That is so true. I never called myself an American. I'm a Texan. Then 911 happened and for the first time in my life, I remembered I'm an American. It was a weird epiphany.
Also, when I was over seas, I told everyone I was from "Texas". They would look at me with big bug eyes and a huge smile, like I was from Mars or something. They would ask about South Fork, cowboy boots, horses, and on and on. It was really kinda sweet. When I lived in Turkey, I taught ESL. I took a country western cassette to class one day, and taught my students how to two-step. LOL I also made them some Mexican food. They loved it.
The whole time I was traveling overseas, I had a serious hankering for some good mexican food. I remember sitting at a little outdoor cafe in Nueremberg Germany one time. The Turkish owner of the place asked me where I was from. I told him "Texas", and he rushed inside and came back out with a bottle of tequila. He made a brave attempt at making a margarita for me, but it was gawd awful. I smiled, told him it was good, and choked it down. Closest thing to Texas I had in 3 years.