turn the page

I’ve just spent my last night in my co-op, where I’ve lived longer than anywhere else in my life(!), and I have to move the bags today that I’m taking with my to London over to my friend’s house, where I’ll spend the next week.

I’m just squeakingly close to the limits on my checked and carry-on bags, the former of which includes my guitar, so it has to be in a hard case that has just one handle that goes in my hand. And all of this requires some hard decisions about what needs to go with me now. I also put together a Priority Mail box of small items to ship – this has to be easy stuff for UK Customs to figure out, namely paper, as I know they get tripped up by oddly shaped things like small rocks, and I don’t want this to take more than the allotted week. Still, it costs $41.

Then, the carry-ons. I debated with myself about what represents a purse or pocketbook suitable for travel. Could it be a big shoulderbag 2 feet wide? Well… probably not; can’t risk it. So it’s going to be my rucksack-y purse, to hold a book, my composing, crocheting, tickets, &c. Plus, a small rolling suitcase, I hope just within the weight limit – 13 lbs, including laptop? Eek!

And finally the massive suitcase I’m left with – just within the 62” total dimension limit! and of course if it can be only 50 lbs I’ll weigh it before I go. $70 if I go over…

So, I’ve had to leave behind my heavier, long winter coat. That’s the main thing. Guess I won’t be going to northern Germany or Scotland this winter! :-/ Unless I hit up the charity shops… well, there is always that…

about slogging through the mud that life throws in your path every day – very true.

I am learning equanimity. My stepmother said, “You’re going to have a nervous breakdown at the end of all this.” I replied, “Nah, I just get a little one out of the way every few days.” I’m learning that I can persevere with the boring stuff, and that, eventually, miraculously, it gets done, no matter how overwhelming it looks. I’m learning to make decisions, large and small, mostly by realizing that nothing is forever, and nothing is that important that it’s worth being immobilized over.

And I’ve almost stopped waking up with in a panic attack at 4 every morning; at least I can get back to sleep in 10 min or so.

Almost there!

that large parts of what’s on the next page are blurry, tiring/scary to think about, and downright boring. What if I get another demanding office job that makes my brain shut down, despite the work itself being interesting? What if I really should be doing something completely and utterly different?

I think it’s going to take a while to recover from the previous pages, frankly, and get my ganas back. And settling in with A, which is lovely goal in and of itself but highly unstructured (an issue for both of us), doesn’t really help.

Maybe I should start by setting aside an hour or so every day to browse job pages, refamiliarize myself with what’s going on in my field and find things to get excited about, even start blogging again.

It also doesn’t help that my beloved laptop got stolen and now A and I are sharing a computer for the moment.

submitted, and visa granted! Woohoo!

I have my own O2 mobile phone and number now! Pay-as-you-go, and once I’m there I’ll probably sign up for an iPhone and contract, eventually.

submitted, except that the *@&$&$ website wouldn’t take my card.

Heigh ho! Temporary setback… right? It’s actually the second time a UK website refused my card… Hmm… Will have to try Amazon.co.uk or something for a small giftie to A and see what happens.

Still awaiting renter for house in Hercules. Hope the someone in the wings emerges as renter so can mark goal done!

Send me good wishes for success!!!!

Bored and unmotivated at work today, I decided to make good use of my time stuck at my desk. Thus far completely confused about my visa situation, I did some more poking around on the UK Border Agency website, and found a points calculator for the Highly Skilled Worker category.

Sure enough – if I’m understanding it correctly – I seem to have ample points to apply to show up in the UK and look for work, either for a UK organization or as self-employment! (And I am assuming the latter means I can do contract work for my current employer; I’m sure they’d be happy for me to bring money into their economy and pay taxes on it, right?)

So much better than one alternative, which is to broach the topic of getting engaged to one particular UK resident in order to get me in the door… eek! and frankly I don’t think he’d go for that either. I mean, it could happen, but when it does, it’ll be for the right reasons.

I seem to be the beneficiary of a whole new, close, happy, and rather large family.

Mr L’s sister just friended me on FB. I’ve never spoken to her, know little about her,and her only other friend so far is their mum. She has two brilliant kids I’ve seen lots of photos of, and she and all the siblings, aunts, uncles, &c are super-happy for Mr L – who has been making the rounds to tell them his news – and, by extension, me.

All this is pretty nice. I’m starting to feel bad, though, that my own mum is choosing to stay home from the party by not showing the least bit of curiosity about Mr L and what’s up with us. At first I was upset that she couldn’t seem to be happy for me (either because she’s assuming the whole thing is ephemeral – given my past history – or because he’s obviously not Jewish so why bother? although she doesn’t know the first thing about him. Apparently my trying to move to England is not enough of a sign that this is serious.). So now I’m mostly sad for her.

Today I finished shredding paper and wiping documents and pictures out of my computer. Tomorrow I will bestow my orchids on whoever seems to be able to remember they like water now and then. My boss will spend some time with me making sure he can find the items I parked on the share drive. There will be a party that begins in the middle of the afternoon and goes on into the evening. I feel special! The page is turning – can you feel the breeze as the leaf goes over???