Autumn ride

Flat battery, serves me right. Should have been out on her at least once a week. Instead she has been languishing in the garage gathering not only cobwebs, but sawdust too. Gman came to the rescue yesterday and tickle, (trickle ), charged her.

This afternoon I dressed in all my leather finery and was ready for a blast. I sat astride her and pushed the button. Nothing, dead as a dead thing. Gman had to get another gadget out of the garage and jump start her for me. She roared into life and I knew this ride was just what I needed. The painting can wait.

"Mummy, can I come too, I haven't been on your bike since France and I have got leathers now?" (Fake fashion trousers). Ggirlie was full of wishful hoping.

I left on my own and felt at ease with the world as I rode south into the Surrey countryside. I felt autumn in the breeze and wrapped my chilled hands around a hot chocolate at Newlands Corner as I wandered through the bikes. Damn I've got a horny bike.

The skies spat at me on the way home but I didn't care.

I was recharged too.

I love my bike.

Gadgeteens birthday fireworks & a job?

We have actually submitted our first job application for a vacancy in Canada!

Although it is exciting, I don't hold out any hope for of getting beyond the first stage, but at least we have made a step further forward. It's for a heating & ventilation & general maintenance position within a school district on Vancouver Island in the area that we want to move to. Unfortunately we haven't been able to get any work references yet. We've made lots of phone calls but are waiting for letters to come in, though we can't approach Gmans current company because he doesn't want to alert them to our plans until there is something concrete to tell them. We spent many evening hours this past week documenting his practical skills into a cover letter to accompany each job application. This particular job would suit Gman down to the ground. It involves maintenance in 19 schools within the district including 3 on Islands off Vancouver Island and he really would love to work within a school environment. I know he has the right kind of experience too, but we just have to prove it and we can't yet.

I get by on the buzz of the little acheivements each weekend, so that I can appreciate that progress is being made towards getting this house of ours ready. So much to do and so little time to spare.

We celebrated Gadgeteens 14th birthday on Guy Fawkes day and typically everyone appeared to celebrate with us with fantastic fireworks. It's such fun living in a suburb in England on this day because we can share the pleasure of such a variety of fireworks that shoot up into the night sky from many of the back gardens around here. Each year the residential displays seem to increase in sophistication as the market expands to meet the demand. The rockets fly higher, the bangs are louder, the colours are brighter and the patterns in the sky combine more colours and designs. These days people seem to think that anytime from about a week before to the week after the actual day can still be celebrated in the name of Guy Fawkes, and that's fine with us, we love seeing them.

What did shock me though was that 12 days before Haloween we went out as a family to a local resturaunt for a meal, quite rare for us, and whilst we were sitting to our meal a people carrier drew up outside. Two young kids clambered out whilst Mum waited in the vehicle. The kids donned masks and came into the resturaunt and up to each table trick or treating. We were gob smacked! 12 days before! that is just not on and needless to say we told the kids so, as did the other diners. They dashed back out to the waiting car and mum drove away. We are quite prepared on Haloween night, with a spooky dark house, ghoulish decorations and pumpkins, a basket of goodies, and we all dress up and join in the fun, but only on the 31st October and no other. That is just taking the mickey and greedy in my opinion!

Gadgeteen on his birthday



....And Gadgetgirlie sitting in the cereal cupboard!

Things are brightening up in our Close

Before the extension to our small 2-bedroomed home, in 2004,


and now, at long last, an after-extension photo, with the outside of the house all painted!

This extension has provided us with an extra bedroom so the kids each have their own space, a fantastic new kitchen and dining area running down the length of the side of the house, an extra living room/spare room for visitors facing the rear garden, and what was the old kitchen to the left of the front door, will now be a computer/den/library/spare room. At the moment it's used as the work/storage room for all the decorating stuff with the convenience of the sink and running water for the many brush washings that I have to do. We also have converted the coat cupboard into a downstairs toilet and added the porch to store the family coats, shoes and outdoor toys.

There is still quite a bit to do, the front garden needs tidying up (and paving, probably), the hall, stairs and landing need alot of post-extension work and decoration, the bathroom ceiling needs attention after the builders put their clumsy feet through it from the loft, and the old kitchen will need converting, then we'll finally be in a position to sell if we get the Canada situation sorted.

On that front, my brothers wife now has our CVs', and is doing a bit of networking and research from her end to see what our chances of jobs are. We've now discussed and accepted the possibility that we may have to start off elsewhere in Canada if a job opportunity comes up, then move to where we want to be if/when our permanent residence application is approved. I also now know that we won't make the required points because of the importance placed on formal education within the points system.

We all want to go so much but realise that if we keep hold of the idea and work at finding a way to make it happen then it will eventually work out, even though it will take patience and perseverance to make it so.

Meanwhile, life continues to be as busy and stressful as ever in the Gadget household, interspersed with a bit of fun, relaxation and laughter.