A ray of light or two...

I was a little annoyed to find an email from the school asking for the address that the work permit needs to be sent to, as the person responsible had lost it, but the ensuing conversation gave me the opportunity to ask some important questions concerning how I would be paid over the next couple of months. I received some very positive news. First, amend "couple" to "few"; as I will now be under contract like every other teacher, I will be paid for all of the remaining months of the school year, including August. Second, those will be FULL months, so I need not worry about the upcoming week of lost work (midterm break) shortly after my arrival. Third, I will be paid a set amount that, while lower than what I would be paid for four weeks of full work, is higher than what I would be paid for three, so that averages out nicely (in fact, very close to an average between the two sums). The only drawback to all this is that I will only be paid at the end of each month, which is going to mess with my payment schedule for a bit.

All in all, it's some great news; the expenses from my current fiasco will be pretty much offset. I feel a lot more reassured about the financial shape I'll be in come September.

As I wade through a pool of tears...

...okay, actually just a pool of laundry water. I just helped clean up a flood resulting from a piece of clothing clogging up the drain of the laundry tub that the washing machine drains into (pardon the hideously long sentence). That's been dealt with handily. I only hope the work visa thing will be as easily sorted.

I had just booked my flight for next Saturday, thinking that, since the school had the permit on the way, I should have this wrapped up with extra time to spare. Unfortunately, it turns out there wasn't a convenient international overnight courier for the school to send it with (the nearest Fedex office is in London), so they sent via priority air mail. There are some things about the UK that just plain sucks ass. Anyhow, the estimate the postal clerk gave for the arrival was Wednesday at the earliest (yoicks!). My previously rebooked appointed for the embassy is on Thursday. Can anyone say "no margin for error"? I knew you could. (Actually, the margin isn't quite that bad; though I didn't get anything back for the flight I had to cancel, wisely, when I rebooked, I did so directly with the airline (as opposed to through an online travel agency) with the assurance that, if I needed to, I could change the flight within the limits of availability ('course, I'd have to pay any added expense, but that's better than having to pay for another bloody ticket, AGAIN).

In the meantime, I've had a lovely lunch with a good friend of mine and spent a few hours wrapping up my souvenir shopping. I've still one last thing to pick up, as well as getting a few supplies not readily available in the UK, like deodorant (you can only seem to find anti-perspirant in the UK). I'm kind of annoyed by my current money situation; I was looking at the prices for computer memory here and I really wished I could pick some up. Change the $ sign to a pound sign, and you'll get the idea of the price difference between the two countries. Yerg! But I couldn't justify a $50 dollar purchase: I don't need the extra memory and I can always order online from Canada when my money situation is a little better sorted.

This evening should be a bit more relaxed. As I had spent till 3 in the morning preparing and emailing off the lesson plans for Monday through Wednesday, in anticipation of the upcoming inspection, I've decided I can take the night off any sort of planning. I might even go to bed at a reasonable time! (silly grin!)

This weekend will largely consist of spending more time with some friends and a trip to Ward's Island. Unfortunately, I really should have taken advantage of last weekend's beautiful weather to have gone to the island as this weekend's prediction is pretty sucky. Oh well, I've braved worse. I suppose I should also see to filling out the appropriate forms for the embassy, as well as finish off the lesson planning for the week. I might even do some of the essay marking I had planned to do (though, granted, I'll have a week to do that after my first week back, courtesy of the upcoming halfterm break).

Hmmm... Methinks I may indulge in a little more of Terry Pratchett's The Colour of Magic, accompanied by a fine can of Blackthorn cider (a fine variety scored for me by my hostess). Yep, relaxation shall be good indeed!