Old News - Newsletter March 2003

Well, I am about a week into my new job. It’s not very exciting so far, as I am just reading documentation and manuals – really stupefying stuff.

I’m working with a slightly odd bunch of people, although they’re quite fun. Have you ever wondered what happened to the pale soft-bodied nerds in class who spent all their spare time playing computer games and watching Buffy? Well, they’ve grown up into balding pale soft-bodied blokes, who spend all their free time playing computer games online and watching Buffy DVDs, and work with me during the day. (And my line manager has worn a purple shirt every day since I started – I’m not sure what that means, but no-one else has mentioned it so I don’t know if I should!) The first hour of each day seems to be devoted to rehashing gaming strategy and last night’s kills, and the rest of the day involves a lot of non-pc banter. I’m not sure when work gets done, but anyway. At least everyone seems happy, which is a huge change from the last place I worked! My work is in one of those soulless business parks, but the pretty little village of Theale is very close by, and the Kennet and Avon Canal is 10 min away. I had a lovely walk along it yesterday at lunchtime.

Hmm what else? I have just worked out my budget taking into account my drop in income, and realised with horror that I’ll be netting £300 less per month, and now my rent is more than a third of that amount. So my recreation is going to involve low-cost pursuits if possible from now on. I have just joined the local Rambling association and intend to go along on one of their Sunday walks very soon. Hopefully this will help me meet some locals (who actually step away from the computer sometimes). The days are getting longer, and the clocks change at the end of the month and then I will have enough daylight after work to do some walking or cycling or gardening or sketching (I struggle to draw by artificial light). I was thinking of signing up for lessons in something, but now I am broke!

There is a direct train from where I work in Theale to Paddington and it takes an hour, so if any Londoners are planning stuff during the week give me a shout. I may not be able to afford to come every time, but I will try! And if anyone fancies a breath of country air you have a standing invite – bring your walking shoes!

Old News - Newsletter February 2003

I start work on the 3rd March. That suits me, and gives me a whole month 'off' before hitting the treadmill again! Very very nice, especially as my Mom is staying with me at the moment. She's just landed a job in the Yorkshire Dales, and starts in a couple of weeks, so we're having fun spending money we *will* have!

Florence was an interesting trip. The town is lovely, and the artwork stunning, but unfortunately 5 days living solidly with Northerner brought an abrupt end to a fading relationship. He's a lovely guy, but not for me perhaps... A great pity, but I hope he finds someone more suited.

That's about it really. I'm free now at weekends if anyone is doing anything interesting! And my new job location is more convenient for travelling into London easily I think, so please start inviting me for pub-quizzes and dinners again - I am back in society again!

Old News - Newsletter February 2003

After nearly two months of searching I have finally landed a job!

It's just West of Reading, and takes about half an hour to get to from where I live, so I don't have to move, which is brilliant. I'll get to see my bulbs come up in the garden!

It's a Delphi developer position, in a tight-knit and friendly company, who seem to work flat-out in a structured way - just what I was looking for. They're using the latest versions of everything, and have already told me I'll be starting off with loads of training to come up to speed. If you know anything about IT you'll know this is rather unusual!

The money is a bit less than I was getting at my last job, but still well within market rates. I start in two weeks, and I'm quite excited! I'll be their fifth South African too, so we're slowly taking over the civilised world.

I haven't been up to much else, as I was battening down the hatches in anticipation of a long homeless job search. My Dad has gone home to SA and now my Mom is staying with me while she looks for housekeeper work. We've always enjoyed living together, so it's rather cool to be unemployed together! We've done plenty of walking around the area, which is quite rural and lovely if you haven't been to see me yet.

It was T and J's wedding two weeks ago, at which I had the honour of being bridesmaid with H and L. It was absolutely glorious and went like clockwork, and the reception was a jol. Definitely the wedding to measure others by ;-). T and J get back from Honeymoon in Thailand and Singapore tomorrow, and I'm sure their photos will make me green with envy!

I've had a most annoying cold for two weeks now (caught at the wedding I think!), which was completely debilitating for the first week and has had me coughing like a seal for the second. It is finally on the way out though, and I hope to get back into the gym on Monday. My interview suits were decidedly tight!

