Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Aug 8th 2007, 2:23 am
#436
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jul 2007
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Posts: 8,497
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Totally agree Bru. Sound stuff there.
The first time I had a boxing day party I thought no one would tip up. But all the yanks did and couldnt belive how much fuin it was. Well I did ply everyone with copious amounts of booze, always the trick for a good gathering as Mum told me!
The first time I had a boxing day party I thought no one would tip up. But all the yanks did and couldnt belive how much fuin it was. Well I did ply everyone with copious amounts of booze, always the trick for a good gathering as Mum told me!
Aug 8th 2007, 2:34 am
#437
who turned out the light?
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: WA
Posts: 7,997
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Totally agree Bru. Sound stuff there.
The first time I had a boxing day party I thought no one would tip up. But all the yanks did and couldnt belive how much fuin it was. Well I did ply everyone with copious amounts of booze, always the trick for a good gathering as Mum told me!
The first time I had a boxing day party I thought no one would tip up. But all the yanks did and couldnt belive how much fuin it was. Well I did ply everyone with copious amounts of booze, always the trick for a good gathering as Mum told me!
As do you and everyone here Though it doesn't always happen re 'what goes around' I always hope it does, for everybody.
Aug 8th 2007, 2:37 am
#438
SUPER MODERATOR
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 88,034
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Just had my first dinner party of eight and my OH kept looking at me as I was trying to ply them with as much alcohol as possible to help the evening, they kept saying no and I was nearly pouring it over their hands
aw thanks As do you and everyone here
Though it doesn't always happen re 'what goes around' I always hope it does, for everybody.
aw thanks
As do you and everyone here Though it doesn't always happen re 'what goes around' I always hope it does, for everybody.
Aug 8th 2007, 1:43 pm
#439
Who?
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Stepford
Posts: 3,098
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Thats not really me though, I'm not the initial life and soul of a party - am very shy if you first meet me (honest 
) and have always been paranoid that no one would come to any of my parties so never 'threw' any (dinner parties yes).
But I do think its an excellent idea
(wakey wakey everybody my long post is over now)
) and have always been paranoid that no one would come to any of my parties so never 'threw' any (dinner parties yes).But I do think its an excellent idea
(wakey wakey everybody my long post is over now
)
Aug 8th 2007, 1:50 pm
#440
who turned out the light?
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: WA
Posts: 7,997
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
I know everything will be OK but does that get through to my nerves re doing anything, meeting new people, sometimes just doing normal things? no!
But thats been a long standing issue with me which I battle with myself everyday :curse:
Aug 8th 2007, 2:54 pm
#441
Sursum corda
Joined: Sep 2002
Location: Richmond Hill, GA USA
Posts: 38,860
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
My entertaining days as a hostess were almost exclusively when ex was in the Army. I found the time that it went the best was when I didn't really know what I was doing but had good intentions. We had open house on New Year's Day-started at 1 pm and finally got rid of the last folks at 10 pm! Must have been the rum cake made with 151 proof rum or the feuerzangebowle 
We had open house on New Year's Day-started at 1 pm and finally got rid of the last folks at 10 pm! Must have been the rum cake made with 151 proof rum or the feuerzangebowle
Aug 8th 2007, 3:31 pm
#442
Unmitigated Gall
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Aug 8th 2007, 3:48 pm
#446
Who?
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Stepford
Posts: 3,098
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
I always say Yes to every invitation and then spend weeks trying to work out a way of getting out of it. I usually can't think of anything convincing and so we have to go. Then I have a great time!
Aug 8th 2007, 5:01 pm
#447
Sursum corda
Joined: Sep 2002
Location: Richmond Hill, GA USA
Posts: 38,860
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Ex served it at a Super Bowl party when we were in Germany-kept asking if it was getting hot (in January????), and going around throwing windows open. I went to bed (to stay warm!!!) and the next thing I know, he came in and went crashing down into the bed like a felled tree, 
Aug 10th 2007, 4:20 am
#448
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2007
Location: San Diego
Posts: 20
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
[QUOTE=gypsygirl;4886215]We lived in Manhattan and now are in rural NJ
They feel the same way, its so hard to make friends here. I think here they just stick to the friends they had growing up etc so dont consider making more.
