We’re going up to Glasgow today as I have a job interview at Glasgow University Physics department for a four year research fellowship. There’s me and four other people. We each give a talk and then are interviewed - this takes all day. I’m a little bit nervous! I will take photos of the trip and let you know how it went in a few days.

We’ve arrived safe and well in Hibaldstow. The journey went surprisingly well, considering just how many stages could have gone wrong. Neither bags nor sanity were lost . Of course, I photo-documented the journey and the fruits of my labour will appear soon. We saw Chicago, Manhatten and the Isle of Man from the air. In London we took the kids to Hamleys toy shop and bought lunch at Selfridges. The ever-suffering Vic met us with Goblin at Kings Cross station for which we are grateful. Natalie went to see platform 9 3/4 as promised. My mother met us at Doncaster station and helped with the kids while we hired a Peugeot Partner to take the bags to Hibaldstow.
The day after we arrived we didn’t feel like unpacking, so we went to Lincoln to buy Kate a mobile phone. All evidence is in the gallery.

Yesterday we finally sold the car - and for only $200 less than we bought it for. I’d like to say the packing is almost done, but that would be a lie. This will be the last post for a while as I am about to pack the computer up in a box and take it to the post office.
Au revoir….

Kate said goodbye to Main Street Veterinary Hospital today. Kerry unfortunately refused our quite reasonable suggestion to relocate the practice across the Atlantic. So we are now both gainfully unemployed. Scunthorpe job centre here we come!
She is sad to leave such a great job with wonderful people. Please keep in touch!
Pete has been performing the menial tasks - cleaning, packing and increasingly deparate attempts to sell the van.

Our travel plans are thus:

Night at airport hotel at OKC.
Southwest flight to Newark via Chicago.
Night at airport hotel in Newark.
Virgin Atlantic flight to London Heathrow.
Night in Bayswater (central London).
Meet Goblin and his eternally suffering chaperone Vic at Kings Cross station.
Take Natalie to platform 9 3/4 after our bags have been put in the guard van.
Take train to Doncaster.
Rent Transit van to move our 12 bags to Hibaldstow.
Sleep.

Photos will follow…

I’ve added some Grand Canyon photos to the gallery. There are lots more to come. I also managed to activate the slideshow function, just look to the bottom on the album screen and select ’slideshow’. We’re going to bed now as we have to get up at 4 in the morning to take Goblin to Will Rogers airport for his trip home.

Kate and I spent much of today configuring the website. I’ve removed the test album and added one full of snaps from around Norman. Needless to say this will be added to. Additionally, I’ll put some albums up from our travels around the US. We’ve packed six cases now (of a possible eight). All we have to do is cram the remaining two cases with the half of our belongings that are not already packed. Goblin is becoming re-acquainted with his box as he will be airborne in less than 36 hours.

I installed Gallery successfully and have put up a test album should anyone wish to peruse. Just click Gallery on the left. I’m still playing around with the themes. Eventually there will be seamless navigation throughout the site.

We have managed to sell most of our stuff now. Just the car left really.

We’ve been packing cases, weighing them, repacking them, weighing them etc.. until they are all just under the 70lb weight limit. The cat departs on Tuesday and our good friend Vic (girlfriend of Maynard on the left) will pick him up from Gatwick.

I’ve been thinking about setting up a website for some time, but what finally kicked me into action is our impending return to Britain after two years in the United States. I thought a blog would be a good way of keeping family and friends (both UK and US) informed about what we’re doing. Of course this does assume that people want to know, but being the optimistic type i’m sure you all will. Needless to say over the next week or two things will start to appear. I will fine tune the blog, then my next task is to install Gallery and upload some piccies. As we’re still in Oklahoma I thought a good place to start would be our adopted home town, Norman. I’ve taken a few photos around Norman - trying to concentrate on things that would be unusual or unfamiliar to Britons. So it won’t be just a random assortment of images(!?). When we get to Britain I’ll try and do the same (except in reverse, of course), then we’ll take it from there.

This is supposed to be a blog, so i’ll say what we’ve been doing today. Packing, packing and more packing. We leave on the 19th and I will relate our travel arrangements closer to the time.

it works!