I'm being taken to Florence for Valentine's weekend by Northerner, and I'm really looking forward to it! Eat your hearts out girls! I'll post my own envy-making photo's when I get back :-p.

Hmm what else? I'm about to make up for the last two month's frugality with a terrific shopping spree... whee!

Old News - Newsletter January 2003

Happy New Year!

I had a lovely festive season. For Christmas Eve and Day Northerner and I went to my cousin’s in Reading, and it was extremely pleasant. On Boxing Day we drove north to spend a few days with his family, which was remarkably painless. For New Years Eve we met up with a bunch of friends in a Turkish restaurant in London, and had a very good time. Possibly the best New Years Eve I’ve had for years! The hangover the next day was a corker too…

There is not too much going on with me, otherwise. My Dad is visiting at the moment, which is very nice. I haven't had him to myself for such a long stretch in years, and he's keeping himself busy sorting out my car and furniture! I have cut right back on unnecessary spending in the expectation of being unemployed, so I’m not doing anything exciting! Long walks in the country followed by a beer while defrosting in front of a pub fire seems to be the extent of our extravagance at this time! My home is right on the edge of a 15-mile ramblers route, and I’ve worked out a 2-hour circular bit of it that ends up at my local pub… superb!

We had a bit of snow last week, which hung about for several days before finally melting. Very pretty – just like all the movies you see of American winters. It does make driving rather hair-raising though, and I was happy to see it melt off the roads! It was also really cold, with highs of freezing! It has warmed up again now though, and the high today is 8 degrees. Nice and mild…

I have no new job yet, but I am still at the fussy stage. If I get desperate there is work out there, but for now I'm holding on waiting for the dream job! I am going for a second interview this week for a job I really want, so hold thumbs! There is not much else out there right now, but I’m hoping jobs will start appearing as the year gets properly underway.

My present job is winding down, with us simply handing over all our work to the poor sod that’ll be maintaining it. Most of us are working half days, as there isn’t much to do.

Old News - Newsletter December 2002

I can't believe xmas is nearly apon us! Remember how long it used to take when you were little? Now December flashes past!

Apart from being told that I won't have a job next year, this has been a rather nice month ;-). Lots of people have made the trip out to see me and my new home, bulbs are coming up in my garden, and the birds have found the feeders hanging outside the lounge window! I have a robin, a couple of blackbirds and a tit or two so far. A kestrel too, but I think he was after the birdies rather than the seeds! The birds don't like it when I am in the lounge, but I hope they'll get used to me.

It certainly has been a good month for dinner parties, and my liver is taking a beating - ah well, that's what the festive season is for!

My plans for Christmas involve going to my cousin J's in Reading. Northerner and I are visiting them on xmas eve for snacks, then returning again for xmas lunch. It'll be a very family Christmas this year, as my Aunt and cousin are also visiting J and D at the moment. On Boxing Day I travel North with Northerner to see his family, returning via a remote pub on the moors and a stop at his brother's on the North East coast. I hope to pop in at J and K's on the way home on Sunday.

For New Years I am going for dinner in London with friends. Northerner is on call that night, so has to stay soberish! Shame.

My Dad is arriving in Newcastle today, having spent a month sailing a diamond mining vessel up from Cape Town (for ship building work). He's going to be coming to visit me in a week or two, which is great! Northerner's a little jumpy about it though... heh heh heh. And towards the end of Jan my Mom arrives back after a 3 month summer holiday in SA. I'm hoping they don't overlap - can you imagine!

Jobwise it is a rather slow time to be looking for work! Recruitment agencies are closed this week, so I am not even getting nuisance calls. I did go for two interviews last week, so there is a bit of work out there. It seems my skillset is reasonably marketable at the moment, and my willingness to be flexible about where I work is opening up the market a lot. Both interviews were ok. The one, which I WANT, I don't think I got. The other I think I did get, but I DON'T want it! They are both going to get back to me next year anyway.

Have a wonderful Christmas, and an excellent New Year!

