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RuthsArc

~ Looking forward, looking back & enjoying now.

RuthsArc

Monthly Archives: December 2014

Review of our Year

30 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, creativity, remembering / musing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

family, me

In our fast paced lives, we are often so caught up in now, what we have to get done today, tomorrow, that we to forget to look back, to remember the good times, to reminisce. We should take the time to recollect. Even in the tough years there are always some things that made us smile, things to be grateful for, happy memories to share.

There are various ways to think back on the past twelve months.
Facebook has collated a summary of our posts and photos.
I’ve seen blog ideas such as “2014 in 100 words”.

Here is another way that our family have enjoyed.

Each person selects a few pictures, images, a word, that relates to others in the family / group, or to themselves, during the past year ….. places visited …. achievements …. concert attended …. a new hair style …. new friendships. The list is endless.

Everyone, cuts out their pictures, rolls them up tight, covers them in tissue paper – all in secret. All are placed in a bag or hat.

When everyone is together, each person takes turns to pull one item out of the bag, all guess who and what it relates to (some pictures are quite obscure). It is fascinating to see what others remember, the different memories, personal highlights of the year.

We started this with teenagers on Christmas Day, when there were no young children in the family so no “magic of Santa”. W19the’ll be sharing our year this evening.

My 2014 in 100 words

30 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in 100 word challenge, all about me, remembering / musing

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

me

Empty nesters, C~M in Argentina, S~E elopement in NZ and married life in Sydney, promotion, C~M back, found job, moved into house share. Redundancy from bank, A resigned from hotel, time for us. Selling house, sorting, packing up, storage unit. Time for holidays, mini breaks, Cornwall, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Netherlands. Time with UK family, Aus visitors. Australia spouse visa so planning 2015 in Hobart. Exciting, scary but great opportunity for new phase of life. Writing blog, photo a day. Time, loving non-employment, happy together. An amazing 2014 and looking forward to the new year.

Gap Years – then and now

28 Sunday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, back in 1985, more to life, remembering / musing

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Australia, in 1985, New Zealand

30 years ago I was travelling to Australia, at the beginning of my twenty something working holiday gap year. Friday 28th December 1984 was the day I lost on the plane, just travelling.

I was fed up with boyfriends, with my banking job, with things in general. “There has to be more to life than this” was a mantra back then. Friends had emigrated to Melbourne the previous year, so I had a base and friendly faces to welcome me. I made a decision and earlier in the year I applied for a working holiday visa, I worked a second job, on the deli counter at local supermarket on late night shopping days and Saturdays, I saved up for the required funds to take the trip and gave up my room in my latest flat share.

I was off on an adventure for a year.

Sounds familiar.

Now, a life time later, I am planning to go off for another year’s adventure, again to Australia. This time I will be travelling with my husband, not on my own. We need to have more funds behind us, as neither of us want to back pack, stay in hostels, or take overnight buses to see the country. We like our space and our luxuries.

We have redundancy funds, I have a spouse visa so I can live and work in Australia indefinitely this time. But on the flip side, I now have the clutter of adult life, a mortgage, a house to sell, pensions and other financial admin to organise.

Thinking back, I seemed happy to go to the unknown with a few clothes, passport, visa and some Aussie dollars. No worries!

This day in 1984….
I was on a MAS flight from London to Melbourne via Amsterdam, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur with smokers sitting down the back, smoking! movies on a big screen at the front of each cabin section – “Splash” and “Romancing the Stone”. I listened to Sade on my cassette player and was fascinated by seeing dawn and dusk from the air within a 7 hour time span.

Oh this will be fun, I’m looking forward to re-reading my journals of that epic year, as a singleton, before husband, before kids, actually at the same age that my eldest daughter is now ……. and I’ve only read the first day, I haven’t even landed in Australia yet.

Pre-tirement

24 Wednesday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, fifty something, midlife, more to life

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

me, quotes

I’ve come across this new term this week – “pre-tirement”.

Apparently it is the state that my 50 plus age group, now tend to ease into, as the state pension age has extended, we have longer life expectancy, better health and changing economic circumstances.

We no longer expect to work full time until we are 60 years old (for women) or 65 (for men) as previous generations did. We don’t expect a life long career or one job for life with a gold watch or carriage clock at the end, then a move to a cottage by the sea or in the countryside. We know we will probably have to work into our seventies but we want to work on our terms, at a slower pace, maybe in a different career than in our 20’s or 30’s or 40’s.

We are happy to work but want flexibility for time out to travel, to add to our talents, try new things, see new places, to re-invent ourselves, to explore and enjoy a new phase of life now our own are kids are grown and independent.

I, for one, am looking forward to pre-tirement.

best days

This week, last year – The View from the Shard

18 Thursday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in days out, my place, remembering / musing

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architecture, day out, London

The Shard has been part of the London skyline for a few years now. Along with other Londoners, I watched it grow and had prime view of construction progress from my office window in Southwark.

December 2010 - Snow in London. View from office 7th floor terrace.

December 2010 – Snow in London. View from office 7th floor terrace.

