Old News - Newletter March 2006

Thanks for all the birthday wishes, I feel really spoiled ;-).

The best news is that my visa has been approved, so now I can stay and work for the next two years (extendable) - legal at last! The news came through on Friday, so a fab birthday present for me! I celebrated with a quick shopping spree for work clothes ;-).

I've had a great birthday. On Thursday I went for drinks 35 stories above Sydney Harbour, followed by dinner at a Tepinyaki restaurant (that's where you sit around a big hotplate and a Japanese chef cooks in front of you).

Friday was just a low-key drinks and dinner with friends, as Milord felt he'd organised enough ;-). He gave me the most stunning silver Tiffany starfish necklace with a diamond in it, so I can't complain! My first diamond ever... cool!

Yesterday we went sailing on a friend's boat. A new experience for me and not nearly as glamorous as I was expecting - very cramped with lots of ducking of flying ropes and winches - but certainly interesting. The weather was stunning, and sailing gently past the Opera House and Harbour Bridge is not to be sneezed at.

Today Milord and I were thinking of going diving, but as I have managed to leave my bag with wallet and phone aboard the boat it sounds like we'll be swimming out to the mooring instead!

I start work tomorrow, so hold thumbs for me ;-).

Old News - Newsletter March 2006

Firstly, I have landed a job! The visa is now processing and I should start work sometime next week we hope. It is in downtown Sydney, and as luck would have it there is a bus which goes just about door to door in half an hour ;-). I'm doing ASP.net stuff, fleshing out a system which has been built to prototype by consultants, and now they're using cheaper contractors to finish it. Not great money to start with, but a foot in the door and my next contract should be far easier to get. I'll be working on the call center webapp for Readers Digest - cool eh?

What else? Weekend before last Milord and I went off to Brisbane for a couple of nights - mainly for his work, but also for me to meet the family. It was his mum's birthday so the entire bunch were there... 2 Elderly aunts, his sister and 2 nieces. They're all really petite, don't know where Milord get's his size from! Apparently his dad was a learge man. Luckily they are all very nice and think I am too, so it went well. His mum is a lot older then I'm used to in inlaws (76) so I had a bit of trouble relating, but we entertained each other on Monday while Milord worked and I have a standing invite to come back at any time!

I think I caught a cold on the plane back, and have been sick as a parrot since last Wednesday. How I managed to perform in the interview on Friday I will never know as I was completely drugged up and fuzzy, but I guess they're not too fussy! I am now keeping Milord up half the night with coughing, and feeling very little guilt as he usually snores fit to rattle the windows! He's booked in for a sleep clinic next week to see if anything can be done about it...

This past weekend we went to the Hunter Valley for a golf competition and stayed with friends. We went to functions at the clubhouse Friday and Saturday nights, and Milord played during the days. I fiddled about wine tasting and exploring the local "town" on Saturday - to call it a one-horse town would be kind! Reminded me of those desperate karoo towns between CT and JHB. Oh - I found someone to ceroc with on Sat night! The style is a little different to what I am used to, but pretty much the same and still fun ;-). My new dress flares beautifully! On Sunday I joined Milord to walk the course and watch. Things sure have changed from when I used accompany my student mates for a hack around some scrubby course with a six pack! We had golf buggies, there were complimentary hotdogs, snacks and softdrinks all the way around, and occasionally a bigger buggy of beer would tootle by. A style I could become accostomed to!

It is our second "montheversary" today, and we are still going strong - better every day. Milord's divorce has now finalised which is a nice birthday present for me!

It's my birthday on Friday, and we have a couple of things planned. Thursday night we are meeting some friends at the top of the Shangri La hotel which is 20+ stories high and overlooks the harbour, then we are all going for dinner. Friday is a secret apparently... :-o. Saturday we are going sailing on a friends boat with a few mates. L is over from Auckland and will be coming along too which is fab.

So, things could not be any better! Even the weather has been perfect this week - hot and sunny ;-).

