In other news...

There is a work permit extension application in the works... Yes, friends, it looks like I will be sticking around for another year. It feels a bit weird. I have been living the last year with a 'temporary' mind-set: No need for a lot of things, I may not be here long. With another year at school I am ready to settle into a life here, eighteen months is a long time! I am looking for a place to live: one that is a bit closer to London and maybe one with a bit less marital drama. I am also looking at cars... Watch out Britain - it could get scary!!

With everything that is going on, so many things that can only happen 'if', and happen 'when,' I struggled Saturday to find something that I could actually do this weekend. The car will have to come after I save more, the room will have to come after I find one that I like... So Saturday I bought a mobile phone. [I know, I know, really exciting news, but deal!] I have lived the last eight months without one, but they are nice to have in emergencies (or when the trains are delayed - which seems to happen entirely too often), or that's what I keep telling myself. Really, I just wanted some sort of purchase that would cross that 'temporary' boundary and make my life feel a bit more permanent.

The school has also [finally] set up the course I have to take for my Qualified Teacher Status. It's actually not a course, but a program set up through a local university. It sounds a lot like the Initially Licensed Teacher program in North Carolina - submit a portfolio, a few extra observations, etc. The good news is that, if all goes well, I could have qualified status by September!!