quoll

MY DH has found some D3 here in UK which, he believes, is going to be a replacement for the sunshine he is used to - just a drop does the job apparently (dont know why all the other Vit Ds arent as good but he is convinced!!!)

Interestingly, when all the family were here in UK in Sept/Oct the grandkids noses miraculously cleared up and they were sniffle free but going back to Aus they have both developed runny noses again and one has definitely had a nasty cold! It may well have been something to do with exposure to sunshine though because they were outside as much as they could be in UK but with the heat and harsh sun of Aus they dont go out much at all!

charleygirl

Hi all my BE friends, I have tried to catch up on the many pages I am behind... but just dont have time right now to read them all.. so I know i will miss some news, but I did get that you are feeling down Rodney... please try and go to the many places to walk in and sit and have a coffee. You know my mum is 89 she goes to town twice a week and meets a young man she met in Neros coffee shop, he is only 35 has a few special needs but they meet and chat for a couple of hours every week, his mum started going in with him and now they are all sucj good friends!
Do you have age concern anywhere near you. i went in to their place last week as I know they do cheap meals, I had a couple hours to kill waiting for my car to bbe fixed (grrrrrrrrr) there were so many people in there, not all old. and with in 5 mins of sitting down I had people talking to me as they walked by... and one couple in their 70s asked me if I wanted to sit with them! phone number for portsmouth Age UK 02392 862121 just call them and ask if they have a drop in place .
Also I think barbs suggestion of a house or place of your own is great Housing 21 is great you have your own independance but you can be part of the team if you want.
http://www.housing21.co.uk/housing/p...?id=182&page=0
http://www.housing21.co.uk/housing/p...?id=184&page=0
Rodney do you have a landline or mobile please send them to me in a PM. I will
call you!!!!
TT I hope you are doing okay, will email you today.
To everyone who is back coming back, good luck!
I have to put my girls on the plane home tomorrow, very sad about it, they have had a lovely time though. i will miss them.
I have to start work very soon.... hopefully next week, I got my Criminal records background check back very quickly and all is okay.
So I hope the phone starts ringing with work. I got a job with an agency lined up.

It is getting cold and damp, I never thought I would feel cold again after 14 NH winters but I am...
I am happy to be home but well, time will tell when my girls have gone again, it really was too soon for them to be here with me, it is like I have to start all over again, and I know they are going to miss me.. it seems like just yesterday we were all hugging and crying at the airport and now tomorrow have to do it again. At least my son will be here with me.
They have had a great time as 19 year old would... they love the fact they can go out and drink and dance all night long!
I find food prices good, we can shop cheaply if you hunt for the bargain and I honestly miss nothing about my USA life... except my dog and my friends. I will be honest it really seems as if it never happened... those 14 years.
And I will miss my girls of course.
All the best everyone and Rodney send me your phone number!!!

jasper123

Quoll Hello
Now thats very interesting, now about the Vitamin D, about 3 months ago I went into this health/Vitamin shop here in Pompey and I asked about the Vitamin D tablets ------- cause I read a lot about it on line about how it was supposed to replace the Sunshine that we dont get so much of over here,
and I read how important sunshine is to our body and mind as the Sun gives us energy, anyway in the store there were regular vitamin D tablets, but I asked the man in the store and he showed me a bottle of vitamin D3,
(25ug strength) which he said was equivalent to 1,000 I.U. (international units) pretty cheap too, 100 tablets in a bottle for under £5, Anyway I take one a day in morning, dont know yet if I can see any difference as down south we have had our share of nice sunny days in spring and summer, but now through the winter and the lack of sunny days then it should help I think,
Interesting what you said about where you lived in Oz that it was so hot outside that you and the kids wwouldn'tgo out much, well I relate to that myself coming from Las Vegas where the heat in the summer is so hot like 112 to 118 in the shade that people tend not to be going out walking too much, instead they hop in the car and crank up the A/C and if there going somewhere we make sure that its a place where theres A/C inside, but out side is for the birds ----- so to speak ---- and the lizards and snakes maybe

charleygirl

Rodney!!!!!!!!!!!!! send me your number please....

jasper123

[QUOTE=Mrs Sully;9732173] I think it is the real strength of this forum that we are able to share our ups and downs.