I felt the exact same way when I was living in England. My husband is British. People do come around eventually, but adult friendships take a long time to blossom and grow. It isn't like the days when both wanting to watch Top of the Pops on the weekend was the basis for a friendship. Hang in there! It gets easier.
They feel the same way, its so hard to make friends here. I think here they just stick to the friends they had growing up etc so dont consider making more.
I felt the exact same way when I was living in England. My husband is British. People do come around eventually, but adult friendships take a long time to blossom and grow. It isn't like the days when both wanting to watch Top of the Pops on the weekend was the basis for a friendship. Hang in there! It gets easier.
Aug 10th 2007, 4:32 am
#449
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2007
Location: San Diego
Posts: 20
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Also, some numbers for you to consider. It costs an average 250k dollars to raise a child to the age of 18 in the US and an average 165k pounds in 'London' to raise them to 21 including new education fees.
Where did you get that stat?
I suspect that figure reflects that the US assumes that their children will do many things that the "average British teenager" does not...at least the average London teenager does not:
-like have braces at the cost of $6000-$8000
-go to summer camp each summer
-get a new wardrobe for school every September
-get a driver's license at age 16, a car, and a car insurance bill
-play high school sports at a cost of $1000+ per school year
-spend $500 going to proms
-buy a year book
-take senior pictures
-spend a summer travelling the US on "university visits"
The cost is entirely dependent on how you prioritise and how you and your family decide to run things. My uni (located in the Midwest) cost $10,000/year including room & board...in the US for a 4-year school. I could have chose community college for the first two years at a cost of less than $1000 per annum.
My parents qualified for ever type of US assistance available when I was born. I'm certain they didn't spend nearly 250, 000k raising me and I never wanted for anything...but as people wait until later in life to have kids, they wait until they have more money...and people with more money can afford to spoil their children more.
Where did you get that stat?
I suspect that figure reflects that the US assumes that their children will do many things that the "average British teenager" does not...at least the average London teenager does not:
-like have braces at the cost of $6000-$8000
-go to summer camp each summer
-get a new wardrobe for school every September
-get a driver's license at age 16, a car, and a car insurance bill
-play high school sports at a cost of $1000+ per school year
-spend $500 going to proms
-buy a year book
-take senior pictures
-spend a summer travelling the US on "university visits"
The cost is entirely dependent on how you prioritise and how you and your family decide to run things. My uni (located in the Midwest) cost $10,000/year including room & board...in the US for a 4-year school. I could have chose community college for the first two years at a cost of less than $1000 per annum.
My parents qualified for ever type of US assistance available when I was born. I'm certain they didn't spend nearly 250, 000k raising me and I never wanted for anything...but as people wait until later in life to have kids, they wait until they have more money...and people with more money can afford to spoil their children more.
Aug 10th 2007, 4:40 am
#450
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2007
Location: San Diego
Posts: 20
Re: Ive had enough, I want to go home :(
Was surfing and found this mail and these are my sentiments exactly at the moment. We have been living in Omaha NE for nearly 2 years, are on a 3 year work visa through my husbands company, and we are just stating the GC process. We have 3 kids under 5. We are just coming out of the expense of moving here, sold everything in the UK and are currently renting a nice house till our visas are sorted. We have good jobs, kids are happy, but we seem to just work a lot, have no paid vacation and have little money left for extras!
In August my 5 yr old starts kindergarten, so will be $500 better off a month with one less childcare. I think the place will look a lot rosier with being slightly better off.
We haven't been home in since we left 2005, and all our family thinks we are crazy that we aren't 100% happy here! We are 50% happy, we have the chance to make more money here, but i think it is just being so far from home and people who sincerely care about us and the kids.
I have found the nebraskans a strange breed...they feel quite alien to us.
Of course! That is part of culture-shock.
Life in omaha is all about american football, the aisles are full of scrapbooking stuff, I don't like mac n cheese or understand anything about taxes or health insurance and why I am always just paying out all the time! I find people v. uptight about their kids, and the social cliques in the office are like being in a high school.
