Life in "foreign" - maintain your identity!

OK so after much debate, I've decided the easiest thing to pursue here (and undoubtedly the thing that often occupies my thoughts) would be my life and observations on living in the U.S. as a foreigner. Mostly including cultural differences, perceptions, adjusting to life, similarities?...u get the idea. I've been thinking I might end up writing in my dialect, give it a little personality, so that should be funny hehehe. But as a friend pointed out once, Trinidadians tend to revert to "proper" english as more complex expression dictates. I have to agree ;-) On to my first topic!

Its always funny to me to see how people adapt to being here, especially my fellow caribbean people: the way they switch accents, the way they fall in line with "the group". I'm not saying you shouldn't try to fit in but don't lose your identity in the process. It's hard because you inevitably pick up traits, behaviour, expressions, from others you associate with on a regular basis. I have a friend who complains that "nobody seems to think [I am] Trinidadian anymore"...I almost feel that she is leaving out at the beginning of the sentence "Since YOU came along..." I've been here a few years now and I'm proud to say I'm as Trini as I've ever been (I hope hehe), my t's are still solid t's, not the American 'd' sound as yet ;-). Its really not THAT difficult to keep your accent if you want to, or to share about your country if you want to, or to get excited about things going on "back home". And the great thing is, you will find that people get interested, they want to learn about another culture. And eventually they accept it as being part of who you are, includingthe way you express yourself.
Then the other thing is the people who conveniently claim heritage because of whatever advantage they think they get out of it. People! you can't claim nationality if you weren't BORN and raised there. That's just my opinion. And I daresay an opinion shared by many people I've met from other countries as well. "Hi I'm Trinidadian too!" "yeah where are you from?" "Brooklyn, NY" What? Trinidadian parentage. That upsets me. I have been trying to grasp the American habit of doing the same. The way people claim to be Irish, or German, or Italian. I understand that these are major groups that came here and want to keep their heritage alive but still I just don't get it. I somehow don't think the people from Ireland would think you're Irish. Help on that anyone? I would appreciate some solid counseling on that topic.
Ah stoppin' now cuz dis ting gettin' real long. Laterz