WE ARE HERE!!!

HEY.

So, we've been in England for a week and a half, roughly. Our house is wonderful. It's much smaller than we're used to, but it's a four bedroom so we are converting the smallest room into a closet, Where we'll keep the dressers and wardrobe. The neighborhood that we live in is SO convenient! We walk everywhere. We can walk into Hadleigh, which is the adorable town that we live in. We walk to Morrisons, which is the local store (Think Kroger). There is a foot and bike path that leads directly to a playground. You think American playgrounds Are cool? Ha. NOPE.

There have been a few major differences that I've noted. I want to list them all out for you, but Willy Boy is bugging me for the computer, So i'll just list a few to start:

1.) I have not seen one morbidly obese person. Not one. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that people walk everywhere. Gas is paid by the liter here, not gallon, and it's expensive as fuck. Like, 9 pounds a liter. Which is basically $13.50 if you convert it to dollars. (Luckily, Will and I can fill up at the American base, so we only pay American prices. It's only 45 min away, so it will have to work.) And, We have only seen ONE fast food joint.  it's in Ipswich. Not Hadleigh. And last, portions are smaller. We rarely need "to go boxes" and vegetables are ALWAYS served. It's great.

2.) Driving on the wrong side of the car, on the wrong side of the road. It's horrible. Will has only let me drive twice. In the area that we live in, there are a lot of hedges. The roads are narrow, and it's ruining my ability to operate a motor vehicle safely. So until I can remember that I drive on the left hand side of the road, I'm in time out. YO. Like the 26 year old female child that I am.

3.) THIS PLACE IS SO CLEAN. People don't litter here. Not even on the side of a boring highway. They appreciate the beauty of their country, and they make sure it's taken care of. Everyone recycles. It cuts down on garbage in landfills. Everything is biodegradable. They even have biodegradable tampons, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

4.) The Metric System. Thank the sweet baby Jesus for Willy boy, who can convert in his head. Long story short, I should have paid more attention in Chemistry. And then I REALLY should have paid more attention in summer school for Chemistry.

5.) The vocabulary. Everyone here has such a wonderful vocabulary. It's all very proper. And impressive. The only time Willy boy and I hear, "BAE," "BOO," "YO," etc., is when we are talking to each other. It's very refreshing.

6.) No airconditioning anywhere. You don't need it. Summer time usually hovers around 70-75 degrees, and then drops in to the 50's at night. We take jackets where ever we go, and we haven't worn shorts since we've been here. I had to buy socks. So my feet are in toe prison. And it rains a lot. Almost every day. So everything is nice and green and lush.


All that to say, this place is truly amazing. I want to update everyone about the nightmare of the animals, and the almost getting detained while going through immigration in London, but I'm SO happy to be here. All the negative things that happened while trying to make it here are so unimportant to me now. Though, while on the redeye flight, I almost divorced Will like 4 times. HAHA. JAY KAY. Kind of.

We are going to London on Saturday. We are having to alternate between nerdy museum/monument visits, and fun things to do with the children. Will has a car, and he bought me one today. Mine is a Ford Focus (completely different than the one you're used to.) And Will drives an outback subaru, or something like that. I'm not sure when our stuff will get here. Probably another month or so. For now, we have 3 beds, one dresser, one couch, and a table on loan from the housing office until our stuff arrives. But our neighbors have been very gracious in letting us use their internet, and our other neighbor's are letting us use their washing machine. Everyone has been very helpful and kind to us. I mean,
I've only been here a week and I've already joined a book club AND a choir. Can't sing a lick, but that won't stop me from enjoying cocktails and cake.

OK. Wanted to give a quick update. I will upload pictures when I have more time.