Seriously?

We're going back to Florida again for Thanksgiving. Since we need to rent a car, hopefully without a puncture, I decided to book the rental now, as American Express will give me 10,000 extra points if I spend £300 by tomorrow.

But it turns out that the car rental place I used doesn't take payment up front. And due to my current lack of a contract, I'm not comfortable spending £300 on something else when it's not necessary. So I'm missing out on the 10,000 bonus points. This sucks.

Tumbledown Dick

That's the nickname of Oliver Cromwell's son, history buffs, as he lost his father's power, and King Charles II assumed the throne instead.

The contractor's market seems to be in bad shape. I've certainly never seen it this quiet, and even the agents are saying it's not been like this for years. On the one had, it's great to have all this time off; to catch up on sleep and just relax. But then at the back of my mind, I can't relax 100%, as I know I need another contract soon. Not immediately, as I've got quite a bit saved up, due to the discipline that all those years bouncing around the world had taught me. That's primarily why I feel like "no job" is the default setting for my life, and "having a job" is just a nice bonus that happens every so often. Why contracting suits me like an old pullover. But whereas 14 years ago, all I needed to do was buy food, usually just a loaf of bread and store band corn flakes to last me a week or so, now however, I've got quite a big list of bills that need to be paid, and I'd rather not blow through my entire nest egg. I'm 36 now, frighteningly, I need to keep one eye on retirement, if I can make it that far.

As Maria put it when the government raised my taxes "you've had it too good for too long". Maybe indeed, this could be the end of the Days of Wine and Roses.

Birdbrain

When I'm home during the summer months, I like to leave all the windows open, so the breeze can flow through. This backfired today, when I found little bird droppings all over my hammock chair, chest of drawers, my pajamas, and even in the bathroom, where I also found a small feather. Cleaning that up wasn't very nice, as it turns out the stains are permament. It also makes me wonder where else there could be bird poop.

Why am I at home on a Tuesday? Because my last contract ended after one month instead of twelve. Oh well. Back to the hunt, I suppose.