A Landmark Date and a Publication

After a frantic week we finally reached the weekend...hooray! Work has been picking up pace over the last few weeks as the architects and tenders get into full swing after the winter weather and the new annual government budgets have been put in place.

Saturday sadly was a no sun day, but we have been promised some sun for Sunday and Monday as it is a bank holiday weekend.

Rob had some good news this week. Through a friend of ours, he was introduced to a chap called Eric who has several businesses in the heating and plumbing trade. He is going to take Rob on with a view to getting him through the exam process so that he can become fully qualified. The starting wage is already $5.50 and hour better than he is currently on and there is the potential to up those earnings the more qualified he gets. Initially we are not sure if the hours will extend to a full time week, so he may well keep some hours at UHaul as well. Hopefully he will be starting in a couple of weeks time.

The down side of this is that we really need to get another car. Not really sure what we are going to do about that just yet, but Rob is looking into perhaps getting finance, although this may not be possible as we haven't been here that long.

In 3 days time we will have been here exactly one year! I am guessing the time has flown by for you reading this, for me it has been quite a long year, I cannot honestly say it has all been plain sailing, because it hasn't, we have had some ups and downs and no doubt we will continue to struggle financially for some time to come, I get homesick and miss my friends and family of course, but we have met some great people here and have experienced so much of what Nova Scotia has to offer. No one said it was going to be easy, but when I think back to some of the challenges we have overcome, who would have thought I would have been taking a new driving test and driving on the wrong side of the road! (Which incidentally you no longer have to do as you can just swap your license over now...typical!)

Tomorrow I am out and about with the camera club for an annual event called 'Trash the Dress' We have models dressing in old wedding dresses and unusual clothing and photograph them in various locations. I am bringing my own model Rebecca, who you may remember I photographed before. I have encouraged her to be edgy, so I am looking forward to seeing what she wears and what props she brings. Hopefully I will get some half decent shots.

In other photographic news this week, one of my images has been featured in a very posh designer book. Someone contacted me (when I was still in the UK) about using a photo in a book, they said they would send me a copy when it was completed. I thought it was a scam and never thought I would see the book so gave them my brothers PO Box address to send the book to. Well it arrived, Clive kindly posted it on to me.

The book is actually a catalogue, if you can call it that! It must have cost a fortune to produce the book and features the furniture designs (kitchens, bathrooms offices) of Mark Wilkinson. He is designer to the likes of Anthony Worrall Thompson, Gary Rhodes and various high profile music industry people and celebrities. You have to have some serious cash to afford this stuff. So I am really chuffed! Who knows maybe some famous will look me up now!


My Gothic Cottage image from Stourhead, now featured in the 'Unmistakably Mark Wilkinson' White Book.