British Expats

British Expats (https://britishexpats.com/forum/)
-   Back Home (https://britishexpats.com/forum/back-home-158/)
-   -   6 Month Update! (https://britishexpats.com/forum/back-home-158/6-month-update-791948/)

Tel8 Mar 26th 2013 11:29 am

6 Month Update!
 
Oh my gosh!

Oh my gosh!

I can't believe I've been here 6 months, but it was exactly 6 months to the day on March 7!

For the record: I still wake up and get all excited thinking "I'm in England! I'm in England!"

I've officially started planning my first visit back to the US, to be had in July and I've already got this knot of anxiety that I'm going to go back and somehow get forced to stay (mum and dad would never do that, but I tend to panic about impossible things :whistle:

It's been cold as all get out lately! I mean, really bloody freezing- snow flakes whirling around, and when you step in somewhere warm, it's almost worse because it's not quite warm enough - it's that cold. And yet, I'm still quite happily prancing about in a certain gold and burgundy 'school' scarf and plotting my visits to places like Brighton and Dover come summer...

One of the things I dearly love about being here is that I've started thinking of going to other places. I've applied for a Foreign Correspondent's course in Finland, and I'm suddenly desperate to visit Germany and France, and maybe breeze through Italy if I get the chance.

It's like the whole world is suddenly open to me, and even going to Australia or Japan or China isn't really that far away anymore. I know it's not that much closer, it's really more that my perspective of travel has changed; I'm able to decide where I go, when I want, and how I'm going to get there and back! It's been absolutely incredible to see flights to Finland going for £100. My uncle is going to Hungary for £78 roundtrip. I'm jealous because technically, I can afford a trip like that.

A year ago, a trip like that would've been impossible until I had a full-time job with benefits, and three piddling weeks leave. At which time I most likely would have wanted to sleep, and probably would've laughed at myself for wanting to do something as massively stressful as leave the country for a holiday.

Even finding work is proving to be less scary than it might otherwise be, because things in my field are simply advertised better here. I don't know if this is just a thing with Journalism, but there are loads of website that give vacancies and listings, whereas in the states, there's no one reputable source (and I definitely did the research! At one point I thought I wasn't going to see England again until I had my first job, so believe me, I was all over it).

/gush

I'm going to follow that up with things I don't like about England, just so that no one's teeth start to rot (I'm looking out for you guys :thumbsup: )

1. Checks take too long to clear!
2. Checks take too bloody long to clear!
3. Checks really do take too bloody long to clear and it's annoying!
4. Difficult to find a good hamburger that doesn't come from McD. However, my family typically doesn't eat beef anyway, so I guess that's not all bad. And I could just make a hamburger myself out of all that lovely, affordable mince I've been able to get, but I'm lazy.
5. Things like 'horse meat' are a thing. It just shouldn't be a thing. I'm pretty sure I've eaten horse meat for most of my formative years as God only knows what was in those school lunches back in the States, but there you go. It's a thing. And it shouldn't be.
6. It's this cold in March. Late March. Nearly April. I'm spoilt by Georgia weather- no denying it.
7. Mum's hugs are too far away. Very annoying. I bloody needed one the other day.
8. Mum's cooking is also too far away. Increasingly annoying. Especially when my massive collection of lovely but irritating flatmates are all crammed into the kitchen at once and I'm left with a bag of lettuce and my annoyance for dinner.
9. When I make lists like this, I run out of things. Boo! Still can't find Broken Britain, but maybe I'm just not looking hard enough?

Sally Redux Mar 26th 2013 11:42 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
Excellent update, made me smile :D

feelbritish Mar 26th 2013 11:55 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

happyglow Mar 26th 2013 1:16 pm

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
Awesome! So happy for you! And thanks for the lols :rofl::rofl:

:thumbsup:

windsong Mar 26th 2013 10:38 pm

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
Wonderful update!!

Great news that checks take too long to clear, IMHO. I am all for going back a few years "technologically" speaking - way too fast in the USA!!!

