A great song but unfortunately not completely accurate for my situation. Whilst I am most certainly ‘stuck in the middle’, I seem to be the only one here and no one looks keen to join me!
I had a great revelation at work yesterday that I had become ‘piggy in the middle’ between my boss and some of our clients (mainly the ones he doesn’t like and refuses to deal with one-to-one). A frustrating situation to be in, particularly when my boss keeps changing his mind about issues he has taken a stand on. I’m getting the waffling, self-centered whinging from his side and the pushy, bitchy complaining from our client’s side and all I get to do is pass the information back and forward. I don’t even get to have a say in the answers or how the situation is dealt with. And I end up looking like a donkey when he goes back on something he said earlier because I have already told the client that it would happen!
Then joy of all joy, I found myself right back in the middle at home! This time between my man and his mother. I’ve heard the saying ‘don’t come between a man and his mother’ but what do you do when they both put you squarely there without even asking? Due to the man and I both working for the same company, I usually know more about his upcoming movements than he does and so his mother has taken to asking me when he is working in upcoming days. Usually this is fine, but earlier this week she asked, I told and then later that day things changed. I knew I had told his mum that he wasn’t working Friday (today) and so she had planned his favourite meal (which is no good reheated, as often he has to do when he is working). I told my man to let her know that he was now working and left it at that. Then this morning I discovered that he hadn’t told her and I got the full brunt of her displeasure at her meal plans being disrupted! Not a great way to start the day.
All this has renewed my resolve to get out of this job and this country as soon as I can. Surely I can’t still be in the middle if I’m 1,000 miles away???
Posted in Journal
No commentsAs I’m sure most of you are aware, the man and I are planning to leave the shores of Blighty and head to warmer climes. Since my man is a Pom (and no longer a young pom), we have had to become experts in what visas are available for him to live and work New Zealand and Australia.
After many long months of research, application writing and official document gathering, I was relieved (and, frankly, amazed) when we finally sent off a fully completed application for a Partner of a NZ Citizen Visa for Australia last Monday (1st March). According to all the info I could find about this particular visa, indications were that it would take up to 12 weeks to be processed and probability was high that they would require more information or an interview before making a decision. So we sat back and prepared to wait for at least a month before we heard anything.
But then last Friday (5th March), 4 days after sending off the visa application, my man receives a Special Delivery parcel in the post. Our immediate thoughts turn to all the US Courtroom dramas where no one seems to be able to decide if a quick verdict is a good or bad thing. He tells me to sit down before he opens the parcel to find out the verdict. I’m feeling sick to my stomach and just wish they had put a big tick or cross on the outside of the envelope!
It’s good news! Australian Migration have granted my man a 5 year Temporary Working Visa for Australia, including unlimited entry and exit during the life of the visa! And it only took them 2.5 days to process and make a decision! Which puts me firmly in the ‘a quick verdict is a good verdict’ club.
About 5 hours later (once the stupid grin had started to fade), I suddenly realised how much still has to be done if we are actually going to make use of this visa. So now I’m researching flights, freight costs, jobs and accomodation in Cairns, Australia. All help gratefully accepted 
Posted in Journal and tagged , australia, moving, Travel, Visa
4 commentsYes, my prayers have been answered!! Today I’m off work because of SNOW! Snow is my new favourite friend. It was kind enough to hold off snowing until I had finished having drinks with a friend in Soho last night and got home. Then at approximately 10:45:08 the snow started This morning the car was covered and it was still snowing lightly. I decided to go back to sleep for an hour and see if it would stop (which would mean I would have to go in to work) but my new friend didn’t disappoint, it was even heavier when I woke up an hour later and hasn’t really stopped all day – WOOHOO.
I thought you might like some photos of my new best friend (taken from our bedroom window)
- Falling snow
- Our car is on the left
- Somewhere under that snow is a grassy area and a road
Posted in Journal and tagged , london, snow
No commentsYes, I managed to be the first to post in 2010 – such a satisfying achievement (yeah, ok, that really says a lot for my life at the moment!!)
