Thought I'd tell you a little about the Chicken and my background. To help you understand why I'm so bloody needy at the moment. My life has taken a huge change in direction and it's far harder to cope with than I'd expected. I've gone from being so busy I couldn't breathe somedays to being the proud owner of a sewing machine and taking up knitting to relieve the boredom.
In 2010 this was me
A wife with 5 children male and female with mixed abilities, some my own others my husbands....none together but isn't 5 enough? A student with The OU in Criminological and Psychological studies, a Lecturer in Life Skills, Customer Services and training mature students as Teaching Assistants NVQ level 2 & 3. I also worked in Child Welfare for a large sporting body...shhh football. I helped to run my son's local football club for 3 years. I had friends, I was always busy and very stressed, rasing a large family, working and studying but generally loved my life...and then...
2011 onwards
SAHM to 2 children and that's it....life in South Africa is varied and interesting, you can follow our journey in the tab above...I can't work, wrong sex, age, colour, nationality and skills for South Africa, but it's not stopping me applying for work and I'm getting involved in as many charities and organisations as possible. I have a diverse set of skills that I'm sure someone out there needs, they just don't know it yet. It was a shock, I never realised how my life would change, so much and so quickly...How do you make friends when you don't work, when you don't have small kids? It's been a challenge and continues to be so...sometimes I'm up and other times I just want to cry, but i have my health, my family and some wonderful friends back in the UK and online and that's what has kept me going.
2012 and forward
If I can help you in anyway whether its life, love, a chat, emigrating, parenting teenagers and other family stuff, then come and find me, ask me a question, or offer me some advice. I have way too much spare time on my hands and my ultimate aim is to meet more people and make more friends. Check out the Grooving mums tab, a group of women that have gone through major life changes and are now recovering their groove and sharing their stories along the way, you can also find them on twitter #groovingmums #gm
Well that's me, 40, add a few too many grey hairs and a love for Birmingham City and I used to own a Chicken called Ruby
I lost the comments when I added the tabs so I've transfered the ones below.
Julie Rose Hi there - or should I say 'Howzit!'.
Lovely to stumble upon your blog and looking forward to reading your updates. I'm a former Durban girl, but have been living in the UK for 7 years. Miss the SA sunshine, and yes I agree with you the suncreams are very limited and expensive! Pleased you've got through your first year with a smile, wishing you a happy future there. Please send my love ;-)
Julie
Hi julie, yep so far i love south africa, the beauracracy of the place drives me mad, but most of our problems have been due to lack of research, after we were mislead prior to moving here. I love Durban, the heat nearly killed us in early January, but such an experience.
Julie Rose
The heat can be extreme. Best weather over there is April/May. Right now I'm sitting outside having a cigarette and it is FREEZING!! Madness, I know...
Just a thought.. you could set up your own organisation for Expats trying to come to terms with living life in S.A. You certainly have enough experience of dealing with the pitfalls to help people..or if nothing else, be able to empathise with them. It would be a good way of meeting people too.
ReplyDeleteI've been contacting relocation companies here and in the uk to see what work is available
DeleteI really feel and understand how you feel. I could have almost written the same thing. Life in Ireland is so very different in many ways - and despite what people say I do feel very much an out sider here
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't matter where you are does it? It's just somewhere that's different from what you know
ReplyDeleteI always find it funny when people move to South Africa. I left SA about 12 years ago and never returned. I recall one day going to immigration in Cape Town and asking about how to bring my wife back. The amount of paperwork was insane. I asked the woman if it would be better if I allowed her to run over the Zimbabwean border if that would be easier. She did not find that funny.
ReplyDeleteSouth Africa is very nice but it has many unresolved issues. Corruption is the one thing that drove me insane in my last year in the country. Having a home invasion did not help either. I never though that we would ever have to draw a firearm in the house but we did.
Maybe one day things will turn for the better so many of us who left can return home.
Thank you for your comment. It's a shame you don't feel safe to return here and the difficulties you would have bringing your wife back. I'm here on a visitors visa, just existing really.
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