I've been slacking. I still have big thoughts for England, Cheerio! but I've been non-stop busy busy busy. New jobs, extra responsibilities, my first grader's homework, holidays, back-to-back viruses sweeping through our small community... Things that move my blogging to the back burner.
We have officially been in the United Kingdom for a year now. To my dismay, we've done nothing of major significance. This is pretty much entirely due to the US dollar's weakness in exchange for the GB pound.
This month, I started a new job at the ITT office. I sell tickets and leisure trips that I can't afford to go on myself. It's cool though, because it's income which helps to fill the gaps and because it gives me an inside-look on what is available. Plus, it gets me out of the house, which was SO needed and overdue. I have missed employment. Getting dressed and putting on my makeup in the morning because I have someplace to be has been therapy for me. It's also made my days off that much sweeter, because I appreciate having a flexible schedule that still allows me time to spend with my children. And, ok, I'm not going to lie. It gives me time for occasional naps on the couch with my youngest and our pets.
Banking here is depressing. I have a better sense of how much of a bummer the US economy is by living overseas because for the past four years I've been able to see firsthand how much our US dollar has struggled against foreign currency. When we arrived in Okinawa in September 2008, $1 bought us ¥113. By the time we left, $1, struggled to buy us ¥80. Here in England, I've not experienced the dollar being "strong" at any time. $1 currently buys about £0.60. In Japan, our COLA (Cost of Living Allowance) was adjusted pretty frequently to compensate for the yen's strength, and as a result we lived pretty comfortably. We had a huge military exchange to shop at and for everything else, going off base wasn't much of an issue. Here, it's my understanding that the COLA hasn't changed in quite some time.
What all this COLA discussion means, basically, is that we took a big pay cut when we came here from Okinawa, but have found the cost of living to be significantly higher. In Japan we were able to comfortably eat out 3-4 times per month without issue. In England, we are lucky if we get to eat out once a month without blowing our budget. Going to McDonald's easily costs us $40. And a bellyache.
When you arrive in the UK, eagerly you will probably take a trip to Vodafone (or other cell service provider) hoping to get your hands on a bit of technology and a means to connect to the outside world. They will send you away. In order to do anything of value in this country, you will need a sterling bank account. For us, this means going to Community Bank and establishing an account from which you will be able to auto-pay your British bills.
It's only after establishing your sterling account that you will find yourself able to set up certain things - mobile service, telephone, cable, internet... And things in your financial world will get a lot trickier. You have to remember to transfer money into this account monthly. Transferring in $200 will only add about £120 to your balance. You will find yourself estimating your bill totals and then doing math to make sure they'll be covered with what's in this account. And in order to fiddle with it, you will have to walk into a branch and speak to a teller - which means dealing with their odd business hours (most things on Alconbury are closed on Mondays).
If you're not familiar with it, dealing with foreign currency is overwhelming. When you withdraw pounds from the ATM, you'll be working in increments of 10. And then, for example, you might go to Tesco and spend £15. It will feel like you're spending $15. I guarantee it will, because it will feel like $15 worth of merchandise. You're actually spending closer to $25, though. You have to be extra careful to keep your wits about you when shopping on the economy because essentially most of us just don't make enough money to cover the expense of currency exchange.
Not to say that everything feels like a rip-off. Produce, for example, is actually more reasonable on the economy - especially when you factor in quality. When you buy a bunch of bananas at the commissary, you are bringing world travelers into your home. The majority of the commissary's produce comes to us via refrigerated transport from the US, passes through Germany and is then distributed between the commissaries here in the UK. They've been on a long journey, and usually are near spoiling, unfortunately. Many times I have bought produce in prepackaged units from the commissary and brought them home to discover that a large percentage of my (costly) goods have already begun to rot.
On another note, manufacturer's coupons are valid at our commissaries here for 6 months past their expiration date, so finding ways to pinch pennies (if you are motivated and have the time to devote to doing so) do exist. Tesco's motto is "Every little helps". This will be your mantra here. Especially if you have any plans to travel and enjoy the opportunities that come with being in Europe.
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