9 January 2011

FUTURES

(I love the way that futures hover, unmanageably big, beautiful and slightly out of reach, like a kite, but inevitably there’s the process of trying to catch at it, to tug down a string to let it become at least mildly real)

~ Wildly Parenthetical's words


There will be more discussions of futures on this blog in 2011, I think, as we start attaching the strings of bureaucracy and reality to our kite-like fancies of moving to the UK in September(ish).

Conversely, the knowledge that "this will probably be our last summer/autumn/winter in Melbourne for a few years" makes me all the more determined to immerse myself in the wonder of the present, to let it seep into my pores. Perhaps there is part of a desire to carry an embodied memory of this home with us wherever we go, like prune-y skin after a bath.

*

D's Australian citizenship ceremony is on January 26th. After that, I will start collecting paperwork in earnest for my UK visa application.

6 comments:

  1. Good luck with it! Mrs. J doesn't hail from these shores so I know what a PITA it all is.

    Having been for a lovely walk last weekend at the price of getting very cold and picking up half a ton of mud on my boots, I'm mystified that you'd exchange the surroundings you've shared with us here, for the cold, wet UK! :)

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  2. Hi Jenny. Thanks! We've done the whole partnership visa thing for D to get residency here, so we're hoping that our experience of that (tough, nerve-wracking) gives us some idea of what it'll be like for me to get a visa for the UK.

    It's funny - actually walking in the UK is one of the major drawcards. Your footpath and ROW access is absolutely amazing and much more accessible than (country/bush) walking here. The weather? Well, let's just say (I think) I'd rather be cold in your winter than sweltering in our summer! At least you can put more clothes on!

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  3. It's true, we do rather take those little red lines on the OS maps for granted.

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  4. when we settle down i hope to walk every path within a 10km radius of where we live! in fact, why not make it a 10mi radius instead?! something to aim for.

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  5. (Looks guiltily at local OS map) Haven't done badly within 5 miles, but I'm afraid I'm woefully inadequate for the next 5! That's an awful lot of paths unwalked.

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  6. think of all those opportunities! go for it! :D

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