Skip to main content

Taking an exit

It seemed as if my previous post was out-of-date five minutes after I'd written it. We pretty much immediately made the decision to stay in Texas for a few more years - most likely about two more, depending on Graham's job (which will have a definite end point at some time) and how long we can cope with the heat. Graham's company still haven't made a firm decision about how they'll arrange everything, but it was easier to go ahead and decide. We aren't likely to be worse off than we would be in England, either way.

That decision out of the way, I felt like I could move forward with career ideas. Believe it or not, I'm applying for chemistry jobs. Or at least I am when I'm not procrastinating by writing blog entries. (I did four applications yesterday; I'm sure being run over by a steamroller is a less draining experience.) Whether anyone wants to hire a not-so-recent chemistry graduate with a lot of cake decorating experience remains to be seen - I'm sure they don't see many! But there seem to be a fair number of jobs around so I'm reasonably confident of finding something.

So, now you know we're staying a little longer, come on and book your Texas vacation! Our rates are very reasonable... plus you can buy yourself some genuine cowboy boots, get up close and personal with a giant cactus, and eat all the meat you ever wanted to stuff your face with! Just to assure you this isn't the complete back of beyond, here's a nice photo of Fort Worth downtown from the Trinity River.


See those clouds moving in from the left? That, my friends, is a cold front. We set out for that particular walk in T-shirts and beautiful warm sunshine, and finished up keeping our body heat up by an act of the will, as the sky clouded over and the air temperature dropped like a stone. I think I mentioned the dramatic effects of a cold front before, but it's even worse when you forgot to bring a jumper.

Comments

Sally said…
Like this one we had last weekend?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/3443374/Southerly-buster-hits-Wellington

Popular posts from this blog

The Churnet Way: a wonderful walk

The loop from Oakamoor to Froghall and back was one of the most enjoyable walks I've done in a long time. It had a bit of everything: woods, ponds, rivers and railways; steep climbs and sweeping views; an unusual church, an ex-industrial wharf, and, as a final bonus, car parks with toilets. Of course, the sunny weather helped too. I parked in Oakamoor and set off along a quiet lane called Stoney Dale. This is the route of the Churnet Way, which deviates away from the river for a couple of miles. After a while I turned right and climbed up through the woods on a gravelly path, then dropped down to the B5417. a spring in Oakamoor   Crossing the road, I entered Hawksmoor Nature Reserve. It has some fine gateposts commemorating John Richard Beech Masefield, "a great naturalist". I found a photo of the opening of the gateway in 1933; unsurprisingly, the trees have grown a lot since then! A track took me down through the woods to East Wall Farm. Lovely view! Nice duck pond as ...

Greece is the word! Part 1: Athens

The last few times we have been on holiday, my family has asked, "Mum, are you going to blog about this one?" It's felt like an overwhelming task. For a start, we now have FOUR phones with photos on, rather than one digital camera. Also, I regularly write quite long blog posts about three-hour walks. How on earth will I summarise a full week's holiday? But this time, I thought I should try. It's one of the most enjoyable holidays we've had in a while, and I've definitely done too many Peak District posts recently. Everyone needs a change of scenery. So here we go, jetting off to Athens. Day 1 We landed at Athens airport in a looming thunderstorm, but the worst of the rain held off until we'd made it safely to our apartment. Graham had earmarked a nice little restaurant called Lolos for dinner - eating shell-on prawns in tomato sauce was a deliciously messy experience - and we went to bed early after our 3am start. Day 2 Next day we climbed Philopappos ...

Derwent Valley: Belper and Duffield

I'm getting into familiar territory with this walk. Duffield is one of the closest places that I can easily drive to and climb a hill, so I've done lots of walking around here. It's surprising how many new places I still see, though. Temperature: warm. Likelihood of being attacked by hordes of nettles: low. I decide to wear shorts. It's a good choice. The paths are well-trodden, and the sun is bright, though there's a pleasant breeze. There's plenty of free parking by Duffield church, so I drive there and walk across a field to the main road. Veering left up King Street, there is lots to see: the Methodist church, a butchers, and a penny-farthing gate. At the cemetery, I turn right and pick up a path towards the golf course. I'm heading towards the Chevin Hills here, which are the absolute lower reaches of the Pennine range. The ancient trackway along the ridge of the hills is another favourite walk. But today I'm just going straight down the other side ...