Old News - Newsletter February 2006

So, six weeks in Sydney now:
Milord and I are still getting on well.
I’ve been for one interview but didn’t get it.
Life is still good ;-)


And… it keeps raining! Who said this place is hot and dry? It’s a myth – I’ve seen more rain in the past six weeks than we had in the entire English summer. We have the odd hot dry day, but the rest of the time it is overcast and drizzly. They tell me to enjoy it while it lasts, but it’s affecting my beach-time! I’d be on Bondi right now, not writing emails, if it was a nice day!

The job hunting is very slow – although there are a few jobs going my visa status puts me at the bottom of the pile. Because sponsorship would take 3+ weeks, and everyone wants someone to start “tomorrow”, I’m not getting much interest. There is one possible nibble at the moment, so I’ll keep you posted! I had an interview just over a week ago, but it was in an area I don’t want to work in, and didn’t really go all that well anyway (over in 10 min – not a good sign!). I keep reminding myself that I’ve only been looking for two weeks and that it took me 3 months to land my first London role… Don’t panic!

Getting a little bored with being alone during the day now… sightseeing is not nearly the same on your own. I meet Milord for lunch a couple of times a week and do the odd exploration to stay sane, but I could do with a job – or a girlfriend to hang out with!

The house is completely rearranged cleaned and tidied, and I am now very comfortable in it. I’ve been doing a bit of gardening too and we moved all the containers around a week or two ago, so that occupied me for a couple of days. Milord has flowers growing outside now, which he grumbles about but I think might secretly like! Anyone who saw my garden last summer will know I like a riot of colour, so I’m slowly sneaking flowers into the shrubbery ;-). We also now have a herb garden which is fun. I used our own chives in the scrambled eggs on Sunday!

Milord is looking after me very nicely. For Valentine’s he took me out to a restaurant called Café Sydney, which overlooks the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. It was fabulous! Apart from that he generally spoils me and treats me like a princess, which I could definitely get used to! He is avoiding any “future” discussions until he gets to know me better, which is probably sensible… but frustrating! I sometimes feel like I’m on an indefinite probation period! He has some emotional baggage from his horrible marriage to work out, but I’m hoping that when the divorce comes through (in about a month) he’ll be able to move on and do the commitment thing. Or at least stop looking at me like I’m about to grow snakes for hair! He’s the best boyfriend I’ve ever had so I really shouldn’t complain - I’d probably run a mile if he suddenly got serious :-p.

What else? I’ve done some exploring, and got terribly lost trying to drive from home to Manly beach. I ended up circling the eastern suburbs of central Sydney for a while, which is utterly in the wrong direction! Turns out the SatNav doesn’t know about one of the newer tunnels under the city so accidentally sent me into it… and sometimes the GPS gets confused and thinks I am 2 blocks away from where I actually am and tries to take me the wrong way down one way streets! I am reverting to paper maps!

Old News - Newletter January 2006

Greetings all from Sydney!

This is going to be long, so the summary is:
Milord and I are getting on well.
I have not been for any interviews yet.
Life is good ;-).

I have been here more than three weeks now, and I love it. I haven’t been in much contact because every time I sit down at the pc during the day I get distracted, and in the evenings we are either busy or Milord needs his computer.

Milord and I are getting along well now, although the first week was a little difficult. We’ve both been living alone for a long time, and it is hard to adjust to living with someone you don’t really know except on email! We seem to have gotten over that now, and have had an excellent couple of weeks since and are able to talk about the future a little bit.

So, what have I been up to? Mostly I’ve been getting Milord’s house girl-friendly. He’s been single a long time, and if his wife ever decorated this house I can’t find a sign of it ;-). Luckily he has a cleaner who comes every fortnight, so it wasn’t really that grubby, but I still needed to scrub every surface, shelf and cupboard before I felt comfortable. Things in the fridge were years out of date and there was junk crammed everywhere! I’ve been systematically cleaning and de-cluttering each room, cleaning windows, washing curtains and hiding trinkets (if he hasn’t missed them in 6 months I’ll ditch them!). I’m also quietly replacing the bed linen and adding cushions and vases of flowers. It is starting to feel like a girl lives here now! Sadly it is a rented house, so there is only so much I can do.

