...That's kind of how it feels here. There's this eternal circle of torture that is known as 'getting settled in the UK'. You need a National Insurance number to get a job; to get a National Insurance number you need a bank account; to get a bank account you need an address; and to get an address you need to show you have an income, hence a job. AAAARRRGGH!!!
Now that I've gotten that off my chest, on to the good news. I have another interview set up. It's for the Hereford Library. I'm very excited about this one. I was disappointed to not get the Leominster position, but I can understand why I wasn't chosen. It was a long trek, especially by scooter, and especially for the part of the job out in Leidmendine. It's a village about 30 km from here with no public transport. So, it all works out as it should. The nice thing with the Hereford one is that it's only a couple of clicks into town, and it's more than achievable by scooter. The manager from Leominster said I interviewed really well and encouraged me to try again. So, we'll see but I'm feeling pretty confident.
About the aforementioned frustration, we're starting to get a foothold. Meredith went into HR today to drop off some information. All that remains is for her references to get confirmed and she's ready to rock and roll. Hopefully, this time next week she will be starting work. Also, hopefully I should know my fate with the library as well. We've managed to do pretty well with not driving each other crazy so far. By the way, here's the shameless plug for us: We had our first anniversary on Sunday. Of course, we didn't do anything for it yet. We decided since Erika and Lester were visiting, we'd postpone it till next weekend.
We just got back from a walk to Moreton-on-Lugg. It's the next village north of here on the A49. We'd heard there was a pub there, so we went to get a pint. Unfortunately, it was closed and didn't look like it was reopening anytime soon. So, no beer for us.
Tomorrow we're getting bicycles in town. There's this shop that rebuilds old ones and fixes them up nicely. It's costing us 50 pounds each. A good deal. So, it'll be another nice way to get around and see the countryside.
Don't have any pictures today...the camera on my phone is useless...but in Meredith's next post she'll have.....wait for it.....SHEEP!!! See ya.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Scoot, scoot!
Yesterday we went and bought second hand scooters from the Hereford Motorcycle Shop. The public transportation system to and from the Farm is not great--there are buses every hour, but taking them is terribly expensive. It's 3 pounds each for return fare, which is really absurd. Assuming that we only took the bus to and from town 5 days per week (and remained secluded on the farm for the whole weekend?!), it's 120 pounds per month! That's like $250! Insane!
So, a 1988 and a 1996 Honda to the rescue--Mike's is blue and mine is red. They'll do, for now. I'll have to get a car for work eventually, but I'm hoping that I can make the first couple of months on 2 wheels to save both cash and planet earth.
We're waiting for our bicycles to be completed--they have a bicycle recycling store near to where our bed and breakfast was. For around 50gbp each, you can pick out a bike and they rebuild and refurb it for you. It's a not-for-profit service that's run by the Council (I'm pretty sure) that's like a sheltered workshop/employment opportunity for people with barriers to employment. Anyway, it's a better option than purchasing all new bikes. The only disadvantage is the wait of approximately a week. I'm totally psyched about getting them, though--there are secondary roads that are beautiful for riding on and that also give you some beautiful views of the valley and beyond. I must upload some pics of the road that we take our scooters on to get into Hereford--it's picturesque.
As for work, Mike's still sending out applications and such. I have a meeting with the Council this Friday that will hopefully get me a start date some time soon.
We were talking about our situation last night, and came to the conclusion that while it isn't ideal, it's not nearly as bad as it could be. I guess it's all about perspective--for some people, waiting a few weeks to start work would be absolutely devastating. For us, it's uncomfortable and an inconvenience. So, in my head I keep telling myself to quit bitching and get on with it. This time has given us a chance to get to know the town reasonably well, and has given us a chance to chill with each other, which is a luxury not often afforded! To be honest, it's also given me a chance to do some serious catch up on my fiction reading. Basically, in conclusion--I need to get ahold of myself, take a look around, and remember to be grateful for what we DO have versus what's not in a neat and tiny package! So, I will keep telling that to myself and my crap attitude.
As another plus, Erika and Lester are coming over from Dublin this weekend. So, we get to spend 3 days with them, which is totally awesome as we haven't seen Erika since the end of August and Lester since November(?).
I hope that everyone is well and that things are good. We do have a mailing address now, for those that are interested:
Middle Flat
Upper Lyde Farm, Upper Lyde
Herefordshire
ENGLAND
HR4 8AE
Love and hugs and kisses!
