Foreigner

This blog will continue on as a kind of public diary (of sorts). The rest (politics, news, and most "soapbox" stuff) will from here out be at Think About It Now which can be found at: www.thinkait@blogspot.com This reminder will be on the first few posts.

I'll be back in the States in less than two weeks. It'll be my first time back in three and a half years. This time it'll be more of a family trip and less of a vacation. I felt a bit like a foreign tourist when I went back last time. A lot of the things that stood out were the same kinds of things Japanese tell me about their trips to the States. Kind of weird, huh?

I won't need to plan things like side-trips to interesting places on this trip or anything (in fact, Taka's not even coming with me this time), but there is still a lot that needs to be planned and not a lot of time to do it in. Coordination between several households can be difficult, esp. with the time difference and various work schedules involved. As strange as it sounds, there are even issues with what I can and can't eat that need to be dealt with. I've always been a procrastinator when it comes to travel, but this time, the whole thing has been on short notice.

Things would be a lot easier if I could just rent a car at the airport. Not having a license doesn't bother me at all here, but can make a person feel crippled and dependent in the States (outside of, say NYC). To that end, I have been in contact with the Maryland Department of Transportation to see what it would take to get my license back while I am there. To some extent (considering my past license-related incidents), getting a license wouldn't have been the trial I expected. Due to the time elapsed, I was just told that I would basically start over as if I never had a license. All I need is to take the eye exam, written test, driving test (all of which can be done the same day), and assuming I passed all three, could walk out that day with a license. I would also need proof of identity (not a problem) and proof of Maryland residency (Whoops!). Since Maryland is listed as my U.S. address on my Visa here and is on almost every form I've ever filled out for the government here, I kind of thought that being a U.S. citizen also came with some form of connection to a state. Wrong!

There is no way for me to prove residency in Maryland because I don't live there. Even if I could manage to fake it (I'm not advocating law-breaking here), I still wouldn't attempt it. Maryland would then no doubt expect their due in taxes. It would be obvious in no time that I'm not actually a MD. resident. No license!

The whole license thing reinforces a feeling I've had for some time. It's like I'm a U.S. citizen, but I'm not American. I really feel like a foreigner when I go back to the States. So much has happened there while I was here (esp. since 9-11). My entire take on world events is that of a foreigner compared to a very large part of the U.S. (and the majority of my family), and vise versa. I'm a foreigner here too, but for some reason, I am more comfortable with that. It freaks me out a bit when it happens in the country I was born and lived in for 27 years. Although it does help that I can (more or less) speak the language there (aside from NYC taxis).

No doubt there will be a lot more posts on this trip over the next few weeks. This trip is kind of a big deal to me. It will be great to see the family again (on their own turf)!