The Shard towers directly above London Bridge station, so I’d looked up on many occasions during my daily commute. It was time to take a look downwards.

Looking up

Looking up

At 800 feet it is the tallest building in Western Europe, with viewing platforms on levels 68 to 72.
December last year, we checked the weather forecast and booked tickets for an early morning time slot when the sun was shining.

Wow. The view is amazing and worth the entrance fee. London is spread out beneath you, like a toy town. We were above a helicopter and the birds, appearing to be on a level with some planes heading into City airport. We watched trains inch their way into the station below, having a new appreciation for the logistics involved. We become aware of trees hidden behind buildings at street level, occasional roof top gardens. The city disappears into the horizon in all directions, maybe forty miles away, with views of London’s iconic buildings seen from a new perspective.

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St Paul's Cathedral to the Wembley Arch

St Paul’s Cathedral to the Wembley Arch

London  Eye, river Thames, Westminster

London Eye, river Thames, Westminster

Open air viewing

Open air viewing

We celebrated C~M’s twenty first birthday with champagne cocktails at a bar on the 52nd floor back in September. The view then was enhanced by the vivid red of the poppies at the Tower of London.

Sept 2014 with poppies at the Tower, Tower Bridge and river towards Docklands

Sept 2014 with poppies at the Tower, Tower Bridge and river towards Docklands

If you do get to the View from the Shard, make sure you visit the toilets. We missed this, but I’ve since heard how spectacular they are. You get a view while in there too!

Language lesson

14 Sunday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, making changes

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Australia, me

I had an iMessage conversation with S~E a while ago – my 2am, her lunchtime.
“Hi, are you home? I’m awake.”
“At Macquarie, in DJ’s getting doona etc.”

This got me thinking about language, the new place names, the words and phrases that I will have to learn when we move from one English speaking country to another.

Having been with Aussie Mate for several decades I know many Aussie terms…..
thongs (flip flops)
singlet (vest)
skivvie (long sleeve t shirt)
beannie (wooly hat with or without bobble)
Pom (British person)
bastard (term of endearment, friend)
doona (duvet)
Digger (respectful term for soldier / old man, originated from Gallipoli in WWI)
barrack (cheer on a team)
barbie – (barbecue)
grog – (alcohol)
grog shop – (off license)
daks – (trousers)
dead set – (truth)
esky – (insulated food / drink container for barbie)
footy – (depends, can vary between states – can be Aussie Rules football, can be rugby)
soccer – (football)
jug – (kettle)
lollies – (sweets)
pozzy – (seat or place)
ropeable – (very angry)
wog – (flu or trivial illness)
wuss – (coward)

There have been some words that neither of us have know, which have needed explanation…
bogan (person of unsophisticated background)

Then there are differences in pronunciation
yoghurt
maroon

I will have to get used to a bunch of new acronyms…
such as AFL (football league), NRMA (motorist services),
DJ’s (David Jones department store)
and BYO (unlicensed restaurant where you can “bring your own” grog, same for party or barbie).

And there is the habit of shortening words with a O or an IE
ambo – ambulance
arvo – afternoon
avo – avocardo
bottle o – off licence
garbo – dustman
postie – postman
sunnies – sun glasses

It will be fun, with lots to learn.
G’day…..Hooroo.

Back on track

13 Saturday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, days out, one with nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

me, quotes

All is right with my world again. Sometimes just writing things down, takes it out of my head, puts it into perspective. Journaling, blogging, is it’s own therapy.

We’ve connected with family and friends…. a pre-birthday day with my Mum… a family catch up day with my aunt and cousins…face time with my sister-in-law and family…. phone call and messages with friends. Thanks to all. One of my cousin’s is just back from many months travelling in South America, with Machu Picchu being a high light.

I’ve connected with some Australian’s by reading their blogs. This is giving me a feel about different parts of that wonderful country. I found a delightful blog about a family with three young kids, travelling for the past eight months in a converted school bus. They are having such an adventure. All these blogs are inspiring me in various ways.

We’ve connected with nature with some lovely sunny winter walks in the countryside.

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So a positive balance of looking forward, looking back and enjoying now.

“I can’t change the direction of the wind but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.”
Jimmy Dean

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
Maya Angelou

Lost momentum

11 Thursday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, making changes

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me, quotes

We are nearly two weeks into December and we are drifting.
I am in a strange mood.
I am getting fed up with me.
We need to get motivated again.

We spent months planning, thinking we would be gone by now, spending Christmas in Australia.
Back in January, there were three main criteria to make our gap year a reality….
~ be made redundant
~ get an Australian spouse visa
~ sell our house

But….we are still here. Only two out of the three criteria have happened. We are in limbo, waiting for the house sale to progress. We had a buyer back in August, but they pulled out after three months. We now have a new buyer and all seems to be going smoothly. Fingers crossed.

In September, when we were waiting for all the legal aspects of the initial house sale to be completed, we had things to do, we sorted out, packed up, cleared out the house, organised the storage unit, started moving things there. This time we don’t have so much to do, to keep us busy. So we have both lost momentum.