That is very well said Mrs Sully, that (is) the real strength of this forum and I feel that I can talk to all my friends on here and share things that I cant even talk to my own family about. cause I know they wouldn't understand,
but theres always people on here that do understand, and they will comment and help, but just the fact that we are able to share our feelings and fears, and sadness and happiness and all the other feelings and emotions that humans go through is great,
Sometimes I kind of wish I was like Mr Spock, I know he was half human but most of the time the non human side of him was displayed, ----- if it was not a (logical) solution to the problem ---- then it was not a solution,
Emotions he very rarely displayed ----- but now and again he did show his human side and it was always good to see him do that

jasper123

Dear Carolpat,
I would love my friend in Las Vegas to visit me, even a few of my ex friends from work that I got on well with ---- all American people they are, it would be great to just be with them for a short while,
I THINK that is something we all are going to miss more then anything when we come home, thats friends and people that we like from our adopted country, ----- in my case my very good friend Arthur, he's a New Yorker born and bred, but has lived last 25 years in Vegas, he has a heart of absolute gold, and all the lovely people that I have worked with over the years too, I do miss so many of them,

Heres a little bit of advice to some of you who are planing there move back home, I do not feel that its a good Idea for you to just say to yourself ---- well Im going to make a clean break from America ---- or wherever you live,
the clean break thing I think is a bad Idea,
what I mean is on a large sheet of paper you should write a nice clear list of all the people and friends that you want to keep in touch with, people that you like, and who like you too of course, ----- write there names/phone numbers/addresses/and (very important) email addresses, I have even wrote down there Birthdays too so I can send them a birthday and Christmas card every year,
And make sure you keep in touch with them on a regular basis too, those contacts from your past life are crucial to your well being, if you have friends in your adopted country (KEEP THEM) just because your coming home and maybe who knows you may not see them again for years until you maybe go back for a vacation, but to at least be able to email them from time to time will help you settle in to your new life in the U.K. a little easier, I know that its helped me, even though for me the list is quite short,
And on the flip side of the sheet of paper ---------
Also make sure you write down all your web addresses too, ------ like if you intend to keep your U.S. bank account open, (good Idea) write down your passwords, and your passwords for any site that you need to get into when you are home, you know important ones like your passwords to E-Bay/Pay-pal/facebook, I even wrote down in case I forgot it ---- my password to AOL cause I still keep that free account for my email, and I have my password written down also for youtube, its also a good idea to write down the web addresses and passwords to your old utility companys like Gas/elecric/phone/cable/water&sewage/ etc etc ---- cause when you cut off everything before leaving your flat or house you may need to question your final bill right, some of those guys can really sock it to you when they know you are leaving the country, you dont need that extra worry in your mind, it will save you a lot of possible head aches and it will also save you possible expensive telephone calls,

Lastly I would like to mention and this is very important, make sure you go into your bank, physically walk into your bank or banks and tell them you are leaving the country and that you need them to put this info into there system ------ otherwise when you get home you will not be able to access your account or draw any money out of the ATM, unless they know you are out of the country they will block your account to protect you, and the hassle you will have to go through to get them to unblock it once you are home is definitely something that you do not need to deal with.

So thats it really write all your important contact info down on a large sheet of paper and then either laminate it or buy a see through folder to put it in, anyway it must be nice & big you see so you dont loose it, ----- and every little bit of contact info is all in one spot on one thing.

And most important if you are not bringing your laptop home, ------ while you are shopping around over here for the best deal, you may be without a computer for a while like I was so you will need to access the free computers at your local library like I did for a couple of months, well ----- just make sure you have your log-in information for BRITISH EXPATS ------ we certainly would not want you to forget any one of us on here
Good Luck to everyone, live long and prosper as Mr Spock would say, ----- and from another source I think it was starwars, may the force be with you.
Take care,
Rodney.

cheers

Charleygirl, our Rodney is hard of hearing so you might have to shout to him on a private message or email him to get his phone number

jasper123

Hmmmmmm,

Fish n Chips 56

Rodney... Thats awesome advice, very important info, some of those things would have never crossed my mind.

