Bad news first, the job opportunity I had lined up fell through. The investor dropped out so they are unable to pay any employees. I might still have an opportunity for some freelance work with them in the future if a new investor comes on, but for now I am back to the job search. I am okay, I had been sensing for some time they might have some financial trouble and I was concerned that I might start working and a few months later the money would dry up. I am glad it happened before I started working so I can get right back into the job search game.
One advantage is that granted I don't get a job within the next month or so I will probably be free while Jason is home for his pre-deployment leave. It will be great to spend whole days with him before he disappears for 6 months. Also, what had originally been a plan for a camping weekend we can now turn into a camping week.
I LOVE camping, some of my best memories with my friends have been while camping and it just brings out something really wonderful in people. Jason has never been camping so he is very apprehensive so I have to keep reminding him of the finer points of camping:
- Bathing is discouraged, as is shaving. This is the only time he will ever get away with not shaving while in my presence.
- Having a beer with breakfast is totally acceptable. While camping there is never a time that isn't appropriate for popping open a beer.
- Our cuisine will consist of all his favorites, steaks, burgers, hot dogs, sausages and jacket potatoes baked right in the hot coals of the fire.
- Comfort is paramount, so wearing scrubby jeans, holey t-shirts and thick comfortable jackets and sweatshirts is highly recommended.
- Most campsites have electric hookups, so we can bring along the laptop and watch movies at night if he would like.
- Camping is a dog-friendly vacation. Max will be able to enjoy the great outdoors with us.
I am especially excited because this will be my first camping experience in Britain, and Britain has all the makings of perfect camping conditions. There is tons of wilderness and beautiful scenery, which always makes a camping trip special.
Also, the climate is great for camping. There is nothing worse than camping in the heat especially after a humid day when your tent is a sauna. (This might be a good time to point out that I only consider it camping if you sleep in a tent, a motorhome or a cabin is cheating.) English weather is perfect for camping since you can count on it not getting too warm and you can comfortably keep yourself covered up and impervious to insects. The nights cool down to a comfortable sleeping temperature but they never get terribly cold in the summer either.
I am having some trouble finding a campsite. I have narrowed it down to the Lake District but of course there are countless campsites in the Lake District and I don't have a very good idea of which ones are the best. I'd like to get the camp site booked sometime soon, I don't know if camp sites fill up fast here but August is a busy holiday time so its best to book as early as we can.
Update: It turns out most campsites in Britain don't allow campfires. What is up with that? What good is camping without a campfire? What do you sit around? Anyway this actually works to my advantage as it drastically narrows down the number of campsites to choose from. Jason and I have decided on this place www.fishergroundcampsite.co.uk. It fits all our requirements, great location in the Lake District, campfires and dogs allowed!
This Week's British TV Review:
The Gadget Show
This is the ultimate geek show, in fact I think they should change the name to that. In some ways its like Mythbusters but with (more) electronics. They take the latest gadgets and latest technology and put them to the test to see if they live up to their claims.
Usually they will have a theme for the week. For example one week they had an outdoor adventure theme where they tested high tech walkie talkie systems, rugged digital cameras and GPS navigation systems for hikers. They put the gadgets through the ringer in the unforgiving terrain of Iceland with tests like tethering the digital cameras to the back of a 4x4 and dragging them through a rocky lava field. It is amazing to see which gadgets really live up to their claims and which ones are a rip off.
They also will showcase some of the latest fun gadgets like portable media players, computer software and peripherals and gaming systems. If it is even remotely techy, they will check it out. There are several web episodes available online at Five.tv
2 comments:
Sorry to hear that your job fell through. I'm sure you'll find something else. People in our industry are in high demand right now, despite the crap economy.
But at least you get to go camping! How exciting! Take lots of pictures!
Hi Lisa, I just stumbled across your blog today. I'm an American expat living in Seaton Carew also. My husband's job brought us here in January; we plan to be in England for 3-5 years. I had to smile at your comment about the campfire situation. We took our 3 boys camping in Keswick recently and we, too, were completely disappointed by the no campfire rule. We wonder, can they even call it camping without a campfire? I'm not so sure.
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