If we don't gleefully dive in, they're offended. Their kids heap scorn on us because we're not up on the latest entertainment, computers, and sports. Our well-worn games of peg chess or peg checkers seem woefully inadequate next to their mounds of toys. We covet owning a minibike or go-cart, not just riding them. After furlough, we're quickly and comfortably ensconced back in our protected, elitist environment.
Reentry means climbing down the social status ladder and that's painful.
We drop from the top rung to the bottom rung. The game is no longer, Stick it out until furlough ends. Consequently, we react differently. Some of us kicks and scratch to get the home culture's elitist symbols. Others of us suffer with an almost pathological longing for our real homes overseas.