TimFountain

With so much negativity from certain fruit trees clogging up the forum, I think we need a positive thread.

Here's the question:-

What dream have you fulfilled by moving to the US, that you could only have done here?

Things like owning a Harley, driving the whole length of Route-66 (OK so you could do that on your hols but you get the idea) etc.

I'll go first…. I had a dream since I was little of being able to fly my own plane. I took some lessons in the UK, but it is expensive to fly there and the EU got its nose stuck in and came up with a new harmonized pilots licence that meant many hours of useless time in a classroom, 7 written exams and that’s for a basic VFR daytime license. You needed a commercial license to fly instruments and that is a crazy hill to climb on a mere mortal’s salary.

I started taking lessons within a few months of moving here in 2003, but had to stop for a few months when our first son was born. I finally got my PPL in March 2004. I am now working on my instrument rating and having a great time visiting lots of neat out of the way places all over texas.

So what have you all been able to do here that would have been impossible back in Britain?

- Tim

Pimpbot

Probably going to sound like a soppy wet fart, but mine and my wifes dream was just to be happy. We use to talk forever before I got here about what we wanted to do and where we would like to be in a few years time and pretty much all our hopes and dreams have come true. Love the fact that I can now drive as I never bothered with the car test at home and I have wanted a dog since I was a kid and now I have one.

anotherlimey

I still haven't done either of mine yet:

1) A road trip across America.
2) Get arrested by an overweight, 10 gallon hat wearing, Texan Sheriff named Buford T. Justice.

AmerLisa

Manc

congrats, very envious!!

krizzy

Being a boring Brit.....I always wanted a home in FL since going there on holiday......I've done that....

I wanted a white pick fence in small town USA.....I got the fence but its to much to paint white...so I have half of that......

I've still to do a few things......but I'm getting there.....

TimFountain

If you're ever down this way, give me a shout, I'll take you for a spin....Not literally, did some spin training as part of unusual attitude recovery training, one minute you're pulling up and looking at the blue sky, next moment the world is spinning round and round, everything is flying around in the plane, and the recovery pulls a couple of G's.... you can feel the skin pulling down on your face and the blood draining into your legs, all whilst you are trying to get straight and level without entering a secondary stall/spin.

- Tim

Bob

errr....I'm working on it...to rag a big ole muscle car like a GTO..haven't done it yet, but a mates brother is restoring one and once the engines running, that'll be one thing I'll be able to do...it helps they live on a 100 acre horse farm *l*

anotherlimey

Oh that's another, getting a big old American muscle car. One of our employees has an old Firebird, it's gorgeous and sounds like a thunderstorm.

Also, I'm waiting to arrange for one of my friends to come over for a few weeks so that we can continue getting our sky diving licenses. It's cheaper over here, and the weather is much better.

Sarah

I have a love of old American cars too and although this didn't take place in the states, the reason I got to do it was because of my husband being American - when I got married to I arrived at the church (in England) in a Pink Cadillac that used to belong to Jane Mansfield. It was kinda tacky but in a fun way and felt awesome, I would love to own a car like that one day and have been to a few of those Cadillac/ 1950's enthusiasts car shows and of course the possibility of owning one is a much more achieveable dream than it would be had I lived in the UK.
Also this weekend went jet-skiing at a friend house on the Great Lakes in Ohio, not the realization of a dream but fantastic fun and something that I would've probably never done in the UK. Can't see me jet skiing across the sea at blackpool really.
Done the road trip thing - fantastic time - visited Memphis, Nashville, Atlanta, Houston, Biloxi, New Orleans and loads of places inbetween and was the trip of a lifetime in a battered old van with my other half and 3 mates from Britain. Definintely worth the time and effort.

krizzy

Both my kids have cars over 20 years old.....my son is into car body repair and has spent a lot of time doing his up......my daughter just likes big old American cars....

Pimpbot

I got to drive my brother in laws 5 litre Mustang GT a few weeks back. Very nice to pull away from the lights with a growl from the engine. He just traded it in for a Merc SLK though.

peacelover

I had a dream of travelling around America and I am certainly doing that. I always thought I would be doing in in periods of time from the UK, instead I live here and travel it now, even better!

MiniBrit

Actually, I always dreamed of moving to Australia. Didn't plan on falling for and marrying a Yank... Anyhow Im happy enough ATM and there is always the possibility of moving to Oz in the future with my husbands work, so who knows what might happen.

snowbunny

When you do the road trip, stay on I-10...... (assuming you start from FL) and keep the pedal to the medal. I'll ring the local yokels when you hit the state line and have them set up a road block.