Gifts from England.

So before Wednesday it'd been nearly eight weeks since I'd seen anyone that I knew before this decade started, but that all changed on Wednesday night (just a few hours later than planned) the Anglo-American newly weds, Ryan and Katie, arrived in Duvall...meaning that I now have to share my little basement/awesome villa down here...but on the plus side I have a hell of a lot more food down here now, but more importantly...TREATS FROM ENGLAND.

First off, thanks to Danny G, Pigeon and Ed for my extremely considerate gift selection from what can only be described as "Mikey's big envelope of joy", which included...well, everything I could EVER need, including: a "winner" medal, a cut out from a newspaper of "Pompey Vs Forest" (the score really isn't important and no I didn't read it), a pierced vanilla johnny (it worked), free trail at Dan's gym, 21p, some Euros, keyboard cleaner, blue tac, the actual Lucy Pinder, a losing scratch card, a "John" name tag for Sainsbury's (he used to be a trolley boy?), a key to Dan's heart....oh the list goes on, but I'm a very lucky and spoilt boy.

And I didn't spend it all at once

"Yes" to the pound!!!

Lucy Pinder has a tattoo of my initials

If the Church boys tell me to "Scratch + Sniff" then you'd better believe that I'll scratch and sniff...
...And it was well worth it. (Notice how I didn't say "totally worth it"...I aint that Americanised yet!)

And thanks to Mum and Dad for my REAL jelly...I will be saving at least one for my birthday, and don't worry that they didn't have any Lime jelly, you also forgot Orange. And thanks for my USB stick, which I'm assuming I can keep, and my documents for Oz, hopefully they will be coming in handing pretty soon and much sooner than originally planned.

And thanks Stinks, I aint opened my envelope from you yet, but I will. And thanks Ryan and Katie for bringing it all over. AND thanks to Mariah for the shout out, but it's not the "the British guy", it's "Mike, the English guy who won't eat peanut butter and JAM sandwiches."

So I've given Ryan the grand tour of Duvall...it's taken us two days, but I think he knows his way around now!? It's been a pretty chilled out couple of days really. Canada job hunt is getting there, pretty pleased with my progress. My day started with a phone conversion with a friendly Canadian, meaning I heard a Canadian accent for the first time in just over a year, I forgot how it's pretty much an American accent but easier on the ears.....oh yeah...I can't get away with saying things like that just yet. (And give over, I've had over eight weeks of Americans mocking and mimicking my perfectly spoken 'ampshire accent).

After Sunday, I'll go back to being eight hours behind England...weekend's an hour longer...yeah...wait...what difference does it make to me!?!?!? I suppose it means Ryan and Katie have to stay here an hour longer than planned. Hope you all had a good Bonfire night back home...and yes, yes they do have a 5th November in America (it's just 7 hours slower)!

I probably should go to sleep now.....