WhoFan63 Mar 27th 2013 2:38 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
So I gather it takes too long for cheques to clear? LOL But thanks for the update...sounds great from where I'm sitting. :)

Mummy in the foothills Mar 27th 2013 3:19 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
:hysterical: Cheques take to long to clear. I can live with that. :thumbsup:

sallysimmons Mar 27th 2013 5:01 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
You are such a good writer :)

great update - thanks for the smile.

happyglow Mar 27th 2013 5:05 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
Re cheques - at least when they're cleared, they're cleared. Not like that here in Canada, and also you can't cancel the buggers! I prefer to avoid the annoying little "slips of satan" whenever possible :p

WhoFan63 Mar 27th 2013 5:17 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 

Originally Posted by happyglow (Post 10627124)
Re cheques - at least when they're cleared, they're cleared. Not like that here in Canada, and also you can't cancel the buggers! I prefer to avoid the annoying little "slips of satan" whenever possible :p

And we musn't forget that they are 'cheques' not 'checks' LOL I recently had my CV looked over by someone in the UK, who nicely reminded me that all the spelling was incorrect.. :) I'm going to have to go through it and change it all back to the 'right' way of spelling. :D :rofl:

sallysimmons Mar 27th 2013 5:26 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 

Originally Posted by WhoFan63 (Post 10627150)
And we musn't forget that they are 'cheques' not 'checks' LOL I recently had my CV looked over by someone in the UK, who nicely reminded me that all the spelling was incorrect.. :) I'm going to have to go through it and change it all back to the 'right' way of spelling. :D :rofl:

Also remember to change the paper setting on your word processing software. In America they use letter-sized paper but in the UK it's A4. Changing that setting will mean your resume prints out properly in England.

WhoFan63 Mar 27th 2013 5:27 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 

Originally Posted by sallysimmons (Post 10627182)
Also remember to change the paper setting on your word processing software. In America they use letter-sized paper but in the UK it's A4. Changing that setting will mean your resume prints out properly in England.

That's good to know too....thanks! :thumbsup:

Perth Mar 27th 2013 6:16 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 

Originally Posted by Tel8 (Post 10625702)
Oh my gosh!

Oh my gosh!

I can't believe I've been here 6 months, but it was exactly 6 months to the day on March 7!

For the record: I still wake up and get all excited thinking "I'm in England! I'm in England!"

I've officially started planning my first visit back to the US, to be had in July and I've already got this knot of anxiety that I'm going to go back and somehow get forced to stay (mum and dad would never do that, but I tend to panic about impossible things :whistle:

It's been cold as all get out lately! I mean, really bloody freezing- snow flakes whirling around, and when you step in somewhere warm, it's almost worse because it's not quite warm enough - it's that cold. And yet, I'm still quite happily prancing about in a certain gold and burgundy 'school' scarf and plotting my visits to places like Brighton and Dover come summer...

One of the things I dearly love about being here is that I've started thinking of going to other places. I've applied for a Foreign Correspondent's course in Finland, and I'm suddenly desperate to visit Germany and France, and maybe breeze through Italy if I get the chance.

It's like the whole world is suddenly open to me, and even going to Australia or Japan or China isn't really that far away anymore. I know it's not that much closer, it's really more that my perspective of travel has changed; I'm able to decide where I go, when I want, and how I'm going to get there and back! It's been absolutely incredible to see flights to Finland going for £100. My uncle is going to Hungary for £78 roundtrip. I'm jealous because technically, I can afford a trip like that.

A year ago, a trip like that would've been impossible until I had a full-time job with benefits, and three piddling weeks leave. At which time I most likely would have wanted to sleep, and probably would've laughed at myself for wanting to do something as massively stressful as leave the country for a holiday.

Even finding work is proving to be less scary than it might otherwise be, because things in my field are simply advertised better here. I don't know if this is just a thing with Journalism, but there are loads of website that give vacancies and listings, whereas in the states, there's no one reputable source (and I definitely did the research! At one point I thought I wasn't going to see England again until I had my first job, so believe me, I was all over it).

