Hyde Park on the hottest day so far
I’ve been in the UK for almost two months now, and I still haven’t quite fallen into a ‘regular’ routine yet. It’s been a bit over a month since we moved into our new place, and it definitely has not felt like home yet. We’ve been having lots of troubles with this little garden flat built in 1901. It is old and in need of some maintenance to make it a bit more modern and sealed off from the outside world, and let’s not discuss the boiler that’s been broken since last Friday, ugh. The flat is roomy though, for central London, and has got quite a bit of character because of its age. Overall, we’re not terribly impressed with the shenanigans this flat has put us through, so I haven’t dared to feel settled in here yet.
With all the housing uncertainty, there’s also work. At first when I arrived, it felt like the job market was very happening with lots of opportunities sent my way, and good meetings with recruiters. Things quieted down significantly during the Olympics, and now I’m starting to panic. I did turn away a couple of pretty promising offers, though, because I just want to make sure when I jump back into the labour market this time, I do it wholeheartedly into a job I am looking forward to. Unfortunately, neither of the opportunities that took shape were exactly thrilling, so I decided to keep looking. In the mean time, I am doing some freelance work from home, which is helping to pay the bills and fund our life!
It’s funny, I’ve never looked for freelance work, and I still don’t think I’m comfortable with the idea of self-employment in the form of consulting, yet here I am. A few friends have told me this is the situation they’d love to be in, but ironically enough, I’m not sure I’m on board with their thoughts. I digress.
We’ve also got some travel that we’d like to plan. We spent an amazing ten days in Scotland with our friends in early August, and towards fall and winter I have some ideas of where else we’d like to hit up. However, some family events concerning my beloved grandpa has put some of my plans on hold, and seriously, if there’s one word to describe the overall situation I’ve been in since April, it is LIMBO.
LIMBO.
That feels good.
So instead, on Sunday last weekend when it was sunny and wonderful, I got out those short shorts I picked up at the outlets in Bellingham, and Alex and I took our picnic blanket to Hyde Park for a stroll. We picked up old books from the Oxfam on Marylebone High Street, had an amazing cup of coffee at Workshop Coffee, and just chilled under a big tree in Hyde Park with our books. It was really nice to have a moment of peace with such beautiful surroundings.
Limbo can wait.
