Longing to get back to the U.S.?

So, I know I'm new here and may possibly ruffle a few feathers or maybe not, but I am currently in the US and can't wait to get the hell out!

I'm sure you will ruffle a few feathers, mwrk! But don't sweat it. You'll find there a lot of us here who agree with you wholeheartedly. I have a trip back to the US planned for September and, as Pebbles and Anne have said, I also feel pretty ambivalent about the whole thing. A friend in the US called me this afternoon to ask what I wanted to do while I was there ... I honestly couldn't think of a thing! However, if she were visiting me here, I'd be SO thrilled to be making plans to show her places, things, people, etc.

 Even as a child I remeber noticing differences between the UK and the US. Seems to me that the US is on one big hampster wheel. Get up, go to work, seek raise, get home late, go to sleep, not sleep well, because of all the work you didn't get done, get up and do the whole thing over again. I sure hope that hampster wheel is well oiled ! There is so much more to life than working and buying big cars and big houses and making more money. This is what I am gladly looking to leave behind.

I suggest not working in the City of London, it's a hampster wheel too.  The only difference being that part of the daily routine is going to the pub at lunch and after work.   

I love London and all the people I have met over here, especially my boyfriend, but I miss the US so much.  I have only been here 5 months and I have found it difficult to adjust to life in the UK.  I am very lucky because my boyfriend has wanted to live in the US since he was teenage and so when the time is right and we can make a move without disrupting our lives, we will.  But that's just us, each couple is different and each person needs to decide what is right for them. Right now, it just makes sense for us to be here and I am going to make the most of it.  I have to say that summer arriving has made so much difference!  It's the most beautiful climate here now, gorgeous!!!! 

When you say "being American", you mean as in cultural differences / lifestyle? What adjustments would you have to make to "be American" again?

I'm not sure what I mean.  I guess that it feels like a huge culture shock when I go home.  Everything's so big.  The people are weirdly friendly.  Everybody knows everything.  The cars are big, the fridges are big, the stores are big.  I just feel overwhelmed.  And there seems to be such a culture of keeping up-like you're freaks if you don't have hte latest Little Tikes contraption in your back yard and your kid doesn't excell at five million activities.  

Hi Mindy.... Do you think your children would prefer life in U.S.?

No, I don't.  Although I think that they might think they'd prefer life in the US.  My kids are English, they've lived here all their lives.  Their idea of life in the US is based on summers holidaying in PA(all shopping and Barbeques) and The OC.  

It's just nice htat they have  the option if they want to.  I wouldn't be surprized if they went there during the summers when they're older and worked-or if they lived here and there as young adults.  It's one of hte things you expect when you're an expat yourself.  

Right now, it just makes sense for us to be here and I am going to make the most of it.  I have to say that summer arriving has made so much difference!  It's the most beautiful climate here now, gorgeous!!!! 

Good for you, Karin! I think that's the key ... wherever you are, your life's what you make of it.

Yes I feel exactly the same way. I am home and have absolutely no desire to go back to the USA. Even when I HAVE to go back I get stressed out and try to make my USA visit as short as possible.

Me too... exactly how i feel.  I dislike going back so much, that i only do it about every 4 years.

I'm sure alot of people feel the same way you do MI_Friend, except they aren't voicing their opinions on this particular forum or don't speak much on here to begin with. You're not alone. Not everyone finds they fit in 100% to life in the UK, and some people are dying to go back -- it's just the ones who don't want to go back are the ones who tend to post the most on here I've found. Not that that's a problem, it's just an observation.  Believe me, it's not 100% easy for all of us!

Oh, definitely!!! I totally agree with HB that it's absolutely not 100% easy. I definitely don't mean to sugar-coat anything or make it seem like emigrating is a doddle. I've had rough patches, I've cried, there have been strains on my relationship because of it, there are still things I miss (Mom. Going out for breakfast with my girlfriends), and the super short winter days get me down. But overall I'm happier here and would find it a struggle to live there again.... Also, I do think it's important that people hear as many positive stories as there are to be told because at the end of the day, moving countries is a big, scary thing to do and it's nice to hear that it's worked out well for a lot of people and they're happy they did it.  

My first two years here were a nightmare! I hated England, the people and my new husband. Nothing about England was right for me. It was the most foreign place I have ever been and I have been all over the world! I hated it !!! But finally when I started mingling with the natives and making friends and learned to adjust instead of fight it I started to love it. I think making comparasons to the US is the worst thing you can do as a newbie here. This isn't the US and we shouldn't expect it to be like the US. That was my problem. Everything I experienced in my first two years here I compared with the US.
Now when I go back to the US I compare it with England and am convinced I made the right decision by moving here. I'm HOME!

My first two years here were a nightmare! I hated England, the people and my new husband.

You hated your husband?!    I take it things are ok now! 

You hated your husband?!    I take it things are ok now! 

My husband is a prince! I love him more than anything but at the time I blamed him for bringing me to this "God forsaken place" 

So, I know I'm new here and may possibly ruffle a few feathers or maybe not, but I am currently in the US and can't wait to get the hell out!

I can relate!  I felt that way since I was about 13 years old.  Two VERY big reasons I'd NEVER move back - and a big slap to all those folks who pipe up, 'Never say never', cuz barring a Euro Millions jackpot, it ain't gonna happen for us:  1) the health insurance 'system' and 2) the 'life' ethic - nonexistent due to the ridiculous 'work' ethic there. 

What my kids decide is their own business, I suppose, but it's been over 3 years since I even visited and I can't say my heart's breaking over it.

I'm not sure what I mean.  I guess that it feels like a huge culture shock when I go home.  Everything's so big.  The people are weirdly friendly.  Everybody knows everything.  The cars are big, the fridges are big, the stores are big.  I just feel overwhelmed.  And there seems to be such a culture of keeping up-like you're freaks if you don't have hte latest Little Tikes contraption in your back yard and your kid doesn't excell at five million activities.  

OMG Mindy I've had the same experience this trip.  I was out to dinner with a girlfriend last week and the waitress was too damn friendly.  I even gave her a snotty look because she was practically sitting in my lap taking a drink order.  And another girl at my salon was SO LOUD.  My stylist said I'd become London snotty but I said no, it's this place.  I can't handle it anymore. 

As quite a few have mentioned, I start stressing about trips to the US months in advance.  It's just not where I want to be anymore - it never really was. 

And as far as dual citizen children like Mindy's and Pebbles' and eventually my own - I think it's far more beneficial that they can move to anywhere in the EU without visa problems rather than having the *opportunity* to live in the US.

As regulars here know, I don't consider myself defined by the plot of land I happened to be born on.  I'm a citizen of the world.  I don't understand why where I was born - something I had no control over - should have anything to do with how I am perceived by others, in a good way or a bad way.


 

So, I know I'm new here and may possibly ruffle a few feathers or maybe not, but I am currently in the US and can't wait to get the hell out! I am so happy to hear of so many people who are so thrilled with life in the UK.  There is so much more to life than working and buying big cars and big houses and making more money. This is what I am gladly looking to leave behind.

Hear hear!!!  Four months (give or take) and I will FINALLY be on the right side of the pond!!! 

Hear hear!!!  Four months (give or take) and I will FINALLY be on the right side of the pond!!! 

Just in time to start the new year off fresh!

Just in time to start the new year off fresh!

Woohooo!!!