We have lost sight of the Australia end of our plans too. It’s been a while since we searched Hobart accommodation, looked at car leases, Medicare, Tax file references or talked about plans there.

I expected to spend three months of my redundancy money here in the UK but the longer we are here, we are starting to dip into the funds put aside for our Australia life. So after several months of not thinking about money, I am aware of that angle now too.

The three months have been great, we have had family time, done things, visited places and people that we wanted to see. We have very few things in the diary for December or January, so we need to plan some days out, things to do, so we don’t just waste the next month or two, waiting, drifting.

Our plans still feel right, but the timing is not quite what we had anticipated. I’m sure there are good reasons for the delay, we just aren’t aware of them right now.

So lets get back to my lists, set new tasks for today, for this week. Tick a few things as achieved.

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Eventually quote

An unexpected joy of old credit card statements

06 Saturday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in all about me, remembering / musing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

curiosity, day out, me

This week, we wanted to return a faulty kitchen item that we thought was still under guarantee. I couldn’t find the actual receipt so checked back on our credit card statements to determine when we bought it.

Ignoring the holiday items, flights, hotels, foreign restaurants and sightseeing…… ignoring the regular items on each statement, the groceries and petrol…… other items brought back many happy memories…..
~ day out at the Eden Project
~ delicious mussels at “Belgo” restaurant
~ the new pair of shoes back in the spring
~ the Pandora bead now blended with the dozen others on my bangle
~ a spontaneous afternoon glass of wine and snack at “The Swan at The Globe Theatre”, overlooking St Paul’s Cathedral and the Thames on a summer day
~ a visit to the Science Museum and a few items from their shop
~ an occasional Chinese meal from our local take away
~ gifts for family and friends
~ flowers ordered in UK, delivered to a friend in NZ
~ was it really that long ago since we cleared the garden and garage and hired a skip?
~ days out in Greenwich often with a drink at our favourite pub
~ a ladies lunch with my Mum, Aunt and cousins
~ an occasional item of clothing, oh I still love that blouse
~ a recommended paperback book from a bookstore, a change from my usual ebooks
~ an evening at the theatre

I wasn’t looking at the amounts on the statement, or the final balance. The stress of that has long gone. I was just looking at the descriptions and reliving fun times, happy feelings.

We expect certain things to evoke memories, photos, conversations, sometimes smells, sounds, music, but a credit card statement? When I approached this small task, I was not expecting a joyful review of my year.

And yes, it was still under guarantee and the shop exchanged it, no problem.

Netherlands – Maastricht – cobbled streets, Christmas lights and a bookstore inside a church.

03 Wednesday Dec 2014

Posted by RuthsArc in days out, remembering / musing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

architecture, holiday, Maastricht, Netherlands, photos

After our days as tourists in Amsterdam, we headed south. It was a novelty for us UK folk to travel on a double decker train, with great views from the upstairs carriage.

We have been visiting Maastricht for many years as an Aussie relative married and settled there. So as well as the usual family catch up, chatting over leisurely meals, coffees and wine, we did get out and about. We enjoyed delicious meals in small restaurants and savoured new wines in an original wine bar where price was the same per glass or per bottle, no matter what wine you chose.

Maastricht is a beautiful old city, in the Netherlands but in a hilly region close to the borders of Belgium and Germany. The Euro currency was a blessing in this community, compared to keeping Dutch guilders, Belgian Francs and Deutshe Marks in various purses or wallets. People visit the area for the scenery, hiking and mountain biking.

We walked around the cobbled city, by the river, through the squares, the shopping streets. Although there are some big department stores and chain shops there are also small independent shops so it’s always nice to buy some unique clothes. Some of the shop assistants said they are visiting London in the next few weeks to shop. I guess we all just like a change and something different from what everyone else is wearing.

The main square, the Vrijthof was preparing for it’s Christmas market and fair. Side streets had decorations up. I don’t usually get into the Christmas mood in November, but I couldn’t help it in this environment. We bought a few small decorations to add to our tree back home.

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There are typical Dutch houses with their distinctive roofs. New houses fit in amongst the older houses. Aussie Uncle commented about timeframes in Europe compared to Australia, visits back to Sydney and the historic houses there, such as Cadman’s Cottage. His mother-in-law’s home here in Maastricht is older than Cadman’s.

There are several impressive churches, two overlooking the Vrijthof. Some churches have been given a new lease of life. I walked into a bookshop which is in a 13th century church. The building has new purpose but is still perfect for quiet reflective moments. All the bookstore fittings are free standing and work so well within the original structure. There is a small cafe in the chancel. You only get the true shape of the coffee tables from the upper levels of the bookstore. Another church is now a hotel with the reception area, bar and restaurant all within the old church building, bedrooms off the old cloisters. Both are original designs to mix the old with the new.

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All year round the cafés have seating outside, overlooking the squares and market places. It’s a great place to stop, relax, enjoy a coffee or beer or glass of wine and just watch the world go by.

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The city walls date back many centuries. The real D”Artagnan (fictionalised in “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas) was killed here during a Franco-Dutch war and the Seige of Maastricht in 1673.

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And of course there are lots of bikes in Maastricht.

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