Notes on Arrival Back in the lovely US of A

Note: this was first complied at JFK airport while waiting for my plane home in March, everything still applies

Language: suddenly everything's in Spanish and English for the trip maps, not French
Customs: completely stinks, not only do you have to do it at point of arrival (as opposed to final destination), but as long as you can check no on all the boxes and you don't make a fuss you skate through fine. Declare what you've got though.
Alcohol: you have to pay for it on the flight and I presume ID's are checked, this isn't Cyprus airlines where they keep giving people wine when they ask, ah, Fall semester, how I miss thee.
Americans: often in school groups, 3 separate EF tours (the educational ones that my mother uses for her German class trips) in 1 day! They've got better backpacks now-the orange really stands out. They're loud too, southern accents among the group on the flight from London. Ugg boots too-and here I thought they were gone by now, one girl was wearing shorts and going to Paris in them. She's going to freeze-it's cold there this time of year. Oh, and taxes aren't included in the price here. Blast.
JFK Airport: the modern day Ellis Island...sorta, could use a better paint job, kinda dreary. A nice blue would look good. Passport control went quickly though, here it helps to be a citizen, nice reversal from the long lines of "Other" at Gatwick. Bags took a while and then they had to be given back to put them on the plane to OIA (MCO in the FAA world which makes no sense to me) then we had to go through metal detectors, again (which I guess is logical becuse we had checked luggage but it's still a pain). Oh! We had to pay for carts! $3! Gatwick has them free. So, Gatwick gets a plus in this column. It's not a contest...mostly.
Airport shops: Expensive as always and I'm used to seeing Euros and pounds and converting! Seriously, way too pricey. And the contents? Kinda boring. I expected better out of JFK. I mean, come on! This is like our Heathrow! Or Charles de Gaulle!
CNN: Endless news...I miss the BBC and I never even watched it.
Papers: I miss my free Tube papers-Metro, London Paper, even Lite (a very little), smattering of news and all the gossip with no efffort on my part. And the fun facts about interesting things happening around the world.
General: Passport guy couldn't even stamp on a new page like the last guy. And I think he went over part of another one. Grr. They should know people like to collect this sort of thing. Flight was okay though-on the aisle and in an exit so plenty of leg room. Saw a jet trail alongside the plane out the window, so that was cool.
Plus side:
-American TV
-regular plugs, not the weird 3 pronged British ones
-no exchange rate
-money all (relatively) one color, which is a bit dull I admit, but all the coins are circular
-ice!!!
-American chocolate and soft drinks, fruit drinks too
-donuts
-DVDs that like my computer-correct world coding
-no mental calcuation to figure out the time back home-I'm there!
-better mattress
-my books
-no paying for food on my own, home cooked meals-yum!
-Borders rewards card works here!

I do love London though. Seasons! No oppressive heat or sun! Fun money! Accents! All that culture and history!

So, that's all for now. Basically, customs is a drag, but what's new? Oh, and JFK should get painted a different color. Like blue.