(From a considerably humbled Meredith)
So, a 1988 and a 1996 Honda to the rescue--Mike's is blue and mine is red. They'll do, for now. I'll have to get a car for work eventually, but I'm hoping that I can make the first couple of months on 2 wheels to save both cash and planet earth.
We're waiting for our bicycles to be completed--they have a bicycle recycling store near to where our bed and breakfast was. For around 50gbp each, you can pick out a bike and they rebuild and refurb it for you. It's a not-for-profit service that's run by the Council (I'm pretty sure) that's like a sheltered workshop/employment opportunity for people with barriers to employment. Anyway, it's a better option than purchasing all new bikes. The only disadvantage is the wait of approximately a week. I'm totally psyched about getting them, though--there are secondary roads that are beautiful for riding on and that also give you some beautiful views of the valley and beyond. I must upload some pics of the road that we take our scooters on to get into Hereford--it's picturesque.
As for work, Mike's still sending out applications and such. I have a meeting with the Council this Friday that will hopefully get me a start date some time soon.
We were talking about our situation last night, and came to the conclusion that while it isn't ideal, it's not nearly as bad as it could be. I guess it's all about perspective--for some people, waiting a few weeks to start work would be absolutely devastating. For us, it's uncomfortable and an inconvenience. So, in my head I keep telling myself to quit bitching and get on with it. This time has given us a chance to get to know the town reasonably well, and has given us a chance to chill with each other, which is a luxury not often afforded! To be honest, it's also given me a chance to do some serious catch up on my fiction reading. Basically, in conclusion--I need to get ahold of myself, take a look around, and remember to be grateful for what we DO have versus what's not in a neat and tiny package! So, I will keep telling that to myself and my crap attitude.
As another plus, Erika and Lester are coming over from Dublin this weekend. So, we get to spend 3 days with them, which is totally awesome as we haven't seen Erika since the end of August and Lester since November(?).
I hope that everyone is well and that things are good. We do have a mailing address now, for those that are interested:
Middle Flat
Upper Lyde Farm, Upper Lyde
Herefordshire
ENGLAND
HR4 8AE
Love and hugs and kisses!
(From a considerably humbled Meredith)
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Greetings from the Shire!!
Here is our new home out on the farm. We are on the second floor. We have a nice table set up in the window where we eat. Alan, our landlord, set up a washing machine in the barn across from the house....I'm warning you, it's not pretty:
We haven't used the washing machine yet because we forgot to buy detergent. We are fast learning the lesson that one must remember to pick things up in town. Anyway, here are some more pictures of the area around our 'pad'.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Maack, in Britain
Hello all,
Well, we've found a place in Hereford--actually, it's in Upper Lyde, which is a small community 2 miles north of Hereford. We're living in a bach pad on a !!!Farm!!!
That's right, a FARM.
We will post pics later--it's 300 acres with loads of buildings and such, owned by a man named Alan who's been a bit of a saviour, to be frank.
He's helped us with loads of stuff, and has been kind enough to take a chance on a couple foreigners with jobs still up in the air. We owe him some banana bread with choc chips, at least.
I decided to not go to Amsterdam--things have been totally overwhelming and crazy here. The housing market is what most would consider inpenetrable, and to top things off there have been some significant hiccups with my job posting. So, for now, the job as a whole is a bit up in the air. My registration with the GSCC has been stalled, and pieces of paperwork that Julian reported as completed have not been done. I should know more by Friday, but right now it's a little scary.
But, we have a home. And that's all that matters, for now.
Mike has his interview on Monday morning, and we're going to my supervisor's for a BBQ on Sunday afternoon, in Leominster, the community where Mike has the interview. So, he'll get a sneak peek at the bus route/location.
Hope everyone at home is well.
We're missing you, and we're missing Safeway and Save On more than we thought humanly possible.
I thought peopl exaggerated about British Cuisine, but they didn't. The food is all terrible. Even the cheeses slices taste like unknown goo. Uck.
Mike needs to e-mail, and we're jacking an internet signal, so I must go.
Love to you all,
--M
Well, we've found a place in Hereford--actually, it's in Upper Lyde, which is a small community 2 miles north of Hereford. We're living in a bach pad on a !!!Farm!!!
That's right, a FARM.
