I sure miss....
Someone asked me the other day if I was homesick. I have only been here a little under six months and have been so busy I've never really thought about it. Since I am going to be returning to the US next month for vacation (and hopefully some training in Florida) I am not really concerned about it. There are things that I miss from back in the US, but there are things I like here also. So, without further ado, I present my first top 10 list....
The top 10 things I miss from the US -
10) Clothes dryer. No one here uses clothes dryers... we hang our laundry out to dry. This may not seem like a big deal, but it would be nice to do laundry and have the whole process done in a few hours instead of a few days.
9) Wildlife. Maybe it's just living in the city, but I miss going outside and seeing squirrels, rabbits, a deer or three, and a wide variety of birds every once in awhile. Maybe I should get out of town more often.
8) Driving. Speaking of getting out of town, it sure would be nice to head out on to some highway and drive around every once in awhile. It sure is going to seem strange back in the US driving alone in a car after being packed into a bus every day like a sardine. I miss my Corvette. ::sigh::
7) Books in English. I like to read, and reading IBM manuals is not that much fun. My boss just got back from Amsterdam and picked me up a copy of the new Harry Potter book... in English. Yeah!
6) Clean air, water, and streets. Those $1,000 litter fines work better than you think.
5) Tex-Mex food. Actually, I miss all of the variety of foods available in the US... Tex-Mex just happens to be at the top of the list. Fajitas, burritos, tacos, tamales, nachos, cheddar cheese, salsa, jalapenos,... (starting to feel like Homer Simpson. Mmmm... doughnuts).
4) A real internet. I really miss being able to surf what ever I want to at really fast speeds without my ISP going down every other week.
3) Excellence. Sure, you might get bad service or a bad product every once in awhile, but on the whole these things are much better in the US than most places in the world. Capitalism is a wonderful thing!
2) Individual voices. The power of people being able to speak out against what is wrong, incompetent, or corrupt is a powerful thing. Independent thought or constructive criticism here is not only discouraged but it's looked down upon and can land you in very hot water. Chinese complain about this, but end up just saying mei ban fa which literally means 'there's no way'. I loathe that phrase.
and the number one thing I miss from the US is... Family and friends, of course!
The top 10 things I miss from the US -
10) Clothes dryer. No one here uses clothes dryers... we hang our laundry out to dry. This may not seem like a big deal, but it would be nice to do laundry and have the whole process done in a few hours instead of a few days.
9) Wildlife. Maybe it's just living in the city, but I miss going outside and seeing squirrels, rabbits, a deer or three, and a wide variety of birds every once in awhile. Maybe I should get out of town more often.
8) Driving. Speaking of getting out of town, it sure would be nice to head out on to some highway and drive around every once in awhile. It sure is going to seem strange back in the US driving alone in a car after being packed into a bus every day like a sardine. I miss my Corvette. ::sigh::
7) Books in English. I like to read, and reading IBM manuals is not that much fun. My boss just got back from Amsterdam and picked me up a copy of the new Harry Potter book... in English. Yeah!
6) Clean air, water, and streets. Those $1,000 litter fines work better than you think.
5) Tex-Mex food. Actually, I miss all of the variety of foods available in the US... Tex-Mex just happens to be at the top of the list. Fajitas, burritos, tacos, tamales, nachos, cheddar cheese, salsa, jalapenos,... (starting to feel like Homer Simpson. Mmmm... doughnuts).
4) A real internet. I really miss being able to surf what ever I want to at really fast speeds without my ISP going down every other week.
3) Excellence. Sure, you might get bad service or a bad product every once in awhile, but on the whole these things are much better in the US than most places in the world. Capitalism is a wonderful thing!
2) Individual voices. The power of people being able to speak out against what is wrong, incompetent, or corrupt is a powerful thing. Independent thought or constructive criticism here is not only discouraged but it's looked down upon and can land you in very hot water. Chinese complain about this, but end up just saying mei ban fa which literally means 'there's no way'. I loathe that phrase.
and the number one thing I miss from the US is... Family and friends, of course!
posted by Steve Harms at
8:01 PM
2 Comments:
Pssst. If we had an address to ship things to, I'm sure that you might get a care package..
I wonder how much it costs to ship a deer to China?
By
Anonymous, at 11:41 PM
Thanks for the offer, but getting shipments here is a royal pain. I don't know how much the customs tax would be on a deer! ;)
By
Steve Harms, at 10:42 PM
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