UK Letter Home October 2003

Welcome to the October Edition of UKBound.

If you are receiving this email, it means that you didn't reply to be included in our new email group. It's been fun talking to you over these last few years (around three and a half now since we left the best coast). I will keep the website at the same location, and if you want to rejoin this email group, just send me an email.

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If you are receiving this email, it means that you want to continue receiving the UK Bound emails. Hope you enjoy the emails.

Seth is getting bigger and bigger. We took him trick-or-treating on halloween, and he didn't do so good. Nobody would give him candy since he doesn't have any teeth. He was actually womanhandled and mauled, and they didn't want to give him back. We'll put a couple of new pictures on our website with him in his halloween costume. He's so cute!

Travelling: in a word, none. OK, we have gone a trip to Ayr (the local beach) which is about 45 miles away (actually, takes 2 hours, because we always get lost). Ayr is a nice little seaside town, definately worth a trip if you get the chance. I have some pics on the website from one of our other trips somewhere - you might have to dig a bit. We did finally get our car stereo installed after about 3 months of having it - we needed a little bit of plastic to install it, and according to the dealer we didn't, but according to everyone that tried to install it (we checked with 4 different people) we needed it. So now the stereo and Seth's pram, which we store in the boot, is actually worth more than the car. Go figure.

On the home front, the wardrobes are totally out, and all holes have been puttied (except for one that I just added). We just need a splash of paint, and it's off to Ikea for the wardrobes, and we're sorted. I'm off next week, so let's see what home improvement marvels we can create. We have a plan, so hopefully a week will be sufficient. I also have a box of plasters, so that should do.

On the job front, I have moved into my new role. The threat of offshoring isn't as great in my new team as the last two, but we are all thinking that part of the overnight support will be moving as soon as arrangements can be made. I'll bet in 6 months overnight will be in the process of being moved. I had an interview with another team (which I didn't get) and it appears that they are now moving to India, so I am really glad I didn't get that job. Is the threat of India that bad in NA? I was on the XBox tech support chat (in case you don't know, it's a mini-computer game box type thing made by Microsoft like the PS2) and I asked the "techie" where they were located, and he said he couldn't tell for security reasons. I also asked him how he thought the 49ers were doing, and once again, no answer. I'm thinking they've also moved offshore.

Even though we are now in November, the weather is actually great. The leaves are falling, and last weekend we went to the park, and kicked up some leaves. Last year we had a lot more rain, and the leaves were all soggy. No fun at all. Right now, the temperature is around 10-15C during the day, and we sometimes get frost. No complaints so far. The one thing I have been noticing is that sometimes when I go to work, the moon is still high in the sky, and when I get home, the sun is either in it's last stages of setting, or it's pitch black. I think I'll have to find a job in Australia for the winters, and then move back for the summers.

I'm not sure if I mentioned that we recently purchased a nice, shiny new computer. Well, in the tradition of modern electronics, it ain't workin. Reason: Windows doesn't want to play anymore. I've reinstalled Windows, and, it's still got it's feet up. So, hopefully by the time this email comes out next time, it will be from our own computer. Fingers crossed. If you receive an email from us in the next little bit then you know it's fixed. If not, then you'll know why.

I guess that's it for this edition. Hope this finds you well.

Brian, Kim and wee Seth.