Don't Miss It

Five plus months now separate me from the American life I once lived. There's a ton of stuff I miss and there's also a lot that I surprisingly don't.

Everything listed below are things that at some point I would have told you I could never go without. Now that I'm living without them, I realize how easy they were to let go of.

Cable TV

Let's start with an easy one. Never in the last 50 years has it been this easy to not own a TV. My TV a few months ago was the thing I positioned furniture around. Here in Brazil, it's the thing that we plug my computer into when we want to watch Netflix.

Yes, it's true that when I turn on the few free channels we get, they're all in Portuguese and usually are telenovelas featuring very good looking people crying profusely. Yet, I don't miss my American programming at all. Nothing. The feeling was almost immediate upon moving here.

Want to watch a TV show? It's online. You may have to wait 24 hours to stream it, but that's no different than DVR-ing it. Or you can download it for free in podcast form. Or there's YouTube. The point is, whether it's the movie of the week or the big game, you will find it. I haven't missed anything that I really wanted to see since leaving.

Air Conditioning/Heat

Some full disclosure: While Dani and I have not had any heating or air conditioning since arriving, we likely will buy a portable AC unit before next Summer hits. How quality will that little box be? Probably pretty weak compared to the central cooling I used to swear by.

This was honestly one of my biggest reservations about coming to Brazil. I used to need my room at a constant 72 no matter the season outside. I pictured no AC as an endless sweat session.

That's changed now. The transition was so much easier than I expected. The big surprise was how normal our place feels when the temperature is anywhere between 50-90 degrees outside. Our inside temperature never hits extremes.

I realize that, depending on where one lives, not having heat or AC can be life threatening. I'm not advocating wiping it off the planet. I will have both of these luxuries again in the future. What will be different is how much I use it. My energy footprint has gone from a bulky men's size 15 down to a women's three.

Best part of all? Just like not opening a cable bill each month, I no longer dread seeing our power bill. Dani and I are averaging US $16/month now. 

Open some windows. Get out some blankets. It's a beautiful thing.

A Car

...But only because I'm living in a Manhattan-like area where owning a car is as much a burden as it is a blessing. Still, if you ever find yourself in this kind of environment, I say drop the car. I have no idea what gas costs anymore and that's a good feeling.

Dishwasher

It's really not that bad.

Good 'Ol Southern Cooking

I didn't expect this one. I love southern cooking. Mary's Diner in Danville, VA is my favorite restaurant on earth.

Still, the hole in my heart for this stuff is a fraction of the size of the ones for Mexican, Thai, Five Guys, Ben and Jerry's and others.

It probably helps that I'm in Brazil where rice, beans and collard greens are a staple of the typical dinner plate. I admit that if I was in Shanghai this scenario would probably be different.

Tipping

Funny that as America moves towards a more Social form of healthcare, we still push deep into a Capitalist wasteland with low low wages + tipping. Tip jars are everywhere in America and it's putting a smile on no one's face.

In Brazil, there is no tipping and I don't miss it for one single second. Even if I'm paying 5-20% more, knowing that I don't have to tack on extra cash at the end of a meal or car ride is an honest stress relief.

Also, eliminating tipping really frees up the experience of going out to eat or drink. The expectation of a tip creates an annoying bond between your table and a server. That server becomes your link to the outside world. Ever get a bad server and have to ask another one to intervene? It's like trying to flag down a rescue boat as you swim away from the Titanic.

With no tipping, everyone is in it together. There's no need to rely on one person or worse yet, have to settle up with a person early because their shift is about to end.

I guarantee a happier America overnight when tipping is eliminated.