USA! USA! USA!

3 FAM 3431.1(b) - The purpose of home leave is to ensure that employees who live abroad for an extended period undergo reorientation and re-exposure in the United States on a regular basis.

Sarah and I have been in London for ten days, and we are loving every minute of it.  This is such an awesome city, and we are so thrilled to be living here for the next two years.  But more on that later.  Right now, I want to talk about Home Leave (HL).  HL is designed to help FSOs re-acclimate to life in the US after an extended time overseas.  Obviously, “overseas” in our case means just on the other side of a dry riverbed, but nevertheless, we were excited to spend a month in the US. 

Since HL is designed to help us remember “what makes America great,” I was determined to do as many “AMERICAN” things as I could during the last 30 days.  So, in no particular order, here’s my list of the most American things I did while on Home Leave.

·      Bought a pair of Levi’s.  Americans wear Levi’s.

·      Had a Double-Double animal style at the In-n-Out in Tucson, washed down with a Neapolitan shake.  The first of many burgers eaten on Home Leave.

·      Went to a baseball game during opening week in Phoenix, AZ.

·      Attended an Easter Egg Hunt.

·      Watched the sheer ridiculousness that is Furious 7 on a humongous movie screen (all the better to watch the “wrench fight” finale).  ‘MURICA!

·      Ate a Texas sheet cake made by my mom, the best cook I know.

·      Binge-watched an entire Netflix series (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is seriously hilarious, guys).

·      Attended a kid’s birthday party and listened to my nephew’s sweet trumpet solo.

·      Debated the merits of Carolina v. Texas BBQ, with ample edible evidence of each to weigh their characteristics.

·      Bought my son an awesome Captain America t-shirt.

·      Watched the epic series finale of one of the greatest Westerns in history, Justified.

·      Grew a goatee to look a bit more like Raylan Givens.

·      Shaved said goatee when it got too itchy.

·      Began binge-watching a different Netflix series (Daredevil is seriously awesome, guys).

·      Grilled a giant pile of meat for my in-laws.

·      Ditched my kid and went to New York City with my wife for two days.

·      Saw two Broadways shows.

·      Ate a cookie as big as my head from Levain Bakery in NYC at 1:30 in the morning.

·      Ate at my favorite quasi-Mexican food place, Café Rio, no less than five times.

·      Watched Avengers: Age of Ultron to officially kick off the summer movie season.

·      Spent hours and hours talking, laughing, and enjoying the company of my family and close friends. 

There you have it.  The most American things I could think to do over the course of two weeks in Mesa, AZ, and two weeks in Ashburn, VA.  I guess it’s time to get back overseas and back to work!