last year, new year, new adventures

joosie

joosie

lifelong sufferer of restless brain syndrome
Oct 28, 2004
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New Zealand
Thought I'd do a little update as I haven't been contributing much lately!
2018 was a fairly good year for me, though not particularly exciting… and, I’ve realised, the first time since 2005 that I’ve spent an entire year in the UK :oops:
I started the year completing the TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) qualification, achieving a Distinction and getting some really positive comments from my tutors. Then instead of going off to teach straight away, I decided to go in search of a job to fund my main goal of the year - learning to drive.

In March I managed to snag a yard manager's job in Surrey, running a private polo and competition yard with 12 horses. Unfortunately my boss turned out to be quite a difficult, and sometimes unpleasant, person to work for, which took some enjoyment out of the job, but I had to remind myself that it was paying for my driving lessons and would be worth it in the end!
The best part of it was having a lovely 4-year-old to bring on, a big soppy yellow thing called Mario who had already been backed a couple of months but was still only being ridden on the lunge and desperate to start doing more interesting stuff! He turned out to be a really quick learner, super honest, probably one of the most laid-back and easygoing youngsters I’ve ever ridden... it’s a shame I’m not in the market for a horse right now or I would have wanted him for myself :p

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More Mario, including his meeting with Ale and hanging out with his half-brother (the black one) and polo pony girlfriend

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I also had a lot of fun and cuddles hanging out with Pops and Purdy, the two labradors, who became my bestest buddies almost as soon as I arrived. They demanded twice-daily walks (which they got, because I'm soft), followed me all over the place to "help" me wor,k and adopted my living room as their evening hangout.
(l-r making sure I didn't drop any dinner on the floor, demanding walkies, demanding cuddles, helping me feed, helping me poo pick, helping me put up some fencing)

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I finally got a slot for my driving test at the end of November, and somehow managed to pass, with just a handful of minor faults. Ta daa! 47102132_10156521820955935_741139234475212800_n.jpg

Then I finished work in early December and headed home to Cornwall for a few weeks off and a nice low-key Christmas with the family. My sister came down with my nephew Freddie, which was a bit like having an 18-month-old whirlwind constantly whipping through the house! Celebrated New Year the way I always do - watched Jools Holland and went to bed.

So, looking forward to what’s in store for 2019! I’m off to Poland tomorrow for my first TEFL job, teaching conversation classes and mentoring pupils on English immersion camps. It’s only for 3 weeks to start with, but there’s a possibility of more work afterwards depending on how it goes, so I don’t know what will happen with that yet. I’ll have to wait and see how it works out, but it will be good experience anyway even if it doesn’t lead to anything else with that particular company. The reeeally good thing about this year is that I’ve been approved a 12-month work visa for New Zealand :cool: – I can’t tell you how excited I am about going back! Although I’ll need to see what happens in Poland before I can decide when to head off to NZ… but I like it when things aren’t set in stone, makes life more interesting...

The not so good thing is that this has really made me stop and consider my future with Annie. Her loan in France finished in December, and I was going to bring her over to the UK, but now that I have a year of New Zealand on the horizon I’ve decided that uprooting her would be a bit silly as she’ll just be going on loan again anyway. At the moment she’s back at my old job on grass livery, and my old boss is keeping an eye out for a potential loaner, but realistically I need to think more long-term about whether it would be more sensible to find her a new owner. It’s hard to know whether to follow my heart or my head with this one :confused:
Mouse, meanwhile, pretty much has a job for life at the riding school, because he's so damn awesome they don't want him to leave, and he's so happy there I don't want to take him away!
 
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Poland and NZ sound so exciting, but the Annie decision has to be such a hard one for you, there isn't a wrong choice in that situation though either she stays yours which is good for her or you will find her a nice home, also good :)
 
I'm glad you enjoyed the riding in Surrey, it's fab I think, and I've loved recognising all your hacking pictures!

This year sounds exciting. Good luck with deciding what to do with Annie.
 
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