We will post pics later--it's 300 acres with loads of buildings and such, owned by a man named Alan who's been a bit of a saviour, to be frank.
He's helped us with loads of stuff, and has been kind enough to take a chance on a couple foreigners with jobs still up in the air. We owe him some banana bread with choc chips, at least.
I decided to not go to Amsterdam--things have been totally overwhelming and crazy here. The housing market is what most would consider inpenetrable, and to top things off there have been some significant hiccups with my job posting. So, for now, the job as a whole is a bit up in the air. My registration with the GSCC has been stalled, and pieces of paperwork that Julian reported as completed have not been done. I should know more by Friday, but right now it's a little scary.
But, we have a home. And that's all that matters, for now.
Mike has his interview on Monday morning, and we're going to my supervisor's for a BBQ on Sunday afternoon, in Leominster, the community where Mike has the interview. So, he'll get a sneak peek at the bus route/location.
Hope everyone at home is well.
We're missing you, and we're missing Safeway and Save On more than we thought humanly possible.
I thought peopl exaggerated about British Cuisine, but they didn't. The food is all terrible. Even the cheeses slices taste like unknown goo. Uck.
Mike needs to e-mail, and we're jacking an internet signal, so I must go.
Love to you all,
--M
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
We made it!!!
Hey everyone. We are now in Jolly olde England. It was a long, grueling trip but we, as well as our marriage, have survived. We're now at the local Council office using their Internet. Today, we're off to the letting agents to see if we can secure a flat or something. The Alberta Guesthouse is cute, but a little small. We had our first experience with an English breakfast...for the first time in my life, I actually left bacon on the plate. More or less not bad though. Meredith has a cold so we need to find a chemists real soon. People here are great, and it's pretty awesome so far...they even have a Starbucks to feed our addiction ^_^
Well, we should be off. Be talkin' to y'all soon.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
OMG!!!
We're leaving tomorrow...
I'm now prone to fits of inside tears.
Hopefully that goes away...
Don't forget to look for us on MSN.
Mike: mt-eaton@hotmail.com
Meredith: journeyingforth@yahoo.com
We will be in touch when we've settled into our Shire.
And I say now, for the last time in Canada:
MAAACK!
I'm now prone to fits of inside tears.
Hopefully that goes away...
Don't forget to look for us on MSN.
Mike: mt-eaton@hotmail.com
Meredith: journeyingforth@yahoo.com
We will be in touch when we've settled into our Shire.
And I say now, for the last time in Canada:
MAAACK!
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
I've got an interview!!!
Mike here. Well, normally getting a phone call at 4 am is rightly annoying. However, the one today was just great. It was a lady from Herefordshire Council, and it seems I've been shortlisted for an interview at their library on April 30th. They're sending me a letter with all the details, which hopefully reaches me before we move. No biggie though. I can probably just pop in there or call them or something.
Meredith has booked us at the 'Alberta Guesthouse' in Hereford for the first week. She has also sent emails to people looking for flatmates...or housemates I guess. Alberta Guesthouse, I wonder if we pay by barging into the owner's room drunk at 2:00 am and just throw the money on the ground. Hmm...I may have exceeded the shelf life of the humour of that comment.
I was just out getting us some Sterling and a voltage converter. So now we have money AND power...looks like Tony Montana was right.
Yesterday we got luggage. Meredith's is bright pink (!) and mine is purple...but it's manly purple ^_^. Deb made a good point though; people can laugh at us but when they're rooting through the 300,000 black suitcases at Gatwick, we're laughing our way out the door. Well, I guess I should start doing some research about libraries in England. Later.
Meredith has booked us at the 'Alberta Guesthouse' in Hereford for the first week. She has also sent emails to people looking for flatmates...or housemates I guess. Alberta Guesthouse, I wonder if we pay by barging into the owner's room drunk at 2:00 am and just throw the money on the ground. Hmm...I may have exceeded the shelf life of the humour of that comment.
I was just out getting us some Sterling and a voltage converter. So now we have money AND power...looks like Tony Montana was right.
Yesterday we got luggage. Meredith's is bright pink (!) and mine is purple...but it's manly purple ^_^. Deb made a good point though; people can laugh at us but when they're rooting through the 300,000 black suitcases at Gatwick, we're laughing our way out the door. Well, I guess I should start doing some research about libraries in England. Later.
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