It is a 2 bed detached little house, with front, side and rear gardens. There is a lounge that we have turned into a lounge/diner, and an open plan kitchen/living area which opens onto the side and back gardens. It is a very old property, and it seems to have last been decorated in the ‘60s or ‘70s, which drives me a bit crazy. I don’t know how long there have been tenants in here, but it needs a lot of love and restoration... oh well, not really my problem! We are talking of buying a place of our own in a couple of years – not sure where though.

The suburb we are in is called Balmain. It is 15 min west of central Sydney over the Anzac bridge, very trendy and packed with restaurants, pubs and boutiques. Kind of the Hampstead of Sydney! Very expensive, but a nice lifestyle ;-). We’re torn between staying here or getting something closer to the beaches.

It has rained almost every day since I arrived, and today is cool and overcast again. Apparently this is unusual weather and I’ll miss it when it goes. I suppose so, but I have exhausted my wet-weather sightseeing options, and just wish it would stay sunny for me to go walking and go to the beaches! It is far more humid than I expected, but I don’t know if that is a side effect of all the rain! We’ve had a couple of hot days, but it has been mostly in the mid 20s. The place sure is green though!

Milord took a week off when I arrived, and we spent time exploring Sydney and Balmain, and also went diving. I am afraid I have been very spoiled by my Thai and Red Sea diving, as diving off Sydney was not very exciting! The visibility is less than 10m, and I kept having to strain for a flash of fins to see where the guide went. On the upside, Milord is a great dive buddy! We are talking of going for a quick dive after work next week with friends, followed by a barbie on the beach – it’s a hard life!

We went to the Hunter Valley for a long weekend after I arrived. The Hunter Valley is the closest wine region to Sydney – about 2 hours north, and Milord has a holiday property (that he is trying to sell as it is a joint property with his ex) and friends there. We stayed with his friends T and N, who were lovely. Milord and I spent a day wine tasting, he had a game of golf at dawn one day while I slept in, and the rest of the time we ate, drank and socialised as it was T’s birthday and they had a number of friends staying! A very nice introduction to the area!

I watched Milord at the golf driving range one morning, and he was startled at my knowledge – seems all those years of accompanying Mountain Man has rubbed off. I was able to say “did you mean to slice that?” which for some reason he found impressive! I might have a go at taking up the game again, but at the moment I prefer watching. If his next game is not too early I’d like to walk the course with him. He plays off 7, so will be worth watching.

Last weekend we borrowed a friend’s property in Thredbo in the Snowy Mountains. They are about 5 hours south of Sydney, and in winter have some of the best skiing in Australia (not sure what that means!). As it was summer we went walking instead, and Milord christened his first ever pair of hiking boots by summiting the highest peak in Australia! Sounds impressive, but actually it is a 300m climb over 7km from the top of the chairlift! It is such a popular walk that they have replaced the path with a raised metal grid walkway, and anyone from 5 to 75 can do it easily ;-). Still, I am very impressed that Milord is making the effort to learn my favourite land hobby! Now I have to get into cycling in return… I’m using the excuse that we have no-where to keep another bike, but we’ll be asking the landlord for a bigger shed so I might end up having to do it! Oh well, compromise is everything ;-). He’s even mentioned giving dancing a bash, so I really can’t complain!

While we were in the mountains Milord had an afternoon of fly fishing. I kept him company by finding a large rock in the shade and reading my book and watching him, and the beetles and lizards. He seemed to appreciate it though! I might give it a go sometime ;-).

