Thanks for all the warm welcomes! Just seen that the spacing in my message has gone weird! Guess it was because I typed it on my phone and was unable to see all of it properly. Are you unable to edit your own post until you have made more posts?

I'd love to go and see Suzie asap, but the economy/recession has affected me quite a bit over the last year. I had to get a new mortgage in summer 2008 when the interest rates were high and I took the advice or mortgage advisors in getting a fixed rate, which turned out to be the wrong advice when a couple of months later the government started reducing the interest rates time & time again! The difference between what I have been paying and what I could have paid a few months later with better rates over the last year would have paid for a decent holiday to Cebu!

Also at work I have had 28% of the bonuses that I had during the same period last year, have had no overtime whatsoever, no salary review and they changed pay dates so we had to work 2 extra weeks compared to normal before being paid. I had major expense with a car as well, so all these things together would have paid for at least 3 decent holidays to Phils. 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.

The main reason why Suzie said about coming here to work was so that she would be able to earn a better wage to support her family back home (which is quite an immediate need since her father passed away and things not being easy). Of course it would have the added bonus of us being near to each other, but as I said before, I can't see that it would be possible for her to come here to work in the very near future since the government have cracked down on immigration and the economy/recession has got worse.

I just hope that we pull out of the recession soon!