Don't It Always Seem To Go That You Don't Know What You've Got 'Til It's Gone

This line, from one of my favourite Counting Crow songs (via Joni Mitchell of course), pretty much well sums up how I'm feeling at the moment...

Anyway, I met up with Erik at Victoria Coach station later on on Wednesday afternoon, and we headed off down to school to see if any of the girls were there.  We phoned Mat just before we arrived, and he sent Jerusalem and Rochelle out with the key to let us in - but didn't tell them who they were going to meet.  So when they saw us, there was great shrieking and squawking going on!  It was just delicious!

There were half a dozen or so kids there, doing coursework, and it was just lovely to see them all again.  The new guys were there too, so we managed to chat with them a bit about how they were settling in, and answer a few quick questions and so on.  After that, we headed off for a spot of dinner, and met up with June (SLC teacher) and Ruth (cello teacher).  What a lovely evening we had!

Thursday already!  Can't believe how fast the time is going - with only a week left now!  I met up with Erik mid morning in town for a day of shopping, before we met with Mat and Natasha in the evening for dinner.  We had a great time - first stop was of course, the Apple Store in Regent Street, where I bought my lovely Elgato TV Diversity tuner (one of the best things I've bought so far from that store - other than my lovely Mac of course), and then we hit Niketown, H&M, Selfridges (got my eyebrows threaded again - just as well, they were beginning to look like Mal Meninga!)... it was lovely!  After this, a spot of lunch, more shopping, and then we moseyed on down to the river, wandering through Piccadilly Circus, Leceister Square, Charing Cross and over to the South Bank.  From there we made our way to the Young Vic, where we met up with Natasha and Mat, before heading over to my favourite restaurant of all time, Tas.  Yum!  What a wonderful evening we had too!

Friday morning and I got up nice and early because I really wanted to go to a Good Friday service at either Westminster Abbey or St Pauls.  I went to one at St Pauls last year with Ira, Thom and Jean, and it was really good - but I wanted something different this time.  Unfortunately, the only sung service that day at Westminster Abbey was late afternoon - which didn't fit in with my plans for the day - so we went to St Pauls' instead.  Again, the female cantor was seriously out of tune - and this time I actually noticed that she did have a tuning fork!  Fat lot of good it did her!  Anyway, Erik and Aga came along too, and it was really lovely.

After this we met with my lovely old flatmate Jane, and had a very yummy Wagamama late lunch, before I headed down to Sutton to spend a few days with friends down there.  I actually went and stayed with Jean, which was nice - in fact when I arrived, we went off for dinner at the Belmont.  It was soooo like old times!  I felt like I had never left.

In fact, that's how I've felt the whole time being here.  Don't get me wrong, I do like being back with the family, and I think I like my job (the vote is still out on that one though), but I feel so much like I don't really fit in!  Friends have moved on, got married, had kids - but they don't expect you to have moved on with your life.  They still think of you as the same person you were 10 years ago, and there's just no way that's the case.  I mean, here, in London, I'm the norm - an individual - confident, outgoing, successful, seasoned traveller, accepting of others - and I guess that's the same in Oz, but I feel like I'm forever having to prove myself.  I especially have to do that in my job, but to a certain extent, with friends too.  And the lifestyle is different in Oz, the men are so terribly chauvinistic, and the women are in many ways content to be subservient (not all women, of course, but many) - that someone like me - a single, successful, independent woman - well, we're the abnormal minority.  Its like, if you're an unmarried career person, well - there's something wrong with you.

But not in London.  In London you're accepted.  In London you're to be admired.  In London, you're the norm.  And having spent the last few days here in London, it has really hit home to me just how lucky I was to live here for such a long time, to have so many things at the tip of my fingers, to meet so many interesting people and experience so many interesting things.

Again, don't get me wrong - I've made my bed now, and I've got to lie in it.  I love my family and I do want to spend time with them.  But - don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone...