Alli's Place

I have been here for ten days now and it does actually feel like home now.  All the removal boxes and unpacked and one of the Pickfords guys picked the empty boxes up earlier.  It looks like my home now my things are all over it!

Mum and Dad came for the weekend (Mum came on Thursday and Dad came on Friday evening) and helped with things.  Dad tiled round the bath in the ensuite so that I can put the shower on the wall over the bath, I just need to get on a do the grouting.  Mum helped with unpacking boxes and cleaning and things.  I think they like my house too!

The Cambridge office is OK.  I find myself missing the people and office in Solent but I am sure it will feel better after a few weeks. It is so much bigger and there are so many people and I miss our office banter and the friendships.  I have been made to feel very welcome though which is great!  I joined the Sports and Social club and went on their punting trip on Wednesday which was good fun, we punted (I say we but I just sat there and didn’t actually have a go) down to Grantchester, went to a pub and the punted back as the sun set.

The church is the village seems really nice.  I was warmly welcomed by a colleague who introduced me to some other people so I think that will feel comfortable quite quickly and hopefully I will be able to get involved in some way.

Guides in the village was cancelled this week due to one of the schools in the area which most of the Guides go to being closed due to swine flu.  Hopefully the will be Guides another week though!

We were saying at work today that this time next month none of us will be there as the office will be closed.  Cathy and Rich will be on there way to Canada, some of us will be living in Cambridge and working in the office there, John will be preparing to live in Bangkok and some of the others will be working elsewhere.

It doesn’t really feel real.

Lisa and I were talking the other week and she suggested writing a list of the best things about Portsmouth (and the surrounding area) so here is my list (in no particular order) so far…

• Tenth Hole Tea Rooms
• Ice Creams from South Parade Pier (big whippy ones)
• Thatched House Pub
• Spice Island Pub
• Kam Too Chinese Take Away
• Gun Wharf Quays
• Port Solent
• View from Portsdown Hill
• Portchester Castle
• The Beach
• Hayling Island Billy Trail
• QE Park

It has been a good week and I hope the weekend is good too!

On Tuesday I exchanged contracts on the house in Cambridge and finally got a moving date.  I also had lunch with Laura at Port Solent which was fun and yummy.

On Wednesday I had my hair cut and said good by to my hairdresser (she is the first hairdresser I have trusted and I will miss her) and then met up with Katie.  Katie and I went to Hobby Craft and then had lunch at TGI Fridays in Tichfield before going on a shopping trip to Southampton including IKEA.  We had a great time but I didn’t find anything to wear to Paul and Laura’s wedding.

On Thursday I dismantled the single bed before meeting up with Katrina and Lisa to go shopping again.  Funnily enough we went to Southampton (I didn’t mind as it is always good) and had lunch at TGI Fridays in Southampton!   Again I failed to find anything for the wedding but I have got till 1st August for that!  I did get some boxes and trainers though :o)

Today I am meeting up with the Woods so I am looking forward to that too!

Back to work on Monday for my last two weeks in the Solent office!

I will be moving to Cambridge soon now as I have finally exchanged contracts on the house I am buying up there.  The removals are booked and on16th June a big lorry will turn up with a team who will pack and load the lorry then on 17th June they will come back with the lorry and get the few essentials they will leave me with overnight then we will head to Cambridge and the nice removal men will unload everything into my new home.

So that mean I only have three more weeks on being a Portsmouth resident.  I think it might have a few emotional moments.

I have loads of things to do and sort out!

I have finally had the results of the MRI I had in January to check my entire spinal chord for tumours.  The letter states that there is no evidence of residual or recurrent tumour.  So all clear.  Great news!

The sale from my house has not gone as planned.  The buyers seem to be messing around and can’t be trusted.  They had eight weeks and have not actually done anything apparently apart from annoy their solicitor, my solicitor, my estate agent and of course me.  They has said they will do things and not done them and arranged meeting with their solicitor and not turned up.  As a result my estate agent gave them 24 hours to show they are serious and then we have put my house back on the market.

I had a viewing today but as the office closes in 9 weeks I will be cutting it fine!

Anyone know anyone who would like to buy a 3 bedroom house in Hilsea – it has a rather nice kitchen?!?

Go to urbandictionary.com and write the answer to each question in the "look up" box and paste the definition on a copied version of this note.
1. Your name?
Allison
A woman defined by brains, beauty, class, and membership in the upper echelons of society. Can usually be found wearing pearls or sorority letters.

2. Your age?
31
The age when you are officially a grown up! (the first entry was a bit rude!)

3. One of your friends?
Jenny (she had her baby yesterday - yay!)
An amazing, beautiful, caring, creative girl. She is the epitome of a goddess, and anyone would kill to have her. She can do anything she sets her mind to, and she's wonderful.

