A House Full
I haven’t written anything on my family page for such a long time. Largely, because during the corona virus lockdown there hasn’t felt much to say. I’ve been thrilled to have the girls at home with me, upset to not be able to get back home to Mick in Bangkok and frustrated for mum and dad that, almost six months after his fall, dad still isn’t back home. There has been plenty of adjustments to having almost a house full, but we’ve done ok and muddled along.
At last I have some news. Mick is heading home and we will have a proper full house again soon. I am sure that will bring its own joys, woes and frustrations! Right now, though, it is making me smile.
Finding your Niche for Published Articles
Whilst we have been apart I have kept busy and I’ve written a lot of articles (even some with possible earning potential) on diverse issues for a variety of publications. Avoiding arguing with grown up children, respecting your oldies and running a library effectively during lockdown to name a few.
The key to a good blog is to find a ‘niche’ and you can see that I don’t have one (Jack of all trades and master of none!). I seem to babble on about many things. That’s why it works better to write for someone else. I’ve got a lot of articles for different journals on Medium including book reviews, managing temper tantrums and exploring the level of toxicitiy in friendship.
It seems a shame not to occasionally put something on here though and having our family back together is something I wanted to share.
Being Apart from your Partner
With the corona virus situation I haven’t seen Mick for many months. (It’s an odd thing living away from a partner. It needs managing carefully. Time seems to go really slowly (but the weeks tick by before you know it too!) Overall, being apart hasn’t been fun though, in fact, at times, it has been downright sad. As there wasn’t an easy option for Mick to return to Thailand if he visited us this summer, we have taken the plunge for him to leave work and return to the UK.
I’m EXCITED to have Mick back with us, but I am also a little bit anxious. We have a lot of ‘next steps’ to figure out, not least finding another job!
It is a very strange experience to pack up a whole life from over 6000 miles away. (Who would have thought we would have stayed 18 years!) It is beyond weird to think that I won’t be seeing my friends again, but at least social media helps me keep in touch. I guess it’s not so important, BUT I can’t believe I am not going back to my lovely Thana city pool, or having any more of my lovely brunches. (I’m so shallow!) Mick returning is a good move though and, whilst I am allowing myself a little nostalgia about our life in Bangkok, we’ve got lots to look forward to and oodles of adventures ahead.
When I quit work suddenly back in 2018 I was super busy and the impact of not having a job only came later. I didn’t anticipate how that would feel. Work is such an important part of our identity, so I do worry a little for Mick. He seems quite happy though with the idea of relaxing and reading. He has A LOT of Waterstones gift vouchers to spend, that the teachers have kindly given him. Little does he know I’ve got a lot of ‘jobs’ lined up for him!
There will be lots of new blogging opportunities for me in the future about how things pan out. Work and identity; managing a busy household, village life, leadership, job hunting; relocating from overseas… to name but a few.
For now though I’m just going to enjoy the idea of having the old lad back here with me. I’m counting down the days. I can no longer call him Saint Mick of Thana but he is still my grumpy old fella. Our place in Thana City, Bangkok will become someone else’s home. I just hope they love it as much as we have.