Thursday, July 06, 2006

I can't believe it's not Blogging

Last post on 2nd May? Another era. A symptom of having more work involving more travelling and not yet getting on top of the wireless or at least mobile Internet access. Then I could blog from anywhere. So far I know that I can e-mail in to my blogs, but haven't got into the habit. Easiest option maybe. Then there's wireless hotspots at the airports I fly through every month, and the Starbucks I pass through occasionally. My mobile card wireless system is not forgiving or intuitive, but I suppose it should work. Certainly the Orange or Vodafone wireless dongles seem pretty expensive for my purposes - I couldn't justify it 'just' for blogging. But there's nothing stopping me from blogging from the internet cafe's or friends' and family's PCs. Except the way I've been working this year, especially the past two or three months.

Trying to keep trips away from home to a minimum, and to maximise the work (and other) return, I've been pushing myself a bit too hard. Driving a hire car 2,000+ miles in ten days maybe Ok once in a while, but it's not a good way of life. Staying with friends is great too, but a different bed each night has been tiring. Being a sensitive sort, I miss my own space and my own time. I don't need much, but it's often hard to find the half an hour a couple of times a day I do need when this is what I'm doing.

So, with one more trip before a decent summer break, I'm piling ideas and thoughts and observations into a (portable) melting pot to reflect on here in my little corner or paradise. Ideas like looking for a space to call my own while in the UK. Enough but not too big or homely. This is my home, with my small but perfectly formed family, and I don't wish it otherwise. So maybe renting/borrowing a room from family or friends. Somewhere to leave a ditty bag of toothbrush and shower gel, a suit, and a few good books. Somewhere with web access, and of course, not too far from work and family.

The journey's got a little longer now, since Ryanair first stopped services to Clermont-Ferrand, and, in June, to St Etienne. Now it's Lyon. Which is more than 2 1/2 hours away. The plus side is that there are more companies and more destinations back to the UK. So I don't have to get up at ungodly hours to get to Stansted for 6:30 am flights. Big plus side in fact.

And of course it's not just work, it's work I like and is interesting. Work I'd be hard pushed to find here. So far, three years down the line, it's do-able, but making it sustainable is a fine line. So that's the kind of thing I'll be mulling over from the end of July, before heading back over the Channel at the end of August. And being here for a few weeks in a row means I'll be able to spend more time on my photography, my garden, and my blogs.