don't sell ice withva scowl, then she had me wait, she came back with a plastic shopping bag filled with ice.. She said now go, you didn't get this here.. I felt like I'd done something very bad.. Lol😅

[@LindaC616]

Contraband! 😅😅

[@JenniferKitchens123]

😂

[@scarlettg.5772]

Is it really that hard to get ice in Ireland?

[@betht60]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@jasonlescalleet5611]

The very term “off license” sounds like something illicit. Like they sell things they don’t actually have a license to sell. Such as, I guess, ice.

[@benjaminmorris4962]

5:52 For anyone wondering, it's called the "Monitor-Top" because of it's resemblance to the USS Monitor

[@darcyjorgensen5808]

It was a chilly 102F here today, down from 113F last week. Yup, we want ice.

[@danisteffen-translations]

I am from Brazil, and we also love ice in everything. When it gets over 30 °C, it is very difficult to feel comfortable without ice and three cold showers a day.

[@vix4x41]

Love your wife’s dedication to her 50s style aesthetic, even in the kitchen!

[@sunla]

Great video! Very educational. I was born and raised in the US, and more specifically, Arizona. For obvious reasons, the ice obsession is even more noticeable here... I may be a bit of an oddball, but I'm not a fan of ice in my drinks. It's not a deal breaker, but I prefer my water and any other drinks without ice. Ice takes up volume in the cup, and isn't even drinkable until it melts. I also feel like it removes the flavor of anything you're drinking. I also never felt like it quenched my thirst quick enough. As it turns out, your body has to expend extra time and energy warming it up before it can even use it. Ice has practical uses that don't involve putting it in your drinks, though, so I like having it on deck.

[@_DewGaming]

Because they're so tasty and crunchy

[@Cricket2731]

I'm partial to the kibbled ice nuggets! Absolutely wonderful to chew on!

[@ascensionindustries9631]

I work in a fish market restaurant in the south. Having ice is as important as the product we sell. Some regulars will come in and just grab a bag of ice.

[@JeanWatson-y3h]

Lawrence must have visited a typical "gas station" (petrol?) and noticed the large freezers outside and inside, stocked with ICE. We LOVE ICE!

[@loke6664]

Yeah, but fish mongers use ice all around the globe, no one want stinky fish. The American habit of having more ice then Coke in a glass is a bit more strange (and likely comes from ice being cheaper which makes sense from the retailers point of view but doesn't explain why the customers want it that way too).

[@jeanvignes]

@@loke6664 - My European friends were quite shocked when I explained that our cold drinks are designed to be "diluted" with ice. Otherwise they're too strongly flavored and almost syrupy, like cola flavored cough syrup. Yuck!

[@loke6664]

@@jeanvignes That does explains a lot... (Having candy flavored medicine is way weirder though, medicine should taste wile so you only use it when you really need it),

[@chris...9497]

Speaking from my own experience, the reason gas stations sell ice was for fishing trips. It's why a lot of the rural gas stations also sold bait. You need ice for keeping drinks and perishables cold in coolers and also to keep the seafood fresh for the travel home. Makes sense to sell ice and bait where you need fuel fill-up for the trip out. I have fond memories of driving out at dawn summer Sundays, stopping for gas, ice, and earthworms (the last sold in chinese takeout cartons), renting a rowboat at a Chesapeake Bay tributary, setting out trotlines to catch blue crabs, and fishing. Come noonish, we'd pull into a sandy shore or island, make a campfire, and prepare a lunch. Usually hotdogs and/or lunchmeat and cheese sandwiches. Then, kill and bury the fire, collect the trash, pop a squat behind a bush, then back onto the rowboat to check the trotlines, collect the crabs, finish fishing, then back to the car and home. Fresh fried fish and steamed crabs (along with sliced tomatoes from the backyard) for an early dinner while hosting visiting family.

[@lorriebeckhusen9351]

My husband and I were in England in the 80's. We're from the U.S We ordered ice tea in a restaurant. They brought us two cups of hot tea with a couple of ice cubes that were mostly melted by the time we got it. We still laugh about that to this day

[@scoops0406]

Iced tea isn't popular at all in the UK, in fact I haven't seen anyone drink it in decades.

