I am now officially unemployed/between jobs.
Yikes! Breathe Karen breathe.
Last night I was on duty with the locum who regularly helps us out. Lovely guy. He works for one of the bigger hospitals/sleep labs in London, but likes to keep his hand in by doing some Friday nights with us. He travels a lot, so doing (obviously) locum work is very lucrative and funds his travelling.
After having lived in quite a few countries, originally from Texas, he says he'd never go back to the States mostly because the healthcare system is terrible, they only get two weeks of holiday per year and the food is awful - everything designed to keep a nation unhealthy.
We have quite a few Americans working for us and they've all said the same thing. Once they left the States and realised how bad things are there.
I have no idea how true this is, but can relate as I never knew how "difficult" things were in South Africa or how much propaganda we were fed daily until I moved to the UK. I reckon this can be said for all countries. It's what separates us into being intolerant of each other. Divide and conquer, keeps us suspicious. Travel, to a degree, unravels this intolerance.
We are very privileged working for the NHS as we get lots of holiday time - approximately 5 weeks which increases the more years you work. At the moment I currently have 7.5 weeks per year of holiday every year. Unfortunately starting over again in New Zealand means I only get 4 weeks which will increase to 5 after my first year, but will never be quite as much as I am getting now.
He and I discussed our move to NZ. He said that he'd been looking at leaving London for a while now, feeling restless once again. This morning as we hugged and said our goodbyes, he said he felt inspired to actually make the effort to relocate to a place he'd been looking at for a while. We both agreed that there is nothing like living in other countries and experiencing their culture, to appreciate how amazing the world is.
He plans on being in NZ next year, so we will meet up again then.
May his dreams come true, just like mine have.
One of my colleagues was in tears last night before she finished her shift. She wrote the sweetest and loveliest card/letter to me. It saddens me to think about the people I am leaving behind. I am continuously tearful, stressed, excited and filled with trepidation. I am sure my nervous system is rather shattered! It is so hard to let go.
I have to remember that although I may be surrounded by those that love me, the only person who can look after me is me.
Breathe, Karen, breathe. Breathe in your future, embrace it, wrap it around you, enjoy and see the beauty of your experiences.
Yikes! Breathe Karen breathe.
Last night I was on duty with the locum who regularly helps us out. Lovely guy. He works for one of the bigger hospitals/sleep labs in London, but likes to keep his hand in by doing some Friday nights with us. He travels a lot, so doing (obviously) locum work is very lucrative and funds his travelling.
After having lived in quite a few countries, originally from Texas, he says he'd never go back to the States mostly because the healthcare system is terrible, they only get two weeks of holiday per year and the food is awful - everything designed to keep a nation unhealthy.
We have quite a few Americans working for us and they've all said the same thing. Once they left the States and realised how bad things are there.
I have no idea how true this is, but can relate as I never knew how "difficult" things were in South Africa or how much propaganda we were fed daily until I moved to the UK. I reckon this can be said for all countries. It's what separates us into being intolerant of each other. Divide and conquer, keeps us suspicious. Travel, to a degree, unravels this intolerance.
We are very privileged working for the NHS as we get lots of holiday time - approximately 5 weeks which increases the more years you work. At the moment I currently have 7.5 weeks per year of holiday every year. Unfortunately starting over again in New Zealand means I only get 4 weeks which will increase to 5 after my first year, but will never be quite as much as I am getting now.
He and I discussed our move to NZ. He said that he'd been looking at leaving London for a while now, feeling restless once again. This morning as we hugged and said our goodbyes, he said he felt inspired to actually make the effort to relocate to a place he'd been looking at for a while. We both agreed that there is nothing like living in other countries and experiencing their culture, to appreciate how amazing the world is.
He plans on being in NZ next year, so we will meet up again then.
May his dreams come true, just like mine have.
One of my colleagues was in tears last night before she finished her shift. She wrote the sweetest and loveliest card/letter to me. It saddens me to think about the people I am leaving behind. I am continuously tearful, stressed, excited and filled with trepidation. I am sure my nervous system is rather shattered! It is so hard to let go.
I have to remember that although I may be surrounded by those that love me, the only person who can look after me is me.
Breathe, Karen, breathe. Breathe in your future, embrace it, wrap it around you, enjoy and see the beauty of your experiences.
