My situation - apologies if this turns into a long post

Thanks to all of you lovely people who sent me your good wishes.
I'm happy to report that the interview went extremely well. I am very confident that I 'passed', meaning that I'll be asked back for a final, confirmatory interview in January and, all being well, start work in February.

Woot!

 

Just a quick update. As hoped, I have been invited back for a second interview in January. Just that one hurdle to go. Now putting it all out of my mind until after Christmas. Thanks again for your support and kind thoughts.

ANH

 

Just returned from a short break in London. We had three nights away in a rented flat. My wife and I had a day and a night on our own, then our daughter joined us for days 2 and 3.

The short-break was mostly about shopping, which isn't really my thing, but my wife really appreciated and enjoyed it. She also secretly packed a sexy outfit and made time for us to make love together.

Spoiler: Look out Roy Rogers! (Trigger warning)

The sex was great and it appears that the PIED is definitely gone as I was able to stay fully erect inside her for as long as she wanted me too.

Knowing that she planned our love-making in advance and that it, and I, was important to her made me feel loved and valued, which hasn't always been the case.

We were staying near Soho, which, for those who don't know, has always been the heart of London's sex industry. It was strange being back there, because this is where I used to buy my magazines in my younger days. I used to know every inch of the streets and could navigate them blindfolded. I knew where every sex shop was and which ones sold which of my favourite magazines. Most of the shops have long-since closed. Just as video killed the radio star, I guess internet killed the porn-mag shop. Walking around these streets, with their strong porn associations, with my wife and daughter was strange, but also liberating because the siren lure of porn I used to feel so strongly had gone. Thank you NoFap!

Being up in London again among throngs of people was very different from our normal quiet semi-rural existance. The cold weather meant that most people were wrapped up for warmth rather than displaying their bodies, but there were still styles of dress that we just don't see at home. The black over the knee boots worn with black mini-skirt has always been a bit of a trigger for me, so there were some occasions when I had to actively avert my eyes.

So a lovely few days. My wife said how much she enjoyed it, particulary our time as a couple, and that we must make time in our busy lives to do it more often.

ANH

 

So here it is, Merry Christmas, everybody's having fun.
Except that many of you aren't.

It's Christmas Eve morning here in the UK. My wife and daughter are still asleep. I've just finished the last edit of my novel, completing one of my big goals for 2017. I'm about to feed the chickens and then tackle a long list of chores, to make sure we are all ready for the big day. I'll be making 36 mince pies later and baking a loaf of bread. The three of us will be waking up here tomorrow and opening our presents to each other, before heading off to my wife's brother's for a couple of days with her wider family.

I won't be posting again till the festivities are over but I will be thinking of you all and hoping that each one of you, be you Christian, Druid, Jew, Muslim or Atheist, is able to have a few days of peace, happiness and healing and that a little calm settles on your sea of troubles. Thank you again for helping and supporting me through my own journey this year.

Merry Christmas to you all.

ANH

 

I took a picture of the ones I made, but I don't know how to post pictures here, so here is a link to Wikipedia instead.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mince_pie

There were 12 of us at Christmas dinner, so I needed to make sure there were enough to go around.

Merry Christmas @EyesWideOpen

ANH

 

Thank you! What a lovely compliment!
ANH