Settling in to a new life…

As someone who is determinedly anti-social, I’m not sure I had really thought through the whole ‘is it sensible to retire and move somewhere where you know no-one?’ situation. My wife, the writer her indoors, (to misquote Mark Kermode) is determinedly sociable, so it never really occurred to me even to think that this might be an issue.

We have moved into a village with a pub, which came highly recommended by the person from whom we bought the house. And, as you know, we have a dog. So the combination of these two has meant that nods and breezy ‘good mornings’ on walks with the dog, have been consolidated with some early evening drinks in the local. Last week, the planned swift half – has anyone ever had just a swift half?- turned into a very sociable affair with the quick drink morphing very happily into a few leisurely pints with the result that the next morning was spent trying to remember names of the seemingly vast array of interesting people we had met and put faces to the names on cards that were kindly put through the door to welcome the newbies.

I suppose that, if you are sociable, you will meet interesting people wherever you are and that new friendships will be formed. The writer her indoors says that this is now one of her top tips for those considering retirement – consider moving as well. Starting a new life in a new situation is part of the adventure and is not just a distraction from the previous ‘working’ routine. In our heads it must be hard re-inventing yourself whilst still fully emerged in your old life. I dispute the idea that the city is an unfriendly place to live. on the contrary we enjoyed a wide circle of friends and active social life, with people who were essentially our neighbours. However, the genuine welcome of a small village community has struck a chord with us both. Maybe all villages are similar, but this certainly does seem like a special place to live!

Eating: Lentil and apricot pilau with spiced cauliflower – recipe from ‘The part-time vegetarian’ by Nicola Graimes, published by nourish books.com – a really good set of recipes which work well in a household of pescatarians and flexitarians. Also, one of those great dishes which is arguably even better the following day served at any temperature!

Drinking: Montaria vinho tinto, a portuguese red from the Lisbon area (Naked wines delivery) – meant to be saving it for friends who married in Portugal, but couldn’t resist!

Listening to: A compilation we put together as our summer 2017 playlist, standout tracks of which are, in my opinion, Le vent nous portera – Noir Désir (oh dad, not that French one again), Never forget you – The Noisettes (thank you child#2!) and Stolen Dance – Milky chance.