Old Boys Go Global

For the past 44 years I’ve been living near Danbury, Connecticut, USA. This is 1¼ hours’ drive northeast from New York City and 45 minutes from Yale University. It’s a fairly rural area with much forest and plenty of preserved land for walking, but also close enough to many musical and cultural events. I moved in 1974, during a time of high inflation, wage freezes, power cuts and much labour unrest (prior to North Sea Oil and the Thatcher years). I had married an American and was working for a large American company and though they wouldn’t transfer me, I was pretty sure I’d get rehired in the US, which I did in South Carolina. Being married to an American allowed me to get a visa/work permit. It’s a very large country and people here are used to driving long distances. The weather has greater extremes: much colder and more snow in winter and hotter in summer. There is still much undeveloped land, mainly state and federal forests, and parks. I have found that there’s less of any class system here; people are judged by what they have done with themselves, though the politics is quite mixed up and, of course, there’s the crazy firearm issues (many people still hunt the wild deer and wild turkeys and are very attached to their guns). It’s good for outdoor activities: hiking, trail running, biking (mountain and road), white water rivers for kayaking and several ski areas close enough for day trips. There are several choral groups in the area, with whom I sing, and there’s a good music scene for jazz and classical concerts. My family is still in the UK and my favourite place to be is the Lake District. I’m only in touch with two School friends and obviously don’t see them much. The hardest thing to leave when I came over was not being able to play field hockey; I really missed not playing for Bury Hockey Club.

In 1978 I was tired of the humdrum life in the UK. I wanted an adventure and was seeking a job in the Middle East as a computer programmer. I saw an ad in the paper for jobs in the USA, so I decided to apply, for interview practice. I was offered a position and decided to accept it, with the idea that I would just go Steve (left) over there for a couple of years or so. Little with Geoff did I know that I would love life in the USA and Marsh (Class of have been here ever since. 1969), aged 16 Life in the USA was so much more exciting than England. I lived near Chicago when I first came over and would go there on the weekends to enjoy the nightlife. Now, post retirement, I live in northern Illinois and my wife Linda – she and I dated when we were 16 and married each other at 50 when we met up again at a Christmas dinner in 2000. All I missed in the USA was Boddingtons beer, but after a few years it was available here too!

We moved to New Jersey 24 years ago – close enough to Manhattan to be able to commute, but far enough out that there is countryside – about 15 miles inland from the Jersey Shore – so also within striking distance of the beach and coastline. I was working for Goldman Sachs, and the next role was based in Manhattan, so we moved from Guildford in Surrey to the US. After Goldman, we stayed, as our children were growing up here. The US is a very young country compared to the UK, and there is a very broad mix of people; that can create tension, but also opportunity. It is also much, much bigger – until we lived here we did not really appreciate the size of the US and this seems to be the driver behind the biggest differences between here and the UK. Other than being close to family, which makes anywhere good to live, the range of activities/food/places make this a good place to be. I do miss British sausages … there is a place in Manhattan that produces them (Myers of Keswick), but so far we have found no local substitute, so they are always a favourite when we come back to the UK.