Inspiration*

Hello again. It's really about time I wrote something else of substance. Recent efforts from Vic, Josie and Renee have provided the catalyst. More later. Gym first.

*Sources of Inspiration will remain. Based on previous form, my motivation to write in my own blog ongoing may not....

A re-introduction of sorts ....

I first came to Australia in September 2002, having finished University back in the UK a few months prior. If you’d have told me before Uni that I’d be flying to the other side of the world on my own and spending nearly 10 months away from home I’d have probably laughed (albeit quietly) in your face. Most people who had known me for any length of time would probably have told you it wasn’t the sort of thing I do. But, to me, it seemed like the right thing to do, and something I needed to do. Sure, it was another Western country, and as things turned out, I wouldn’t exactly end up roughing it, but in the nearly seven years since, I haven’t regretted a single minute of it. Now I’m back living in Melbourne, have been here nearly two years this time, and can honestly say I feel more at home here than anywhere else in the world.

They say you’re either a Sydney or a Melbourne person. I agree, and have already (in my head) put most people I know back in the UK into one category for the other. On trips to Sydney, I still have a habit of keeping a running, out-loud score between the two cities. Perhaps it was the relationship with a local girl that started not long after I arrived, but I fell instantly into the latter. To me, Melbourne was a beguiling mixture of familiarity (its European-style buildings, its seasons, the language) that put me at ease, combined with the isolation that came from being so far away from home. It was a big place, bigger than Norwich, the regional city where I’d spent the first 21 years of my life, and not as big and overwhelming as London, which I had regularly visited, and would subsequently spend nearly four years living in between 2003 and 2007. I liked the fact that it wasn’t as flashy and ‘obvious’ as Sydney, that it had inner suburbs, each with their own distinct character and appeal, and I loved the fact that it ticked my three personal ‘big boxes’; the things that make up a very important part of my life; namely music, food, and sport.

A fair bit has happened since I first started writing in this blog, during the considerable downtime between the last post and this one. Some of these may end up being discussed here, most won’t be. My idea now is to structure future posts around the three things that make me love Melbourne as much as I do. It really is a fantastic city for all three....

Nightmare on..

I wish I lived on this street, but alas it's actually a couple of minutes walk away, on the way to Richmond Station. Shame.

I'm going to start writing in this thing again...

Just a quickie...

It’s been a little while since I’ve written in this thing hasn’t it?

Job hunt is in a state of limbo at the moment – the preferred role has stalled because my would-be boss is currently out of the country (and will be next week as well) but I have the safety net of another offer elsewhere that they’ve agreed to give me extra time to think about. I really do want to start working sooner rather than later as I’ll go crazy if not, but part of me doesn’t necessarily want to dive into the first thing I’m offered. At the very least, I want to know I have a job, even if it doesn’t start for a few weeks. Still hopeful though.

Things are pretty good apart from that. Wish I had a bit more to fill my days sometimes, although I do like ‘wandering around aimlessly’ and once I start working I’ll no doubt wish I had as much free time as I do now. Might go check out the Guggenheim Collection at my gallery today, and go to Queen Vic Markets to get some nice food. Then there are gigs tonight and tomorrow, in addition to the ones Zo and I went to on Sunday or Monday nights. It’s great to get back into live music again.

In other random news:

• A chugger said that I don’t have much of an English accent. I don’t think an Aussie accent is encroaching, so I think she just wasn’t particularly attentive.
• The coffee here is very good. I’m on a quest to find the best ‘long mac’ in town.
• I saw a sign at South Melbourne Market for ‘Atlantic’ fish, with another small sign next to it that added ‘Product of Australia’. I used to think I was quite good at Geography (120/120 on my A Level Coursework), and I can’t seem to remember Australia being particularly near the Atlantic.

Stupid computer at Melbourne City Library won't let me click/type in the 'Title' box. What's with that...!?

Anyway, hello! I'm in Melbourne now obviously, and in this whirlwind of social events, admin and job-interviews-that-aren't-quite-interviews-but-basically-are-really, today is the first time I've had chance to take a breath. But anyway, I'm here, it's still bloody freezing (by that I mean it's 12 degrees - but it feels a lot colder than a UK 12 degrees) and I feel like like I'm coming down with a cold/man-flu.

It's going great all round so far...got lots of stuff organised (boring stuff like bank account, Medicare, Tax File Number) and have also met with two recruitment agencies and three potential employers. Three potential employers who are all very keen on me and have said things like;

"we'd love to have you here"
"we should be able to create a position for you"
"there aren't many people in the Australian job market with specific experience like yours"

...and have pretty much all indicated (or said straight out) that they'd love to get me on board. Which is fairly fantastic really. So it looks like I'll be able to take a little time over the next few days, take stock, have second interviews etc and then figure out what to do. I think I have a pretty clear leader in my head, but we'll see I guess.