Old News - Newsletter December 2002

My company informed my department yesterday that we are going to be made redundant on the 31st of Jan 2003. Since they acquired us at the beginning of the year we have failed to make a profit, and so they are disbanding as much as possible. It's not really a surprise, but it is a shock! I was expecting to get no bonus or increase, but to lose my job is a bit much!

I'm still a bit stunned and it almost doesn't seem real...

The job market is terrible, and the Dec/Jan period is the worst time of the year to be looking for work (if anyone knows of a job going, please let me know), so I don't expect to find anything soon. So I am cutting back expenditure as far as possible, as I'm sure you can imagine, so you won't be seeing much of me!

I will be getting some kind of redundancy package, which I hope will keep me in my home until mid-March when my lease ends (there's a couple of nasty clauses which make breaking it undesirable). After that I am going to be looking for floors to crash on, but I'll be picking on people closer to the time!

I'm glad I had the chance to go to SA and spoil everyone, and I'm glad I've already bought all my xmas presents! Luckily I hadn't actually booked any of the planned holidays for next year yet!

This is probably for the best, as I was hating my job and only holding on until the market improved. Now I have no excuse not to get out there and sell myself!

Old News - Newsletter

I had a superb 3 weeks holiday in SA, and saw every friend and family member possible! Anyone who knows the size of my family will realise that this left me with very little time over, but I managed one day on the beach and a bit of shopping, as well some generous poolside time. And I think I was able to spoil just about everyone, which was nice ;-).

I got home to find Northerner waiting for me in arrivals with a big bunch of roses, and he's been showering me with attention since! Very nice to come home to.

It was also lovely to get back to my little house, although there seems to be a slow leak inside my washing machine and the kitchen was flooded... Not good when you have fake wood flooring - it doesn't look quite as good as before! It's stopped squelching now, so all is well.

I am almost back into my routine now. I went to gym today for the first time in a month, and I am SO unfit! I have managed to gain 2kg in the last 3 weeks, but with a little effort I should knock it back off quickly. Considering the vast amount of red meat, avocados and wine I consumed, I'm not surprised!

Old News - Newsletter October 2002

I am off to SA for 3 weeks this Friday night. I really can't wait - I can't remember the last time I saw decent sunshine!

I’ll be spending a week and a half in Pretoria, visiting friends and family, and a week and a half in Cape Town doing the same. Plus plenty of shopping, tanning, sightseeing, sunbathing, walking, basking, boozing and browning. Mmmmm.

Otherwise I’ve been madly busy. My project at work went critical a while ago, and I am desperately trying to finish my portions of it before I leave. I’m working lots of late evenings, and everyone knows how much I enjoy doing that! I’m still not particularly happy in the job, but at least I have one - the job market is still useless, so there is no escape. Living around the corner has made a wonderful difference though – even when I work until 7pm I get home earlier than I would have when I lived in London and left at 5:30!

Things are going swimmingly with Northerner. I don’t see much of him during the week as he works stupid hours, but we spend the weekends together, and he’s lovely. The weekend before last he took me away for the weekend to Cornwall, which was superb! Not only because it is a stunning part of the country, but because I can’t actually remember when last someone took me on holiday. I feel really spoiled! We passed our first Montheversay this week, and he still thinks I’m worth hanging around with, so I must be doing something right!

This last weekend was a wet and stormy one. It made me a bit homesick actually, as it was just like a good Cape Town howler, except it only lasted for a day. Lots of trees came down, and people were killed, and parts of the country are still without electricity… you can tell they don’t have storms often! I had arranged to travel North to Altons Towers rollercoaster park for the day on Sunday, but the weather was so bad I stayed in bed instead for most of the morning, and spent the rest of the day watching videos. I have since heard that the party went all the way there (several hours drive) only to find it closed! Sounds like I made the correct decision!

Anyway, between work and bloke and touching base a couple of times per week with various friends I don’t seem to have enough time to do my ironing let alone anything arty at home! One of these days things will settle down, and I will rig up the easel and find my sketchbook. But I am certainly not bored or lonely! I love living alone in my cosy little townhouse, and I am becoming decidedly selfish in my habits ;-). I had wondered how I would like living alone after 6 years of company, and I adore it!

