3 years today and other stuff

Today 3 years ago, I met the most wonderful person in my life. Kind, funny, caring and supportive. I found somebody I'm prepared to give my life up and follow. Because it makes her happy. I guess its the Geographer in me, but who would turn down the chance to experience a different culture and with such a wonderful person. Of course it is tinted with sadness. It became clear after being together for a short time that we will never be 100% happy. With her family living in Spain and mine in England somebody will always lose out.

I was thinking today I'm going to have to say good bye to my friends and family and I have no clue how to do that. Maybe as said in a past post I won't say good bye, instead I'll say see you later. But at the airport, when I'm in Spain I will have to wave people away, see them go through security and get on a plane and fly back to there lives. We always comment when we come back from Spain, how live here goes on with out. How long will it be before people forget us, that couple that used to live in Somerset, what were there names, they moved to Spain. I can see it now, in some respects I'm starting to think that people have forgotten already, I guess its out of sight out of mind.

Tomorrow is dissertation deadline, I get to give away this monster that has controlled my life for so long. When I get it back I will file it under "S" for shit and never look at it again. There will be some stuff that I will never look at again, such as the view from Exmoor, or the dark granite faces of Darkmoor. Months are going to slip by with out me here, the changes of season will be missed, I won't see the river in full flood washing at the tyres of the cars, or a tractor with trailer moving slowly at harvest time. I'll miss the smell of damp cut grass, grass on bare feet and green, green hills, green moors, green river banks. I'm swapping my rural jungle for an urban jungle, but I don't mind. I'm growing up, no longer am I Peter Pan. I'm leaving the place I grew up, moving on, striking out on the first step to having my own. And in a short time I will look back and I will be a more complete person, happier (maybe), richer, maybe not money rich but rich all the same, because I'll have MY family around me.

Here's to another three years. Cheers

Packing

A few weeks ago we started thinking about packing, and decided the first job to do was to sort all my clothes. So we bravely dug around in my cupboards, finding clothes that I've had probably or certainly had since I was a teenager.

A lot of the clothes were bagged up ready to go the Charity shop, but as I put my first ever shirt into the bag I started to feel very sad. It just felt like waste. Here are all these clothes that have most likely been bought for me, by somebody else and now I'm just throwing them away. Not really throwing them away because they are going to the charity shop so other people indirectly benefit. But I'm letting them go. Maybe this is a wider issue with relationship, the give and take element can be traced back not just feelings or houses or cars but also to your life before the relationship started. Maybe with throwing old clothes away I'm saying, yep I'm ready to start my new life with you and I'm also ready to buy new clothes with you as well. :)

This shirt, for instance, my first ever 'going out' shirt was bought for me by my mum, the colour was fading and it smelt, after being stored to long. But clothes are expensive, this I guess is just a cycle, never been very up to date with clothes and I tend to wear what ever is comfortable, again and again, when I'm bored of it I leave it in the cupboard and move on. Its like I've got this blue jumper, I don't like it, but it was bought for me and when it came to throw it out, I said no - you work hard just to have your children throw there clothes out is that ungrateful or part of sharing your life on another level?

House rules

Okay, so as the days run down to moving in day and the prospect of living in the same city as the my step mother gets closer. I've decided that some rules most be put down. I'll get these written in both English and Spanish and display them in the flat. So far the rules are:

1. No whispering - if you can't say it out loud, don't bother

2. No shouting - I never shout and nor should you, it damages the vocal chords and produces more stress and up-set then is needed

3. No arguments - words are often said in the heat of the moment and are very hard to take back

4. No unaccompanied children - children should be with the parents at all time otherwise they cause trouble and disruption

5. If it's not broken, don't fix it. Making alternations to a rented flat is like bouncing a ball against a wall, its fun for a while but does not actually get you anywhere.

Five simply rules to a happy and contented home environment