Would you guys think less of me if I returned to Austin?

[Brian Boyko]

I've been here 5 months now, and when it comes down to it, the only thing New Zealand has over Austin is a sane government.

I wanna come home, I think. Would you guys think less of me if I did?

[Aden]

Do what your heart tells you to do! No one can think less of you for doing that, and if they do they're assholes. Assholes!

[mpbrockman]

...the only thing New Zealand has over Austin is a sane government.

Of course that's no small advantage...

http://static.texastribune.org/media/do ... ATFORM.pdf

Not discouraging you, just a little light bathroom reading as a reminder.

[themoss]

come home!
bring me a hobbit!

[Brian Boyko]

...the only thing New Zealand has over Austin is a sane government.

Of course that's no small advantage...

Weirdly, it's a difficult advantage, but it does seem to be a very small one. Good government doesn't make me happy in the same way that bad government makes me angry.

[Pdyx]

I wouldn't think any less of anyone for trying something awesome like living in a foreign country for five months.

[Mo Daviau]

Come home, Brian!

[mpbrockman]

...the only thing New Zealand has over Austin is a sane government.

Of course that's no small advantage...

Weirdly, it's a difficult advantage, but it does seem to be a very small one. Good government doesn't make me happy in the same way that bad government makes me angry.

Well there you go. I find a good bout of anger directed at self-righteous nitwits at can be uplifting and fulfilling. C'mon back and share your tales of adventure!

[acrouch]

Good government doesn't make me happy in the same way that bad government makes me angry.

Can somebody pass this along to the progressive half of America between now and the midterm elections this fall?

[Rev. Jordan T. Maxwell]

i couldn't possibly think less of you!

...wait, that came out wrong...

[EmilyBee]

Come back. No shame in loving a place more than another. Seriously. And you'll get to tell crotchety old man stories about when you lived in New Zealand.

[jillybee72]

I think this song sums it up.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVS3WNt7yRU[/youtube][/youtube]

[spantell]

it's just that I want to visit you there before you come home

[Brian Boyko]

Okay, here's the sitch.

Here in New Zealand, Zoloft(Setreline) costs about $150 for a month's supply. Because of this, my doctor recommended I switch to Prozac(Fluoxetine) which costs about $15 for a month's supply.

Over the past two weeks, I have been going through *hell* as I deal with the double-whammy of going through Zoloft withdrawal AND the underlying depression (which affected me until the Prozac kicked in.)

I really, really miss you guys, but what I was craving right at that moment was the support network I built up in Austin, which I haven't yet built in Wellington. I think I would have handled the depression better if you guys were with me.

So, here's the new plan.

I'm staying in New Zealand, until I at least finish my book and movie. If I really want to come home, that'll be motivation enough to finish both.

I'm coming to visit either right before or right after Thanksgiving (I'll spend Thanksgiving in Virginia with my parents, unless they want to fly to Texas to meet me!) My workplace is willing to work with me even if it means taking some unpaid leave. At the end of that trip, I'll either feel like I'm coming home, or I'll feel like I'm leaving home. That'll be when I make the long-term decision about where I want to be.

So all I ask from you guys - (and the rest of this post is in song):

Do not die.
Don't move away.
Don't actually change
in any meaningful way.

Stay just the same
Stay as you are
Best to just stop moving
Till I'm home from afar.

Because I hate missing out
on the events of life
It fills me with dread,
panic, fear, stress and strife.

For I'll be right back
Before we get too old.
Just do me a favor
Put your whole lives on hold.