The In-Between Time, Chapter Two

I am sure that you are creative enough to imagine the kinds of things one considers as he or she contemplates a move.  You are likely to be crafty enough to formulate a loosely constructed course of action for relocation to another country.  Try as you might, though, I am not sure many deliberate the way Drew Huddleston does.  I will confess that I am awed by this ability he has to study for a decision as if there were going to be a test and a right answer.  My decisions are driven by my gut, they can be messy, and may leave me with a fair amount of self-loathing.  It is quite often the case that I fail to spend that extra hour of planning on the front end which would save me from the immeasurable amount of inefficiency on the follow-through. Despite the comfort that I take in Drew’s careful pontification of every possibility, I also feel like I am that proverbial gerbil on the wheel (the cute kind that doesn’t bite), and he is the wheel.

Drew is a thinker.  I am a feeler.  And I feel like he is thinking too much.  (It’s a play on words that is funnier than true, but I’m going with it.)

He put together a budget for several scenarios:

  • paying mortgage and rent, Jen not working
  • paying mortgage and rent, Jen working in a coffee bar
  • paying rent, Jen working with her current employer having taken a demotion
  • paying rent, Jen becoming a rock star in a power suit
Creating a budget made it necessary to consider the actual cost of living in London.  Drew’s buddy had helped research the actual cost of utilities, we looked at real live flats for rent, we traveled by public transport, and we ate in town.  We got maps and books.  And then it got a little ridiculous.  Drew asked me to put together a monthly grocery list so that he could estimate that piece of the budget puzzle.  He found a grocer in London that allows you to shop online and ten minutes later he was calling to me from the other room, “You didn’t say how many tampons you use in a month-they come in boxes of 14, 16, 32, and …sixty-four!?  And there’s slender, regular, compact, pearl, light, super, extra super… and, oh my God, suckin’ up the ocean?! Oh, and there’s a multi-pak.  Is this for real?“
     
Budgets alone were not enough to ease the decision making process.  We listed pros and cons of the job offer as well as sharing our concerns about being so far from those we hold dear.  We researched the job market for my potential dream job.  (Good news on that front-I’m going to do a season of Dr. Who when Donna Noble moves on.) We talked about our ability to come home to visit.  We brainstormed the possible adventures we could have here in the states.  We asked the cat what he wanted.  Nothing seemed to bring us closer to going or staying. Thank God for the heinous grocery experiment that ended in a really good stress relieving laugh.
I’ve grown to appreciate Drew’s propensity for logic and I know I’ll be grateful that he dedicated so much time to the consideration of the job offer when a decision is finally made, but my mind is reeling with the the list of things I should be doing if we are about to move to London.  I get a little tired when I let my mind get stuck there…  At the end of the day– I am happy to get in bed with my best friend and any anxieties grow faint and dim.  I am content to go where he goes (or stay where he stays).  
     
I know–you just threw up in your mouth a little.

Jen

3 responses to “The In-Between Time, Chapter Two”

  1. Jen – I absolutely LOVE YOU! This has to be one of the best posts I’ve read in a long time. And yes, I did throw up a little, but it was good! Please keep blogging!

  2. If you got the DW gig you and David Tennant could make the commute from London to Cardiff in his fancy car.

    And you would be able to taste the jealousy in the air as it wafted across the ocean from my Colorado dwelling.

  3. Drew linked me to your mutual UK Adventure blog–I likey! I really hope you both work to keep this updated, since it’s such an adventure. 🙂 I think you both have a good attitude about the whole thing, and caution is good. But remember, nowhere is it written that the move would have to be permanent. It’s a major uprooting, but you can always go, see how it pans out for a year or 10, and then come back if you like. Good luck!