[@wessexdruid7598]

Your mistake was to order something the British don't drink and wouldn't want to drink (with all that sugar). Was it actually on the menu, or where they just trying to be helpful?

[@r0bw00d]

@@wessexdruid7598 Iced tea and sweet tea are different drinks.

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@r0bw00d And none of them are drunk in the UK. It's why Brits don't order hot tea in the US - you're rubbish at it.

[@davidcox3076]

It's a wonder that you weren't forced onto the next plane back to the States. That's like spitting on the queen.

[@addiecore]

I live in a literal oven. Going outside 70% of the year feels like you're cooking with 90°F weather constantly. Ice is a nice and quick way to cook down from the sun that feels like it is constantly trying to kill me. I wish I lived in an area with cool weather. I'd be outside so much more.

[@staceyproctor132]

Living in Phoenix where it can, and has, reached 115-118*F with nighttime lows in 90’s, ice is essential. 🥵 Who am I kidding? I’m American!! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 I put it in my drinks year round! 🤗

[@justinsayin3979]

The best comment here so far. And so underappreciated.

[@Jody-kt9ev]

I live near San Antonio which is on the same latitude as a city in Egypt (at least from an article I just read), Yes, the southern US is much hotter than the UK. The summers are much longer also. The joke here is that the seasons are "Summer, still Summer, winter, and soon to be summer". Hence the reason for so much use of ice.

[@venomousspecifics45]

In Minnesota (northern United States), the joke is “early winter, winter, late winter, and road construction season”!

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

Having been born and raised in Florida, I like to say Florida has two seasons: (1) HURRICANE SEASON. (2) WAITING FOR HURRICANE SEASON. 🤭🤭🤭

[@tomhalla426]

It is 90 F (33C) at 7:30 PM. And Europeans wonder why we use a lot of ice.

[@Eyesorecrymore]

Sounds like you're choose to me the same time and temperature

[@tomhalla426]

@@Eyesorecrymore I am in Marble Falls Texas, just northwest of Austin.

[@scotty3114]

Yep! We're having a cool streak, and at 08:20PM/2020 it's 87°F/31°C.

[@cisium1184]

I use a ton of ice in winter too.

[@cc1k435]

A couple years ago for my son's birthday...in Phoenix...in June...he wanted to play mini golf. We were there at midnight, and it was still 112 degrees outside. 🤮

[@donnaosgood9959]

Born & raised in SouthEast Texas. We said icewater, icetea for cold water/tea in jugs in the fridge. Iced water/ Iced tea was water/tea poured Over ice. The wording made a difference in what you got to drink.

[@RaccCity55]

The 90F+ days with 90% humidity do it for me.

[@JenniferKitchens123]

Amen from Alabama

[@HikuroMishiro]

When it's only 75F with only 75% humidity, European countries come to a grinding halt. School gets cancelled, businesses close, and everyone hunkers at lakes/rivers/places with air conditioning until the 'heat wave' is over. Then they have the audacity to wonder why a place that gets 90F+ temps with 90%+ humidity drinks ice water. I'm pretty sure if you dropped most Europeans off in the American South during the summer they would just die instantly.

[@janettamcgee8124]

Amen from Texas.

[@robine916]

Oddly enough,...amen from Massachusetts!

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

Ditto from a now-NC-based Native Floridian...👍

[@AaronMcLin]

Those metal ice trays were still big when I was growing up. I think that there's still one in my parents' kitchen.

[@r0bw00d]

We still have them in our house.

[@freethebirds3578]

I could never pull that lever to break the ice. I love, love, love my Rubbermaid ice trays.

[@gloriaalex11]

My parents still had a few metal trays around in the early 80s. I hated them.

[@deborahasher176]

We do like our ice plus we can't understand why others don't.

[@wadewilson524]

Truth.

[@MaunoMato99]

We do, we just don't make a thing about it, pretty much every civilized country has ice trays/ice makers in their freezes today, all of which fail within 5 years as warranty runs out and the computer chips suddenly dies because of uknown reasons.

[@deborahasher176]

​@@MaunoMato99We don't make a thing about it either but other countries seem to have an issue with Americans enjoying our ice.

