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Friday, June 22, 2007

It's Really Happening!

Yes, folks, it's true. All of our talk over the last few years about us leaving this miracle of unsustainable wonderfulness in July 2007 is true. I mean, it's always been true. But a week ago I actually got in touch with a couple of removals companies, and two days ago I awarded one of them the job. Within two hours they dropped off a load of cartons, which BetterArf is dutifully filling with books (I would help but a) I don't think we should take all of these books, and b) I'm busy writing my own book). We have thousands of books and CDs and DVDs, and that is mostly what we are taking with us.

We plan to sell most of our furniture. I think it's a shame that IKEA has not introduced a library service whereby you deposit the furniture that you bought from them at your local store, and they give you a voucher. And when you get to where you're going you present the voucher and can withdraw more or less the same furniture that you had deposited in Dubai. IKEA is being slammed a bit for its apparent lack of greenness - I think this would be a really good thing for them to do. But hey.

We actually put some unwanted, unsellable stuff outside our building this morning: 4 steel-framed rattan chairs whose rattan has gone to ratshit, a sofa-bed and two cushions. When we headed out the door for a luncheon engagement, the chairs were gone, and when we returned from our extremely long lunch, the cushions were gone, but the sofa-bed remained.

A bit like Tony Blair, we are now engaged on a succession of farewell do's. We had one this afternoon. An extended South African Christmas Lunch, hosted by the biscuit-dropper John. Marvellous, it was. We had roast lamb that he got from a farmer/butcher friend in SA. Two days ago this lamb had been trotting around a field where the grass was interspersed with rosemary and other herbs. Dee-licious! The concluding biscuits were served on a high-lipped tray.

I have to say, I am really looking forward to a complete change of lifestyle. It's already starting to happen. I have virtually finished all of the work that I have to do for my lovely clients. I am not taking on any new work until I get settled in Spain. But really, I plan to focus on Web 2.0 projects (or as the Spanish would say 'red dos punto cero') of my own, and writing outrageous novels. The current novel is storming along - 45,000 words so far, all of them good.

Moving house is supposed to be one of the most stressful of life's little events, but I'm not feeling it yet. Quite the opposite, in fact, this feels like a release!

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