In between all of this I have been exploring Balmain and Sydney. I’ve been into most of the shops in Balmain now, and am slowly getting my bearings. I haven’t driven alone yet, but will probably do so soon. That’s when I’ll really get my bearings as I get lost and go in circles for an afternoon! I’ve popped into Sydney a couple of times on the bus, gone to museums etc and met Milord for lunch. I spent much of a morning in the Sydney Tower with a map, working out where everything is, and that helped a lot!

We’ve been out a lot, either to friends or just out on our own. We hosted a dinner party last week that went remarkably well. I have annoying habit of falling asleep suddenly at dinner parties here though, and it’s not because I’m bored! I don’t think I’m really sleeping that well yet, it takes more than a few weeks to get used to a snoring partner, but I’m getting there. In the meantime my wheels fall off from time to time! Milord finds it cute…

I’ve not been looking very hard for a job, but is starting to push me. He’s sent out my cv to people he knows in the industry, so I am waiting for the phone to ring. I have a fair bit of savings yet, so there is no urgency. Of course, if I haven’t swung a visa within 3 months I have to go out of the country and come back again… Maybe a quick weekend in Auckland!

Old News - Newsletter Decmber 2005

Happy Christmas!

I know I have been very quiet lately, but I've been up to my neck in packing and panic ;-). 2 weeks to go and I am a tad terrified, but everything is now as ready as it will ever be...

My Mom arrives tomorrow for almost 2 weeks, and then I fly out to sample another life, love and culture.

Never a dull moment, and I shall keep you posted.

May the coming year make all your dreams come true too

Old News - Newsletter October 2005

So, it’s been a few weeks since I last wrote, and plenty is going on. I have sold my house, given notice at work and bought my plane ticket to Sydney! Now comes the waiting part – waiting for the house sale to complete and my 3 months notice to pass. 98 days until I fly…

I was extremely lucky in being able to sell my house within a fortnight of deciding to do so (rent simply wouldn’t cover the mortgage and management company fees, and I need the cash anyway). I mentioned that I was about to sell while in the pub with some workmates, and one of them suddenly said “Ooh, I’m looking to buy!”. He’s a first time buyer still living with his folks, wants to keep 99% of the contents, and will let me stay in the house until I go. We settled on a price that pleases both of us, and I don’t have to pay any agents fees – saves me over £2000! Also, I know he is financially secure as we are in the same dept, so I can confidently proceed with the rest of the plan without waiting for the ink to dry.

I will still be in my house over Xmas, so send me a card ;-). My Mom will be coming to me for Xmas and New Years, and I’m looking forward to having her with me for my last days in the house. She’s already talking of coming out to Oz next year for a holiday!

Last Friday I gave notice at work. They are very sweet about it, saying that they are sad to see me go and the door will always be open if I ever come back. My notice period is 3 months, which takes me right up to Xmas eve, and that’s perfect.

I bought my ticket today, and will be flying out on Friday 6th Jan. The visa thing is proving difficult to organise from here, and the plan now is to go in on a tourist visa, land a contract, and then Milord’s IT recruitment company will sponsor my working visa. Apparently they do this all the time, so I’m trying not to worry about it too much!

All that is left is paperwork and saying goodbye. I am organising a farewell gathering in London in December, and making plans to travel to see those of my mates who live very far away. It’s a funny time – I am sad and excited all at once. I have been so very happy here, and pulling up my roots this time has been much harder than it was when I left SA. But I am going to someone who adores me in a sunny first world country, so how can that be a bad thing!?

I haven’t been up to much else, just catching up with friends and taking it easy. I led a (last) walk for my rambling club, had N and N over for the weekend, and visited I, and N for dinner. I haven’t been in the mood for dancing lately, so I hope K talks me into it next week!

I started series 1 of Lost the other day, and I doubt I’ll see much of the weekend until I finish all 22 episodes! The weather is supposed to be yucky anyway, so curling up in front of the fire for a telly-fest is a good plan ;-).

