The cost of living is higher down there, and I would have to get a day job that wasn't connected to my career in order to keep afloat. It's all very well saying that you will fit your career in around the job, but the reality is that the job will become the primary focus, as you need it to be able to afford to live in That London in the first place. Career-wise, although I'm not totally where I want to be, (or believe I should be and would be if I hadn't been trapped in that marriage), I have achieved quite a bit since I moved back here in 2007. At my age, a move would have to be the make or break decision, and failure wouldn't be an option. Is thirty six too old to uproot and start a new life as a nobody again, and try to climb the ladder that I'm not even at the top of in Nottingham.
Another factor to consider is that we all have this rose-tinted view of living in the place that you have spent a small amount of time. When we spent a week in Whitby a couple of years ago I said I wanted to live there. The problem is that I wanted to live in our rented cottage and go to the cafe for breakfast, another cafe for afternoon tea, and finally to an expensive fish and chip restaurant before finishing off the night in a pub overlooking the water. Life isn't like that unfortunately, but with London it is a bit different. Or is it?
I have too much work on at the moment, including several back-to-back Nottingham related projects that need my attention. It would be good to have the time to spend a fortnight down there, or even a month, to be able to knock on all the right doors and pester the right people. In addition to that, to find out who the contacts would be; magazines, local papers, promoters, and the like.
Podcast wise, nothing would change as I do them at home anyway, but I did spend rather too long today searching for radio stations that suit my style and remit, and sending some emails in that area too. It won't hurt to try I suppose. Nottingham is my birthplace and so I wouldn't burn my bridges here altogether, and would keep my finger on the music pulse perhaps by still doing the American show, and I follow all the appropriate media outlets on Twitter so I'd find stuff out as quickly as I do now.
Even if it was to happen, it wouldn't be for at least another year. A large proportion of my to-do list is based in Nottingham and concerned its music scene. The filming that I want to do next year, apart from a couple of things, could pretty much be done anywhere, as can any other writing commitments. On the other hand, I am about to get back into live music promotion in a pretty heavy handed way in Nottingham, in a set up that wouldn't exist in London. I would hate to leave before all of my goals were achieved, which would just frustrate me even more. When I was with my estranged wife, she asked if I would consider ever moving away from Southend and I said no, at least not until I had built up something to leave behind. Next thing I knew, she was putting her house on the market and I was trapped.
===
My daily blog can be delivered straight to your Kindle for 99p a month (link)
