this bird has flown

There's a word for people like my mom.  People who, despite being painfully American, stay up late for the "good" (read british) comedies to come on; people who immerse themselves in the strange soap opera that is the history of the royal family; people who cool their toast on racks.

That word is anglophile.

For a long time the mom has been talking about spending a year in England after her retirement.  I admit that I had underestimated her adventurousness and was surprised when she asked me to stay in her house while she was gone.  Since I need to take about a year's worth of classes to prepare for applying to medical school it seemed like a good deal for both of us.  Originally her plan was to find a position with a wealthy family in England who would require a few hours of pram pushing interspersed with afternoon tea, travels to the countryside, and many hours of down right britishness.  Unfortunately no such magical family emerged, even after the mom broadened her standards to include the not-so-wealthy and the elderly.  A lot of discouragement and one persistent internet scammer later, things were not looking good for either of us.  Then about a month ago Mandy and Richard reminded the mom that Richard's mother (Sandra) lives in England and has an extra room to rent.  Though it wasn't the mom's original dream, it was still England and by this point she was ready to accept it.  She bought her ticket and was out the door before we could say "cheeky".

And so begins my year as a quasi-home owner.
Though school and MCAT prep is plenty to think about, I'm excited to play house and do all the home-ish kinds of things I couldn't do in Boston.  One of my dreams was to have chickens, which I do (!!!! more on that another time), and now I'm working on finding a pup.  I have a few projects both in and outside the house that I'm also slowly working on.  This year is kind of fun because I don't have anyone to answer to.  Nothing I have to do.  It feels open for adventures and that's exciting.

As for my mum-
I'm pretty proud of her for being so brave.  I love it more than just about anything when people follow crazy dreams and take chances.  Conversely, nothing makes me more depressed than someone caught in a rut.  So mom, you are awesome.  Here's to a smashing good year