Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Reverse Culture Shock

It's been a little more than one month since we moved back to the US and I am just starting to feel reverse culture shock. Since our arrival to the US we haven't stopped long enough to take much in. We've looked for homes, made offers, done inspections, walked away from a house, and started the process all over again. From house hunting and car purchasing, to living everyday life; I haven't had much time to breath, let alone sit and think about how I feel in the midst of this colossal change.

We made an offer on another house and it passed inspection. With one major "to do" checked off our list, it appears as though my psyche has made room for some amount of processing.  I would have preferred a little advanced notice, but instead I awoke this morning to a rather weighty presence known as reverse culture shock. I've been trying to shake it all day but it just won't go away. I miss my friends back in Shanghai as well as the city itself, and I have this looming sense that I don't want to be here, I don't want to buy anything, and I don't want to commit. Yesterday's excitement of rebuilding the interior of my soon- to-be new home has been squelched by the invader of today.

I would really like it to just go away, but will likely need to accept that this is a natural part of repatriation. Easier said than done of course...

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Time Crunch

It's early Wednesday morning and I am on the couch in  my living room trying to get a few words in before my children wake. I wish I had more time to write. There are so many things going on here and so little time to actually process through them. That in combination with the fact that I have no computer, the only Internet connection is rather inconveniently located in the kids play area, and I have no time; make my desire to blog little more than that- a desire.

Phil just informed me that he is getting ready to leave for work and needs his laptop, so more later I suppose...