Year In Review

It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly a year since I packed up my life as I knew it into six bulging suitcases and made the move across the Atlantic … for better and for worse! 

No matter how much one prepares for such a life change, (through careful research and reflection, and other means), one simply cannot know what will matter in a year’s time and what will not, and what sorts of things one will experience and learn. 

Here are a few gems for your reading pleasure:

For a start, there are my six suitcases.  When one is faced with the totality of one’s belongings and choosing what to pack for an overseas move, one has to prioritize!  At the time, it seems that the bulk of my wardrobe (clothing, coats, shoes) and toiletries won out over most other things.  Don’t get me started on the toiletries … one would have thought I was moving to a desert island with NO SHOPPING.  Ever.  Again.  However, when supplies of some of my favorite products from the USA started to dwindle, and I realized it would still be some time before I returned for a "shopportunity" … er… visit,  it’s amazing how quickly I found suitable replacements for said items amongst UK brands and shops.   Granted, there are the odd items that I will stubbornly and steadfastly insist upon (and thusly go to great lengths to procure online or with the help of friends or adequate stocking up on subsequent trips back).  Still, if I’d researched replacements in advance, think of the space I could have allotted other things in those suitcases! 

Not to mention the sad fact that I lost a measure of that clothing through a horrible washing machine incident! 

Additionally, I reflect back on the myriad of items I stored with the intent of shipping to the UK (literally in a container on a ship) one day.  While some of the items remain justified, I suspect that there will be a fair number of items I will dispatch with and lament the savings we could have incurred with a smaller storage unit. 

Then there was The Great Teakettle Debate.  I can’t believe I’m saying this, but A was right.   Yes, A, you have that in writing (this time).  I don’t miss my old fashioned teakettle, and am pleased with the speed of our electric kettle (240 volts versus 110).  I concede on this point only because one can buy beautiful kettles to rival the stove-top ones, and the speed of tea preparation is a bonus! 

Here are a few things I still miss (besides the obvious family and friends in the States), in no particular order:

• Not having to pack my own groceries.  (More on that shortly). 

• Dill pickles.  I’m sorry to report that DILL pickles do NOT mean including sugar in the ingredients.  If you sweeten them, they are SWEET pickles!  I have yet to find ANY truly dill (non-sweet) pickles in the UK shops.  Even the ones labeled dill are sweet.  As someone who loathes sweet pickles, can I just say… yuck! 

• Ranch salad dressing.  Proper bleu cheese salad dressing.  Really any very good salad dressing.  On that subject, it is very difficult to come by ‘dressed’ salads in restaurants as well.  In contrast, I know that at least one of my British friends feels disheartened about all the ‘dressed’ salads in the USA. 

• Certain clothing shops.  Of course they do have clothing here in the UK … and indoor plumbing … and electricity…

• Corn-fed Kansas beef.   Tabling all discussions of whether it’s actually good for you, from where I sit there is none better tasting.  (Yes, sometimes we are a product of our own cultural relativism). 

• Mexican food.  It barely exists in the UK and I have yet to find any salsa (again like the pickles) that isn’t a bit sweet, or too vinegar-y.  Ick. 

• Wide open spaces.  They do have those here too, and they are quite beautiful … just not in towns, at shops, parking lots (car parks), or in most houses.  The parking situation has not been the easiest for me to get used to (considering that I’m from Kansas where one rarely needs to master parallel parking).  I will add that I’m impressed with the level of negotiation that takes place (successfully, I might add) between courteous drivers with space at a premium. 

Here are a few things I may never learn:

• I am still nearly always getting in on the wrong side of the car, regardless of whether I am the intended driver or passenger.  I suspect I will always do this.  Now that I am actually driving some, I can now fake it a bit with my husband.  When approaching the driver’s door when I meant for him to drive and he asks ‘Are you driving’ I can now give him a confident ‘yes’! 

• I still stand around in grocery shops waiting for checker or a helper to bag my groceries, leading to a rather awkward pause (and an embarrassed husband)... 

• I may learn proper English, but may not always remember to use it in every setting.  I would, however, advise one not to discuss what pair of ‘pants’ one intends to wear! 

Lastly, here are a few things I’ve learned (some trite but no less true):

• Hot tea makes (nearly) everything better.  

• It rains a lot in Cumbria, and so far I don’t mind it that much and haven’t yet acquired webbed feet. 

• In medical facilities, the décor generally may be faded or antiquated.  The care generally is not. 

• Life is what you make of it (and what you put into it)

In matters of life, there are always more important things...