What I Miss

I have had many, many questions about what I miss being in my new post code and what I don't love so much. I realize with time this list may change, but I may have another day where my writer's block gets the best of me and I can print a revision. Oh, the anticipation. I can feel it! Here goes...

What I miss...

1. My family and friends. That is a given. And since I cannot refer to one and not to all specifically as that would make my Christmas visit awkward, I will leave it at that.

2. Chick-fil-A. I used to miss it on Sundays at home. Now I find I miss it on weekdays too. There is little better than a toasted bun filled with a crispy fried chicken breast and topped with a garlicky pickle. YUM!

3. Mexican food. I realize there are some Mexican restaurants in the larger cities in England. And they claim to be authentic. I miss the local Americanized version that exists in every single small town in the US. I miss endless tortillas and salsa and green margaritas.

4. Crap TV. Don't get me wrong, there is crap here too, but both the shows they export and the shows produced here in the crap genre  are the crappiest of the crap.  There are some wonderful shows here too. I miss Bravo and HGTV. I miss the American version of Food Network. Man V. Food is not my idea of quality Food Network programming. I miss Project Runway and So You Think You Can Dance. I miss CBS Sunday Morning and Master Chef. I do not miss CNN, any program about cupcakes,  or the Kardashians.

5. Saturday college football. To be fair, my idea of a great football Saturday was to provide the food and snacks for the family. The husband and younger child would start watching coverage from game day and watch until the Oregon game was over in the wee hours of Sunday. I read. I snuggled up in  a blanket  and a book on the couch, fed and watered them, and was totally happy. I read a lot. And I even watched the occasional play!

6. Fall leaves. Fall is my favorite season. I love how brilliantly blue the sky becomes against the kaleidoscopic colors of fall leaves. I love apples and the delicious array of delicacies one can make with apples. I LOVE cider. I love sweaters and retiring all things sleeveless for another year.  I love tights and corduroy. I love the swoosh-swoosh sound corduroy makes when you walk.  I love soups and stews and thick, rich comfort foods.  I don't love how folks refer to the weather as "crisp". Crisp is an apple. Not the weather.

7. Driving.  I miss driving around and exploring new places. I don't miss traffic. I miss the freedom being able to drive gives one. There are plenty of buses and trains - and I can walk the entire town in about thirty minutes. I love walking, and we try to walk every day. I don't love walking in the rain. And it rains nearly every day. 'Nuff said.

8. I miss Duke's Mayonnaise, Hidden Valley Dry Ranch Dressing, Jif peanut butter, and Ruffles with Ridges. I can get black-eyed peas here, and in Virginia they were in the international food section. I miss Trader Joe's. I miss them a lot. I miss pimento cheese. There is a Leicester cheese and spring onion sandwich here that is similar. It is delicious! It tastes like John's Gramma's cheese ball. But it still isn't pimento cheese.

9. Iced tea. The English do know how to do tea. Hot tea. I miss a giant glass of slightly sweet tea with fresh mint and lots of ice. Yum!

10. American sizes. The sizes for clothes here are one to two above American sizes. For example, if you wear a size 12 in the US, you would wear a  14 or 16 here. I do not need any help in the feeling like an elephant department.

All in all  I really do like it here. It is an adjustment. I've had to learn all new currency and measurements. I've had to adjust a lifetime of cooking to local ingredients. I have had to learn to listen as one accent does not fit all of England. I have had to figure out radiators and gas appliances. I have learned that kindness breeds kindness. Folks have been incredibly friendly and patient and helpful. And I will survive without my mayo and peanut butter!