h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello again
Did you find your journal thread helpful?
A lot of people seemed to say sensible things - do they work for you?
I know how you may feel - but please keep hoping.
Knowing what you have to live with, I suspect that you have incredible amounts of patience and ability to cope with suffering.
I'm not very good at on-line talking, I'm afraid, but I, too, have an e-mail address. (it's on my PS)
Are there any friends where you live now? The town looks beautiful -I've googled it - but you seem to be new there, have you made any friends?

Absolutely love Eastbourne. We came here several times and loved it before we realised it was cheaper to move here! We have made friends here in such an abundance we are suffering from shock. Have you ever read Jane Eyre? She describes herself as 'a simple person, a plain living person' she doesn't mean simple as in stupid, though. We never fitted in where we were before. Our network of friends numbered one. And I can honestly say I have known him since he was wearing a nappy. Since moving to Eastbourne (the East Sussex one, that is) we have had to invest in more mugs, especially since we have relocated within the town to a ground floor property, in swanky Hyde Gardens. We have a church, friends through it and friends outside of it.
When it comes to the patience and strength thing, I will let my husband (U3508889) type the next bit, and say to you what he often says to me.

'Clare has challenges to face every day in terms of tiredness, pain, nausea, depression and various other problems that would give her good reason to stay in bed. Occasionally she wavers but, despite having to plough on by herself for much of her life, she has always found the strength from somewhere to keep going, keep getting up and keep getting on with life. I have no idea how. This has been, of course, another setback for her but she somehow manages to plough on regardless'

I am going to sign off now, as my tea's almost done and my chillblain cream is burning off.

QSS

I'm glad you have friends in abundance. BTW how big is Eastbourne? It gives the impression of being a seaside resort, but that's not all there is to it, surely? What do people do for a living?

I loved 'Jane Eyre' as a girl. Now that it's my daughter's favourite book, I decided to reread it, rather apprehensively, but found that I enjoyed it as much as I used to - apart from the religious content, which I suppose I enjoyed more as I view it in a different way now. When I was 14, I was supposed to be an atheist, and I guess I took many things metaphorically rather than literally.

It's good to hear about the church, too. I've never been to a Baptist church. My Christian friends in Russia and abroad are either Orthodox or Catholic, non-christians include a buddist, a hinduist and some Orthodox Jews. I know a lady in the USA whose grown-up son has a life long disability (spinal and joints problems) and has to depend on her in his daily life. They didn't use to go to church while they were in Russia, but when they emigrated, they found a Baptist church where they live now, and it turned out to be very supportive. The young man sings in the choir there and the church is very important to him.

We live in a huge city and life is quite hectic for most of us. Sadly, there's little time for friendly gatherings.

Do you enjoy talking to people online? How much time and energy do you have for it? Your point about getting online before rushing off for work is something my hubby would understand (the picture is reverse in this household), but luckily for me, he has his little net toys too.
He was the first to discover the pleasures of the web, starting a genealogy research. I used to be more than slightly irritated with his pursuits before I got hooked myself. Of course, I have an invincible excuse for messing around with the net - linguistic interests

How are your little and bigger furry clients - or flatmates - or what is the best way to describe their status in your house? I hope they leave you enough time to relax. We have a dog and a cat, and they fill our hearts with joy, our conversation with constant mockery and our rubbish bin with loads of hair. Yeah, and we can't wear black clothes (it's a white dog), so it adds to the cheer.

If you've read this far, I hope you have forgiven my endless talking -
I haven't had a day like that for months - one lesson instead of six or eight.
You asked for help and I feel I can't do much, as it's obviously between you and God, who is the author and giver of all good things, so I talked and talked, just to be there, as women would.

Best wishes and hope you'll get over this setback, both physically and emotionally.
- do you continue taking your evening 'medicine'?

You asked about Eastbourne. Eastbourne is a town of three parts. The really, really old parts, the old part and the really, really new bit. A mile outside the centre of Eastbourne is a housing development that is about fifteen to twenty years old, and a hospital. Then you've got the old bit, where we live. Most of the buildings here range from fishermans cottages of the 1600's to prime swanky des reses up to about 1900 in date. The really, really old bit goes back to the days when men wore steel suits and horse power was literal. Yes it is a seaside resort. You have the archiatypal seaside resort type of things along the front, some glorious hotels (google the Grand), then you have a selection of cafes, bars, restaurants, etc... a shopping centre. Basically work is work, like you'd get anywhere else, shops, hairdressers, businesses and, where we live, we are surrounded by Lawyers, Socilitors, Chatered Surveyors and Accoutants.

Ah- my little furries! They are my babies. Nine hamsters, two rats. They are my fun and my relaxation. Despite jumping up and down frenetically to get attention they are very restful, curling up inside your jumper, dozing off or, in the case of the rats, curled up round your neck like a stole. I have plenty of time, it's all my other hobbies that cause me issues.

