Jamie bought
a house and still counts all the money, I still live in Abu Dhabi teaching
children and after all her travels Sarah is attempting to perfect
teleportation.
So I have
been here in Abu Dhabi for 6 months now… and according to my countdown app on
my iPad I have 140 days until school is done and I get to go home for the
summer. (But who’s counting?) It’s not that I don’t like it here and can’t wait
to leave… because I do intend to return a second year pending a lottery win…but
there are many things I do miss about home. AND some things I don’t miss so
much.
What I miss:
Obviously my
friends and family, because no matter how many Skype conversations we have it’s
just not the same. And you begin to realize how much time you spend saying “I
can’t see/hear you” or “You froze.”
What I don’t
miss:
The
questions and continuous conversations about my career path and having no
answers.
What I miss:
American
television- the predictability of the programing, no edits for content, and watching
it on a big screen TV.
What I don’t
miss:
American
television- specifically reality TV and all the commercials.
What I miss:
Living in a western country with lots of freedoms (especially for women), where I can wear tank tops without feeling over exposed, drink openly without the fear of deportation and having a frank open discussion about the policies of government and religion.
What I don’t
miss:
Living in a
self-centered overly divided country, where children fear guns at school, and
people choose to stay ignorant about not only the rest of the world, but their
own politics as well. (Seriously people
here know more about American politics than people at home)
What I miss:
Pork (and
not having to go to a special back room at one certain store to buy it).
What I don’t
miss:
Nothing
counters Pork…I just miss it.
What I miss:
Football
(American), college basketball and soon baseball.
What I don’t
miss:
Stupid
commentators (getting the information I am missing from my dad and Jamie is
much better), athlete scandals that overshadow the sport and having near heart
failure while watching a game (actually I do sort of miss that).
What I miss:
Rain, snow
and any other form cold, wet weather.
What I don’t
miss:
Living with
grey skies for 9 months of the year; going to the beach in January is pretty
nice.
What I miss:
Having a
physical address and getting mail at home.
What I don’t
miss:
Junk mail.
What I miss:
Snow covered
mountains and tall green trees.
What I don’t
miss:
Feeling like
a slacker because I don’t ski down the mountains or hike in the trees every
weekend.
What I miss:
Driving
myself around and not putting my life in other people’s (sometimes not-so
capable) hands in moving vehicles. Driving here can be quiet crazy at times.
What I don’t
miss:
Having to
take care of and pay for a car.
All-in-all
it most things balance out (but certainly not all). I have become slightly more
patriotic during my time abroad, although I find myself around lots of
Canadians and gladly lump myself in with them rather than people from the USA…
I love Canadians. (A love that does not completely spring from years of
watching How I Met Your Mother, but it has helped.)
Coming Soon:
In honor of Kacey’s birthday, which is also Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, Sarah
writes a poem about Kacey entitled “Kacey as President Would be Babe-raham Lincoln”.
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