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It will be 4 years this June since I moved down to Somerset to look after my parents because then in their 80s they had reached the stage where they could no longer live at home unsupported. There was my hairy canine friend and Buddy Jack who died in November 2006, Pop passed away on the 9^th April 2007 and on the 4^th April 2008, I had a major health incident with my Mother.

Thanks to a good Para-Medic team and the A&E at Taunton Hospital, she came through and after a night spent there, I was able to bring her home. She returned there last week on a planned admission to run some tests and procedures and is still there but the truth is that in some way, the game has definitely changed, the final countdown has now started and 87 coming on 88 in August, is a fair enough age if this is her time. For me it is time to start planning my future moves for after her passing.

The Priority is Work

Whilst I will be left with a property free of charge, there will be little else in terms of cash once the funeral expenses have been paid. In order to look after my Parents, I have not been able to work and instead had to rely on the State through a combination of a “Careers Allowance”, topped up with Pension Credit to some notional minimum income of around £150 pw. Now I’m not complaining but it does mean that I need to get back to work so that I can earn a better income and recover my independence.

IT Project Management

My immediate background was as an IT Project Manager concerned mainly with change management and leading that change at all levels of a business. The main gift I was given at birth was a “problem solving” capability because I was very good at it when approaching situations from the “outside” and my unclouded view being incorporated in the project by the host organization. Before becoming a dweller of the Somerset Levels, I was pretty good at getting things done both on time and to budget.

Looking ahead, would I like to do Project Management again, the answer is yes but if I’m being realistic, at the age of 62, 63 after Christmas, am I likely to be even offered the chance ? Probably not likely is the answer because although I have kept my skills current, my age compounded by a 4 year lay off whilst I looked after my Parents, has left me“on the Beach” as they used to say about Sea Captains without a ship.

However, as I live only 30 miles south of Bristol, come the time I will seek opportunities as there are many “IT Heavy” operations in and around the City. Because I have kept my hand in technically and IT PM is really a man/situation management role, it wouldn’t scare me to take on the role despite my enforced ‘lay-off’ plus, my situation makes me highly flexible, I’m even happy to work part-time if the pay is fair.

The Road Less Travelled

About 18 months after I moved down, someone asked me whether I would stay in Somerset after my Parents died. I had never thought about it but my reaction was simple “No, I would be off back to London like a shot…” But if I think about that question today, would I ? In practical terms, the amount of money I would get by selling up here, would probably buy me little to nothing there because if you want to live in London, you want to be as close to the heart of that great City, not in some suburb. So realistically, I suspect that the City of my birth will not be an option or at least, not at this time.

However and given the benefits of fast broadband and emerging video conferencing facilities at more affordable prices, does it matter where you are geographically on a day-to-day basis ? Naturally, all business relationships need some “face time” as part of a bonding process but once established and depending upon the activity, telecommuting via video links can work very well.

I do have a ‘Plan B’ which would be to develop some self employed venture over a period of time and in the early stages getting myself a part time job locally such as collecting shopping trolleys at a supermarket. The point is that one of my main strengths lies in my modest financial requirements, if I take my current income of £150 pw, by the time I allow for tax and NIC, having to pay Council Tax, earning say £210 pw should put me ahead of the game.

Photography and Printmaking

I rediscovered my love of photography whilst living and working in the States however it was when I moved down here, first with my Jack – dog of this parish, that I really came to develop my photographic skills on our twice daily walks in all weathers and seasons. Even after he died I continued developing my ‘eye’ in terms of seeing pictures which means that I “know what that image is before I even raise my camera to my eye” let alone fire the shutter.

But it all goes way beyond that to encompass producing final prints that have been manipulated in software such as Photoshop and PainterX so that they have actually made the journey from a mechanical image to a totally unique one, digital art if you like.

My main focus lies in image manipulation and web based technologies because once I start building up a viable collection of original images, I would look towards selling them and perhaps via the Internet. I will also explore silk screen printing as another method of experimenting with limited run output of finished prints. It is a project that will need a lot of thought, experimentation and time to develop but it will not require vast capital sums to get things under way.

It is the sort of venture that could run hand in hand with a part-time job and most importantly, would be fun to do. Right now, I am developing the first part of the project by working on the web site where I want to start to build a “brand image” for want of a better description and a base to start from. Mind you, I am also trying to rewrite and update my IT CV – not easy, I’m really crap at writing CV s, I have never understood IT Recruitment Agencies who are the ‘audience’ you have to pitch to !

Most agency people I’ve ever talked to, whilst nice as human beings, are a cross between Estate Agents and Car Sales people except, the average car sales person does at least understand their products quite intimately, in comparison, the average recruitment consultant and estate agency person – just doesn’t have a clue about the product, all they understand is their commission !

Come the Time…

Will any of this happen as described above ?

Most likely not based upon my past and track record. What normally happens is that out of the blue some disguised opportunity that is radically different to anything I’ve done before, will appear and ‘whoosh’ I will be off somewhere doing something and most likely, thoroughly enjoying it. There can not even be the certainty that I will still be in Somerset or even the UK…

So if I really believe that is what will happen, why bother with the Plans ?

I have always told other people and it applies to me too that if you never have a dream, you can never have a dream come true. But more than that, be relaxed if things turn out differently to your expectations but always make a plan, you can modify it as you go along if necessary but, if you don’t make a plan, ‘Life’ will make one for you and you may end up where you don’t want to be. There is a John Lennon lyric that goes “Life is something that happens whilst you are busy making other plans”, the man was right.