Things: Part I

This is the first of a 3-part series:

1.  Things I Miss

2.  Things that are better (so far) than in the USA

3.  Things that are different, or that I have yet to understand

Let's see how these evolve over the next year.

PART I

I miss....

Little Rock water

Or more accurately, the ability to just drink water out of the faucet.

My car

I just want to get in my car and drive somewhere.  No taxis, no bus, no Spanish.  Just me, my car and my radio.

My family and friends visiting for no reason

Dr Peppers from Sonic

My phone ringing

I know this sounds weird.  And maybe I don't miss it necessarily, but the sound is noticeably absent.

Southern accents

Cheesedip

Just good ole Rotel and Velveeta

PBS

Dear God, please let Downton Abbey be available online for free when season 3 comes out.  And Nature.  And Nova.  And Frontline.  And American Masters.  And the dust bowl documentary coming out this fall by Ken Burns.  And so many more.  Amen.

2711 Byrd Road

I can't say much about this or I'll start crying.  If you know what this is, you know why and you might cry too.

Laying out at the pool in the sun

It's winter here.

Going out to eat and knowing what to expect 

?

Thunderstorms

It hardly ever rains in Lima.

Calling one of my girlfriends at work and meeting in the lobby just to take a mental break

You know who you are and you know why. 

and

Going with my boss to get ice cream in the middle of the day.

Chick-Fil-A breakfast biscuits

But damn them and their bigotry! 

The sights and sound of baseball being played

At our house in Little Rock we can hear the 'clink' of the bats and cheers from the crowd.  I miss watching the D-Train run the bases like nobody's business and the camaraderie of 12 other sets of parents whose sons I love dearly. 

The Mammoth Orange

Sonic Dr Peppers and the Mammoth Orange's Dr Peppers are both perfect.  But a milkshake from the Mammoth Orange cannot be beat.  There is none greater and I've looked all over the country.  I order them "extra thick and extra chocolaty"  and tell the server that "just when you think it is too thick, make it thicker."

Mom, Dad, Megan and Forest

Forest

Some of this stuff is totally material and silly.  But some of it is -burst into tears for no reason when I think about it- not material and not silly.

I suspect that this list will change quite a bit over the next year.  And some of this stuff may be put into a list one day called "What I miss about Lima" - I look forward to the evolution.