Greetings from Stockholm!
Notes from Exile is about life as an ex American.
The democratic collapse now underway in the U.S. is creating a cascade of consequences, both at home and across the world. One of them is a mass exodus of Americans. Heartbroken, scared, pissed off and betrayed, they’re voting with their feet. There’s no hard data on these exits because the U.S. government doesn’t track emigration. But statistics from destination countries across the world tell a clear story: A new diaspora is emerging and it’s red, white and blue.
Among that sea of people is me. My decision to emigrate in 2019 was painful and also urgent, because everything I thought I knew about my country was a lie. As it turned out, I was early in the determination that life in the U.S. had become unsustainable. Now, I’m far from alone and we need to talk.
What happens here
The decision to leave home is difficult, fraught and intensely personal. It doesn’t end when you board the plane to wherever you’re going. In fact, it’s never really over. Faulkner said it: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” For those who leave, that decision echoes on, playing out in the day-by-day, forever.
Notes from Exile explores what life looks like from the other side. Not the cafes and the castles, but the real stuff: The dentist, the subway, the taxes and that 24/7 hyper-stimulated feeling that tells you you’re not home. This blog is focused not on visas and residence permits (although I did put together a guide to all of that), but rather on the lived expat/immigration experience.
In this new reality, there is profound guilt and also joy. What does it mean to be American, now, and from here? What do emigrants keep and what do we leave behind? Where is our allegiance now? How do we navigate through this dark time together and come out safe?
What subscribers get
By signing up as a free subscriber, you’ll never miss a post — all stories will be sent directly to your inbox. Notes from Exile is free to all readers and will never paywall its content, because we are in a time of national peril and we need to talk about it. However, when this blog has achieved critical mass, it will open to paid subscriptions from those who can afford it without sweat. If that’s you, when that day arrives, your support will be very much appreciated.
All content here is 100% human, with no input from AI. That will never change.
About Laura Skov
I began my career as an editorial assistant at Newsweek. I went on to found and lead Dow Jones Newswires’ Budapest bureau, covering Hungary’s transition from Soviet-style economic policies to free-market capitalism. I returned to the U.S. as an editor at the Wall Street Journal’s international editions. After witnessing 9/11 from my office across the street and running for my life through the dust cloud, I left the news business. After that, I worked in editorial enterprises, first within investment banking and later in consulting. If you’re active on Substack Notes, you can follow me there.
I hope you’ll consider joining the conversation. You are very welcome here.
