Yeah, that's a lot, zuisa. It definitely does remind me of theater life, where the first show I teched I was all, aww, hug the actors, they're leaving, and everyone just looked at me like, newbie. And then I was all callous after that. It'll be okay. You'll get used to it. You were scared when you got on board, and you made friends. You'll do it again.

Try not to compare, because new people aren't going to be the old people, but that doesn't mean they won't have their own charms.

And hey, lots of people on here are old enough to be your mother and you get along with us just fine!

Morning person who wants roommate to be morning person may require some pushback,

I really need to just prepare some witty comebacks when people start America-bashing. They usually aren't WRONG, which makes it hard, but I could just use some zingers, I think.

When I first got back home, I reminded people more than once that there were far more Americans than Australians who thought Bush was a dick. Unfortunately, the saying "empty vessels make the most noise" applies all too readily to the image America portrays in the news of other countries. We'll hear far more about the Tea Partiers, for instance, than anyone halfway sane.

For myself, whe I was living in Philly, I found a significant difference in attitudes between Americans who had developed strong links outside the US (such as yourself, immersing yourself in China for an extended period) and Americans who remained, shall we say, domestically focussed. (Most of my friends came from the former group.)

None of which necessarily helps you that much. But lumping all the negatives they associate with America on you isn't appropriate, both because it's a one-eyed view of America, and because you're not in fact a personification of American foreign policy, but an actual person. I reckon you have the right to say so, if you find it getting to be too much.

zuisa, that sounds stressful. As far as the American thing, goes, I would just kind of lightly roll my eyes and laugh and go, "Yeah, yeah...all Americans are conservative assholes, all French people are surly smokers, all Latin people are hot-tempered, the Brits are snobs and all Germans are anal about punctuality. Any other stereotypes to add to the intolerance pool?!"

The roommate thing is hard but she'll be phasing out, too, right? Silver lining? I would set polite yet firm boundaries. Just because you're 25 and she's 40 doesn't make you lesser. Talk about what you both would like to see as roommates, see where you can both compromise and where you can't. With roommates stuck in a tiny space, there's BOUND to be some irritants. You got lucky as hell with a great roomie the first time -- that isn't the norm.

But you can still have a decent experience.

Best of luck, and don't worry about dumping. We all do it.

Zuisa, I hope you find some equilibrium with all the new people quickly.

You may find that there is a natural progression that occurs with the changeovers there. When I worked at an 8 week camp, by week 3 friendships had developed, week 4 was a social event every night, week 5 was when everyone needed alone time, weeks 6&7 were super busy with work but social, too, because the countdown to the end had begun... It just takes a couple times through it to recognize the pattern.

every time a set designer ever asks for a gloss floor, you can hear the paint dept crying in misery from miles away.

Will no one think of the lighting designer?

sarameg, what brand of sander do you have? I think I am getting one for an early mother's day present today.

Having spent many summers in archaeological projects, I learned pretty fast that I'm not the sort of person who gets genuinely attached to others in 8-10 weeks. Everybody would be crying at the end and I'd be like, "I barely know you people!" Possibly I was made wrong.

Possibly I was made wrong.

not for Buffista Island.

By the end of a summer teaching sailing, I was just about ready to get my head around the differences between what people said, and what they did. I knew I liked quite a few (mostly the ones where words and actions lined up), but I needed to know why before I did the hugging and crying. And then there was the required 'ok they're my friends, and I've decided I'd like to keep them around, but what if I do something dumb, or they realize I'm a huge fake, and they don't want to stick around?' tango that my brain did for a long time. Back when I cared about people.

IOW {{Zuisa}}

flea: [link] , I think. Velcro!

Hmm, that one, like every sander under $100, has half 4-5 star reviews and a bunch of 1-stars. So hard to decide who to believe.

I got the recommendation from beth's Matt.