How Louisville feels after one month back

This marks the one-month mark. It’s been one month since I’ve been back in America, one month living in Louisville again.

So what’s happened?

  • I felt sick for the first week or so I was back. The lack of sleep over the last week in Asia combined with the jet lag didn’t do me any favors.
  • I played music at church and at a nearby church a week after I landed. I enjoyed both. I didn’t play any instruments at all while I was in Asia so getting back into it has been fun.
  • I visited with family and friends here and played basketball with some of them. In one month, I’ve been able to meet with most of the people I wanted to meet while back.
  • I bought a point-and-shoot camera and looked into buying a Kindle. I think I’ll still get a Kindle – I’m just going to wait and see if I can get a discounted deal.
  • I attended some concerts, two of them, actually. They were both at the Kentucky State Fair, and both were great shows. My sister joined for both. She’d never been to a concert before.
  • I went to Holiday World. That turned out to be really fun as well. They built some new rides, and these new ones were really good water slides.
  • I finished my degree. That took some discipline, considering I’d mentally checked out from school before I left Korea the first time.
  • I wrote a lot, tried to work on some videos (not much progress on that front), and looked for a few jobs. I put most of that on hold, though, as the deadline for my degree approached. Time to get back on that.
  • Lastly, I’ve also been researching some new ideas lately. Again, I’d rather not share too much about this now, but it’s definitely exciting for me.

That’s the upside. A lot can happen in a month.

The downside is that, yes, it’s still disappointing to return. I knew this feeling would come. I knew before I left Asia. I knew I’d miss it. But it’s still hard. I want home here to feel wonderful with no downsides, not wonderful except the downsides.

That’s just not how it works anymore. From now on, wherever I go, I think I’ll miss the excitement of where I’ve been and the friends and family left behind.