I hope everyone has had a fabulous Christmas and New Year break. I’m back in the office today, freezing my fingers off. It was -5 degrees celcius when I got in the car this morning and it isn’t likely to get much above +1 degree today! But the bonus is that snow is predicted for tonight so if I cross all my fingers and toes (being careful not to snap them off because they are so frozen!) I might just be lucky enough to get a Snow Day off work tomorrow
Wish me luck
Posted in Journal and tagged , cold, holiday, New Year, work
3 commentsThe man and I took off for a long weekend to check out the funny little sticky-outie bit of England where everyone raves about the surfing and the pasties. Having been in the UK for close to 5 years now, it was a bit embarrassing to admit to people that I hadn’t yet visited this area loved by Aussies and Kiwis who know a thing or two about waves. But I can now say I have been there and done that and got the pictures to prove it!
For those of you that are interested, we stayed in a lovely hotel in Newquay, right on the water with fantastic views of Fistral Beach from the dining room. I would recommend the hotel and spa but definitely wouldn’t recommend the restaurant – nothing but problems when we ate there the first night from the moment they lost our order to the second dessert attempt being burnt! Thank god I had had three cocktails and a glass of wine beforehand!!
Cornwall has lots of amazing historic sites which I forced upon shared with my man. Some photos below for your viewing pleasure.
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- Stonehenge
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- Fistral Beach, Cornwall
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- Minack Cliff Theatre
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- Men-an-Tol
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- Lanyon Quoit
Posted in Journal
One commentYes, life is good. The sun is shining, it’s Friday tomorrow and I just got a payrise. That’s right, you heard it here first, my bosses finally grew a conscience. Sure, the payrise might be 7 months late, but I’m not going to complain (because they might change their mind!).
It has certainly made me feel a lot better about coming to work and maybe now I can buy some new clothes to match my new skinny silhouette…….ah something else I have to tell you…..I’ve lost almost 10kg since Feb, leaving a rather lovely slimmer Gemma to adorn the beach in Portugal at the end of May
Yes, life is good.
Posted in Journal
6 commentsYes, I realise that is a Christmas song and we are now in February, but as is typical with London, we didn’t get a white Christmas. But it has now made up for it with a massive snow storm last night and about 7 inches of lovely powdery snow this morning. Enough to cause a Snow Day (in other words, a day off work!!!).
Wayne and I were working at an event in Notting Hill last night and it was lightly snowing on our way there but when it came time to leave at 00:30 Monday morning, it took us a while to find our car under the heavy blanket of snow that had fallen and was continuing to fall. Thankfully Wayne drove home as there were numerous cars sliding all over the roads and stuck on inclines and I really wasn’t keen on earning my ‘Snow Feet’ at that time of the morning after a 7 hour shift!
And the Snow Gods heard my prayers that the snow would continue through the night. My boss called me this morning and said not to bother going in – BONUS!!! Plus, I now get to take lots of lovely snow photos to share with everyone (not on here though as I still can’t get photos to upload, so you will have to check Facebook!!)
Thank you London!
Posted in Journal
4 commentsI had an epiphany this morning – my life at the moment is like summer holidays from Uni, except never ending and without the warm weather!
You know how it is, summer holidays come, you pack up your flat or hostel room and make your way back to your parent’s for a few months, get a job doing something that will help you with what you plan to do in the future and relinquish control of meals, washing and cleaning (if you are lucky). In return you have to let the parents know if you are going to be home for dinner or if you are going to be out late.
The problem with summer holidays at home is that by the end of the holiday you are climbing the walls and desperate to get back to Uni just so that you can take back control of your life (and have 2-minute noodles for dinner 4 nights in a row if you want).
I think I have climbed those walls and at times am sitting on the roof ready to jump off! The only thing keeping me going now is knowing that September is only 32 weeks away (sounds so much better than 7 months). And even though we haven’t got a definite leaving date, I know it is going to happen, I know I will soon be out of here.
NZ is calling.
Posted in Journal
3 commentsI figured someone had to start 2009 off
I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
I personally don’t have much to write home about – all rather ho-hum really! A cosy Christmas dinner for three (and there wasn’t even any roast pumpkin or kumara!) followed by a New Year’s Eve at home in front of the TV – yes, life is full of excitement over here at the moment! But we did manage to do damage to a bottle of champagne last night so I guess that counts for something.
Personally, I’m really glad that 2009 is here. Not that there was anything wrong with 2008. But because 2009 is the year we move back to NZ to live – OH YEAH!!! All my things to look forward to this year relate to milestones towards moving home. Wayne’s residency permit, organising shipping for things we want to take with us, finding the best flight deals and deciding where we want to visit on the way over. And of course we will get what little summer England sees and then head down under and catch the lovely weather there – bring it on!
Ah yes, 2009, I love you!
Posted in Journal
6 comments