A change is a coming...

no second thoughts, i'm on the cusp of something definitely but these are my initial stages... shouldn't have bothered sharing them if id known you were going to be like THAT

the cusp of what is the question... and i want to make sure i've looked at lots of different opportunities (hence asking here) and can plan the next stage accordingly once i've made the decision.

I know lots but i don't know everything (shh, i pretend i do) and who knows, there may be the perfect opportunity just sitting there in a tlb members head that i hadn't thought of? research, ideas and maybe some good advice is all i'm after.

so stick your naysaying up yer bum... i'm just starting this and who knows where it will lead... that's part of the excitement!

 

that's part of the plan, but where...?

 

France, always fancied Brittany, looks stunning and not far to come home if you dont like it.

 

i'm always clean!

lots of things; travel, live abroad, live barefoot on a beach, go back to the southwest, do people and community orientated wor, live on a commune, dance naked in the rain, crew a tall ship... lots of things. some i've done and would like to do more of, some i haven't...yet.

for years i've looked into voluntary service overseas but while the work they do is incredible and vital, speaking to friends who have done it, I think i would struggle being face to face with such poverty, injustice and treatment. I suspect something more like a research community would suit me better like Sunseed. All i know are the places and organisations i know about, but tlb may know more....

 

true but that would be more of a hol than a life change. i'm open to either

 

I thought you spoke French, could you not work there as well ?

 

... who knows maybe the start of next chapter is about moving back to the midlands with the job and living in your granny flat!

maybe it's staying here and just doing something different... but i've had itchy feet again for a while so maybe staying here long
term isn't for the best i won't know until i've looked at lots more possibilities

 

doing what?

 

Astronaut ?

 

Restoration work with Tuesday or mick , you like knocking things darn , buy an old wreck n do it up n live the good life with all the expats , make cheese

 

Not upset about your landlord comment at all... just offering another perspective I’ve watched those bad landlord programmes and what comes across more than anything is the bad / lazy agents who don’t do owt for their cut.

They are rogue landlords and unethical scum, but that’s just life... you’ll get good and bad in every walk of life.

I would take the ethical viewpoint that your hard work is now able to help someone into good accommodation at competitive rate

 

Ha!

that's something i looked into years ago but sadly the prices went crazy and i was still loving teaching. i'd need to secure an income first too

 

You could be a vicar or choir girl with Mrs Tuesday

 

@Ermintrude

Friends Mum used to work for the BBC as a Seamstress and went into film's as a Seamstress traveling the world, made a good carrier out of it.

Maybe a idea with your skill's

 

From what you have said, your job is ending soon and that stress is upsetting you and your stomach. I suggest at this point in time you put the dreams aside and focus on doing up your house. Hopefully those little jobs would calm and relax and restore your appetite.

I have lived and worked overseas several times and its always a mix of excitement and stress. Sometimes frightening. You would need to be able to take whatever comes your way and enjoy it.

You could test the water by having a few weekends away over here or France, Holland, just to see how you manage it on your own away from home and the cat.

 

Ready for the long read?!
You might have answered this already and I've missed it, but is there a reason why you wouldn't sell the house as opposed to renting it out?
Prices are supposed to be taking a hit in April thanks to "Brexit" so now is a good moment apparently ...
Renting your home (as opposed to a portfolio of pads that you have no "relationship" with) does have several drawbacks, not least the income not making up for the worry and hassle around what abuse these strangers give the place ... and repairs cost, agents cost.
Have you thought about how you can mitigate against the costs of travelling with a bay by using its "vintage cache" and treating it as a mobile mini-shop/workshop?
Doesn't matter if it's not concours ... People won't see past all the fab colourful wearable wares on offer.
I guess I'm talking about how kids, given the choice, will buy ice-cream from the van with an old-school "smiley face" ........
Is the UK or mainland Europe best for that?
Is the UK or mainland Europe safer for a lone laydeee?
Is there a bus friendly base within striking distance of several centres for flogging stuff?
Do you want to be able to properly keep in touch with f&f?
Is the UK or mainland Europe better for that?
...... and finally! ....
I "found" Osteopathy in the space of a single hour after faffing about like a human pinball for six years:
Having just done my finals, and waiting for the "party round" to get underway I sat down with a single sheet of A4 and wrote a list down the left of all the things I could remember ever having wanted to do.
There were about thirty headings, in a whole range of sophistication thanks to the fact that the ideas ranged from a five year old to someone in their early twenties ...
The next step was to identify what the main draw was with each idea.
Working environment, colleagues, purpose, ethics, timetable, earnings, skills used etc etc etc etc.
The third stage was the clincher because the next question was, "ok, if I was so keen on this idea, why didn't I follow through with it?"
Sometimes this was about poor advice from others, sometimes about a sheer lack of information, but generally some aspect of myself got in the way.
So I was also "learning" what motivated me and at the same time what "blocked" me, as a few things cropped up more than others.
My point (yes, there is one!) is that Osteopathy was not on the list.
It was only while staring at this completed sheet, thinking "nothing comes up to scratch" that the penny dropped .....
Soooooo, if you're having trouble thinking your way into the future, do a bit of an audit of your past and an unexpected door will most likely open

 

@Ermintrude

Google........... film crew jobs ........theres a Wardrobe Manager job going!

 

it is but i don't have any ties to bind me so can actually do it... maybe it will be a short term escape, or maybe it won't. i don't know what the future holds but i can set out to explore if i start getting things in place.

this is where i wanted to be and i made that move, but that was five years ago and things/people change, maybe i'll want to come back to here, at the moment i don't know, but rather than dreaming of possibilities i want to see what's actually out there and feasible so i can make the decision and get the wheels in motion. maybe it'll take a while to sort, maybe it won't. maybe i just need to bugger off for a year and come back... all is possible but i've not made any decisions yet... though i am working out how much early payment penalties are on my mortgage

 

Ooh there's a series producer's job going as well, I might go for that ..............