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The Awful Mundanity of Living in a Failing State
America’s burning but nothing changes
“What’s it like to live in America?” If I had a dollar for every time I’d been asked that since I moved here in 2015….
From British friends, some intrigued, some mildly aghast. From gas station clerks and border agents and other parents on my kid’s softball team. I can predict a whole lot about someone’s socio-economic status and political views by the precise lilt of their voice as they ask and the follow-up questions that come next.
“Don’t you just love it?”
“Why did you decide to move here?”
The truth is, living in America is pretty eh. My home in a suburb looks like every other home in a suburb and day-to-day my biggest concerns are what to make for dinner and what the weather’s doing.
Living the suburban dream
My house now looks a little different to my house in the UK. The walls are thinner and the roof is made of flimsy asphalt shingles. It’s not the brick-and-slate of Victorian construction, but it’s still essentially the same thing. Just with floor vents instead of radiators and screens on the windows.
Gas is cheaper. Food is more expensive. But most of those differences cancel each other out.