Friends, I think its great when you meet up with old friends, the ones youd never expect really miss you and take interest.

jasper123

Thanks to everyone for the very helpful advice, and all the caring thoughts you gave me, such a good response from ya'll that I didn't expect,

Cookie,
Your advice on Volunteering was good, something that would get me out of the house and also a chance to meet people too, and thanks for your link,

Sally,
Thanks too for your words, and also I think your advice for Bandrui was very good, if you have serious doubts about coming home, then dont unless the doubts go away, everyone must make this huge move with a completely clear mind knowing without a doubt that this is what they really want to do,
Must way up all the pros and cons and also write them all down too, FISH is a very firm believer of this too,

Fish,
Thanks for all your good advice as usual,

Englishmum,
Thanks sooooo much for those two links, I read them both, and the reverse culture shock part was a lot of help to me, I read all the sometimes and YES I actually have all of those symtims right now at the moment

MITF
I do remember that post a long time ago on here about all the stages we go through when we come home to stay, you know I wish we had it to read again, it would be very helpful to a lot of people dont you think,
CHEERS would be the one to find that post from way back wouldn't he, he is good at that, how about it cheers? shake a leg

Mrs Sully WOW you are a busy bee arent you, yes when we come back we do have a lot of running around to do to get established, a lot of places to go to and a lot of things to take care of,
but I dont envy you having to unpack over 200 boxes no no no,

Barb,
Thanks for all the advice, the part about not living with my Mum and getting a place of my own Im afraid is not an option for me, that would break her heart if I moved out, and I cant do that to her.
You said that you were surprised to hear that I was depressed, because you thought I was happy here in U.K. well Barb I am happy back home, and I really appreciate everything that it has to offer ---- which is a lot, I thank my lucky stars that I made the big decision to come back home, that Im sure wont change with time, but yes I am going through a depression, and I dont understand it, its confusing me, and I dont know how to deal with it really, but I think it will pass, hopefully sometime soon,
But as I said I am here for the long haul, I aint going nowhere
I do think that my condition has a lot to do with retirement, its new to me, and I really dont know how to handel it, I have always worked my whole life and I know I miss the friendship I had from all my work friends, I miss the seeing and chatting to them every day, I do keep myself quite busy here, Im not staying in the house, I go places, but only on my own, thats what I cant get used to

Charleygirl,
Thanks a lot for the advice, and thanks for the phone number for the age concern in Pompey, I will take your advice and call them and find out if they have a drop in place for people to meet and talk,
And yes I will send you a PM with my phone number,

Take care all of you great people,
Rodney.

cheers

Not if you owe them money

Mrs Sully

Rodney, you are such a dear person and thank younger all your advice, particularly with regard to friends left behind. I met up with an old friend here who said " we have to set the parameters for our relationship because we are both busy, and we should synchronize our diaries", it would be improper to me to put my exact thoughts on this site. Let me just say I gave up diaries when I retired and I'm not that busy. Also friendships don't have parameters. (yes, quoll we need to catch up - soon).

Take care Rodney, I'm thinking of you and know exactly where you are coming from. I went for a lovely long walk in the countryside today and that made all the angst worth while. Tomorrow is another day, remember of all we go through having good health is the most important. Some days will be hard - and lonely, but others will be a joy. Keep writing and although this is online we are all very fond of you.

Beedubya

YES YES YES, I got the job.

OK it's not my first choice out of the two, but I feel such an ENORMOUS relief that I have managed to scrape myself back up yet again.

New Malden, Surrey here I come, I will be a soft shandy swilling Southerner LOL!!

Beedubya

Hope I didn't offend Rodney but was just putting myself in your shoes and picturing living with MY mother for 11 months.

cheers

Congratulations

When do you start?
When will I get some money?
What is the latest on the cars health?

Cheers whacker!