Old News - Newsletter August 2002

Another month slinks past...

10 days until Mountain Man is out of my life forever! And counting - I actually have my entire office counting with me at the moment! It feels remarkably like the end-of-school-year countdown to the summer holidays. The last few weeks have been completely unbearable, as he has now begun sleeping around in addition to simply destroying his liver, and it is doing my head in! 10 days to go...

J and D are back with me after a quick trip home for a wedding. They have found a flat at last, and should be moving in next week. They've chosen one about 10 miles outside Reading, in a lovely rural area. I am looking forward to seeing it.

My Mom is housekeeping in London for August, filling in for a housekeeper on holiday, and it is great to have her nearby! I spent most of last weekend there. The place is just off Hyde Park, and I had forgotten how much I like that park. We walked the dogs all over it and around the Serpentine, and had a picnic in the long grass. I got my arms sunburnt again! I have a proper farmer's tan now - just my arms and neck! Very sexy.

Work is not great. Last week my company sent myself, another senior programmer and two project managers to our German office for 2 intense days of meetings. We worked 13 hours a day specifying a major project, and determining how long it would take us to write it properly. Then our bosses threw our calculations in the bin and told us to meet some completely arbitrary deadline. This means working plenty of unpaid overtime, to deliver an inferior product.

Which is why I will be giving notice on this job at the end of September - if I can last that long! I have been dissatisfied for a long time, but this is unacceptable. No benefits, no training, no overtime pay, bad location, and bad treatment - I'd rather be unemployed. I am job hunting at the moment, but I will be leaving regardless at the end of October. Then a holiday in SA - perhaps a very long one! And maybe another computer course while I am there to extend my skills, or a short contract, or maybe I'll go to Australia, or maybe I'll work with my Mom as a housekeeper for a bit, or perhaps I will have found a good job... The more I think about it, the more options open!

There has never been a better time to stop and reconsider my direction. I have no ties: no lease, no mortgage, no dependants, no debts, no boyfriend. And a very healthy savings account. So, why not? Quite exciting really!

So, I will not be moving to Reading any more when my lease expires. I'm not entirely sure what I WILL be doing - I'm looking around for a short let bedsit until the end of October, and looking into storage for my stuff.

This is not definite of course - I am VERY good at changing my mind! But I'll keep you posted.