A year ago, we arrived in London, the first day of our new 3-year adventure as British residents. The year has gone by amazingly fast. It’s been a good year overall…but of course, there have been ups and downs.
We settled into our apartment with a 3-year contract, planning to stay in the same place for the duration of my work assignment. A couple of weeks ago, our landlord informed us he was using the early-break clause…he wants to move into our flat, so we have to move to another apartment by 21 August. And so, we’ve begun the arduous task of finding another place to live…one that we can call home…and most challenging, one that will accept our cats (the British landlords seem to have difficulty allowing pets in many apartments).
Looking back, it is a bit amazing that we came through this transition with some sanity still intact. Selling our house and most of our possessions in the US was traumatic. Moving 3 cats was maybe even more challenging…all the paperwork and process, flying to Paris so the kitties could be with us in the plane (thanks to our daughter, who came with us and was invaluable to the process), and great support from Happy Saluki, a company that specializes in transporting animals. The kitties adapted well and love their new home. Sadly, one of our older kitties, Sadie, got sick a few weeks ago and in April died. We miss her greatly.
And so, we are now looking for a new place we can call home for the remainder of our time in London. We will find a place…it is just stressful and annoying to go through the process again.
Looking back, did we make the right decision to leave our big house, all of our possessions, and move to a small apartment in UK? The answer is a qualified, “Yes.” There are times when I think of some item…usually something not very significant…and wonder, did I sell that? Is it in storage back in the US? Is it lost? And occasionally I miss the life we left in the US.
But yes, we made the right decision. We had become disillusioned by the area we lived in the US, the politics, and the indifference. This move allows us to see a bit more of the world in the remaining years that I’m working. Although I could retire at any time, I’m not yet ready. I want to keep working, and maybe making a difference for a few more years in my company. My contract has less than 2 years remaining. Maybe it will be extended, maybe not.
And what of the future, after this adventure is over? That’s something we are starting to consider, but the answer isn’t yet clear. We’ll keep updating our blog as we continue along this path to discover our future.
Four Years in Japan ... and now Three Years in London 