Socks

My almost-warm toes

Some days I forget about socks. No, I don't mean that I forget to wear socks, although that's the result of me forgetting about socks. I just forget that the uncomfortable feeling in my feet is them turning to blocks of ice. And I forget that socks exist for the purpose of warming said blocks of ice. I forget about the existence of wearing socks as an everyday sort of thing (unless for some strange reason I'm putting on tennis shoes).

Yet I'm willing to bet that a lot of you also forget about socks. You forget their existence, even though you're wearing them day-in and day-out. Because socks are normal.

They're not normal for me.

But that's okay, because there are a lot of things that are normal for me which I haven't yet experienced in everyday America. Like hopping in a taxi with a bunch of random strangers. Or being stared at because of my skin color. Or having people start conversations with me just to practice their English. Or realizing that my data balance is running low so I should stop browsing Pinterest (have you stopped to consider just how much bandwidth you use in looking at Pinterest?)

My transition back is going okay. It's been over a month now since I left my island and tomorrow will be a month from when I arrived in North America. I'm having a hard time blogging about it because, well, for most of my readership it's just normal life.

Yesterday I went for a walk up a hill with my mom. We saw a salamander, a wild iris, a bunch of trees and ferns and wildflowers and moss and hills... and it's totally normal, but in a beautiful and refreshing sort of way.

Normal, but weird, but normal...

Saying goodbyes at the airport

As most of you have figured out by now, I'm home in the US for a few months. I haven't been in North America since 2013. Do you remember 2013? That was the year of "What does the Fox say?"

So it's been awhile. And although America hasn't changed a whole lot, it still feels different to be experiencing it again. Let me just list a few of the "normal" things which seem strange to me:

-- Vehicles consistently have the driver on the left side: there's no guessing game of "which side is the driver on in this car?" Nope. Just hop in and go.
-- Fridges are huge: and you can open them and stare at the contents, knowing that the consistent power supply will bring them down to temperature quickly.
-- Evergreen trees: yes, I live in the Evergreen State, and there's a surprising lack of palm trees and banana plants here.
-- English everywhere: I keep swiveling to stare at people when I hear them speaking English. Oops! Oh, and all the American accents. I love it!
-- Espresso everywhere: I just want to buy ALL THE ESPRESSO.
-- Trump: okay, he's not normal. But he's definitely weird. How the heck is my country even considering him for president????
-- Smart phone staring: It's gotten even worse since I left. Yesterday I saw a kid reading his phone while skateboarding. Bad life decisions, anyone?
-- Nice roads: sometimes I just stare at the road in awe of its smoothness. Coming from an island where most of the roads are more pothole than pavement, Washington road systems make me absolutely delighted.

If any of you have watched Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, just imagine me as her, staring in joyful awe at totally normal things, like drying machines, dishwashers, hot water, and any number of other things.

And since all of you love pictures, here are a few:

Goodbyes at the airport

All dressed up, leaving the island

My "I'm going to see family!' face

My brother and his bride