What about you? Whereabouts do you call home exactly? What's it like? Are you from England originally? Your husband? How did you end up living in Moscow? For that matter, how did you end up living in Russia? A land of vast contrasts

TTFN

QSS

Thank you for writing to me. I am a bit scared by the 'swanky' word and just hope your new home amidst the Lawyers, Solicitors etc is not too expensive. Aha, there are other hobbies as well . Are they fun too? Not as relaxing as the furry ones - pity. My only hobby is my job - learning and teaching - oh yes, and this net thingy may count as one, I suppose. I'm off to work and if you come to this post before I write more - there's something about me and mine in my conversation with your husband http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/F3848297?thread=3808767&latest=1. Have a quiet day - is the breeze warm and comforting? Elena

Good morning!
Moscow is my home, both hubby and I have lived here all our life.
The simple reason being that we are Russian
It's a huge place, and although one can get little quiet and solitude, there's lots of privacy, which I appreciate.
I shrink at the thought of a smaller place to live in, where everyone would know all about me. But that's just lack of experience,
I suppose, I might adjust to those circumstances, too. Still, it's good to be allowed to have secrets.
There are 'swanky' areas here, too, but on the whole, it's pretty mixed.
We live in blocks of flats, high-rise blocks are in abundance, so one meets thousands of people on a daily basis. My students' parents are managers, teachers, research workers etc - and we get on well. Most of them are better-off than we are, with an occasional family who are really wealthy, but than we have five children, and that's a huge disadvantage . Have never met a New Russian type, hubby did once - the man sponsored the construction of a church, which A. was decorating. Later we learnt that this man was killed on Cyprus.
There are jobs in Moscow, and people can make ends meet.It sometimes seems that half the country is working here. If you add legal and illegal immigrants from the former Soviet Union, you get the over-ten-million picture.
Life is hardest for the old and the sick, of course. I once read in a hootoo thread B.'s bitter words about the way the old people were treated in your country, and very much wanted to ask him what he meant.
Take care and drop me a line.
Best regards to B.
Elena

Hello Elena, sorry it's been a while. I have eventually got a job! I never wanted to go back into charity retail but it seems they are the only people who will enploy someone like me. People like me (I have a rare health condition), the elderly and other minority groups are treated pretty shabbily by the government, local councils and organisations that are supposed to help people like us. It is appaling, really. And many end up on the bread line and living on the streets. And occasionally, they end up in prison for not paying their taxes.
England is not the land of milk and honey that many immigrants (legal or illegal) believe it to be. It's tough.

You have amazingly good English- where did you learn?

The Russian chap in cyprus- was he the one shot in the drive by shooting? Or the one that was shot in his aparment by burgulars whom he surprised? Or is this some other russian that the bbc world service did not mention?

My husband and I are doing alot better now I am working 21 hours a week YAY! Eventually! There is something called disability living allowance, which is a small amount of money I get paid every month by the government and, more importantly, an acceptance that I have a life-affecting health condition. We applied last year and got rejected. We applied again this year and got rejected. We appealed and, this time, I have been granted dla, at the lowest level. EVENTUALLY. For the first time, they actually spoke to my doctor. That doesn't sound a lot, but with these idiots, it's a major step forward in thinking. This now means, to all intents and purposes, I am registered disabled. What I mean by that is that in 1995 registration for disability was abolished. Instead a new disability discrimination act was drawn up and you have to fall into one of their categories. If you ask me, registration would make everybody's life a lot simpler.

Hello
I'm glad you've got a job. Have you started work yet? How do you like it? I suppose you feel more comfortable if you work part of the day, is that so?
Rare health conditions are the very thing that show the integrity of a particular society . We are often enraged by our state of affairs and funnily, we used to think that things are much, much better in the 'capitalist' world. I've learnt so many things in my four months online.

I studied English for 9 years at school and was quite fluent when I finished. I studied Biology at a teacher-training college for five years and also English, and got an incredible diploma of 'a teacher of Biology in English' I'd almost forgotten all I used to know by the time I graduated. I've always been more intersted in the language than in science, so I eventually found a job teaching English.
I think what really helped me built up my English was teaching. Nothing beats teaching if you want to really master something

with your job.

When is the sea warm enough to swim in - and do you go swimming? Theoretically, swimming must be good for you. Is it?
Best regards and hope to hear from you again.
I'm off to the dacha and will be on and off the internet connection throughout the summer. Usually come to the city once a week or so.
Remember me to the sea when you go walking, will you?

The sea says hello. And yes, it's still very wet and salty. Yeah, swimming helps, I just have one problem with the idea of swimming- I woke up one morning suddenly totally disgusted with the idea of going anywhere near a swimming pool! Eeuurrgghh. Yuck. Isn't it a bit like sharing someone else's dirty bath water? Says the irrational part of my brain (90%). While the remainder (10%) which occasionally decides to be rational says 'no, it's fine, it's treated'. Irrational brain wins.

Where is your Dacha? What does it look like? Is it tradditional or something a little more modern?

Have great fun and the sea will still be here when you get back unless the ozone hole over Brighton gets so big that aliens start taking a dip.

QSS

Oh the sea what I need is a smiley
Or an smiley...
I can see what you mean - don't go to swimming pools, but the sea and even the lake (which we swim in at our dacha) are another thing. I tell the rational part of my brain (which says look at all those people around ) to keep quiet - and plunge in. I can swim fairly far and with no one at a touching distance imagine I am all alone in my bath
Our summer-house is about 40 km away from the city, which is quite close by our standards, some people travel much farther. I must be quite fit to enjoy swimming, as the lake is an hour's walk from our place, and the kids can cycle much faster than I. There's a wood too, but again, one has to walk across the dacha settlement to reach it.
The kind of house you have depends solely on how much money you are prepared to spend on it. Modern ones vary greatly, most of them have all modern conveniences.
We have two small cottages on our property - but no modern kitchen, so I am not going to cook until one is built
But there are apple trees, and a mighty oak, and lilac, and chestnuts, a birch-tree and a pine - all on our tiny plot of land, and my daughter is quite keen on growing flowers. It is a pleasant contrast
to our 9th-floor three-room flat, where we've started to have difficulty moving around since the children grew up.
Oops, too much talk about the dacha, to catch the train. Bye
Have a good week and tell me all about the aliens when I return