This time last year (well, actually a bit earlier, because, as I'm about to say, we were organised) Felicity and I (note, "I" usually refers to Jonathan, not some mysterious phantom writer, except where it refers toFelicity, in which case she was probably writing that section, and so I [being Jonathan] can't give you the definitive answer on what "I" refers to in that case) were in Chicago and were highly organised (actually if you want to get strict about the "this time last year" bit we'd passed the "highly organised" phase and had entered the "Oh no, we are leaving in a couple of days and we haven't packed yet!" panic phase) and had produced a nice Christmas newsletter and photo and had posted them pre-Christmas. This time this year, I think we managed to get a whole 3 Christmas cards posted (although I might have hand-delivered one to my parents, but I pinched the card from them), have missed the Christmas deadline for the "We'd better send a Christmas email instead then" mail, and thus the topic of this email is "Our Millennium" which has the wonderful fallback option of extending the deadline by a year merely by being pedantic (although a real pedant would probably point out that due to clerical errors, the millennium really ended a couple of years ago, so what's all the fuss about anyway, but I wouldn't do that because then this email would be so late as to not be worth reading - actually, for those of you who only read one paragraph of my emails, yes, you know who you are Sanjay, this may give you an appropriate excuse to stop reading here [which also happens to coincide with the end of the first paragraph]).
I must say that the first 970 years or so of the millennium passed by in a bit of a blur, so either we can step through it year by year with me say "Wasn't there, dunno what happened, anyone here care to fill us in on it? Anyone? anyone? No, not you Scott, you answered last time.... OK, we'll move on to the next year then" or we can jump straight to 1999 paraphrasing the Chronicler (e.g. 2 Chron 25:26) and saying "...as for the other events of Felicity and Jonathan's lives, from beginning until 1999, are they not written in baby books, telegrams, assorted letters, emails and hither-to (and hopefully forever) undiscovered diaries?"? So which will it be?
That's what I thought.
1999 started in a blizzard. It gave us an extra day in Chicago
while the airport was cleared of snow. It gave us a chance to get
to Willow Creek Community Church for one more service. It caused
the service to be cancelled.
That and a quick trip to the east coast of the US ended our 8 months
or so in the US, leaving us somewhat frustrated as we felt we were just
beginning to settle in when we had to start leaving, but with a desire
to go somewhere for a longer term.
The trip home took us through England, and significantly to Basingstoke for the first time. Then it was back to Adelaide. We decided to stay with my parents for the couple of days that it would take us to paint our flat before moving back in and it was wonderful to move back in a month or so later. It was great to be welcomed back by our house church with the offer of ladders and other tools to be borrowed. Jasper was alive and well, and greeted us with shed loads of fur while we quietly expired in the heat (Chicago had been -1F (-18C) with a windchill of -25F (-32C) on the day we left Chicago, and it was 35+C (95+F) when we arrived in Adelaide). Louis amazingly was still alive in the garden.
It was a strange time in Adelaide, unpacking, settling back in, and at the same time knowing that we didn't want to settle back in. It was made more unsettling in April when I was asked if I was interested in moving to the UK. Having said I was interested, it wasn't until August that it became clear that we really would be moving when I was offered the job, and even then it was still unclear just when that would be, depending on work permits and so on. Of course it meant that we would have to re-pack all the stuff we had just unpacked, as well as all the stuff we hadn't unpacked, again, and despite the practice we'd gained (Felicity is able to pack an entire house in one solid 24 hour stint) it was not a prospect either of us looked forward to. In the end, despite all the notice, of course it was a crazy rush, into which Felicity managed to fit a 30th birthday party for me. I arrived in England the day before my 30th birthday, which I celebrated with some other Adelaideans who'd moved over here with Motorola, and Felicity joined me a week later.
There are a number of people we'd like to thank for their help during this time - David and Robyn Butler, Basingstoke Adelaideans who greatly helped in almost all aspects of our move, and continue to help us in the process of settling in over here, our house church group for their support, practical help in getting our flat looking the best it has since we've been there so that other people could live in it, and their power tools, and our parents for their encouragement despite knowing what it would mean for them.
Anyway, to England, and after a month in a hotel we were very glad to find our little cottage on a farm in the lovely village of Upton Grey. We were even gladder to have all our belongings arrive about a month after that, and I was even gladder still to be out of the country at the time. Felicity did her usual incredible (at least to me, who's idea of unpacking is to take things from a small compact, boxed jumble and move them to a large, sprawling jumbled pile on the floor) job of unpacking things and turning this old barn into a home.
While writing this email I've been looking out the window over the field
next to us. It's been a gorgeous sunny winter day, and the sun has
been shining on the old Norman village church (where we went to a midnight
service on Christmas Eve and quite possibly sat in someone's family row),
visible behind the flock of black faced sheep which have been practising
headbutting each other and walking around with dazed looks, and watched
a number pheasants walk past, as well as a tractor load or two of people
off into the fields to have a bit of a pot shot at the aforementioned pheasants
relatives. At the beginning of last week we were walking through
the fields
on a sunny day with brilliant blue skies, looking at pheasant trails
in the snow. The drive to work from here is down narrow country lanes through
the fields, and is stunningly beautiful, particularly when the leaves were
turning in autumn.
So far it's been great being here, despite becoming a little too well acquainted with the British Millennium bugs which have put us to bed for the last few days. It has been especially good spending time with Liz (my sister), and having Christmas Day with her for the first time since Felicity and I have been married (almost 8 years).
Hi! Jonathan writes such interesting emails that I rarely feel the need to add anything - and he rarely gives me the opportunity! I trust you all had a good Christmas - as Jono mentioned above we had Liz here, we also spent the day with another Aussie Motorolan couple (Ben & Tracy Moore) who moved here a few weeks before we did. There is something about a winter Christmas that is really special, going to a midnight communion service all rugged up in coats, scarves and gloves, the crackle and atmosphere of an open fire, roast dinner and pudding that doesn't leave one passed out on the sofa all afternoon, and an early twilight that adds to the cosiness indoors!
There have been a lot of new things to learn and absorb and after being here 3 months I know it will take a few more months to really settle in. However it has been an exciting time with a trip to the US to spend Thanksgiving with a dear friend of mine and her family and a homecoming trip to Chicago which was really special, and for Jonathan a trip to France and another round the world jaunt starting in Chicago where he received an award for some of the work he has been involved in.
On the work front I started my first temporary position the week before Christmas which was quite exciting for me, and at Serco ( the same company that runs the northern buses in Adelaide) of all places. I only have to go 10 minutes from home which is just as well because we are still a one car family.
So what are you doing for New Years Eve?? The question of the century! We would love to hear from you.
Look us up if you are in the area.
And just in case you thought we might have given up on the Christmas pictures...
Love from
Jonathan and Felicity
© Jonathan Main 1999,2000