We've moved! An update of sorts.

Hello! Haven't updated in ages. Why? We were busy moving house... and then BT took a week to get our internet sorted.

Here's a list of what's been going on:

1. We moved!
We now live in Bletchley instead of Newport Pagnell. A bit further from work now, but it's a good flat and a good location, and for once we have friends that live locally!

2. Roller Derby!
I'm getting a lot better at skating now. I even took part in some newbie scrimmaging two weeks ago. I've also picked out my skate name (H.P. Lovecrash) and number (751).

3. Handicrafts! With Yarn!
I'm crocheting a jumper. Why? I found a crochet magazine with an easy looking pattern for a hoodie, and I live near a craft store now (so yarn practically begs me to take it home and do something with it). I'm about halfway done with the back. I'll post pictures when it's finished. I also want to start making some more amirugumi as well, and try out some scientific knitting and crocheting. I've got a wickid idea for a scarf made out of a chain of neurons.

4. NaNoWriMo!
I am insane. I've decided to attempt National Novel Writing Month again, with slightly more effort on my part this time. You can find my author profile by clicking the image to the right. If you're taking part, you can add me as a buddy! I'll also toss up a word count widget, once they're available on the NaNo site.

And that's about it for now. Stay tuned for a Halloween post this weekend about classic horror flicks!

Argos is weird.

First off, just a note: we don't have a net connection in the new house, so I'm updating from my phone. Fun!

Monday night, Michael and I went to Argos to get some inflatable furniture to hold us over until we got a couch. I was expecting something like a Wal*Mart but more warehouse-y. I was looking forward to browsing some aisles. Argos is NOTHING like that.

You go in, look through the catalog, check to see if the item is in stock on a little keypad thing, pay either with a cashier or a kiosk, and wait for your items to be pulled. It was the strangest shopping experience I've ever had, as I am a browser when I shop. We got what we needed, plus a couple of floor lamps, so it was successful, if a bit boring.

That's all for now!

Quick Update

Because we're in the middle of moving, I haven't been able to work on paintings or anything (though I did make a some magnets over the last week or so, and will post a picture of those later this week once we're done). I do have my sketchbook though, so I'm doing some thumbnails for comics when I can.

The big news though, is that I've started a separate blog to track my weight loss. I figured that was a bit easier than fiddling with tagging and cuts in case some people didn't want to read it. If you're curious, though, you can find it here:

http://shrinkingsteph.blogspot.com/

That's all for now!

Visa approved! Yay!

I got notice on Monday around noon that my visa had been approved. It was like a giant weight had been lifted off my shoulders! The package with my documents should get here tomorrow, and then I can buy my plane ticket. I'll be leaving on the 3rd of October. So just over a week!

I immediately launched into work mode, and thus forgot to update my blog with the good news. I've already got one bag packed, two boxes of books mailed off, and four more that just need labels and customs forms. I sold my dresser this morning, leaving me with only my mammoth printer that no one wants and a table to sell. I've got my iBook mostly set up (on hold now about reactivating my copy of Studio MX 2004 as I forgot to transfer the license for it... may give up soon and try again tomorrow; it's been about 45 minutes already).

There's still a lot more to be done, but I have the time to do it. And soon I'll be there and I can relax for a bit, as has been ordered by Michael. After a while I'll nab a part time job a few days a week to bring in some extra money for us (the rest of the time I'll be working on comics and art and writing again, which I'm excited about)... maybe at Borders or the other large bookstore I can never remember the name of, if they'll hire me. I'd even be happy just stocking shelves or doing inventory. I find stuff like that to be a bit Zen.

That's all I have for now. My next entry probably won't be until just before I'm leaving, unless something exciting happens before then. Stay tuned!

Starting to Pack (not so) Early, and other things

I've held off on posting because I thought I might find out about my visa a bit early. I hired an expediter after the fact to see if they could pull my application and resubmit it, thus shaving of some waiting time and reducing my growing stress levels. Sadly, the consulate had already opened my application and had begun processing it, so expediting was a no go. I will get some of my money back, and it's nice to know something's being done, but I'm currently at the mercy of the consulate and however long they take to process things. I should hear by sometime next week with any luck, and by the end of the month at the latest. So I'm going to be flying out a bit later than planned.

