Beating the location blues

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It would be fair to say that Texas and I have a slightly fraught relationship. It hasn’t been an easy location for me in many ways but we’ve made it work. On the whole, I think that Houston and I have a healthy respect for each other these days.

Yet last week I found myself falling into one of expat life’s psychological traps. I like to call it ‘comparison roulette’. It’s a dangerous game and it’s highly likely that someone will get hurt. Continue reading “Beating the location blues”

Lessons from a rescue dog

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A year ago we signed the adoption papers on a dog who has changed our lives in ways we never expected.

The journey to her adoption wasn’t straightforward. To be honest, it was fraught with doubts, fierce debate and the devastating loss of another dog last summer, a dog who despite being in our home for only a short while had become part of the family.

And then along came Ceili. Continue reading “Lessons from a rescue dog”

Soul sisters

Soul sistersI love Kirsty Rice. I’ve never met her but her blog – 4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle – was an absolute lifeline when I found myself in Norway wondering what on earth to make of this strange new life.

One of the things that Kirsty sometimes touches upon in her writing is expat friendships. Recently she posted something on her ‘4 Kids, 20 Suitcases and a Beagle’ Facebook page that struck a chord with me. She was wondering about the thing we gain and lose by moving around the world so much.  Continue reading “Soul sisters”

In the moment

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One of my New Year’s resolutions was to get serious about yoga.

Yoga was something I discovered by accident. A Danish friend in Norway was training as a teacher and offered some free classes. I wanted to support her and thought I’d give it a try. I loved the way it made me feel – calmer, stronger and incidentally, slightly taller. I may have some hang ups about my height…. Continue reading “In the moment”