XTreme

What Bob said! But it seems quite near to where @Pedro is.....so it could be something worth checking out!

Speaking as someone who had a mother who hated the sight of him from the day he was born......she didn't want children and didn't have a maternal bone in her body....I know where you're coming from. I won't go through the whole saga from 1954 to 1999 but to say things were traumatic were an understatement. Her grandkids didn't want to be with her, and even our dogs wouldn't go anywhere near here. And dogs can always tell. She did everything she could to cause problems for me throughout my life and for some strange reason never wanted to see me happy. Looking back she had serious issues, no friends, and went out of her way to cause as much grief as she could. She got married again in 1982 without telling me as well. However, I felt I had an obligation (to my father who died in 1959 from TB due to the conditions he endured in in POW camps) to do my duty so throughout her life I tried to do my best for her. And I did! She made sure that my father's side of the family ostracised me (because I was her son) and consequently I was left nothing in their wills while my two other cousins were included. Then when she died I was excluded from her will as well......that was her final kick in the teeth for me (and my family) from beyond the grave. But I would do the exact same thing again.....I wouldn't change a thing. Because I know that I did my duty for my father.

Bruce had a thing for him!

Like I did with Bruce and Shania Twain's drummer on here! There's always one who walks into it!

Mess?

It has been noticed Tym!

Some of them look like fucking blokes Fred! Wasn't it you many years ago on MB who made the embarrassing gaff of saying he'd fuck a Thai Ladyboy?

He had a great voice.....no idea how he never really made it that big.

Few munters in that lot!

What Tym said! His kind get their straightener in Kansas City....known fact! What you say Little Guy? DA didn't care for Little Guy that much as I recall!

You know the interesting thing here......the members who are second guessing the whole thing are the ones who haven't known me that long compared to the original members here. That lot know me well after all these years, and they don't make the mistake of underestimating me, or thinking that I haven't thought things through. As I've said in the past, I don't really have many skills.....in fact in most capacities I'm fucking useless. But in terms of business management, planning, organising, determination, resilience, and getting shit done (by any means necessary) that's a very different matter. It's a consequence of having to live on my wits (with nobody to bale me out) throughout my entire life. In fact this time 40 years ago I was homeless......look where I am now! So if there's a way this can be done (despite my own country stripping me of my rights) then I'm going to find it.......and exploit it! Tell 'em @Tym

Got a 320km trip coming on Thursday!

Yes I know all that! But this is driven by family reasons! But as I said earlier......we're not going to immediately sell the house, so no bridges are being burned!

Funny thing is that back in 2005 people were saying I wouldn't last long out here! Remember the doubters @Tym? They certainly got that wrong didn't they? And I left Swansea 30 years ago......I wouldn't even go back there in a fucking box!

Thing is......you want to live every day! But when every day is the same, and you just keep reliving the same day over and over again it gets too much. And I think we've reached that point after nearly 17 years here!

Gemma has now sent me best wishes for Valentines Day Tym? Get back on there and sort this shit out FFS!

You and the wife were riding a Dyke?

A lot higher.......but once you get out in the rural places (which is what we want) they're a bit more realistic. I'm putting out feelers everywhere at the moment on many different aspects so just waiting to get info back.

Rentals are cheap here.....probably only get €300-€350 a month. Not worth the risk for that sort of money.

I'm fine......it's the wife that's struggling with her osteoarthritis. But we do have to consider what would happen if something happened to me! She couldn't be stuck here on her own. If it was just me left there wouldn't be an issue......I'm the one who gets all the important stuff done as I have the language and the connections. We're not going to buy another house so we'd rent anyway. Not sure when, or even if, we'd put the house up for sale. May well just keep it here (at least initially).......our Spanish neighbours can keep an eye on it for us. Thing is, we have no mortgage so it's not a financial drain in any way.

Yeh.....I thought that! So I'm trying to work my way into a horsey type group. We plan to go to Groningen province in the north east which is where our son lives.

I've e-mailed Dutch Immigration to clarify a few points......just got to wait for a reply. I posed a few questions on an Expats in NL FB group with a link to the Immigration criteria on the Dutch government page. And the stupid Admin cunt refused to publish it cos it contained a link.....despite the fact that other people have posted links! WTF? So I deleted the link and waiting to see if the fucking dickhead allows it now. In the meantime I thought who can I get more background from? The answer was obvious.....Bikers! So I joined a Dutch Expat group for motorcyclists, and they've been really helpful in terms of info about tax, insurance, and re-registering vehicles. Pretty mixed bunch.....Brits, Italians, Portuguese, Germans, French etc. And very different to Expats here......the majority of them are younger and moved to NL for work, or relationships etc. After all, nobody goes there to retire. Next step while I wait to hear from Immigration is to find horse people......cos there's no way we're leaving our horses behind. Thinking back......I remember a thread on MB that ran for some months in 2005 following my steps to get here. Of course it's bureaucratically much more difficult this time round!

She wants a change after so many years here........and in some respects so do I. Don't get me wrong......I wouldn't have a problem seeing my time out here, but I don't really have a problem with going to NL either. I'm always up for a challenge so I'm going to sound things out with the Dutch Immigration Dept this week.

That tank looks like it has a dent in it! Whose stupid fucking idea was that?