Old News - Newsletter September 2005

Well, I’ve been back from Oz for a week now, although it feels much longer! I had a fabulous time, the place is gorgeous, the people are wonderful, and the man is amazing. The feeling appears to be mutual, so much so that I am starting the process of wrapping things up here and will be heading Down Under to be with him early next year! Exciting and scary, but certainly not dull! I am now pimping my home ready to sell, and once that completes I’ll be giving notice at work… so watch this space.

As for my trip itself, Sydney is a stunning city. We walked all over, seeing the bridge and opera house, then went out in a boat for the day and explored quiet bays and posh areas with mansions overlooking the sea. Then Milord flew me up to the Whitsunday islands for 3 nights, which is a tropical paradise of white sand and turquoise sea near the Great Barrier Reef, and we did a little diving, a little walking and a lot of good food, fine wine and great company. I met a fair number of his friends who are lovely, rude, loud and welcoming, and as luck would have it Heidi was in town on business so he had the chance to meet one of my mates too!

I don’t think I have ever been treated so well, and we are disgustingly smitten ;-). He’s even talking about braving the UK winter to visit me in a couple of months time!

My Dad has been staying with me for the past week. He was contracted to bring a ship up from Cape Town to Newcastle, so took the opportunity to have a little holiday here at the same time. My stepmom flew out to join him, and they visited with my stepbrother for a while and then came to me. The joined me on the day I landed back from Sydney, which was great as they kept me up and I was able to get my sleeping patterns right almost immediately, although I’m not sure how much sense I was making at the time! I had a couple of days off to spend with them and we explored the countryside around Berkshire, involving lots of pub lunches outside as the weather was hot and sunny all week.

Old News - Newsletter July 2005

First of all, I am fine, I was not in London during the bombings. It is very upsetting, but could have been worse I suppose. In fact it is surprising how swiftly people have shrugged it off and gone back to normal – the Brits are very good at enduring hardship!

A very boring email from me this time, as I have only been overseas once! I have to say though - if you are only going to go to one place then Venice should be it ;-). What a gorgeous city. K and I went for a long weekend at the beginning of June, and were lucky with the weather – it was well into the 30s every day, but had been cool up until then so the canals did not smell at all.

Venice is made up of little islands in a lagoon which have been linked up over centuries by manmade “landfill” comprising layers of tree trunks and stone, leaving canals in between. There are no roads for cars, bicycles are illegal, and everything is transported by boat or on foot. It makes for a very intimate and fascinating place, with high buildings looming over tiny alleyways and narrow canals, and little bridges enticing you to explore. Sadly it is falling into disrepair, as sea levels are rising and the city is subsiding, and will probably not be around for that much longer. Plaster is eroding and crumbling as repeated floods take their toll, but every windowsill is a blaze of colour and jewel-like shops of exotic goods abound. It is a curious juxtaposition of wealth and decay.

We stayed in a lovely hotel with an enclosed shady courtyard with fountain, where you could recharge after a day of tourism before heading out again for dinner. We were close to the Grand Canal, but far enough away to be quiet. The weekend is now a blur of boats, gondolas, churches, palaces and piazzas, but we also took plenty of time out to sip wine in canal side cafes and indulged in plenty of ice-cream!

I strongly recommend Venice, although take lots of money – it is the most expensive destination I have been to!

Hmm, what else? I took part in a charity walk (pub crawl) for Starfish again this year (thanks to those who sponsored me). We had more girls taking part this year, a longer distance and fewer pubs. Although we raised around £2000 (R25000), which is excellent, it wasn’t as much fun as last year… I’m not sure I’ll do it again.

The dancing continues. K and I went along to a “dips and drops” workshop a few weeks ago which was excellent. 4 hours of taking my entire bodyweight on one bent leg or the other, or being lowered to the floor by my arms and having to pull back up again! By the end of the day I had stiffened up so badly that I could barely get down a flight of stairs, and it took days to ease up! Hilarious fun though.

