Yesterday I had a great day at North Carolina Museum of Art having a tour around the Frida Kahlo exhibition. It was an event organised by the North Carolina Fulbright Chapter (the folks who also organised the Trolley Bus tour of Raleigh). I also had a Mexican meal out with my house mates. It was a great last day out before I fly home today.
I’ll be home for a few weeks that will involve some days at the office, a good number of Christmas parties and lots of catching up with family and friends. It seems like a good time to take stock of how things have been going so far. I feel as if I’ve been working and playing hard. My research plans are nearly ready to apply for IRB approval, I’ve been putting a lot of time into planning the 2 courses I’ll be teaching in the January and Spring Semesters, I’ve been attending quite a number of strategic planning committees and events, and I’ve been making progress on my book manuscript. All of which is good progress.
Perhaps one of the things I’m most pleased with is that I feel very settled. It’s hard to make progress with work if you feel like you are still orientating to a new country, home and work settings. I am also delighted with how I have managed to get to know a large number of faculty, staff and students across campus in a short period of time. I take great pride in introducing faculty and staff to one another who I know, but who don’t know each other!
So what have I liked most about living in the USA so far?
I have been enjoying sharing a house with two lovely house mates, who have made it very easy to settle into our cosy house. I have appreciated the milder weather so far, and that fall lasts longer than the 3 weeks it usually lasts in Scotland before a big storm takes away the final leaves. I’ve also appreciated 2 hours more daylight each day in the November and December.
I have enjoyed the excitement of going around a supermarket in another country (it takes me longer to do my shopping though!). I have loved the opportunity to start to get to know different parts of this vast country through the travel I’ve been fortunate to do through my work. I’m loving getting to know the names of birds in the garden, which I’ve never seen before. I particularly love the cardinals that visit. I’ve really appreciated the beautiful campus at Elon, which is simply beautiful to walk around. I’ve also enjoyed the beauty of the trees during the fall. I like campus coffee each week at Elon where everyone gets together for coffee one morning, usually outside. Who doesn’t like rocking chairs on the porch? US school buses are quite cool. I have to confess that I fear I may be addicted to pimento cheese dip! I’ve really noticed and appreciated greater racial diversity at work – and some would say that Elon is not actually that diverse. I’ve also appreciated the warmth and genuine random acts of kindness from people I’m just getting to know (an unexpected gift of a scarf; an offer of a lift to the airport; the loan of a suitcase; a bowl of homemade soup; an engraved padlock; kind words; invitations into homes; lunches; and so much more). And I’ve really enjoyed working closely with, getting to know better, and stimulating conversations about teaching and research with, a range of people on campus, but particularly folks from the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, and the Center for Engaged Learning.
Some of the newer or more challenging things I’ve faced include…
Realising there was a sinkhole that opened up a couple of weeks before I visited Pittsburgh, just outside the convention center where we were having our conference. It was big enough to swallow a bus so that was a bit scary! Seeing how quickly I have become dependent on a car to get around because public transport isn’t great or doesn’t exist to go to where I want to go, and there are either no sidewalks or fewer sidewalks in some areas that make it more tricky to walk. The challenge of buying a small carton of milk or eggs – some things are just super-sized!
Speaking a new language that means different things when it talks about pants, biscuits, trunks and flasks! There have been some signs that I have needed to pay more attention to because they differ from signs back home. I am driven a bit bonkers by the obsession with leaf blowing on campus – it’s not just Elon, but I saw it at Bryn Mawr too. Lots of hours are spent by maintenance staff blowing leaves off paths and off the grass and then sucking them up to remove them. The problem is that the leaf blowers are usually gas powered so are totally
environmentally dreadful and anywhere where they are sucking up leaves they are also sucking up the insects 🙁 I presume they are worried about people slipping on wet leaves… Driving on the right hand side of the road was initially quite disorienting, but I’ve adjusted quite well (I may limit how much I drive while I’m home, or I’ll need to readjust again!). Butter comes in sticks (now I know why some recipes I’ve seen refer to taking a stick of butter… and recipes are in cups/oz, ovens use fahrenheit. I also cease to be amazed at some of the more questionable ‘food’ items which include string cheese and souse (??). Because of their reliance on cars there are also a lot of drive throughs – cash points as well as food and drink options. But I was a little surprised that there is a drive thru Nativity scene nearby! I think all of these adjustments are good for me to expand my horizons. I look forward to being back in North Carolina at the end of December.
