Old News - Newsletter April 2002

I am loving being car-mobile again after 3 years! It's old, red, rusty, rattley, can get to 70mph (120kph) if I REALLY have to overtake a lorry, otherwise rumbles along quite happily at 60mph.

But it cost practically nothing, and even after adding on insurance and breakdown cover comes to less than £1000. So, very cheap! Starts every time, and handles London traffic without overheating - what more can I ask for! I'm getting 9 miles to the litre... not sure if that's good or not.

My new office is going OK. We are doing lots of documentation, which is why I am writing a letter instead! I really need the car though, as we are miles from anything, in a business park type area. I'll be joining a nearby gym next month, which I am looking forward to! All this driving instead of walking is starting to show!

Mountain Man and I went to Holland on Saturday for a daytrip to see the tulips. It was something we'd booked ages ago, so decided to go through with in spite of being broken up. Personally I found it a bit of a strain!

We got up at 3am and drove to Gatwick, landed in Amsterdam at 8:00, and spent until 10am trying to get info about where to go. Then we caught a train to the tulip fields and looked into hiring bicycles. Mountain Man had a brainwave that we would train it into the heart of tulipland and then get bikes, meaning we wouldn't need to cycle as much. So we did, only to find ourselves in the thick of an annual flower float parade! It was fantastic, and we were so lucky to see it!

After that we discovered that they don't hire bikes there, and so set off on foot to tour the tulip fields. This proved to be exhausting, and I got really ratty after a couple of hours! We finally found a spectacular field to picnic beside, and a friendly householder to let me use his loo, and then I felt much better! Then hiked back to town and did a scenic train ride, then headed back to the airport and landed at 9pm. Drove home and collapsed - what a day!

Mountain Man went to friends for a braai on Sunday, and I begged off as I really needed time away from him for a bit! We don't fight, but I find being with him a lot stressful. He keeps talking about heading to SA for 6 weeks to save pounds while unemployed if he doesn't find a job soon, and I wish he would push off for a bit to let me start getting over him!

Having said that, I talked him into coming to a pub quiz near T's on Monday night as I wanted him to navigate! We drove right through the West End, around Picadilly, up Shaftsbury and past Chinatown... quite exciting. I would not have managed without him, and the way back was even worse! I shall need a lot more town driving to get the hang of the streets!

Mountain Man and I are still getting on OK anyway. He is enjoying being able to smoke, drink to excess, go clubbing, and stay out all night with mates without being whinged at. He is planning boys trips to Amsterdam and Ibiza... gah. Glad he's not my boyfriend! I am slowly starting to put feelers out into new groups of people, although at the moment all I want to do is stay in quietly and let the baggage fade away. A little hard to do with the Baggage itself sitting in front of the TV! It's going to be a very long 6 months.