What can I say...

Many apologies for my lack for update dear readers. Lot's has happened in the week that I have been in the great UK. My home search has been a bit of a headache perhaps somewhat of my own doing. I viewed some fantastic places in both Dartford and Sevenoaks. Dartford is cheaper so I settled on that pretty quickly I mean I'm a Social Work $60,000 in debt with school loans... Spare money can evade me quite easily if I'm not careful. I did only view one bedroom places though so after talking it over with other people and thinking about it more I have a place lined up but will be viewing a 2 bedroom place that I would be sharing with the landlord tonight that looks fantastic and is well cheaper than the other places I was looking at so my fingers are cross! Will keep you all posted on how it goes.

I met up with Emma in London on Friday evening and had a fantastic time. It's was hard to believe that I wasn't just visiting and we were able to actually make future plans to hangout. We went to an Indian Vegetarian restaurant that was really good, highly recommended. Emma said that we could either take the tube or walk and we voted for walk which may or may not have been the smartest choice. She knew the way there but wanted to see if another way might get us there quicker. Well, after fighting our way through Soho and checking Emma's phone map about a million times Emma's directional landmarks... sex shops... got us there and we made it to Tottenham Court Road Station which is the area the restaurant is in.

I met everyone else who came over with me from the U.S. on Sunday evening and everyone is so friendly. We all have similar anxieties and concerns so it's great to be with everyone and talk to people about things. Right now it kind of feels like we're living in dorms or something as we eat most meals and hangout together when we can. It's great especially given the journey that we've all embarked on

Since I arrived early and was able to go out and view places early I had the opportunity to go out to my new office and meet people and shadow some people for a couple of days this week. It was very comforting as everyone seemed really nice and approachable and it doesn't seem like it's as high stressed as most Social Work jobs. No doubt my opinion on that will change but it all seems manageable and I don't feel as much pressure to be perfect as I normally do as everyone is very understanding. Most of my time was spent with the social work assistant on my team and he was a fantastic help and was very open and told me all about the work and the team. Very chatty bloke as they would say here which was definitely what I needed since I want to know all I can about my job and also I'm taking so much in at the moment that I enjoy not having to make forced conversation and just have the opportunity to process everything.

Finally.... Today I drove in the UK for the first time!!! It was a bit nerve-wracking but alas I did it and passed the initial driving assessment although they recommended I do another 2 hours with them to build up my confidence, which I'm actually happy about. I have to say that when I basically stopped driving after Ron's demise a month ago I did not think that my driving skills would be effected but I really don't think it helped that I hadn't driven a manual car in so long! Oh well, with some practice and time I'll be fine and will think nothing of it.

Anyway, I believe I have babbled on enough and have sufficiently bored you all so stay posted for more updates!

It took 16 1/2 years but I've made it!

My times at the airport brought some, but very few, troubles. I made it through check-in and security in record time and sat myself down at the gate my ticket told me I was flying from and began to make some calls to pass the 2 hours I had to kill. Unfortunately good and meaningful conversation distracted me and I guess I missed the announcement that the gate was changed. Eventually, after my parents brought me back to reality and I found the proper gate and waited for the rest of the time. The plane, of course, was about a hour late because the plane was delayed coming in from LA and then needed cleaning. Eventually we made it onto the plan a landed safely in England!

When I first arrived I just couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe that I had done it and had arrived in England. It was very overwhelming and I was full of anxiety. The thought of being so far away from family and friends was alot to handle but it was exciting to be driven through London on my way to the hotel in Maidstone and realize that this was not a short-term thing, I am staying for the long-term. I got to the hotel finally and got up to my room where I opened up my suitcases to see how my belongings did on the trip. As I did that I began to feel almost lonely and didn't know where to begin my stay in Maidstone, Kent. After checking out the internet I decided to be bold and ask for directions to the Towne Centre. If you know me at all you know that I am terrible with directions and trying to find my way around an unfamiliar city on my own was a big thing. I did it though as I knew that sitting in the room all day would not be good for me. Walking through the shops and exchanging my money and picking up a few things made me feel very independent and good!

My first day back in England has been great! I feel like I'm taking the next step in life and branching out more than I ever have before. Although I am a very independent person I definitely have had to learn how to put myself out there more and not keep to myself too much. Anyway, stay tuned for continued news for my UK adventures!!!

Staying Zen in all the madness...

So I decided to post again about my travels to my new home in England. Embarking on my new adventure in the UK was a crazy and eventful journey! Mother nature was not cooperative and did it's best to keep me from making it to the airport yesterday. My original plan was to have brunch with Paul and Shannon and my parents, before my parents and I drove up to Mark and Sarah's. I was also supposed to say last minute goodbyes to 3 of my favourites. Then my parents and I were supposed to spend a nice day with Mark, Sarah, and James going to dinner on Saturday and brunch on Sunday. At that point my parents would head home and I would spend some fabulous quality time with Mark, Sarah, and James and fly out on Wednesday night at 10:08 pm. I had also arranged to have dinner with friends on Sunday and Tuesday nights. Alas some of this went as planned but much of it did not...

It all started Friday night when all hell broke lose in Hampton Roads and about 6 inches or so of snow fell. Now of course this never happens there so obviously preparation and clear-up was not what it needed to be. So the decision was made to just hold off on the departure until Sunday at least and most likely Monday. This ended up not being the worst thing to happen as my packing was not going as planned and I needed more time to ensure that I did not go over the luggage weight limit. So plans began to unravel and I was unable to have brunch with Paul and Shannon and had to settle for stopping by their place and saying my goodbyes. Then Joy was unable to stop by on Monday before I left due to work issues, but I was able to visit with Mr. and Mrs. Sluss right before I left which was so nice! The huge decision of who was going to drive me up to NOVA was made and at lunch time and it was decided that my dad would take me on his own. Right before we left my mum noticed that one of my suitcases had a tear. The trip up to NOVA was really good and there were very few issues however upon our arrival at our destination we found that the suitcase had split beyond our repair.

I was fortunately able to reschedule my dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and had a fabulous dinner with them on Monday night instead of Sunday. Tuesday morning I said a tearful goodbye to the father and got to spend some great quality time with the sister-in-law and nephew. Poor little man was pushed a little too much being dragged around looking for replacement luggage. The forecast Tuesday morning brought bad news though as snow was about to take down NOVA but we managed to make it home as more snow began to arrive and due to the forecast I got to have lunch with Jen as well as dinner plans were not looking good. Dinner plans were canceled for Tuesday night as the weather was just not good. Wednesday went as planned though and Sarah, James and I spent more quality time together and I was able to have a nice, albeit anxiety ridden, dinner with the Curtis Family the Sequel. They were then nice enough to help with with my ridiculous luggage and saw me off inside the airport.

Throughout it all I did my best to stay zen and not get upset or anxious about all the things that didn't go as planned and remember that as long as I made it to my flight nothing else matters really. It's not like I will never see people again! Anyway my lovelies that is all for now!