Not my photo
I'm sorry. I know you've all been wondering where I am and how we're getting along. Some gave up and left completely, I see. No problem... it's to be expected. Thank you sooo much to those of you who hunted me down! I could fill pages and pages with our experiences. I've missed sharing so much.... I hope to try to share at least a bit, but first, for a few of my closest friends... here's what my story's about.
The short version of why I haven't blogged is that we're often without internet and when we do have internet, Jurgis is often on the only pc we have. When I've had time to get online, it's for checking mail, very brief appearances in social realms and then falling into bed. And then there have been the times when I simply didn't have the heart to post.
When we first arrived here, there were a few people who made comments about "when reality hits". 'Reality' hit almost right away, but not in the way those negative comments implied. I expected that there would be parts of our new life that would not be perfect and I expected that some parts may even rankle. That's life. You take the good and the bad. This place is the paradise I'd dreamed of - barring the mud. Oooooooooooh the mud! *laughing* I could write odes to mud.
Reality check: No snow!!! The sprinkling we had the one day doesn't count. I had that in South Africa. Where's the snow I ordered??????
To understand the rest, you need to know the background of why and how we got here...
About a year and a half ago, I decided to stop waiting for life to help us leave Brazil and take things into my own hands. I posted on the internet that we were looking for work in the UK. Almost immediately, C contacted me. We, as a couple, were a perfect fit for what they needed. Now those who know me well will react the way I did when I saw the 'job'.... estatic. It's the life we were looking for... and if things went wrong, it didn't need to be permanent. I had visualised this place long before I heard from C - right down to the type of grass, a type I'd never seen before! The ravine with the river, the walks, the hills, the trees, even the log cabin. Ask those who know... they had to listen to my ravings =Þ
So the good side is... this is a paradise. I love Wales and the Welsh people in general. Like all nations, there are oddballs, but that comes with the turf, as always.
Reality check: We work very long hours and work very hard - certainly far too hard for the pittance we get paid. We don't say anything because we're not meant to be working or earning, but there it is. Jurgis does just about everything outside on the farm. No job is too menial or tough. The poor man is half his original size... he's lost so much weight. We start before sun-up and seldom finish before 6pm with snatched lunch breaks. We work a minimum of 6 days a week and often put in time on a Sunday too. It is, after all, a farm and life happens here. I do a wide variety of work. I thought my main task would be to take care of the kids, but I don't often deal with them on the basis I thought I would. I clean 3 large triple-storey houses, top to bottom. There's the main farmhouse and the two holiday cottages. Ok, I lied... the one cottage only has two floors, but I can't be bothered changing the sentence. The holiday cottages get, quite literally, spring-cleaned before any new guests come in, around twice a week. Aside from that, I'm cook, seamstress (C doesn't touch needles), webmaster, social network manager (or whatever you'd call that), goatherd (the one job I like lol), gardener. Both Jurgis and I pretty much turn our hands to whatever is needed.
Where is this going? The whole idea is to not be an ocean away from Tatiana (yay! Got that covered!) and to be closer to the Lithuanian embassy, so Jurgis can get his Lithuanian citizenship, which, according to the embassy, is one of the most straightforward cases they have seen. The problem now is just that we're that much too far from London. It's a mission to get in. But... we've made a start.
So there you have it... the (very) long and the short of it. I'm not unhappy. I adore the kids and get on well with C. I can't stand her husband, but hey... I don't have to like everyone, right? The less I say about him, the better. I avoid him now and he keeps out of my way. I think I'm the first person in years to stand up to him. Everyone tiptoes around him. He's rude and treats the people around him like dirt - unless they're customers bearing money. Now, if I can ignore his existance, life is peachy =) If I can't ignore him, I do deep breathing exercises and imagine putting itching powder in his undies drawer.
What does that have to do with the title? I've started a new chapter in my life. The page is unwritten. It's up to me to create this chapter and creating I am! I'm keeping an eye open for jobs, particularly in southern Ireland. There are plenty I could fill, the challenge being that if I were accepted, I'd need to go in for an interview, so I'm holding off for now.
Anyhow... enough waffle. If you're still reading, you need a Noddy badge... honestly! Once again, thanks for still being there and for all the unstinting support!
