Chapter Forty-Five -
Get a Job
Annabel mooches about
the house feeling depressed and unsettled. She is fed
up living in the depths of the country. She wants some
action, some new people around. She wants to get out
and do things, and she needs to get Terry out of her
hair."I'm
going to look for a job," she announced."But
you've been looking for a job for years. There aren't
any round here.""It
doesn't have to be around here, does it? You've always
said you want to move.""You
mean to tell me you've finally decided you actually
want to move from this place?""Yes.""Where
to?""Wherever
I can get a job.""If
I remember rightly the most teaching jobs are always
in Lancashire. I don't fancy moving up there.""I
don't want to go to Lancashire. I want to stay in the
south.""In
that case I suggest you look for something nearer
London, but not too close in, otherwise houses will be
too expensive."Annabel
went to the library every week and studied the back
pages of the educational supplements, and ticked off
the jobs she thought she could get that were in nice
places.Her
first interview was at a school near Amersham. I drove
her up on a lovely spring morning. The villages of
Buckinghamshire were clean and tidy and sparkling in
the warm sunshine. Everywhere the bright green of new
leaves burst forth promising great things to come. It
was a joy to be out and about.The
school was not very large. The teachers were pleasant,
and Annabel was quite pleased with the interview. I
walked up the road to the top of the hill and sat in a
field in the sunshine, looking back down over the
town. It was peaceful and quiet, clean and civilised,
and I thought I could quite happily live here.On
the way home Annabel was quite chirpy. She had at last
made a break in her routine. Big things were in store
for her. She had already started to plan her new life.
She could get out to concerts. She could do things in
the evenings. She would have a whole new circle of
friends. And being close to London there would be a
lot more things to do. It was all exciting and new."But
you wont have much time to paint.""I
shall have all the holidays, and there are still the
weekends. Anyway, I'm painting too much of the time at
the moment. I'm getting stale. I need a little break
to get more inspiration. I think my painting's come to
a dead end. I need some new ideas."Annabel
smiled all the way home at the thought of all the new
stimulation she would get from her new environment. No
more hiding away from the world behind a high stone
wall."You
haven't got the job yet."She
pursed her lips. "There were only two other
candidates, and I think they liked me."The
next interview was for a job in Farnborough. This
wasn't so nice. Farnborough had become a great
conglomerate wedged in between several other towns.
There were roads, houses, offices, and traffic
everywhere.She
was gone for an hour, and when she came out she had a
broad smile on her face. "They liked me. I've got the
job."I
put down my book and gave her a big hug. "Clever
girl."She
chattered all the way home; about the people, about
the department, and what they wanted her to do, and
how she would be in charge of the library, and they
wanted someone to look after the school magazine.When we got home I got out the maps and hunted around for suitable places to look for a new home. The house was filled with excitement and expectation. It was all happening.
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