I have started packing. The vast majority of the clothing I'm taking is currently sealed in those vacuum space bag things to help save space. I'm still sorting through my art work and art supplies, and I'm going to pick up some flat rate boxes from the post office on Monday to send off a chunk of my books in.

I've been really stressed out lately. I've cried a LOT. I don't like not being in control of things, and the whole situation with my visa had me almost tearing my hair out. I've also been doing a lot of stress eating, and I swear I've gained at least seven pounds in the last few weeks. (Probably exaggerating a bit on the number, but I have gained weight.) And even though I'm joining a gym when I move over and I'm going to eat better and really make a stab at taking control of my body and my weight, I felt really terrible because I'd been eating loads of junk lately. It was partially because I thought I might be leaving really soon and didn't want to buy groceries I wasn't going to eat.

But now I know I'm not leaving for at least another week or so. I made the decision to pick up a bunch of veggies and fruit and such. And even the simple act of buying that stuff and knowing it's in the fridge makes me feel better. I'll still have some junk (need to get in one last California burrito before I go), but obviously in moderation.

This has, in part, been brought on by getting into the Biggest Loser again. I forgot how much that show inspires me to work hard and do better by myself. I just finished rewatching the first season of the Biggest Loser Australia on YouTube (found it last year when I couldn't find full episodes of the American one). It was a great season, and I totally recommend watching it if you're into that sort of thing*. My plan is to have a weight loss update post once a month, with progress and a photograph. But that comes later, after this moving business is over.

Today was my roommate's** birthday, so we went out and did things! And stuff! We went to IHOP with a former roommate/friend (not so healthy but very yummy... I recommend the Harvest Grain and Nut pancakes), and followed that up with seeing Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (which was so much better than I expected). Go see it if you're in the mood for light-hearted and slightly nerdy fun. We came back home for a bit and then rounded off the evening by seeing our roommate/friend's improv group perform, which is always awesome***. This was preceded by a quick duck into the UK Corner Shoppe (which is right next door) for some treats from my future home. (Really, I've been dying for a Violet Crumble for the last month or so, and I figured a Cadbury Crunchie would satisfy that craving.)

So a lot has been going on. I'll continue to sort and pack tomorrow (and maybe watch season two of Biggest Loser Australia, which I haven't seen before). Now that I'm over the disappointment of not getting my visa as soon as I'd hoped, I can really push to get everything done so that I'm ready to go when I can leave.

I'm not sure what my next post will be about, or when, but here's hoping the gist of it is: WOOOOOO! MY VISA GOT APPROVED! YAAAAAAAY!

*You can find the first part to the first episode here.
**She's the sister I never had. I'm going to miss the crap out of her.
***If you're in San Diego and you want a fun night, check out National Comedy Theater. They're always a blast.

Interlude: I'm in the system! (and other things, too)

After a comedy of errors involving my husband having to ship back my passport because it was in the duffel bag of stuff I sent home with him, I finally had my biometrics (fingerprint scanning) appointment, and dropped my supporting documents off at FedEx to be sent to the British Consulate in Los Angeles. So yay for that!

It's been scorching this past week or so. My apartment has no air conditioning, so I've been relying on frequent cold showers, soaking shirts and bandanas in cold water, and two fans running constantly in my room. Which all only sort of work. I've also got a nasty sunburn from waiting for various busses and the trolley today. I'm not going to miss summers closer to the equator, that's for sure.

The heat has certainly been making it hard to find the motivation to do anything besides sit on my butt and poke around the internet while I try to cool off and not feel sick. But I have so much left to do before the move, and less than a month to do it in. My last day of work is just a week and a half away though, so that should help things some to. (Currently with my commute, I'm out of the house about 12 hours a day, which takes a lot out of me.)

One thing I HAVE accomplished this week is getting my laptop updated and sorted. I installed a new, much larger hard drive (which is no small task with an iBook G4... I ended up having to open it up about five times, but I got it working after some technological voodoo). I also put in a new keyboard (hooray for the O key not popping off randomly anymore), and put a pretty skin on it to cover up the scratches and dings from four years of near constant use.

