Zoltan is right.
Last summer at an English corner I don't know who was more surprised, me or a 23 year old guy with the English name of "Zilch" when I explained that the TV show of "Friends" was not a realistic representation of life in America. He was surprised that it is not an accurate representation, and I was surprised that a Univ educated person could be so naive as to think that it was not a piece of fiction (written, acted and produced for TV.)
Many, most, maybe all, of my students and friends have preconceived ideas of what westerners are like. The ideas come from TV shows on disc, DVDs for a buck at the video store, movies downloaded from the net, and news from English language Yahoo.
What a disappointment when we don't live up to the likes of movie stars and pro athletes.
But how charming when we make asses of ourselves in public when we're drunk, pissed off, seen frequenting "hair salons", or being hungover or drunk in class as teachers!
So what should our friends, students, collegues and employers think? Can they forget about the previous teachers they hired and then skipped town when they didn't like their jobs? Or when they are lied to by young teachers about credentials and experience? What should they think when we show up in yesterdays clothes, smelling pretty ripe, obviously hungover, unable to teach an early class?
Its not all their fault, not all our fault. The system is pretty messed up, with alot of distrust everywhere. Too bad we can't all shake hands, say we're sorry, and get a fresh start. But its too damn difficult.