Last night was Locals Night at the (very nice) pub near to Zoe's place, with $12 for pretty much everything on the menu (I had steak). And they have Little Creatures Pale Ale on tap, which is threatening to become my new favourite Aussie beer. Tonight is dinner at nic's, and there will be photographic evidence gathered for certain current & ex-dh people to prove that her bottle of Pinot Grigio Rose made it there safely.

Right, I think I'm running out of Internet time...

KL airport

I'm in the departure lunge at KL airport waiting for my connecting flight to Melbourne in about two hours. I had a row to myself on the plane so I could stretch out nicely (still couldn't sleep though), the movie selction was poor, I had squid sambal for breakfast and I have no idea how I managed to get away with the amount of luggage they let me have...

Departure is imminent...

No time for a long rambling post, but tomorrow morning at around 5.30am (i.e. stupid-o-clock) we'll leave Norwich for the drive to Heathrow. Can't afford to cut it too fine with all the nasty business going on at the moment. The flight is at 12 Noon, but check-in etc is 3 hours before so I don't want to rush things.

Today has been goodbyes to family, including my brother Andrew and my Nan. I've told her she has to promise to stick around for a visit in the first half of next year hopefully. It's not been easy to say goodbye to everyone, but it hasn't dented my confidence that I'm 100% doing the right thing, that it's going to be fantastic, and that, despite the fact that I'll obviously miss everyone in the UK loads, I'll be fine out there.

Your next update will be from Melbourne unless I can wangle internet access in Kuala Lumpar airport... :)

Last week at work...

Five more working days to go, and I can honestly say that today is the first time I've started to feel nervous. There's not a scrap of doubt in my mind that I'm doing the right thing, but nevertheless the butterflies are starting.

I said my first goodbyes at the weekend...

at a loose end

My flatmates are showing prospective new housemates around today and tomorrow, so I've done the decent thing and gotten out of their way so that there isn't anyone loitering in the room when people are taking a look around. To pass the time today, I've watched some of the cricket, been to Whole Foods (again), and I'm thinking about going to see Oceans Thirteen in a bit. Not sure yet.

This weekend will also be the time whe I start going through all my stuff and figuring out what stays, goes, is shipped now, or is put into storage at my parents and potentially shipped once I've a bit more settled in Melbourne. My current state of mind is that I might not actually ship anything at all initially, as all my important music will be on my laptop or the external hard drive I'm taking, so it might just be clothes, shoes and a few books. The couple of thousand CDs and the ever-growing collection of cookbooks can wait I think. Or maybe I'll have to limit myself to just two or three of the latter. Depends on how many pairs of Camper shoes I take. I have far too many pairs of shoes for a male. That said, my smart black work shoes are knackered, so I'll run those completely into the ground in the next few weeks, throw them away, and then buy a new pair once I arrive in Australia.

In other news, I'm puzzled as to my tax situation. I'll certainly be able to claim some back for the 2007/8 tax year as I'll only have worked 3 months of it before I become non-resident (Hooray! I get more of my bonus - in your face tax man!) , so will be only just over the lowest earnings threshold. But I'm not sure if this means I can also get off paying some of the tax on the interest I get from my assorted savings. Need to phone and check.

I'm babbling now..

job research - excellent response rates!

I've been doing some research as to possble places I could work in Melbourne given the skills & experience I have. I've sent emails to four places so far, and have had three responses:

1. Your email and CV have made their way to me, and I've had a read through. Your experience and skills are very interesting indeed, and I would be keen to meet you upon your arrival in Melbourne next month to discuss in more detail.
   
2. I have just received your email and resume with interest and I am happy to set up a a preliminary discussion to get a better understanding of your fit to the position description attached.
   
3. Firstly, may I say, an excellent choice of city and by association, clearly an excellent choice of girlfriend. And terribly pro-active of you to track us down and send me an email!
   …Your email is timely and fairly relevant…
   … I’d like to have a chat with you…

That's all pretty positive isn't it - a 75% response rate, and 100% of those are positive. Obviously I know a little bit about Direct Marketing, and they're pretty decent numbers for what is essentially an unsolicited electronic communciation! It just goes to show that if you target your recipient correctly and ensure the communication is relevant, then you're well on your way!

Hopefully I'll be able to speak to a few of these over the phone in the next few weeks, and then meet up with them all in my first full week there to see what the deal is. But it's looking positive, so that's one less thing to worry about!