Kentish catch up

Because of not having a landline (we've only signed a six month contract at this house in case we are not that happy) we are on some mobile roving set up for internet access and I am on a limited amount each month. I only realised this when a screen came up the other day telling me I was out of internet credit. Mr FF had tried to explain this to me on the first day here but there was so much going on I did not quite take it in. I'm limiting myself to just now and then in the old blogosphere, so that is one reason I am not very good at keeping up to date with your entries. Another reason is that I am just enjoying being back in the UK and am out a fair bit.

Immediate impressions of being back:

I am no longer the plumpest person in town - there are some hefty people around and I'm very happy about this.

Everyone seems to have tatoos (I hate them), especially round where we are living

Some of the local kids seem quite brattish which was never the case where we lived in Brittany. I have already caught our phantom doorbell ringer (done to make the dogs bark which indeed they have been doing). I shouted at him and his two mates and then took their photos - now they scuttle past and avoid eye contact when I pass them on dog walks.

Traffic is horrendous and everyone seems to delight in cutting up someone they think is a French person (my car has French plates)

My love affair with Tescos is developing into a true passion. I'd never eaten pak choi until this week - not to mention all the millions of items you just do not see in a French supermarket. I'd also forgotten how English supermarkets encourage their staff to be friendly and helpful - again, a no-no in France.

Bold 2 in 1 washing capsules are rubbish and smear soap all over clothes.

Things on the horizon:

Further bonding with our lovely neighbours who say they do not mind the dogs barking as much as they do. Even though we are in a cul-de-sac we are on a pivotal corner with lots of foot traffic to the local shops. Two floor to ceiling windows mean the dogs have too perfect a view of people to bark at and sitting with the curtains drawn is a bit depressing.

I have an interview on Wednesday morning in Tunbridge Wells and will not say more until I know whether or not I have the job.

Getting UK plates for our cars - not because of the road antics by other drivers. I think we are going to be here for the long haul and it is law to have the plates of the country.


Back later in the week with hopefully positive news to report about a job.

Our lives will change in 2010

Remember when I recently blogged about Mr FF getting stuck in a lift in a London bank just before an important meeting. Well, that meeting was the second interview in a five interview process (two in person and three on the phone*) and, after about six weeks of waiting and wondering, we know now that he has indeed got the job. From the beginning of January he will be spending the week working in Paris and will be renting a studio flat there. He will try and return as many weekends as he can but, as we are a four hour drive from Paris (and the road tolls are €22 each way),this is not something I expect him to do week in week out. When you have a new job - and this is a very good job - you need to rest and relax at weekends, not sit in a car for the whole of Saturday morning and Sunday evening.

This is a real change for us. We've been a couple now for 12 years and the last seven here in France have seen us have together 24/7. It will be very strange to be here alone with the two dogs, but I'm going to treat it as a chance to perhaps get out a bit more and meet some new people. A lot of the time I have been staying in to try and stop the dogs from barking and generally disturbing Mr FF working away in his basement office. Now I will have no excuse.

All this time here in the French house we (mainly him but I've done my little micro bit) have been running a business but to be self employed can sometimes be good and can sometimes be scary; this last year has been very scary. The French really make the small business pay a lot of dues and it can be almost crippling. I'm very proud of him for getting this job: he didn't even apply for it; an agent approached him and set those proverbial wheels in motion.

Ultimately, when the housing market picks up and he is sure that he can see himself in this job for life (a French job if good is usually for life, people don't chop and change very much), we will move as near to Paris as we can afford. So, a new year comes and with it a lot of change for us.

*including 1.5 hrs in technical French

Pow wow at the household

It had to happen sooner or later. My idle life as a student will be coming to an end after this OU course finishes on June 15. Mr FF needs my services with the business that he runs and I will be working side by side with him in our basement office. The work is interesting so no complaints there - and I will return to my studies probably in October 2010. In the meantime I have one last essay to do and as usual I will give you the essay question when I do my blogpost about the Davy/Marcet essay mark.

My June exam is in the same Paris hotel as last year, out in the suburbs of Clichy and each time I think about it I get a slight nervous feeling which I know will be amplified as the exam approaches. Isn't it silly, it's not like school days where the exam result could really affect your future; my studies are purely for me and yet they seem to matter so much. If only I'd had this motivation when I was younger - who knows what I would be doing now. Yet we make our choices as we see fit at the time.

I'll still find time to blog just as much. I'd never stop blogging.