Wow, the last day of January has arrived and I’m finally! ready to share my 2018 reflections with you! (You can read the 2017 ones here.) The past six weeks or so I’ve been hiding out a bit, mulling over my 2018 takeaways, digging deep and sitting with some of the discomfort that has come with that. (Being honest with ourselves can be tough work!) For me, 2018 was a year…
Expat Adventures
7 Things You Need to Know Before Becoming an Expat
My own journey as an expat started unexpectedly. I’ve always longed to live outside of the US, but I’d never seriously pursued it. When my partner got into his dream MBA program, however, I knew I had some big decisions to make. Social media told me that as an expat I could expect all my wanderlust and travel dreams to be fulfilled, while a closer look at the expat forums…
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Expat Adventures
2017 Reflections: A Year of Embracing the Unknown
Engaging with the unfamiliar is rarely comfortable. Even if we’re excited about it, there’s still a level of discomfort associated with newness. It can feel downright awkward, actually! So much so that most of us find what works and stick with it. We take the same routes to school and work daily, we have set hours for productivity and others for socializing. Many of us eat the same foods and…
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Expat Adventures
A Survivor’s Guide to the Expat Thanksgiving
Like most things when living abroad, holidays are a mish-mash of emotions. There’s the usual blending of the old with the new, but now it’s paired with scrambling around to find all the necessary items … and a lot of “making do” when the things we think we need are nowhere to be found! Thanksgiving is no exception. While all of France seems to have moved on toward the winter…
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Expat Adventures
When People Talk About Other People
I’ve been struggling with how to write about the following topic for a while now. Why? Because in writing this I feel like I’m inadvertently participating in the very action described in the title of this piece! That said, I think it’s an important topic, so bear with me and forgive any hypocrisy – I promise it’s a well-meant exception. A few months ago at a dinner with friends, I…
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Expat Adventures
Life as a CPT: My Body is Public Property
This weekend I experienced a rude awakening. While out at a party (and while a bit tipsy), I was handed a cigarette… and without thinking… I took a couple of puffs. What can I say? I’m in Europe – smokers are everywhere – and while I’m not one of them, I was feeling free and bold and a little European. That is, until gasps, shocked scoffs and a loud “Ahhh…
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