Kumusta to everyone!
Well hi to everyone on here! I joined this forum several days ago and have read quite a few threads/topics which I've found very interesting. There seems to be quite a few friendly and helpful peolple around here which is great. I wish I'd joined a while ago but didn't know of it then. Thought I'd better say hello before I started posting on here! Am sorry if this turns out to be rather long and boring!
Anyway, my name's Tim, and I live near Maidstone in Kent and work as a Technical designer for an upmarket interior furniture company in Tunbridge Wells.
So how did I come to join this site? Well last year I was seeing a Filipina for a few months and it started out great, but sadly in the end she said that she didn't want a relationship. I was quite hurt at first, I have realized that she wasn't for me and we now chat again as friends. Since then I've chatted to a few Filipinas who live over here & in Phils, some briefly (including one who asked for money in our first chat!) and some for longer who I've made friends with & chat with now & again. I've also met up with a couple bit we didn't really 'click'.
I have been in contact with Suzie who lives in Mandaue city, near Cebu for nearly 6 months now. She's nearly 25 and is a senior teacher at a language school that teaches English to Japanese and Korean students. I was ideally looking for someone in the UK as of course it would be a lot more practical, but from day one she has always been interested, makes an effort and is so sweet & caring that I couldn't but help write to her. Of course by now we have been emailing and chatting on Yahoo a lot, also on webcam + texting & chatting on the phone, although she is still getting used to my English accent as she is used to the American English accent! We do have a bit of a laugh when I have to repeat myself a few times so she can understand what I'm saying! she comes from a large family -13 brothers & sisters (can anyone beat that?!) and is no.7 in line.
Sadly her dad passed away about 6 weeks ago, so now things are even harder she is also doing some private English tuition to her students in the evenings to bring in more money for the family. It's also harder for her to use the PC at the school (there's only 3 anyway) as she now has more students to teach than earlier in the year and as well as the extra work in the evenings, her younger siblings need to use the home PC for their studies. As you know the time difference doesn't make it easy to chat to each other, but luckily I have Yahoo on my mobile phone and as I'm mostly signed in, if she has some time when she is able to be on a PC, then we will chat. She has mentioned about coming to the UK to work, but after reading on here and the Home office website, I can't see a way for her to be able to do that.
So there you go, that's my bit about me and sorry for having gone on a bit!
You seemed concerned that *it might appear "long and boring". 
Hmm ... on the contrary, I think it's rather interesting, actually! And your having struck-up an online friendship with Suzie [who comes across as being a really nice girl] is the 'icing on the cake', as it were.
Just so frustrating (& gets me down if I think about it too much) that all these things have happened just when I really didn't need them to, but I guess at least I still have a job. For the moment, the only things that I can do that will help is looking for another job and also get on with with renovating/DIY on my place so I can get a lodger in.
Originally Posted by South-east boy
