(no subject)
I love England. I love the brick houses, the low walls that wrap along every street, and the churches on street corners that nobody goes to. I love the pub trivia nights with the charming yet slightly-creepy-for-some-reason MC, the fact that nobody gives a damn if I bring a book to a social event and read it, the gyms filled with ladies who look like bags of dough and think I'm a sporty person because they once saw me dive for a shuttlecock. It's sort of like Kingston, without the self-entitled Queens students and the lake. It has everything - there's a giant library, a gym, a theatre that is truly hideous from the outside but is lovely and modern inside, two supermarkets up the road, the truly ridiculous statue that's supposed to represent DNA in the town centre (Francis Crick was born here, who knew). It's a town that has all the essentials and stops there. If we really needed the high life, we could be in the centre of London in an hour. If we want to slow it down, there's our pick of the cutest villages all around us.
I'm somewhat lonely. I know that will largely be solved by getting a job, but I still feel hopeless about the whole thing. I had to wait until a few weeks ago to get my National Insurance Number, the UK equivalent of a SIN, before I could start applying to most jobs. Luckily the city is currently restructuring their library system so they're hiring like crazy, but I haven't heard anything from the 5 different library jobs I've applied for, which depresses me. They're basically asking for a high school education, experience working with books, and experience running kid's programs, all of which I have. And I know for a fact I could out customer service anyone in England. You're lucky if you're grunted at when entering a shop. The whole thing is so frustrating. I know I'm not worthless, but after 8 months of no or sub employment coupled with no work for 6 months before I got the Japan job makes me wonder about myself. I've always received glowing recommendations from "actual" jobs. I want to know why I have so much trouble landing the most basic of positions.
I'm avoiding the publishing company up the road. They have admin jobs posted on their website, but I'm petrified to apply. If they don't want me, there's no other publishing companies that aren't pretty much family affairs in Northampton. I want to work for them - I think the shit ton of experience I have working with and studying kids would actually be somewhat useful to a children's publishing company. Apparently applying for publishing jobs is covered in my editing course in 2 weeks, so I wonder if I should just wait. Those jobs have been posted since before I got to England.
But anyways, I do like it here. When Dan is around we have so much fun. We're working out a lot. The other day I was shaving my leg and felt a hard mass where my calf was, and for a second I though I had calf cancer (yes, calf cancer) or something before I realized it was a muscle. Toned muscle. I've been hitting up an aquatics aerobicizing class on Thursdays, then a yoga class on Saturdays with a spaced out hippie lady. And once again, I'm walking everywhere. It adds up I guess.
I've also been exercising my cooking skills, being as bored as I am when Dan is gone. I've made chilis, stufffed peppers, cabbage soup with chirizo sausage, stir fries, toad in the hole, brownies, and loads of other stuff. This nation is obsessed with cooking. If Japan is weird game shows and Canada is hockey and reality TV, then England is cooking. I've started watching this ridiculous show where a bunch of people try to outdo each other by having the best dinner party.
I guess that's it. I'm happy here. Just need to fill in the day to day with more stuff.
I'm somewhat lonely. I know that will largely be solved by getting a job, but I still feel hopeless about the whole thing. I had to wait until a few weeks ago to get my National Insurance Number, the UK equivalent of a SIN, before I could start applying to most jobs. Luckily the city is currently restructuring their library system so they're hiring like crazy, but I haven't heard anything from the 5 different library jobs I've applied for, which depresses me. They're basically asking for a high school education, experience working with books, and experience running kid's programs, all of which I have. And I know for a fact I could out customer service anyone in England. You're lucky if you're grunted at when entering a shop. The whole thing is so frustrating. I know I'm not worthless, but after 8 months of no or sub employment coupled with no work for 6 months before I got the Japan job makes me wonder about myself. I've always received glowing recommendations from "actual" jobs. I want to know why I have so much trouble landing the most basic of positions.
I'm avoiding the publishing company up the road. They have admin jobs posted on their website, but I'm petrified to apply. If they don't want me, there's no other publishing companies that aren't pretty much family affairs in Northampton. I want to work for them - I think the shit ton of experience I have working with and studying kids would actually be somewhat useful to a children's publishing company. Apparently applying for publishing jobs is covered in my editing course in 2 weeks, so I wonder if I should just wait. Those jobs have been posted since before I got to England.
But anyways, I do like it here. When Dan is around we have so much fun. We're working out a lot. The other day I was shaving my leg and felt a hard mass where my calf was, and for a second I though I had calf cancer (yes, calf cancer) or something before I realized it was a muscle. Toned muscle. I've been hitting up an aquatics aerobicizing class on Thursdays, then a yoga class on Saturdays with a spaced out hippie lady. And once again, I'm walking everywhere. It adds up I guess.
I've also been exercising my cooking skills, being as bored as I am when Dan is gone. I've made chilis, stufffed peppers, cabbage soup with chirizo sausage, stir fries, toad in the hole, brownies, and loads of other stuff. This nation is obsessed with cooking. If Japan is weird game shows and Canada is hockey and reality TV, then England is cooking. I've started watching this ridiculous show where a bunch of people try to outdo each other by having the best dinner party.
I guess that's it. I'm happy here. Just need to fill in the day to day with more stuff.