It’s gone quite wintery here now. The clocks went back by an hour on Sunday, so now it is completely dark by 5pm. I’ve had the central heating on for the last month, and I’ve had to scrape ice off my car a couple of times in the mornings. But my house is warm and cosy, and I have all the bulbs in my garden to look forward to in Spring! And I am REALLY going to appreciate the African sun in just 4 days time.

Old News - Newsletter September 2002

I thought you'd all be fascinated to know that I am no longer single! I always was really crap at staying single, and it is nice to know nothing has changed ;-).

Anyone who has seen me over the last few months will have heard Northerner cropping up more and more often. He's a bloke I used to work with a couple of years ago, and although we had lost contact we met up again at a drinks evening in April. He was thrilled to hear I that was single and began a long and gentle courtship, in spite of no encouragement. It took me a very long time to get over the failure of my last relationship (as you know), and I was not interested in a rebound.

Anyhow, his patience and persistance have finally paid off, and I am having to pinch myself daily as he seems too good to be true!

So, details. He's English, from the North, 33, 6"2 and nicely proportioned ;-P, and an IT support project manager, working in Canary Wharf (London). And he thinks I'm super, which is always very nice! At the moment he lives near me, but is about to move to Docklands. Which means I'll have a London base on weekends - bonus!

Apart from getting to know my new boyfriend, I have been slowly furnishing my house and getting the garden under control. Work is a madhouse, but I seem to be getting the hang of my current tasks at last.

This past weekend was very nice. On Saturday Northerner and I went into London and had a few drinks with Candice and her mob on the Queen Mary for her birthday. Then halfway through the evening we wandered into Covent Garden and met up with R and S for a few drinks for their birthdays. Then staggered off to Chinatown for supper before heading home. On the Sunday we went to Leeds Castle, which is brilliant! I can really recommend it - super restored castle, lovely grounds and gardens, a fun maze, and a nifty grotto which deserves a look. There is a huge aviary, and plenty of picnic areas.

Old News - Newsletter September 2002

Well, I am finally moving into my new home today. It took me a lot longer than I wanted, as the landlord and letting agents took their time getting things ready, but it actually works out financially better as I am not paying overlapping rent on two places!

Enormous thanks to Northerner, Mom and A, who helped me move 99% of my worldly goods into the garage of the property last weekend, driving in and out of London all day long! Not much fun, and I was completely shattered by the end! Since then I have managed with 4 plates, 2 mugs, a wok and a pyrex dish – it is amazing what you can get by with, especially as Mom and A were staying with me for a while too. Mom and A actually broke up a few days ago, but have managed to stay friends – although having them both stay with me was a little fraught ;-). A has gone to Norway to do some handyman work for a while, and then he is going back to SA.

Mom is going to be staying with me until Tuesday when she is off to SA for a few weeks for a holiday, and will be knocking my garden into shape in the meantime! I bought my first lawnmower yesterday – very exciting. The start-up costs are going to be huge for a while, as I am renting unfurnished for the first time in this country. I am picking up a nice mattress on Saturday, and that will have to do for the furniture budget for a month or two! So visitors had better be able to sit on the floor… Anyone keen to get out of London for a weekend is welcome if they don’t mind roughing it a bit! I’m about an hour out of Waterloo or Paddington, so London is easy for me – please don’t stop inviting me round ;-).

I am very much looking forward to living so close to work. The commute from London is becoming more and more irritating, especially as the days start drawing in and more people seem to be using their cars. The area I’ve picked to live in is almost rural, with lots of woods and fields nearby, and I am extremely close to a rambling route. But the shops, pub, library and video store are all within walking distance, so that’s nice. And I’m a short drive from Henley and all those lovely Thames villages… I can’t wait to dig out my hiking boots and get walking! There must be loads of walking clubs in the area, and I’ll be looking into them very soon. And I’ll be rigging my easel in my study as soon as I get settled… all the things I’ve been talking of for so long!