[@tonys1636]

I hate ice in drinks for two reasons, it waters the drink down and any food or drink loses flavour below cellar temperature of 50 F. No one would consume a mature, vintage cheese straight out of the fridge or wine. Ice cold drinks are bad for one's gut and digestive system.

[@LindaC616]

​@@tonys1636 I've heard my German and Peruvians make the same observation about the gut, but I think the scientific community's jury is still out on that one

[@saucerocreamify]

I'm presently fishing at the place where at the turn of the 19th century, people used to cut the ice out of the hudson river

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

Giving _"Ice Fishing"_ a new meaning...😉

[@greg5011]

I now have an ice machine...HOW DID I SURVIVE ALL THOSE YEARS WITHOUT IT...Excuse me , I need to get some ice for my ICED COFFEE...

[@GrammaNay]

I have a a counter top ice maker, too, that I use for my ICED TEA!!! I'm allergic to coffee😏

[@chris...9497]

I absolutely rely on my countertop ice maker like it was an essential medical device. I use it along with a Yeti/Stanley stye 30oz insulated cup, which slows the ice melt. The ice maker production exactly matches my ice refill need.

[@williamvautaw7430]

The real question is: Why are Europeans so stingy with ice? After all, it's just water. But some of them act like it's made of gold.

[@Ozymandias2x]

They don't like ice cubes, they don't like air conditioning, they insist it's pointless and Americans are ridiculous for using them. And then a "heatwave" rolls in and it's like 80 degrees Fahrenheit and they act like they're living on the surface of the sun. And then you mention how this would be solved by air conditioning and they'll continue telling you how dumb Americans are even as they collapse into a puddle.

[@Hypatia52]

That's definitely true, at least 12 years ago in Paris. Italy wasn't like that. But in late Sept., they had a heat wave and it was 90-97 degrees and they complained that they had to buy ice for the tourists, and worst of all, the French college kids were asking for it too. Italy, however, wasn't offended, so long as you asked for it before water was served.

[@seansingh4421]

They like to bitch about everything

[@annaburns2865]

I’m guessing it’s because don’t have the same infrastructure. They don’t have built ice dispensers. They just put in a couple of ice trays and call it a day.

[@SeeingBackward]

Is it just water? That's like saying that someone who won't let their neighborhood plug into their outlets is stingy, after all it's just copper wire. At least when I lived there, many places in Europe had electricity rates quite higher than most of the United States

[@HarryMarsee-fw9ot]

Try living in Florida where the temperature gets up to the mid 90's in May and does NOT cool back down until late October where it drops to 75°F. Now, I listen to Brits who COMPLAIN about the heat when it gets up to 75°F and that IS a cool spring day! You will be the FIRST to reach for the ice to cool down your drink!

[@bland9876]

When I moved into my condo I tried using the kitchen and everything in there was smaller than I'm used to. When he said that refrigerators are smaller in Britain that's what it reminded me of but this is in the United States. One funny thing is that the cookie sheet I was using I remember how it was when washing it in the sink of my townhouse I lived in previously and then in my condo it's too big for the sink so harder to wash. I actually went out and bought a smaller one specifically because of that. Lol

[@joec.9591]

Maybe it's because as Americans we like our food and beverages to be either hot or cold, especially with regard to the extremes of seasons here. We just don't do tepid. :)

[@SherryHill-k5y]

Tepid is nasty!

[@JoPerry-by3wd]

Except with BLT, and PBJ.😊 Would grilled PBJ work? Hit my gray matter just this minute.

[@joec.9591]

@@JoPerry-by3wd O, good point!

[@TiaKatt]

@@JoPerry-by3wd I've made PB&J on toast on cold days!

[@chris...9497]

@@TiaKatt You should try PB&J on cinnamon toast. Or try PB on toast with bacon strips in place of the J.

[@Str8Bidness]

Up until the early 90s, when you walked into every restaraunt and cafe. You were given a glass of ice water as soon as you sat down...... One of the fondest memories of every Gen X American child is running into the house on a hot summer day, covered in sweat, opening up the fridge and drinking ice cold water out of a repurposed orange juice glass jug.😊

[@scotty3114]

Huh! War baby here, we just drank of the hose. You had to let all the water run out until it turned cool.

