Busy Times

Our dream cottage is moving a little closer to reality.

After a delay of almost a month because the owner didn't have the correct title deeds the paperwork is finally on it's way to our solicitor. Thanks to a specialist legal post service they use here in Scotland it will definitely be with them tomorrow and, amazingly, they think we can still complete on time as long as there are no strange clauses in the contract.

That gives us just 7 working days! Sounds impossible but everyone's finances are in place so it's just a paper trail and as we won't be moving in straight away there's no frantic packing to do.

First job, once we get the keys, will be to assess what we have with all the clutter cleared then work out a programme of works with the aim of moving in before Christmas. There are walls to be stripped and insulated, bathrooms to be moved, a new kitchen to be fitted and complete re-decoration throughout. We may even move the front door if the current (vague) plan comes together. I plan to take lots of before & after pictures and a blog on the progress or lack of! I don't do video so a video diary is not an option.

Oh my, that means I'll be working through NaNo, maybe I can combine the refurbishment with a tale of hidden rooms and unearthed treasures :-) If that wasn't enough we also have a pre-booked weekend away in September and a wedding to go to on 31st October down in England. Busy, busy, busy!

Reflections

It's hard to believe it's been over a year since I wrote anything here. The last time I did my life was full of renewed hope and expectations some of which have been met and exceeded but in other ways I've crashed & burned; I just hope there's a little bit of phoenix somewhere in my genes.

The good bits first.

I found a great writers group. It was difficult at first, so many of the members are established professional writers or very accomplished amateurs, but they made me welcome and I've made some good friends. Better still, working with them has given me the confidence to push my own writing that bit further. I even won a couple of awards! Now I just have to find the confidence to submit something for publication.

The not so good.

I managed to find work, not bad for someone who had been out of the work place for 3 years so had no up to date skills. Unfortunately it didn't last long as it was with a bank in the middle of the financial crisis. I didn't get laid off, I couldn't stand the appalling way they treated their customers or the bullying culture within the organisation; so I left. Stupid I know but morality has always won over common sense with me. I took another job in an office but, just like the bank, they managed through bullying and intimidation. I could have stayed and fought but health problems were being worsened by the working conditions so I gave up another job.

Which brings me to the bad bit.

I have a meningioma, which is a type of brain tumour, but in my case it's wrapped around my optic nerve. A swelling behind my eye was discovered during a routine eye test just 10 days after we arrived in the UK and was eventually diagnosed as a meningioma after 2 MRI scans and consultations with an ophthalmologist and a neurosurgeon.

Fortunately it's benign; probably. Because of the location they can't do a biopsy and removal is impossible so it'll be fractionated radiotherapy sometime very soon to stop it from growing. They can't shrink it though so once the treatment is over I'll be exploring new career options as the damage to my eyesight is irreversible and I can no longer use computers quickly enough for a commercial environment. My sight is still good but my eyes don't work together properly so fast scanning of screens is difficult, as is concentrating on a computer screen for any length of time.

But I'm one of the lucky ones; it could have been so much worse. If we hadn't moved countries it might not have been discovered for years, it's not malignant and the doctors can preserve most of my sight. I'm counting my blessings.

Good things to come.

We're in the process of buying a very old cottage which will take some months to restore but when it's done will give us more space and I will have a study to work in and maybe make those writing dreams come true. It's always good to have a dream.

Moving On

The decision is made and I can't, don't want to, turn back but it's still scary. After 2½ years in Spain we've decided to leave. The weather's great, most of the time, and the people, the ordinary people that is, are mostly nice, welcoming and tolerant of us guiris but the country is so corrupt, the authorities so hostile and obstructive that we've decided to cut our losses and move to more friendly shores. So in a about 12 weeks time we're off to Scotland. No guaranteed sunshine but one of the friendliest countries I've ever been to and a government that welcomes enterprise and actively helps people to achieve their dreams, from the born and bred to the newest of immigrants. I don't know what our future holds but at least we have one now instead of stagnating in the negativity of Spain.

Running

Running

Rat race in full swing

Running to stand still

Underpaid, overworked, taxed to the hilt

Two weeks holiday crammed into one

Dreams of escaping fuelled briefly

Shades of grey defining seasons

Light grey where summer blue should be

Winter’s dark and leaden skies oppress

A week’s holiday crammed into a long weekend

Dreams of escaping dimly remembered

Work engulfs, targets raised

Deadlines made and missed

Rumours fly, speculation abounds

A long weekend becomes one day flextime

There was a dream once

Wasn’t there?

Damn!

Three is not the magic number. Coincidence 3 was not what I had hoped, although the connection was there, just not the right one. This time. I keep hoping.

Do You Believe in Coincidence?

They say things happen in three's, whoever 'they' are :-/ But do they, or is it just coincidence? Is it a sign, someone or something saying Go For It!, or wishful thinking when the dream refuses to give up and die. Three things happened yesterday and third hasn't played itself out yet so I still don't know but my heart is stronger than my head so fate is still in the lead.

The first was my horoscope, always believed when it sounds good! This is what it said -

Hit rewind and you'll see a few opportunities you've overlooked. These possibilities still remain -- it's just a question of seeking them out. Timing is everything when reigniting sparks, so wait for the right moment.

Then I checked the rest of my emails and I had a comment on my blog, thank you Natalie, which seemed to tie in with the horoscope.

The third and perhaps strangest of the three was a note pushed under my front door sometime on Sunday evening. An aquaintance, don't know him well enough to call a friend yet but well enough to know he's trustworthy, wanted to speak to me about something of mutual interest. I've tried to phone him today and vice versa but we keep missing each other and the longer I wait the more my curiousity grows.

Three things, on the same day, linked to my post of the previous day. Is Three the magic number?

One Day

Woke up this morning and thought today would have been the day, if only!

If only I was more determined, if only I had more money, if only the woman who was gonna rent us the shop hadn't pulled out for no good reason, if only the other place hadn't been sooo small and twice the rent!

If all those things were different then today would have been the day my bookshop opened, La Libreria.

Of course if it had happened I would been working 7 days a week from now on cos I would have had to also sell newspapers & magazines and stuff to make it pay but since I don't really do anything at all at the moment it would have been OK. For a while!

Oh well, one day, if it's meant to be, it'll happen.

I had my first piece of work published today, or yesterday depending on the time zone when this is posted :-/ It's only in a local freebie newspaper/magazine; but it's there, in print, with my name at the end, WOW! I keep looking at it, just to make sure it's real :-)