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[hundun]

Last night, a friend of mine dressed up as Raggedy Andy and attacked me with a boffer sword while I defended myself with a 40 cm wiffle bat while remaining attached by one hand to an overhead ring.

We stopped because while it was fun, striking a person who is both moving and unarmoured is not exactly safe. So he whacked me some more while I stayed

Comments

[cloud_atlas]

In regards to your first point, my advice is this: consider carefully what the impact might really be on your life.

Now this might sound painfully obvious, but when moving far away, it's easy to get caught up in the big picture impact and forget about the day to day changes. I made this mistake when I moved across the country for a brief time several years ago.

I knew I wanted change, I knew I wanted something different than my current surroundings, and I knew I wanted to be outside of my life for a while, but I didn't consider how it would feel to be somewhere new, I didn't plan or prepare for culture shock, I didn't realise how disorienting it would be, I didn't think about those who I would miss, or even consider how I'd ultimately end up feeling about the people I thought I wouldn't miss.

It wasn't homesickness that drew me back, it was a feeling of needing to belong somewhere. I had made friends, had a job, was enjoying school, but being in the new place felt uncomfortable and misrepresenting, like wearing clothes that are ill fitting and trying to pull it off.

That doesn't mean it can't done, I just hadn't seriously considered all of the implications such an adventure can have and bring. In someways while I was away I had too much fun, I was too far out of my comfort zone, and acted in ways I wouldn't at home. This wasn't beneficial.

So seriously consider how mentally prepared you might be to wake up everyday somewhere new, where people talk different, where expectations can be turned on their heads, where you may start to behave like someone other than yourself. Be prepared to wind up somewhere that doesn't "fit".

(All this from someone currently considering a move to China :P)