But now I am entering my last week before I jet off to China and that feels a bit strange.
Anyway I have spent most of the last few weeks trying to fit stuff to last me 10 months in China into a 20 kilo limited suitcase, a back pack limited to 7 kilos and a computer bag! I have been packing, discarding and repacking again and again, Im not sure if Im there yet! We'll see later on. Ill list my packing for you.
So of course after months, if not years of not much happening obviously one's luck starts to run out as departure day appears on the horizon. One big problem seems like my next door neighbours sewerage is leaking into my garden. I was wondering why my single rose was doing so well. Well it seems its been sitting in its own little pool of effulent. I had noticed as I sat outside that occassionally my path would, not exactly flood, but water would appear like a magical spring at the base of my wall and run down the path. At first it was just a bit of a trickle, but now its started to flood! The neighbour has been advised and South West Water has been consulted, apparently because of the age of my house its their responsibility, so hopefully it will be sorted soon.
Then after years of owning a mobile phone - disaster! I took Matilda, my daughter to visit the grandparents, and as one does one gets a McD's happy meal with a diet coke. The finished cup, full of ice, was put on the dashboard, which in my Fiat was like a shallow plastic depression on the dashboard. This was also where I put my iphone when recharging. Ok lets put two and two together, and yes depression fills up with melted ice, I don't notice and my iphone goes for a swim! In all the years Ive owned phones this is the first time Ive ever damaged one - yes just 10 days before I am due to leave for China!
O2 were really helpful, it would take about three weeks, first I had to send it off, then they would examine it, then they would send me a quote, then once I had agreed they would do the repair. I found a guy on ebay who would fix the backlight (the only fault - the rest of the phone seems OK) in 48 hrs turnaround for £26 plus £7 for postage! I sent it Thursday, he expects it to be in the post back to me Monday. Thats service. (update Tuesday 16th August, fixed phone turned up this morning - thats service for you!)
Im also car less, sold the car, got no insurance, now I have to travel on the buses with the teenage mums! It was all planned so nicely, car on ebay, 10 days until the auction finished, so a couple of days without a car. Ok someone calls the first night, pays cash, takes car! Sore feet!
But the BIG NEWS cleverly hidden right at the bottom of the blog is IM GOING TO A DIFFERENT COLLEGE.
This One:
Nanjing College of Information Technology
The is the agencys website about the college
And this is their website (english version)
Considering its a college of IT they could do a little better I think!
Anyway the story is, I was telephoned at 6am the other morning and it was Maggie in New Zealand the director of the agency. She proceeded to tell me that No 1 School Nanjing, where I was going had decided that they only needed two teachers, this is after completing all my visa forms, getting the relevant stamps for me ect. Maggie told me that this is typical for China!
So anyway I now have a place at the IT College. The sugar on the pill, says Maggie, is that the accommodation is much better!
So this time next week Ill be sitting in Heathrow - gulp!
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