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tamura: I was asked what I wanted, and all I could

think of was someone to go on adventures with.
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I'm getting off the elevator and he calls after me, Hey, what do you miss about the States? and I say, English. Har har. I lie because I think it would hurt to hear myself say the truth out loud.

I don't miss English. I miss driving. I haven't been out of the Southwest for four months and I miss driving through the desert so much more than I ever expected to, so much that I actually dream about it sometimes. I miss getting in my car with a gallon of Arizona sweet tea and a bad playlist.

I stand pressed against a tired woman on the Metro and I think about the desolation and the skylines and the empty places that you see for just a second and then they're behind you. I miss driving through the desert in the morning when the air smells like God. I miss getting out of my car in the dark when I'm in the middle of nowhere and just standing there for a second. I miss maps that don't fold back the right way and peach stands and abandoned barrooms on the outskirts of small towns. I want to hear that humming convenience store sound.

Yeah, I miss reliable hot water and relatively well-behaved men and burritos roughly the length and circumference of my forearm, but not really. I was surprised to find how little those things mattered to me. All I'm really interested in is having more space than I know what to do with.

EDIT: Okay, I thought about it and I take it back. I really miss burritos.