A Private Celebration

Three years ago today I arrived on the Iberian peninsula after what can only be considered an unsuccessful fling in the Far East. I came here with no expectations other than a recovery from a bout of pneumonia and an unsettling depression. To that end the experience has been a success but so much more to boot. I´ve continued working as an English language teacher, predominantly to business types, and consider myself none to shabby at the task. Some days are better than others but I´m not alone there. I´ve grasped the language to the degree that when I was confronted by a pair of coppers while taking this shot I could explain myself and leave them reassured that I was not there to add top secret locations to Google Maps.

I´ve not hankered after home the way I did out in China and I´ve adopted a fairly healthy lifestyle in contrast to the beer, whisky, Greggs and chips fuelled diet I all too readily followed.

The downside is losing touch with some good friends back home but that´s something I have to live with, I´ve always been that way. Out of sight, out of mind? Not quite, but long-distance relationships have never been fruitful in my experience; this blip malarkey is probably suffering the symptoms of my syndrome too, three years and I haven´t yet got to 365 and to be honest I don´t have a great deal of work on here to write home about. Too often, I just snap for the sake of it, commenting seems unsubstantial and gets my goat, ruffles my feathers, et al.

I´ve experienced sadness and death and life and joy. The major plus is that I´ve met the girl I want to spend my life with which scares the buggery out of me but makes me enormously happy.

Onwards and upwards compañeros.