PodOBlog #1

Hiya Dad,

Ridiculously early for a Christmas letter, I know. But I’m predicting a festive season of total chaos, so I thought I’d get ahead and scribble something down while I still have both wits and time about me.

So, what’s new?

Well, I resigned from South West Podiatry at the end of May with grand plans for a glorious six-week stretch of R&R, followed by a sunny holiday, and then some good old-fashioned stats revision to prepare for my one-year full-time MSc in Podiatric Sports Medicine at Queen Mary University London.

And what actually happened?

I renovated the flat. Our second bedroom became a study, ready for university life and with my eyes set firmly on the next few decades, I started house-hunting.

Cue: instant love.

The first property I viewed — a gorgeous Victorian house just moments from where we live — completely captured my imagination. Within 30 minutes I’d mentally moved in, planned out my dream clinic on the lower ground floor, and was measuring up for imaginary curtains. Fortunately, my best friend (a seasoned renovator of old London properties) brought me down to earth, pointing out the moss on the exterior and worrying patches of window discolouration. It was not, as it turned out, a dream home — or even a dream project.

Fast forward through a few culturally rich, espresso-fuelled weeks in Italy (more on that in pics), and I’ve now truly fallen in love with what I do hope will be our future home! We’re not quite packing boxes just yet, but the offer’s been accepted, survey done and the games have begun. For all those who’ve done this before — I salute you. Dad, however many army quarters we lived in, you protected me from the chaos. Home buying is complex, painful, and, dare I say it, character-building. Who knew I’d ever give a jot about guttering gradients!

Love you,

Pen xx