[@misspat7555]

Weirdly, my parents didn’t keep a plain pitcher of cold water; milk and pop (soda, for those unfamiliar); sometimes apple or orange juice. I keep a pitcher of water in my fridge; super convenient! 👍

[@pgh45rpms]

For four generations, my family have always kept a 2-qt. bottle of "ice water" in the fridge.

[@freethebirds3578]

@@misspat7555 I have 2 so I have cold water from one right after I filled the other one.

[@mta4562]

and get hollered at for drinking all but a quarter inch and putting it back in without refilling it.

[@revgurley]

My grandmother's brother (my great uncle?) drove a Model T around the northern parts of Atlanta Georgia in the 1920s delivering ice from my family's general store. Perfect work for strapping young men.

[@RetroTaylor94]

Its 95°F (35°C) where I live right now. Thats why.

[@RJFerret]

For future viewers, between intro/ad the video doesn't really start until 3:00

[@Greg29]

When I had dogs I used to put ice cubes in their water bowl on hot days, they loved it and would chew on the ice.

[@kalinystazvoruna8702]

I do that with my cat's water bowl.

[@10beachbum22]

@@Greg29 my husband do that with our cats and dogs. One of my cats will tap my glass of ice water to let me know his ice has melted 🤣

[@LindaC616]

​@@10beachbum22😅😅 Also, for people who do not have air conditioning, putting a bowl of ice on the floor in front of the fan will cool down the air. I always knew when my cat had reached her heat limit here on the coast because she wouldn't run away from the fan with ice in front of it. Normally cats don't like things blowing on their face

[@10beachbum22]

@@LindaC616 my grandmother used to do that lol! I made my dogs one of those contraptions with the ice cooler and a fan about 5 years ago to have outside and they loved it. Our new house has a very shaded backyard so they seem to prefer that now, but they love their water with 2 big yogurt cups we freeze with water daily. They also love a bowl of ice cubes to lick and crunch on when it’s real hot.

[@HeidiBullard]

@@LindaC616 I do the ice in a bowl trick when it's warm outside but I don't want to turn on my air yet, lol. I also use a freezable gel pack to stuff in my pillow at night, kind of like a cold water bottle, lol.

[@TheTruepanther]

Cold rocks go crunch

[@lindaseel9986]

They taste better cold.

[@courtnayzeitler8564]

Chewy ice is the bomb!

[@erakfishfishfish]

NHL coach Mike Keenan would chew ice during games. It was constant.

[@johnnychuk]

Your rectangular logic actually made me laugh out loud to myself, Laurence. That was really funny to me!

[@jimcrovatt6988]

My grandmother always said--Ice is free and you can always make more. For free.

[@johnwatrous3058]

Ice is not free, you still have to pay the electric bill for it, but I get your point, it's almost free.

[@SchemingGoldberg]

@@johnwatrous3058 You're paying for the fridge and freezer regardless of whether you make ice or not. So the ice is free, because it's not adding any additional costs on top of what you're already paying.

[@jasonking1395]

​@SchemingGoldberg actually the freezer needs to work harder when you put something warmer into it to cool it all down again, so it does cost. Although keeping a full freezer is cheaper then a half empty 1 because it doesn't lose as much cold when opened

[@HikuroMishiro]

You're also paying for the water that turns into ice. You probably would have drank that water anyway, but if we're going for pedantry than it does technically cost money.

[@SeekingTheLoveThatGodMeans7648]

@@jasonking1395 Maybe in the quantities involved in a reasonable household, the cost was too small to worry about.

[@TheAntibozo]

Worthy of note: the U.S. unit of refrigeration called a "ton" is the amount of refrigeration required to freeze one ton of water in 24 hours-or, equivalently, the amount of refrigeration yielded by delivery of a ton of ice per day.

[@sellyourhomenowbook]

😂🎉 love it

[@madmanmapper]

The US unit of heating (or cooling) capacity is the BTU or British Thermal Unit, ironically.