We had our dancing 1940s Ball this past weekend, which was brilliant! Everyone made an effort to find costumes and get their hair done, and the venue was done up with flags, camo netting and sandbags. There was a live big band playing period dance music, and a two of the top UK dance couples gave us lessons and a demonstration. It wasn’t just a jive/ceroc do, there were ballroom and lindy-hop dancers there too, which made it a little hard to just ask a stranger to dance as usual, because you had no idea what you’d find yourself doing! K and I hired old-fashioned dresses, and my hairdresser had a ball with my hair. We “scrub up nicely” as one chap put it! Most of the guys were in uniform (sailor, soldier, airforce, navy whites) or formal, and the women were mostly glamorous with a few landgirls and sailorettes thrown in!

And last, but by no means least, my Aussie crush… Milord and I have continued our long distance thing – we email or sms every day and talk on the phone a couple of times a week. At the end of May we finally agreed to meet up in August! We decided on Mozambique as it is halfway and has world class diving, and then as luck would have it a couple of days later his Mom was diagnosed with throat cancer. She is very ill, might not last the year, and Milord is covering her medical bills. He is kind of unable to come halfway around the world to meet me now, so I have now decided to go to Sydney! I will be heading off there for the last week of August. As my cousin J said the other day: “You never do things the easy way, do you?”. Well no, I guess not! Where’s the fun in that?!

Apart from these things, life trundles on. I visit my friends, do the occasional club walk, and enjoy the English summer to the full in my garden with a jug of Pimms whenever the sun deigns to shine. We had a stunning week of weather a little while ago and I was bbq-ing for lunch and dinner for several days straight as it was just too nice outside and too hot indoors! I even camped out one night in a nest of duvets and watched the stars (and I’m sure I had a hedgehog come through the garden at 3am). Made me feel about 10 years old!

Old News - Newsletter May 2005

I don’t feel like I’ve been up to much, but a glance at my calendar tells me otherwise! Maybe it is because my weeks are very quiet although the weekends have been packed with visits to people here and abroad ;-).

Around mid April I was sent on a course in London for the week, and as the company would not put me up in a hotel and it is a 2 hour commute each way, I managed to talk T and J into letting me stay, which was brilliant. I managed to catch up with lots of mates while I was there… a most successful week. Oh yes, and I learned some stuff during the day too ;-).

The weekend after that I went to stay with N and N who have bought a house in Wilstead, near Bedford (North of London), and have been doing an enormous amount of renovation. It’s huge and absolutely gorgeous, even though I had to sleep (partly) under the desk in the study as the guest room is undergoing work ;-).

And the weekend after that I took a day off and shot to Pretoria in SA for a long weekend. My mate M was getting married, and it was also an excuse to visit BestGirl and her family, and to catch up with anyone who could be bothered to read their email and meet up with me ;-) (Shame on the rest of you!). I landed in Jhb Friday morning, and then BestGirl and I went out for a girly day, lunching and shopping and non-stop talking. In the evening I took her family out to dinner to a very kid-friendly restaurant (they even had a bouncy castle!). BestGirl and S have two little girls, J is 3 and K is 9 Months, and they are very sweet. Kids love me, and I had J completely bewitched by the end of my stay!

On the Saturday BestGirl and I went out to dinner with my Granny, then changed at her house and went on to M and HJ’s wedding. That was excellent. M and HJ are both very into food and wine, and had chosen the correct wines to complement each course. M's belly-dancing class did a surprise show, and the groom pulled out a guitar and harmonica and serenaded his wife ;-). I had a bash at teaching a couple of people Jive, and it was a good party.

On the Sunday BestGirl had a bbq for anyone who wanted to pop over to see me, so several friends and family came around and the day flew. Then I was on my way back to the airport and the flight home which always feels twice as long as the flight out!

The past couple of weekends I have been at home, which makes a pleasant change! We’ve had some nice weather and I’ve been doing lots of gardening now that winter is finally over. I had a bbq on Sunday and actually managed to get slightly sunburnt, so summer is on its way!