Social circles in Britain can be very closed, too. However, they were familiar circles where you knew the rules.
They are on the surface all polite, how are you etc, but will not let us in any further than that.
I think every American that has ever lived in England has felt the same way about the Brits. Friendships always take time!
I feel we are looked upon as a bit of an oddity, I am British and my husband is Italian, and people just don't seem to get us. About 50% of people we talk to have never been outside of the state, so to move our family over here I guess they think we are a bit crazy. They seem narrow minded and stick to what and who they know I guess.
Nebraska would never be my first suggestion for a British-Italian couple moving to the U.S.
Within the last couple of months we have got friendly with a really nice small group of people who have travelled a lot in the UK, and seem more laid back like us, so at the moment we are expanding our social life v. slightly, or atleast as much as we can with 3 kids and no babysitters around!
When we left the UK we lived in Kingston upon Thames, in a tiny house and limited extra money. Here we have a chance to be better off, but our kids will miss family in the UK and Italy.
We have only travelled a tiny bit, did a road trip to Chicago and South Dakota in the summer, I think we feel a bit stifled in Nebraska, having to drive to somewhere a bit more lively. Our plan is get our green card and get out of this state, so I think it is just the case of making an effort to get involved in life here, rather than just keeping to ourselves. Maybe the blandness we feel about life in Omaha is really just our perception, and that there is some richness to it if we look.
People that have never moved...are actually a close-knit network of people, but it may take some time to crack. It takes at least two years for a place to feel like "home".
I think there is justa little emptiness, especially holidays and celebrations, that we are on our own. But life would be v. difficult to go home and start again.
Maybe the summer will brighten the outlook up a little!
In August my 5 yr old starts kindergarten, so will be $500 better off a month with one less childcare. I think the place will look a lot rosier with being slightly better off.
We haven't been home in since we left 2005, and all our family thinks we are crazy that we aren't 100% happy here! We are 50% happy, we have the chance to make more money here, but i think it is just being so far from home and people who sincerely care about us and the kids.
I have found the nebraskans a strange breed...they feel quite alien to us.
Of course! That is part of culture-shock.
Life in omaha is all about american football, the aisles are full of scrapbooking stuff, I don't like mac n cheese or understand anything about taxes or health insurance and why I am always just paying out all the time! I find people v. uptight about their kids, and the social cliques in the office are like being in a high school.
Social circles in Britain can be very closed, too. However, they were familiar circles where you knew the rules.
They are on the surface all polite, how are you etc, but will not let us in any further than that.
I think every American that has ever lived in England has felt the same way about the Brits. Friendships always take time!
I feel we are looked upon as a bit of an oddity, I am British and my husband is Italian, and people just don't seem to get us. About 50% of people we talk to have never been outside of the state, so to move our family over here I guess they think we are a bit crazy. They seem narrow minded and stick to what and who they know I guess.
Nebraska would never be my first suggestion for a British-Italian couple moving to the U.S.
Within the last couple of months we have got friendly with a really nice small group of people who have travelled a lot in the UK, and seem more laid back like us, so at the moment we are expanding our social life v. slightly, or atleast as much as we can with 3 kids and no babysitters around!
When we left the UK we lived in Kingston upon Thames, in a tiny house and limited extra money. Here we have a chance to be better off, but our kids will miss family in the UK and Italy.
We have only travelled a tiny bit, did a road trip to Chicago and South Dakota in the summer, I think we feel a bit stifled in Nebraska, having to drive to somewhere a bit more lively. Our plan is get our green card and get out of this state, so I think it is just the case of making an effort to get involved in life here, rather than just keeping to ourselves. Maybe the blandness we feel about life in Omaha is really just our perception, and that there is some richness to it if we look.
People that have never moved...are actually a close-knit network of people, but it may take some time to crack. It takes at least two years for a place to feel like "home".
I think there is justa little emptiness, especially holidays and celebrations, that we are on our own. But life would be v. difficult to go home and start again.
Maybe the summer will brighten the outlook up a little!