[@TheAntibozo]

@@madmanmapper Both the BTU and the ton of refrigeration are part of the U.S. Customary system, and are related by a factor of exactly 12,000.

[@ferretyluv]

Never heard of that measurement. I only know of fridges using BTUs.

[@TheAntibozo]

@@ferretyluv It is commonplace with large cooling systems, e.g. "a 12-ton CRAC unit".

[@EsmeCleo]

Because they’re wonderful and glorious!

[@lornadoone65]

Because it gets frickin hot here!!

[@maruka1716]

Part of the reason we call refrigerators "ice boxes" is that there used to be literal ice boxes. They would have a compartment for a block of ice and another compartment for the food you were trying to keep fresh. The ice man would deliver ice to households so they could keep food fresh longer. These were made of wood and lined with metal, and they were common enough that a lot are still around. People buy them at antique stores and refinish them to use for decorative cabinets.

[@MaskedImposter]

Ok. But why does my Grandma call warming something in the microwave nuking? "Just nuke it for a few seconds to warm it up." Did she used to use literal nuclear bombs to heat up her food!?

[@riproar11]

Nobody calls refrigerators "ice boxes".

[@maruka1716]

@@riproar11 It's an old people thing, at least in the northeast. It was slang in the 1960s, even though people had refrigerators by then. The people who used it probably grew up around parents or grandparents who had literal ice boxes, with regular deliveries of ice.

[@riproar11]

@@maruka1716 Well you said, "we call refrigerators "ice boxes"" when nobody has ever called them that for well over half a century.

[@justinsayin3979]

@@riproar11 @maruka said it's an old people thing, not a dead people thing.

[@modelermark172]

An interesting perspective. As an American, I knew about the importance of ice-harvesting in our history, but I didn't know that we exported ice to Cuba and India, much less to Norway - that would have been like your own, "Carrying coals to Newcastle." Seriously, in the days before refrigeration, I would have thought that literally everyone did this, so long as your country had freshwater lakes and winters to freeze them. As far as our continuing "national obsession" with ice water; I'd like to paraphrase what an ancient Spartan said about black broth to the King of Pontus: "To relish this drink, one must first spend all Saturday morning cutting your lawn, your parents' lawn, your grandparents' lawn, and changing the oil in your car - all in 90 degree, (Fahrenheit,) 80% humidity weather." My Like is in the 10Ks

[@kathyastrom1315]

The science author Steven Johnson had a documentary series on PBS called How We Got to Now where he would cover different topics. My favorite one was “Cold,” which included the history of the ice industry and the development of refrigeration, food preservation, and air conditioning.

[@kenshin1368]

Who on earth cares about your 'like'?

[@ThirdLawPair]

When you said "rectangles" repeatedly in rapid succession, it filled my rectangular American heard with inexpressible comfort, contentment, and national pride.

[@allenvasher5358]

Our waitstaff pay is tip based, that is way, so they want to keep those glasses/cups/mugs full & customers happy. Now the amount of ice in drinks in restaurants is because ice is cheaper then most beverages, so your 32oz drink is maybe half beverage

[@CJpab]

While visiting Israel and asked for a coke. I received a cold coke in a can. I requested a glass of ice. The waiter said “but the coke is cold” he was completely bewildered. He returned with a glass containing 1 ice cube. Yes, I’m American ❤

[@JeanWatson-y3h]

Had exactly same experience in Paris. Waiter was disgusted...That's how we roll! USA

[@NonEuclideanTacoCannon]

One of my friends went to Israel for a study abroad program right after high school. Made some friends with locals, and the entire time he's there, it's like 110 degrees in the desert, and they're all drinking some sort of boiling hot tea with high proof booze in it. He suspected the "tea" was actually something like kratom because it tasted awful and made him feel cracked out. Sounded like a wild time.

[@M4TCH3SM4L0N3]

Personally, I don't like ice in an already cold beverage. Even if the drink is room temperature or warmer, I don't like more than three ice cubes in the glass, because otherwise it just waters it down, or worse, makes the damn stuff too cold to taste.

[@SeekingTheLoveThatGodMeans7648]

Water is considered state property in the desert lands of Israel, so they probably were banned from giving a glass full of ice.

