The Little Things I Miss About America After 2517 Days as a Nomad

I’m a patriot and I love my country but I’m rarely ever in it. After years of living globally, these are the small things I miss about the United States.

The American Diner

The truest all American dining experience. Especially the classic ones, smaller and more out of the way the better. I’ve had some of the best meals of my life at diners at the most random times and places. But as many times for rendezvous and for “office” space – then for the occasional recovery mode or pit stop, 25/8/366.

Permissive Carry

Always being a foreigner and an active nomad, it’s impracticable to carry firearms – nor is it necessary as a retired covert operative who only consults. It took a while to get used to the naked feeling of not carrying for work and life once I left the US, but it’s fine with alternate weaponology. However, I miss the mere right to carry and having that option.

Amazon Prime

I go back home to the States about every year and a half for a month or two. I use that precious time to acquire new gear, replacements and supplies. Much of it comes from Amazon and so I would reactivate my Prime Account while I’m there. I miss being able to order almost anything online then have it delivered in as little as 2 hours.

Bodegas

Although more of a New York thing than an American thing, it’s still quite an “American thing”. Growing up in the boroughs of New York City, bodegas were a vital resource for us street kids (and the community) for not just grocery’s, essential supplies and world class sandwiches, but for social, shelter, and urban survival purposes.

Window Screens

In the US and most other Western countries, screens on windows and doors are pretty much standard, something we take for granted. In the East, including South East Asia, of which I’ve spent much of my time as a nomad, screens are exceedingly rare – including high-end hotels and condos. Bugs, bugs, bugs… and they’re nastier in exotic Asia.

Real Seasons

I used to boast about how I can effectively escape winters by navigating strategically to parts of the world where it’s during a pleasant season or where winter is still far away. But after a full year in tropical countries where the only seasons are “hot” and “hot af”, I miss the transformative changing of the seasons in the US.

Dank Cannabis

Marijuana is my only real vice. I rarely drink and don’t smoke (tobacco) but exercise and eat well so I suppose it’s hardly a vice. In any case, I miss the high-grade shit I can procure easily in the States. Low-grade weed can be found in almost any city and sometimes mid-grade. But dank level smoke is a bit of a unicorn in most other parts of the world.

New York City

There’s no place like home and there’s no city like New York City, as it so happens my home is the NYC. This is what I miss most about America, my hometown. Not just Manhattan Island but (most) of the boroughs as well. I have a saying, “Home is where I put my backpack down.”, well in New York, I don’t even need a backpack.

*This list of things I miss will be updated over time.

[The featured photo was taken at the Freedom Tower, One World Trade Center in Manhattan.]