The last few months have been a crazy whirlwind of coming and going, filled with many good memories, happy hello's and sad goodbyes. We visited Kansas City and Hermann Missouri, getting to spend much time with Ashley's family for Thanksgiving. We then visited North Carolina for Christmas, and finally, after being homeless vagabonds for almost 2 months, we moved into a nice little apartment in Boulder Colorado on New Year's Eve, 2008. Please check out our pictures for more info.
We're settling in nicely at our home in Boulder. It was great to be reunited with all of our old clothes and things from our storage shed. We realized that we gave away a lot of stuff before we left, a few things we wish we would have kept. We've been reunited with many old friends and are starting to get caught up with all that's happened in the last 1.5 years. Friends are now marred, engaged, have babies, new jobs, and some friends have even moved away.
We're now looking for jobs and volunteer opportunities to keep us busy. We have been blessed with good job opportunities, even in this hard economic environment. In addition to looking for jobs, we're also cooking a lot of thai food for friends to try out and also trying to remember how to climb, run, bike, and breathe at altitude.
So, How's Re-entry to America?
This is a common question for us. We'll share a few stories from our reentry to the crazy american culture.
1. Taxi ride- a 10 minute taxi ride from the airport, in thailand would cost us $6. Here, it cost us $35.
2. After months of hearing family worry about all the dangers in Asia and hoping we will make it home safely, we made it (of course), only for Jonathan to get bitten by a spider in his first night in America. Apparently, a brown recluse made a home in their unused bed and didn't like his return.
3. After leaving America in great economic prospects, we came back to a failing economy. It was a little depressing to think about looking for a job in these times. Sometimes it caused us to worry/plan a little excessively, but God reminded us to "be anxious for nothing, but with everything through prayer let your requests be made known to Him, and the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6. We have found this to be true, to not get caught up in worrying about the future, but to just live each day trusting that He will provide our every need. And His peace has been comforting, allowing us to enjoy our free time here and use it to reconnect with friends and family.
4. COLD weather - After not wearing a jacket for the last year, we came back to below freezing temps in Missouri. This took a little time to get used to.
5. Saying Hello, in thailand we were trained to "Wai" every person we met (a little head bow with your hands together at your chest/nose), and we found this as a hard habit to get out of. Instead of waving or shaking hands or giving a hug, we often found ourselves doing an awkward "wai" which we tried to turn into a wave/shake/hug.
6. At Chipotle, for some reason Jonathan instinctively tried to speak thai to the cashier.
7. Thai Time - Even though we have no jobs, we still find a way to be late everywhere we go. It's just the thai way of doing things. Whatever you are doing now, whatever conversation you are in or work you are doing, is more important than getting to your next meeting on time. We're having trouble remembering that it's not the same in the US.
8. US sizes - Ashley felt much better shopping for clothes, realizing that she is no longer the biggest size that the store sells. It can be a little depressing to try on an XL in thailand and still need something larger.
9. Toilet Paper - In thailand, you throw your paper in the trash can, not in the toilet. This habit created us several dilemmas as we searched the stall for a trash can to no avail, and then realizing that we can just throw it in the toilet.
10. American Food - it's great, but so is thai food. After getting used to eating fresh food that is light and easy to digest, we had a few problems as our body tried to deal with a plate of cheesy lasagna or greasy pizza. Thai's don't eat much cheese or milk, so this took us a little time to get used to.
11. Dry climate - after moving to Colorado, Jonathan's lips were so dry they cracked and bled for 3-4 days. We both woke up early in the mornings with a throat so dry, we almost couldn't breathe.
12. Missing Friends - One thing that we hope to not get over, is a longing to see some of the friends we made in our time in Thailand. God truly blessed us with friends who looked after us, cared for us, and spent time with us. It would have been a much harder 1.5 years without those friends, and we hope to get to reconnect with them soon.
That's all. God Bless You all.
We're settling in nicely at our home in Boulder. It was great to be reunited with all of our old clothes and things from our storage shed. We realized that we gave away a lot of stuff before we left, a few things we wish we would have kept. We've been reunited with many old friends and are starting to get caught up with all that's happened in the last 1.5 years. Friends are now marred, engaged, have babies, new jobs, and some friends have even moved away.
We're now looking for jobs and volunteer opportunities to keep us busy. We have been blessed with good job opportunities, even in this hard economic environment. In addition to looking for jobs, we're also cooking a lot of thai food for friends to try out and also trying to remember how to climb, run, bike, and breathe at altitude.
So, How's Re-entry to America?
This is a common question for us. We'll share a few stories from our reentry to the crazy american culture.
1. Taxi ride- a 10 minute taxi ride from the airport, in thailand would cost us $6. Here, it cost us $35.
2. After months of hearing family worry about all the dangers in Asia and hoping we will make it home safely, we made it (of course), only for Jonathan to get bitten by a spider in his first night in America. Apparently, a brown recluse made a home in their unused bed and didn't like his return.
3. After leaving America in great economic prospects, we came back to a failing economy. It was a little depressing to think about looking for a job in these times. Sometimes it caused us to worry/plan a little excessively, but God reminded us to "be anxious for nothing, but with everything through prayer let your requests be made known to Him, and the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6. We have found this to be true, to not get caught up in worrying about the future, but to just live each day trusting that He will provide our every need. And His peace has been comforting, allowing us to enjoy our free time here and use it to reconnect with friends and family.
4. COLD weather - After not wearing a jacket for the last year, we came back to below freezing temps in Missouri. This took a little time to get used to.
5. Saying Hello, in thailand we were trained to "Wai" every person we met (a little head bow with your hands together at your chest/nose), and we found this as a hard habit to get out of. Instead of waving or shaking hands or giving a hug, we often found ourselves doing an awkward "wai" which we tried to turn into a wave/shake/hug.
6. At Chipotle, for some reason Jonathan instinctively tried to speak thai to the cashier.
7. Thai Time - Even though we have no jobs, we still find a way to be late everywhere we go. It's just the thai way of doing things. Whatever you are doing now, whatever conversation you are in or work you are doing, is more important than getting to your next meeting on time. We're having trouble remembering that it's not the same in the US.
8. US sizes - Ashley felt much better shopping for clothes, realizing that she is no longer the biggest size that the store sells. It can be a little depressing to try on an XL in thailand and still need something larger.
9. Toilet Paper - In thailand, you throw your paper in the trash can, not in the toilet. This habit created us several dilemmas as we searched the stall for a trash can to no avail, and then realizing that we can just throw it in the toilet.
10. American Food - it's great, but so is thai food. After getting used to eating fresh food that is light and easy to digest, we had a few problems as our body tried to deal with a plate of cheesy lasagna or greasy pizza. Thai's don't eat much cheese or milk, so this took us a little time to get used to.
11. Dry climate - after moving to Colorado, Jonathan's lips were so dry they cracked and bled for 3-4 days. We both woke up early in the mornings with a throat so dry, we almost couldn't breathe.
12. Missing Friends - One thing that we hope to not get over, is a longing to see some of the friends we made in our time in Thailand. God truly blessed us with friends who looked after us, cared for us, and spent time with us. It would have been a much harder 1.5 years without those friends, and we hope to get to reconnect with them soon.
That's all. God Bless You all.