[@ariana26826]

​@@NonEuclideanTacoCannonI wonder if it was a tea made from khat/qat?

[@steph990]

I was just in Scotland at a music festival. Ordered gin and tonic at the bar. Was asked, “ice?” I was so excited until I got the drink…swear to God it was the ONE smallest ice cube in existence floating sadly in my cup. 🤣🤣🤣. Didn’t change the rest of the festival days.

[@LudusAurea]

Are Europeans stupid? I don’t get it.

[@paulgracey4697]

For part of my childhood in the 1940s my family had an ice box, not a refrigerator. My brother and I would play down by the old, disused ice house next to the pond behind our home. By old, by American standards I mean from the 1700s in New England. The ice house was part of commercial ice production along the Connecticut River, probably for transport to the southern states. When I visited President Jefferson's self designed home Monticello, there was a storage pit for ice there as well.

[@philoctetes_wordsworth]

Because most of us do not live in a cold, dreary, overcast place. I live in houston, and we got ripped off, for air conditioning repairs. We have no functioning air, and today the temperature is predicted to be 103F/115 heat index. Without ice cubes, I would die, my elderly mother would die, and our 3 cats and 2 dogs would die. I love you, dearly; but this is a video for your family and friends across the pond.🤗🤗🤗

[@lisanutini5183]

I have molds to make ice in the shapes of ornaments, Christmas trees, huge cubes, diamonds, huge spheres, etc. people love them in their drinks.

[@laurawendt8471]

Got the bf Star Wars Death Star molds 😂😂 America can be great!

[@lisanutini5183]

@@laurawendt8471 SO kewl

[@paulgreen9059]

Kind of off topic, but the greatest example of America cutting things into rectangles is Thomas Jefferson and the township system. It goes back to 1785 when the Continental Congress adopted Thomas Jefferson's scheme in the Land Ordinance of 1785, it's remained that way ever since. The entirety of the "Western" territories (and the West started way way East, basically west of the Appalachian Mountains) was divided into Townships which were squares 6 miles on a side. Each square mile of the township was numbered ; the central plots of each township corresponded to lot numbers 15, 16, 21 and 22. Lot number 16 was reserved to support public education. "There shall be reserved the lot No. 16, of every township, for the maintenance of public schools within the said township." Two townships in a state were for creating a state university. This is all very easy to find online, both the history and the maps themselves.

[@benjaminmorris4962]

"The West started way east" That's because it ended "way east" too. The Mississippi River was the US' original western border/boundary as laid out by the Treaty of Paris of 1783. So, the Appalachians essentially divided the US between the states of the east and the territories and future states of the west. The Great Lakes region of the Midwest is called the Old Northeest because of this. Because it was originally the Northwest - Wisconsin would've been the northwesternmost US state had US Westward Expansion not occurred. This is also why the Midwest is called the Midwest. It is the part of the US' "West" located in its current midsection. Similar to why the Near/Middle East is called "Near/Middle East." It's the part of the "Eastern world" that is nearest to the "West" as well as located "in the middle" of the "West" and "Far East."

[@paulgreen9059]

@@benjaminmorris4962 I wonder what the French thought of the British handing over Illinois to the Americans. "20 years ago that was ours!" 😀

[@FreedomLovingFox]

“Rectangles!” - Patrick Star

[@Thejigholeman]

cold water tastes better than warm water, which is probably why the british avoid it so much. nothing like a cup of warm water to go with your can of beans on toast.

[@cogline]

😂

[@GrayRaceCat]

Don’t forget their room-temp beer.

[@wil48823]

Why DO the British insist on making their food as bland as possible?

[@FenceThis]

Cold = bland lowering the temperature means halting chemical and biological processes including aroma and fragrance responsible ones like oxidation and evaporation, thus a lukewarm beer tastes of more than a cold one. not saying it tastes better but anything room temperature tastes of more than if chilled, just like theoretically at the point of absolute zero no taste (or anything for that matter) can be experienced as no chemical processes can occur

[@Milesco]

​@@FenceThis That may be technically true on a molecular level, especially in regard to food, but with cold beverages, there can be no question that they are *far* tastier and more refreshing than room-temperature drinks.