This weekend is Labor Day weekend, so I have a paid holiday on Monday. That means I get a three day weekend in which to list and relist things on Craigslist (and maybe eBay), drop things off at the Salvation Army down the street, and start packing all my nonessential stuff.

I'm super excited and scared shitless at the same time! It's awesome! :D

How in the hell did I end up with all this stuff?

I am, to put it lightly, a pack rat. I get this from my late mother (though, thank goodness, not nearly on the same scale). So after nine years of collecting and hoarding, I have a boatload of stuff. And this is after several moves worth of whittling down that I've done. In short: you really never realize how much stuff you have until you have to move.

So this weekend's task is sorting and listing things for sale on Craigslist and eBay. I've got to tell you... it's really hard to see some of this stuff go! Sure, I won't miss my penguin-shaped humidifier that much, or my desk (which is already in pieces in the garage), but the artist/designer in me will definitely miss my printer (which can print large sizes) and my uber photo scanner. Alas, they cannot come with me because of the wiring differences in the UK. I may also have to sell a large painting that I created a few years back, and one (if not both) of my mannequins*.

The thing that seems to be daunting on me more than anything else though is the sheer amount of books that I own. The entire top shelf of my wall-length closet is full of them. I've already decided that I'm only taking a small portion of them with me, and the rest (after I make a list of the ones I may want to read again) will be either donated or sold... somehow. I haven't quite figured that out yet. At the very least, I'm going to have a garage sale in a week or two, and they can be sold there.

Proceeds from all these sales will help go toward replacing the hard drive and keyboard in my failing iBook, a couple of trunks to take my things over in, and my plane ticket. I actually found one for just under $500 for a one-way... with an eight hour layover in Reykjavík. It's a rather long time, but for the price I can't pass it up. I've also never been to Iceland (the only country besides my own that I've been to is England, since visiting Tijuana does not truly count as visiting Mexico), so I'm viewing it as a sort of treat, even though I'll be exhausted. But I'm going off on a bit of a tangent here.

The truth is, it's hard to get rid of your belongings. My original plan was to start taking care of all this months ago, little by little. I just couldn't bring myself to do it. The idea of the move was just so overwhelming. It still is, but now that I have a real deadline it feels more real and grounded.

Even after I've sold and given away everything else, I've still got what's left of my clothes, a laptop, a bunch of my artwork, as much of my art supplies as I can fit, and all my little bits and bobs (as Michael would put it) to squeeze into two trunks I've yet to purchase and a suitcase. My mind still boggles a bit at that. But it must and will be done.

*Yes. Mannequins. Two. I like them because they're a bit creepy, and I was using them in art pieces in college. The tall one is going to go, and I won't much miss her, but I'm hoping to be able to bring over my kneeling child mannequin. She's a nice conversation piece.

Next Entry: Notes from a Small Island - Book Review

Begin again at the beginning.

This past Monday, while I was on the long train ride* back home from visiting family and friends, I realized that my move to England had officially started. The end of that trip signified the real beginning of the process for me, even though it had been planned for months and Michael and I got married back on July 27th.

At any rate, my time in San Diego is going to come to an end sooner than I know it. And there's still so much left to do! I've got to replace some parts in my old iBook, sell and donate and chuck ungodly amounts of stuff that I've accumulated over the last nine years or so, get my supporting documents for my visa sent off to the UK consulate in Los Angeles, get some final medical appointments taken care of, get a plane ticket, pack my life into a few bags and trunks, and finally make my way across the pond.

It all seems a bit daunting with only five weeks to go!

I've started this blog/travel log to write about my experiences of moving to and living in a new country, and partially because I wanted to get more in the habit of writing. And maybe someone else down the line will read this as they are scouring the internet for other stories of expatriation before the embark on a journey of their own**.

First entries always feel a bit formal and awkward to me, so I promise to be a bit more interesting next time. ;)


*Well, train then bus then train. It's a long way from Stockton to San Diego!

**This spot is reserved for a shout out to UK Yankee, whose forum especially has been so immensely helpful through everything thus far, and (I'm sure) will continue to be so. You can find them at UK-Yankee.com.


Next Entry: How in the hell did I end up with all this stuff?