Breaking all previous agreements with those wonderful men and women who helped us to move last time on the condition that we wouldn’t move again any time soon, we’ve crossed the city into a house on Bransholme, within shouting distance of Kingswood.

I wonder why they call it “shouting distance”… really, it all depends on the shouter and the shoutee. Does the shouter have a particularly loud voice? Does the shoutee have super hearing? There are too many variables to define what “shouting distance” actually is.

Anyway, the logic behind this year’s moving story is that we want a place to settle and bring up a family. The house is a three bedroom property in a very quiet part of Bransholme, and it’s great. The moving process went quite well, albeit it took seemingly forever, with many a late night car journey between the house and flat.

After we looked at one house on Longhill that was sort of promising but not really comfortable, Chantelle went with her parents to look at this house in Bransholme. I got a call at work, and she was falling over herself trying to tell me how great the house was, and how her parents loved it. I was told that it was very old person-esque, but that there was furniture there, it was double glazed and had central heating, it’s in a lovely area and so on. We decided to go for it, in spite of the fact that I was yet to see this property, but I completely trusted Chantelle and knew that she wouldn’t choose a place that would be anything less than a place she would want to bring up a family.

Turns out the tenant’s uncle lived in the house before moving back to Pakistan to take up his medical practice again – he’s 74 and UK authorities wouldn’t let him work past the retiring age!! – and everything that was left in the house had been there when he took residence, after the previous couple had moved into a residential home. So, all the furniture, curtains, carpets etc were all left behind. It’s all very old people-esque, but it means that we didn’t have to worry about moving the sofa or table and chairs, and we can always replace the stuff later on when we can afford it.

So far so good.

After nearly three years at Comet, I’m now moving on…to another department at Comet. Moving away from the Specialist Web Team where I’ve pretty much exhausted all career options, I’m heading to “proper” Comet to work on the Business Services Management Information team which looks after all sorts of reporting and analytical stuff, looking at trends in sales and refunds, and also reporting to Comet’s insurance clients on what they’ve spent their money on, and so on. In some way it’s a kind of “growing up” work wise, dealing with time and cost sensitive information, and working to strict business guidelines. Whilst it’s not realising any long term ambitions, it’s providing an opportunity to try something completely different, and there are more opportunities for development around the Business Services department.

As was mentioned in my review with my team leader yesterday, I’ve had “itchy feet” for a while. Apart from the Police, which is more of a long term goal, in the short term my ambitions are pretty basic really. I want a job I’m comfortable in, where I can develop myself and be really good at it, without having the responsibility of being a team leader or manager. Some people are good at managing, but it’s not for me, especially when it involves working longer hours or taking work home for a job I’m not totally enthusiastic about.

On reflection over the last six months – it was our half year wedding anniversary last weekend!! – I’m grateful for how mine and Chantelle’s relationship has grown and strengthened, and I look back through events and moments before and after our engagement and wedding, and I can see how we’ve become more understanding of each other. I might be seen as the Patriarch of our family and the one who should lead by example and guide with love and wisdom, but my goodness she’s the one that shows me what I example to set! In fact, it’s been with her help – that is, gentle nudging and showing “an increase of love toward him whom [Chantelle] hast reproved“  – that I’ve experienced slow but sure moments of growing up-ness, and I appreciate her for completing me in such a way.

Chantelle has also had her cooking and baking fire relit, which always warrants reams and reams of approval from me. Over the last few weeks I’ve enjoyed Chicken Parmigiana, a fantastic Curry, Quesadillas, Barbeque Chicken, a Greek Salad, and more. I have a week off in April, and I’m determined to try my hand at cooking and creating my own wonderful culinary disasters masterpieces. I had to take tuition from Chantelle in peeling an onion, and I still couldn’t manage it.

So far so good.