@biffvernon

That sounds like a setup for a joke about either women's menstruation or stop signs, or maybe just about American culture in general. But I'll try to answer it seriously.

I think it's just alternative terminology.

(If you haven't seen #LaurenceBrown on #YouTube yet, he has an account called #LostInThePond. He's a British fellow living in the USA who makes videos and writes articles about the different cultures. He's very entertaining-- and sometimes a bit TOO accurate about us Yanks.😏)

http://www.lostinthepond.com/search/label/American%20vs.%20British%20English?&max-results=6&m=1