At about this time 6 months ago I was frantically running around a lovely old house in Ormskirk, cleaning up, checking cupboards, trying to fit the last few items onto the van, including stupidly, the doors to the cat boxes. Porl was termporarily richer, and we still hadn't had confirmation that we were okay to move into the new house.
So this is my 6 month review of life in Stalybridge.
The Good- The view from our front room - I fear my neighbours think I'm incredibly nosey, but I love standing at the window looking at the view. Even when it's pitch black.
- The fact that the radiator is under the window so I can keep warm and look at the view.
- Laminate floors, so easy to clean, so much fun to watch the cats skid across.
- Seeing more of Mum and Dad.
- The general friendliness of Tamesiders. From the bloke at the corner shop, to all the people we've met in the pubs.
- Specific people we've met who've done so much to help us settle in, Dorne, Beckie, Bod, Cheryl, Herbie, Jimmy, Joan. Thankyou all.
- Rekindled friendships with Gareth, and Adam.
- No Students. I'd forgotten how annoying they were until I went back to Ormskirk.
- Snow. There's been snow on the hillside for 3 weeks now, and more is forecast for the weekend. Snow in Ormskirk never stayed for more than a couple of days.
The Bad- I miss our Ormskirk friends.
- I really miss my old job.
- Cream carpets upstairs. Stupid idea.
- Gonzo thinks it's a good idea to pick fights with the huge dog (alsatian/wolf cross breed) next door. Stupid cat.
- No Little Italy. I haven't found a decent pizza place yet, the Thai place is amazing, but Friday nights aren't the same without Little Italy Pizzas.
& The Confusing- The light switches, I still can't remember where they are.
- I keep calling Stalybridge Ormskirk.
- Things haven't worked out with the Manchester bunch, I suspect Porl and I have taken the blame for a lot of things which haven't happened, and it's a shame it's all turned sour.
- Tameside/Manchester. I'm getting bored of Magical Mystery Tours, I just want to get from A to B without going via the rest of the alphabet.
So in general Stalybridge is good. Some things have gone wrong, but the majority of things have turned out far better than expected, I was never expecting uprooting to be easy.
In the next six months there's one major problem which needs resolving, I can't mention it, but it will be obvious to those who know me. Then there's things like the start of the Craft Club, and getting my own website sorted out at last. Also the weather is warming up, which means camping season is coming.
The future is looking promising, fingers crossed the next 6 months go as well as the last 6.
