Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Homesick?

For the past two days I've been feeling in a funk. Sort of like a gray cloud is hovering nearby. Kind of sad. I don't have any real reason to feel sad. I think maybe I'm just missing home and all the familiarities and comforts. I miss our family, the ease of talking to my friends, the familiarity of how things work, the ease of getting around without having to plan in advance, the sun. In regards to the sun I still have to get through February and March. Thankfully we'll get a good dose of it when we are in Texas in April! I'm soooo looking forward to warmer weather and sunny days! And Chuys, and Whataburger and, and, and...

That isn't to say that I don't enjoy living in England--I do very much. Life is simpler here in so many ways than it is in the US. I love our community here, the slower pace of life, the adventure, walking everywhere, making a smaller carbon footprint, hardly driving anywhere, spending less money on "extras". We don't spend as frivously here because it is such a chore to go shopping and we have very limited storage space to pack things in. Parking is difficult so we tend to stick to Durham, which is small, so we don't face the same temptations as we would if we "just ran into Target". No Targets here! We tend not to go anywhere. There are fewer fast food options so we don't do fast food very often. Simpler lifestyle=less spending on "extras".

I don't know what it is about loving the familiar but I miss it. I'm wondering when living here will be like second nature. When will doing something like DRIVING to Newcastle not seem so daunting and intimidating? (That reminds me of a story I should post about....) Maybe in another six months? Who knows. I do look forward to that and having a better understanding of the culture here and what to expect.

4 comments:

Sharon M said...

The first year living overseas is HARD. It doesn't matter if you move to England or the Middle East, it's still very different and takes some serious time to acclimate.

I still miss Tex-Mex, especially the convenience of it in SA. I had my MIL bring over a huge bag of Maseca and a tortilla press so I could make my own corn tortillas.

That being said, I too like being in a city where I can walk almost everywhere. In both my parents' and my in-law's houses, it is over a mile to the grocery store. It's about 1/2 km from my house to the supermarket, and every neighborhood has a local grocery store that you can go to and buy basics; ours is just down the street!

Daniel said...

Has it been 6 months? I've been told that the 6 month mark is where the 'honeymoon' phase fades and the 'this is my home' phase kicks in. Along with other emotions of transition. Thanks for sharing and being open. I haven't experienced this, but am interested in it. It brings reality to the 'grass is greener' perception. Everything comes with good and bad.

Love the concept of no car. Mmmmm. That's part of the reason I work from home. We hardly drive, and when we do it's mostly optional. Sprawl is not one of the things I like about America :)

amelia said...

We've only been here 4 months--almost 5.

mamabrown said...

I know it must be very hard at times to be so far from home. The lack of Texas sunshine would be hard for me too. You are learning so much and seeing so many new things and learning a whole new culture...experiences you will always treasure. I can't wait to see you ....just a few more weeks. I plan on getting mega hugs from all of you at least enough to help me til we get to visit.