Floating apart

Some interesting stuff at Megan's blog on travelers and expats. She hates them. This point rung true for me, even though it probably wasn't what I was supposed to get out of the posts:

because community is such a strong value for me, I do wonder at people who are willing to be in limbo and not fit in well anywhere.
...
Consciously contributing or no, you are still part of the social capital of your place and get tied into your web of people. I bet you make things happen and meet the demands of your friends and neighbors and add to the richness of your community. You can't do that if you float apart from your home and host country.

I like to travel in part because the alienation I feel on a day to day basis is simultaneously accentuated and made explicable. And after floating for a year in Clerksville, a community in which I have almost no web of friends and neighbors, no connections, and have made no contributions, going to another country will be a refreshing experience. At least there the sense of foreignness and disconnectedness will be for good reason.

Also: the necessary precondition for this infamous post is explained.