Spring cleaning

Have revisited the blog for the first time since June last year. Plenty of water under the bridge since then.

Item one; first visit to the UK since I left in 2007. Amazed by the plethora of health and safety inspired signs all over the UK. Amusing and disappointing visits with old friends. I do miss them sometimes, but not so much as to want to return to the UK. Some walked past me without recognising my face. Have I really changed that much?

Item two; have got my permanent residency, so no more work permits.

Item three; novel length MSS completed. Second in series almost so. First readers are already asking when the second will be ready. Another month if all goes well.

Item four; new job. Part time, which suits my current lifestyle.

Item five; am thinking about self publication more and more, and the possibility of using social media to draw attention to my work. Facebook might not be the best way forward, but Twitter sounds like a worthwhile even money bet. See if I can put together my own Audio versions, and donate some eBook copies and sound files to VIRL. I've been told I have a pleasant reading voice, and my dulcet tones can be heard booming out from the Coal Mine exhibit at Nanaimo District Museum. Feels rather spooky to hear my own voice sometimes when passing by the entrance and someone is listening to one of the brief passages I'm narrating. It's nice to think my drama training finally found a venue.

Item six; planning another visit to the UK in July 2011. Laura and Joanna will be graduating from their respective Universities, and Angie and I will be there to celebrate their success. Side trips to France are in the mix, as is a possible stop off in Dublin, one of the few European capitals I've yet to visit.

Item seven; Completed new Tampions for our two Cannon at the Museum, also the display stand for the Sculling outboard. Looking forward to seeing them in place. The Nanaimo Bastion reopens this May after a significant refurbishment. Displays have to be reorganised and put in situ, or as David the curator says with one of his gamine little grins, that will be another little job I can help them with.

Have done a little spring cleaning on the blog, and am debating whether to begin afresh for the novel marketing, or use this one.

Busy

Kind of lost track on this blog. I'd almost forgotten about it because there was so little time to post, and not much to post about. I've had a little run in with Canadian immigration when I went to apply for a work permit and 'leave to remain'. The guys at the border didn't like the look of the job I've been given, and told me to go away and try again. We went back to get some guidance from our local immigration office in Nanaimo, who have may I say, been absolute diamond, and they are advising us.

I'm taking on a job with a charity called the Tetra Society of North America. The guys at the Red Cross told me about the advert; I applied, and wonder of wonders, was offered the job. The only hang up is that I need a work permit, as this is paid employment. Thereby hangs the tale.

At the moment of writing, I need to persuade my perspective employers to redraft a copy of my offer of employment (Which I drafted for them), fax a copy to the immigration office for formal approval, get my employers to send me a signed and dated copy of the letter which I then take to the border. However, I have been told to let the immigration office people know the time and date of my application so they can phone the guys at the border post and ensure everything gets done properly. If this sounds a bit of a headache it has been.

Never mind. Money is not a problem for the forseeable future. We sold our house and are living frugally but well. Had a terrific Christmas with the kids coming over, although it was a bit crowded for a while. Have started a blog of unpublished short stories, just to see if anyone likes them. Lets face it, my hard drive is crammed with the outpourings of my fevered imagination, and I just want to see what anyone else thinks.