On the subject of garden and home, the application to build my conservatory has been turned down, which is a great shame and a great relief, as I was going to have to borrow extra to pay for it and wasn’t sure I could manage the repayments and still have a life! Just got to stop myself spending the money I have “saved” now!

I still go Jive dancing most weeks, and last weekend K and I went for 5 hours of extra lessons, which was good fun. We are currently shopping around for costumes for the Jive 40’s Summer Ball that is coming up ;-). This weekend I will buying proper dancing shoes!

Work is going well, busy but not frantic, just the way I like it. I am up to my neck in documentation for a new project at the moment. Oh well.

Bloke-wise, I am still single and loving it. I have however recently somehow struck up a long-distance romance with Milord in Sydney, Australia - we met while diving in the Red Sea. Everyone usually swaps email addresses at the end of a diving week, and this just blossomed ;-). He is exceedingly far away though, so I have no idea where things are going, but it’s kinda fun! I can see the addiction of internet dating now…

K and I are off to Venice for a long weekend next weekend. We are very excited and can’t wait!

Old News - Newsletter April 2005

Hmm, it seems that a couple of months have passed since my last update. I have gotten a year older, been overseas, and changed back to single status ;-). Busy busy, not that that is a good excuse for neglecting you!

To begin, I should tell you that I broke up with Zimbo a few weeks ago. He’s a lovely guy, but just not suited to me. I won’t moan about him, but things had become more and more disappointing and frustrating. I was recently away diving in the Red Sea for a week, and did not miss him in the least, and when I got back I wasn’t happy to see him, so I let him go. It was a very civilised break-up, he took it like a man, and there is a chance we will make friends someday. I still don’t miss him, so I am sure my choice was correct. No one else on the horizon yet, but I am having a lot of fun looking ;-).

As mentioned, I went away to Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt with my Mom for a week’s diving at the beginning of March, over my birthday. I love going away somewhere exciting over my birthday – it makes the celebration seem to last for ages. The diving from Sharm is among the best in the world, and I didn’t want to come back!

Mom got qualified while we were there, and ended up with an advanced PADI qualification, which is what I have. While she was doing lessons I took the opportunity to do some really challenging diving. I dived my first wreck – the Thistlegorm – supposed to be the best wreck dive in the world! She is a Second World War supply vessel, and still has on board a full cargo of lorries, motorbikes, aeroplane parts, shells and rifles, and so much more (all a bit rusty and crusty now). You can swim through each of her holds, and also the captain’s quarters. It is a very exciting dive, and demands very good dive skills as most of the places are dark and a bit of a squeeze, and I was very impressed with myself! It was too exciting to be scary!

The next day I found myself swimming through tunnels and sea caves, at one point swimming headfirst straight down for 25m! Wow. I got within 10m of a sea turtle, and I won’t bore you with the vast myriad of fish and coral I saw every single day! The last two diving days I was able to tag along on Mom’s advanced course, joining her for her deep, navigation, naturalist, drift and wreck dives. The Dunraven wreck this time, a much less challenging or interesting wreck although the current was thrillingly strong and it proved to be my fastest drift dive so far! (That’s when you hang motionless in the sea current as it whisks you along – very cool)

Sharm is a very relaxing resort too – I was able to walk around on my own without being particularly hassled. Anyone who’s been to Egypt before knows how bad the locals can be, but I felt very at ease in Sharm. There is a lovely promenade along the seafront that streches for miles, thronging with bars, restaurants and hotels, and we ate in a different place every night. If you have been diving before, you will know just how exhausting it is, and we were asleep early each night, and up before 7am each day to get to the boats. In fact, on my Thistlegorm day I had to meet the bus at 4am!

