Shit Happened, Shit Did Not Happen, 10 Days Until We Leave, And I'm Slowly Saying Goodbye
Afternoon all, a lot has happened in the last month or so. Things are going to keep getting busier until we leave. Things going on: building work, friends, packing, food, paperwork, stress.
Firstly to building work. Well, it started happening, the roof floor was nearly done and then it stopped. Long story short, I fired my builders on the advice of a surveyor. They did not use their brains, massively overcharged us, AND wasted £300 worth of insulation in the floor of the loft (which is not what we meant by loft insulation). When I told them they were fired and they wouldn't get any more money, they became threatening, which was quite scary really. This kind of proved to me how necessary it was to fire them. True professionals wouldn't have behaved so unproffessionally. We tore out our kitchen in preparation for the new one being put in, and then worked stopped, so we have been living without a cooker, with the fridge in the living room.
We were put in contact with a new builder, but it has been weeks chasing his quote, and despite his promises, we are yet to see a quote. At this point, we will be leaving without a rentable house, and no clue when it will be rentable. I have to pratice zen, letting things be as they will be. We already can't afford the move to Japan, so this is just one more thing we can't really afford. I am incredibly grateful for having a family that can afford to support me, otherwise this move would be totally impossible.
On to more happy things: seeing friends and family. I have been scheduling meetings, events, coffees, parties, and dinners, I call the "Team RoZipil leaving roadshow", in an attempt to see everyone before we leave. I am pleased to say this has been reasonably successful so far. There are still a few more people I'd like see, but with many more people scheduled this week, it should be a really nice last week in England.
Slowly saying goodbye isn't just about people. I've been saying goodbye to many of the things I'm going to miss, usually quietly in my head. I have been quietly acknowledging the last proper sponge cake, the last nice brown bread, the last humous, the last crossing the road where I like, eating on the street, calling people on the train, not being stared at in the supermarket, and I am massively stocking up on underwear that fits me. For all these things I will miss, are hundreds more things I am very excited to have back in my life soon. I won't list them all now, as I will do so in later blog posts when I'm actually in Japan. I hope I will have many new things to discover.
Packing is sort of happening, in a kind of throw-all-the-clothes-you-like-in-a-suitase-and-hope-for-the-best kind of way. At least I have a whole suitcase filled with business clothes and Yorkshire tea bags, so I should be well prepared for anything.
Lastly, we are currently in London as we have recently submitted our visa applications. Horray. It is done. The man at the embassy took one look at my application and stared at me, "Why do you want to work?" he asks, genuinly confused as to why a breastfeeding mum was becoming the primary earner in a family. "Because I am a strong, independent woman, and I want to do everything." I replied, honestly. He almost shrugs, as if to say "fair enough, can't argue with that," stamps the paperwork, and tells us it will be ready for collection on Wednesday. So after all those phone calls, and worrying it would take months, it really was that simple.
Fingers crossed it is plain sailing from here to the departure gate. 10 days to go, and I am so ready to leave the house crap behind (sorry mum and dad) and start a new adventure.
Firstly to building work. Well, it started happening, the roof floor was nearly done and then it stopped. Long story short, I fired my builders on the advice of a surveyor. They did not use their brains, massively overcharged us, AND wasted £300 worth of insulation in the floor of the loft (which is not what we meant by loft insulation). When I told them they were fired and they wouldn't get any more money, they became threatening, which was quite scary really. This kind of proved to me how necessary it was to fire them. True professionals wouldn't have behaved so unproffessionally. We tore out our kitchen in preparation for the new one being put in, and then worked stopped, so we have been living without a cooker, with the fridge in the living room.
We were put in contact with a new builder, but it has been weeks chasing his quote, and despite his promises, we are yet to see a quote. At this point, we will be leaving without a rentable house, and no clue when it will be rentable. I have to pratice zen, letting things be as they will be. We already can't afford the move to Japan, so this is just one more thing we can't really afford. I am incredibly grateful for having a family that can afford to support me, otherwise this move would be totally impossible.
On to more happy things: seeing friends and family. I have been scheduling meetings, events, coffees, parties, and dinners, I call the "Team RoZipil leaving roadshow", in an attempt to see everyone before we leave. I am pleased to say this has been reasonably successful so far. There are still a few more people I'd like see, but with many more people scheduled this week, it should be a really nice last week in England.
Slowly saying goodbye isn't just about people. I've been saying goodbye to many of the things I'm going to miss, usually quietly in my head. I have been quietly acknowledging the last proper sponge cake, the last nice brown bread, the last humous, the last crossing the road where I like, eating on the street, calling people on the train, not being stared at in the supermarket, and I am massively stocking up on underwear that fits me. For all these things I will miss, are hundreds more things I am very excited to have back in my life soon. I won't list them all now, as I will do so in later blog posts when I'm actually in Japan. I hope I will have many new things to discover.
Packing is sort of happening, in a kind of throw-all-the-clothes-you-like-in-a-suitase-and-hope-for-the-best kind of way. At least I have a whole suitcase filled with business clothes and Yorkshire tea bags, so I should be well prepared for anything.
Lastly, we are currently in London as we have recently submitted our visa applications. Horray. It is done. The man at the embassy took one look at my application and stared at me, "Why do you want to work?" he asks, genuinly confused as to why a breastfeeding mum was becoming the primary earner in a family. "Because I am a strong, independent woman, and I want to do everything." I replied, honestly. He almost shrugs, as if to say "fair enough, can't argue with that," stamps the paperwork, and tells us it will be ready for collection on Wednesday. So after all those phone calls, and worrying it would take months, it really was that simple.
Fingers crossed it is plain sailing from here to the departure gate. 10 days to go, and I am so ready to leave the house crap behind (sorry mum and dad) and start a new adventure.
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| Mission accomplished: Team Rozipil with old friend Alex, just before the storm on Oxford street, London, after submitting our visa applications |
I've been wondering how things are coming along, so thanks for your update :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm sure house shenanigans are not what you need right now!
I know what you mean about all the get-togethers before departure... it's a real juggling act, isn't it? ;-)
If you really search, I think you can find sponge cake in Japan too. Albeit, they tend to be really OTT, with several detailed layers, e.g. a layer of sponge, followed by a layer of jelly, then a layer of matcha cream, then a layer of chocolate etc. Just go to a big department store's basement floor.
Brown bread is a rarity - you can sometimes find sort-of-ok expensive granary bread in bakeries here, but possibly not in the supermarket.
I have never seen hummus here - so you should probably eat as much as you possibly can before you leave the UK.
Crossing the road where you like and eating on the street - Japanese people in Osaka often ignore these "rules" themselves, so I don't feel bad about doing the same here. The exception with crossing the road anywhere and when the lights are on red - I don't do this when there are young children nearby, as I don't want to set a bad example.
I don't want to get into discussing your underwear shopping in Japan, but Uniqlo is generally very good.
Sounds like you're going to smell of Yorkshire tea during your training week then!
I really like your answer to the man at the Japanese embassy.
By the way - for info, if you fancy a really authentic Japanese lunch when you pick up your visa next Wednesday - Shoryu Ramen just opposite is fantastic, but you may want to wait until you get to Japan, where the same ramen will cost less than half the price.
Good luck over the next 10 days. Japan is waiting for you!
Hey, thanks for all the tips and comments. I will be very proud to smell of Yorkshire tea. I am a big fan of Japanese Uniqlo, much of my current wardrobe comes from there. But Japanese cake always has far too much cream in it, like the really airy kind. It's the proper butter cream and icing I miss.
DeleteHope things are going well for you and you're all enjoying Japanese life so far :)
ReplyDelete