4. What should you be doing?
Reading my mail
Knowing my thoughts and views without being told.

6. Hometown?
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is a small farming town in Hampshire. The locals dress like scarecrows, speak in a strange Romany-influenced rural dialect, and are known as worzels or carrot crunchers.

7. Month of your birthday?
February
February is the best month of the year. Its still nice and cold and snowy, but you know that spring is just around the corner if you're tired of all the bad weather. February is also the most unique month. 28 days long,(unless its every four years on a 'leap' year)
Valentines day is also in February. (the fourteenth)It's a fun holiday named after St. Valentine, and it's for cute happy couples. Many single or unhappy people celebrate the anti Valentines day, i.e.. Singles awareness day.  People born in February are without a doubt the Cutest, Smartest, and Funniest set of people. If you are born after the 20th, you are also a PICES. This is the best Zodiac sign.

8. Last person you talked to?
Daisy
the coolest, most awesome,talented?,nicest girl ever..

and
Sammy
a very fun person. not boring at all.

9. Where are you right now?
Home
A word that means something different to each person who uses it. A person's home can be the place where they live, the place they grew up, or the place where the people they care about live. In the case of some people, home is a variable concept, changing dependant on the placement of another person or object, or a person may even consider his or her own body the only 'true' home.

10. Your nickname?
Alli
alli (freak)one of the nicest ppl u will ever meet she is so nice and lovely and she will always have a place in my heart.

Well things are still happening on the move front.  The survey has been completed on the house I am buying and the mortgage is approved.  I am now getting quotes from removal companies so I will be ready to choose one when I have a date.  I really want to exchange contracts soon now and move.  It isn’t that I am desperate to get away from Portsmouth (far from it) but I need to get on with starting my life in Cambridge and get settled up there. It feels like my Portsmouth life is coming to an end now and I just want to get on with things! 

Last week I had an offer accepted on a house in Milton, Cambridge.  I really like the house, it has more living, garden and bedroom space than I currently have and also has a garage.  I just hope the sale of my house and the purchase of my new house all goes though OK now.  I don't dare to get too excited about it as it could all go wrong and I wish I could fast forward to it all be done and sorted!

...opening any Microsoft Live Space web site crashed Internet Explorer 7 but work perfectly in Firefox?  You would have thought Microsoft would ensure there own websites would work properly with their browser!

Rules:
1. Put your music library on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. You must write that song title as the answer to the question, no matter how silly it sounds! Most of the time they seem to work though, strangely enough.
4. Ok, go!
5. When you're done, tag 20 people in this note, and make sure to tag the person who sent you this. The answer to #20 is the Title of your note.

1. If someone says, “Is this okay?” You say?
Not so Manic Now
2. How would you describe yourself?
Gunning Down Romance
3. What do you like in a guy/girl?
Love Comes
4. How do you feel today?
Merry Christmas Everybody
5. What is your life’s purpose?
Be Still
6. What's your motto?
The Fraggle Rock Theme
7. What do your friends think of you?
Snow Flower
8. What do you think of your parents?
True Colours
9. What do you think about very often?
Whiskey In The Jar
10. What is 2 + 2?
Take My Life
11. What do you think of your best friend?
Miracle Maker
12. What do you think of the person you like?
Stare The Monster Down
13. What is your life story?
Yes and Amen
14. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Peggy Sue Got Married
15. What do you think of when you see the person you like?
True Love
16. What will you dance to at your wedding?
Kingdom of Comfort
17. What will they play at your funeral?
What Can I Do
18. What is your biggest fear?
One of The Boys
19. What is your biggest secret?
When All Is Said and Done
20. What will you post this as?
I Can Only Imagine

Lets just say that I don't think I am going to just fall in love with a house as I love my current house and I can't just relocate that to Cambridge. 

What I have learnt about houses over the weekend...

I think I need to accept that I will not just be able to walk into a house and want to live there forever, I am going to have to make some changes to make it mine!

I will not love a kitchen as much as my current one unless I rip out the one that is there and re-create the current one.

Flooring, kitchens, bathrooms and decoration can be changed... room sizes and location can't be and so are more important.

There is not much choice when it comes down to it!

3% stamp duty makes a big difference - stamp duty on a house sold for £249,999 = £2499, on a house sold for £250,000 = £7500!!!  So that basically means pay 1p more for you house and get taxed £5000 more!

I am actually far more attached to my house than I thought I was, I wish I could take it with me :o(

I think I am supposed to go to Cambridge...

First I had a conversation about it and said I was haiving doubts and needed something to happen and within 24 hours I had an offer on my house...

Next I was nosing at a house with Mum (it is empty and Mum and I had a look in the front window) and we got chatting to the neighbour and she just happens to go to the church in Milton that I had been planning to visit on Sunday.  They run a home group at their house.  I also visited and church on Sunday and really liked it.  I viewed the house we nosed at today and it is not my perfect house, it has been empty for quite a while and before that it was rented and lets just say you can tell...  It has potential though!

It doesn't make things any easier though :o(