We decided to spend the last Saturday and Sunday relaxing in the sun instead of grabbing a final day’s dive, and this proved lucky as I ate something very bad on Friday night and had a brief but powerful case of food poisoning. By the afternoon I was able to handle a beer by the pool though, and in the evening we went into the desert to go stargazing with a proper astronomer and a very powerful telescope. He pointed out all the visible constellations, and through the telescope we looked at the Moon, Saturn, Jupiter and some nebulae. It was really excellent. On the Sunday we went looking for souvenirs, and impressed ourselves with our bargaining ;-). We really didn’t want to leave, and both Mom and myself have been a bit down since!

Mom stayed with me for a further week, although I couldn’t take any more time off. We get on extremely well, and I was very sad to see her go. She might be in the same country, but the Isle of Man is just so hard to get to!

The rest of my life is far less interesting ;-).

I still go to Jive dancing once a week, and K and I have moved up into the intermediate class. This is lots of fun, as they teach much more intricate moves, and also a few dips and leans, which still make me laugh helplessly when I find myself in one. We all enjoy flirting outrageously, but no one wants to spoil things by taking them further. Mind you, it is bad enough having 2 exes in my walking club without adding one to my dance class, so that suits me!

Speaking of the walking club, I went on a lovely long 11-mile walk in the Chilterns (rural hilly area) over the Easter weekend. Zimbo (oops, here’s me moaning after all) had a walking limit of 6 miles, which is when I only just begin to hit my stride, so I am loving being able to go on the long walks again! I was surprised not to be sore at the end of the walk, but I suppose all the dancing is keeping me in shape ;-).

And speaking of keeping in shape (this isn’t a letter, it’s a stream of consciousness), I have just rejoined the gym. My company has decided to sponsor everyone’s gym membership, which is brilliant. I not only rejoined, but I signed up for a few personal training sessions! I’ve had one so far, but it was more of a fitness test, which was interesting. She says I am fit and flexible, need to drink more water and have rubbish lungpower. Not sure what the lungpower is for… I guess I need to go running (gasping) more. If fact the evenings are lovely and light now, but I haven’t been able to motivate myself into running shoes lately!

Another thing the company pays for is eye tests, and I went along for one the other day as I sometimes have fuzzy vision at the end of a working day. The doc says my eyes are fine, but a little long-sighted, so I should wear glasses at work to give them a chance while focussing close. It turns out my work also pays for glasses if you only need them for work, so I am going to be a four-eyes shortly! I had a nightmare about it the other night, so I guess it bothers me, but I really don’t like the fuzzy vision at the end of the day so I’ll cope with it!

Apart from throwing perks at us, work is going well. I’ve just been chasing a very tight deadline for the last couple of weeks (lots of fuzzy vision), but it hasn’t been too bad. I start a new project next week, which will be all my own. As much as I like team development, it is nice to have something all to yourself from time to time – at least you know the errors are your own!

And my home is going well too. Spring is well sprung, I have mowed the lawn several times, Mom has weeded my flowerbeds (thanks Mom!), and I have had two barbeques (braais). I have applied for permission to have a conservatory built onto my tiny little house. If it is approved I will double my living space, have a proper dining area, and be up my neck in debt. Enormous fun.

I am not sure how I will fund my holidays without resorting to credit cards, but I shall do my utmost ;-).

Up and coming trips:

I will be popping over to Pretoria for a weekend (yeah, 2 nights) at the end of April for my dear mate M’s wedding (yup, jet set chick, me). Everyone in the area is invited to BestGirl’s house (she is kindly putting me up for my whirlwind stay, she’s a right darling) on Sunday the 1st May to see me ;-). I think between 11 and 4, as I have to catch a plane at 8pm. I’ll be sending a note to the locals in a little while to hopefully prod you into coming over. I know how hard it is to get South Africans to plan ahead, but try guys, ok?

At the end of May K and I are going to Venice for a long weekend. We are very excited!

But anyway, I hopefully will have seen you, or at least spoken to you before then!

So, my life: cool, fun, happy, fantastic! You?