Case
My American roommate Robert often tells me to use time wisely, but I think he abuses time. He crams a thousand activities into what he calls "just asecond." The busier the better-that's Robert's motto. He moves fast, heeats fast, he talks fast, and he may even get married and divorced fast.
From themoment my roommate wakes up, he tries to beat the clock. The alarm buzzes; he jumps up, washes quickly, snatches a piece of toast, gulps down a cup ofcoffee, and crams for his classes. He has a special watch with a built-in alarmso he can time his arrival to class three minutes before it begins. He usesthese three fleeting minutes to proofread his homework or to continue readingthe morning paper.
Robertis a lot of fun, but the way he uses time is exhausting. Last week we decidedto double-date. I thought we'd have a quiet dinner at home and enjoy an eveningof conversation. Robert offered to make the meal: quickie spaghetti, precookedFrench bread, and instant pudding. We spent only forty-five minutes for dinnerand then hurried to catch an 8 p.m. movie. Afterwards we went dancing. By 2a.m. I was dragging my feet.
我的美国室友罗伯特总劝我要好好利用时间，可我觉得他有时候把时间排得太满了。他把太多事情塞进他所谓的“一秒钟”。他觉得越忙越好，这成了他的座右铭。他的动作快，吃饭快，说话快，甚至结婚离婚都快。
自从我室友醒来的那一刻起，他就一直在跟时间赛跑。闹钟一响，他就立刻跳起来，迅速洗漱，抓起一片烤面包，大口喝下一杯咖啡，然后准备去上课。他有一只特别的手表，里面有内置闹钟，确保他能在上课前三分钟到达教室。他利用这宝贵的三分钟校对作业或者继续读晨报。
罗伯特这个人挺有趣的，但他的时间利用方式真的让人感觉累。上周我们四个朋友决定约会。我觉得我们应该在家里安安静静地吃顿饭，享受一个聊天的晚上。罗伯特主动请缨要做这顿饭：速食意大利面、预熟法国面包和速食布丁。我们只花了45分钟吃晚饭，然后去看晚上8点的电影。后来我们还去跳舞，一直玩到凌晨两点。我觉得我有点跟不上他的节奏。
What are the greatest difficulties that manyAmericans working abroad have encountered?
References:
The greatest difficulties are the general pace of life and the punctuality ofothers that may be very different from what Americans are familiar with.