/gush

I am copying this and sending it to my daughter who is dithering about coming with us when we go back. All she wants to do is travel the world, but it is not so easy from the US. This should help, so thanks :thumbsup:

morayeel Apr 12th 2013 1:28 pm

Re: 6 Month Update!
 
Wonderful update. I am so happy for you and I am sure you will get to do all the travelling you want and you will also find a great job when the time comes. Thanks for keeping in touch with all at BE

windsong Apr 13th 2013 4:58 am

Re: 6 Month Update!
 

Originally Posted by Tel8 (Post 10625702)
Oh my gosh!

Oh my gosh!

I can't believe I've been here 6 months, but it was exactly 6 months to the day on March 7!

For the record: I still wake up and get all excited thinking "I'm in England! I'm in England!"

I've officially started planning my first visit back to the US, to be had in July and I've already got this knot of anxiety that I'm going to go back and somehow get forced to stay (mum and dad would never do that, but I tend to panic about impossible things :whistle:

It's been cold as all get out lately! I mean, really bloody freezing- snow flakes whirling around, and when you step in somewhere warm, it's almost worse because it's not quite warm enough - it's that cold. And yet, I'm still quite happily prancing about in a certain gold and burgundy 'school' scarf and plotting my visits to places like Brighton and Dover come summer...

One of the things I dearly love about being here is that I've started thinking of going to other places. I've applied for a Foreign Correspondent's course in Finland, and I'm suddenly desperate to visit Germany and France, and maybe breeze through Italy if I get the chance.

It's like the whole world is suddenly open to me, and even going to Australia or Japan or China isn't really that far away anymore. I know it's not that much closer, it's really more that my perspective of travel has changed; I'm able to decide where I go, when I want, and how I'm going to get there and back! It's been absolutely incredible to see flights to Finland going for £100. My uncle is going to Hungary for £78 roundtrip. I'm jealous because technically, I can afford a trip like that.

A year ago, a trip like that would've been impossible until I had a full-time job with benefits, and three piddling weeks leave. At which time I most likely would have wanted to sleep, and probably would've laughed at myself for wanting to do something as massively stressful as leave the country for a holiday.

Even finding work is proving to be less scary than it might otherwise be, because things in my field are simply advertised better here. I don't know if this is just a thing with Journalism, but there are loads of website that give vacancies and listings, whereas in the states, there's no one reputable source (and I definitely did the research! At one point I thought I wasn't going to see England again until I had my first job, so believe me, I was all over it).

/gush

I'm going to follow that up with things I don't like about England, just so that no one's teeth start to rot (I'm looking out for you guys :thumbsup: )

1. Checks take too long to clear!
2. Checks take too bloody long to clear!
3. Checks really do take too bloody long to clear and it's annoying!
4. Difficult to find a good hamburger that doesn't come from McD. However, my family typically doesn't eat beef anyway, so I guess that's not all bad. And I could just make a hamburger myself out of all that lovely, affordable mince I've been able to get, but I'm lazy.
5. Things like 'horse meat' are a thing. It just shouldn't be a thing. I'm pretty sure I've eaten horse meat for most of my formative years as God only knows what was in those school lunches back in the States, but there you go. It's a thing. And it shouldn't be.
6. It's this cold in March. Late March. Nearly April. I'm spoilt by Georgia weather- no denying it.
7. Mum's hugs are too far away. Very annoying. I bloody needed one the other day.
8. Mum's cooking is also too far away. Increasingly annoying. Especially when my massive collection of lovely but irritating flatmates are all crammed into the kitchen at once and I'm left with a bag of lettuce and my annoyance for dinner.
9. When I make lists like this, I run out of things. Boo! Still can't find Broken Britain, but maybe I'm just not looking hard enough?

Love it! Kept me engaged until the very last moment.

Good to hear that jobs for you are advertised much more clearly in the UK. My experience trying to find jobs in the USA is that it is easier to find a needle in a haystack!


All times are GMT -12. The time now is 12:30 pm.

Powered by vBulletin: ©2000 - 2026, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright © 2026 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.