Dreams, Bucket Lists, Secret Hopes?

Very interesting chatting to a few on another thread - moving home related - I am the sort of person who always has to have 'something to look forward to' in her life - even if it's only going home to see the Kids at Xmas - or some planned trip or a visitor coming or, one of my favourites - a new location!

Title says it really. Are you 'hatching plans' for the future? Maybe haven't even discussed them with your nearest and dearest yet but often think about it? Or really hope that one day you will be able to do it. Even if it's absailing down some building or other!

I don't mean the fairytale stuff - million quid in the bank and a chateaux in every major city on earth or win the pools and live on a luxury yacht! And I don't mean the stuff you KNOW you now won't realistically ever achieve (those I would call disappointments in life - not dreams or hopes or aspirations)

I've sometimes got more than one on the go even though they 'conflict'. Like right now I am once again seriously considering a move to mainland Europe - not just because of the horrendous airfares for my family to get here (all of them restricted to school holiday times with highest fares) but once again, it's that time of the year when I am thinking about leaving my dog behind while I go off (SO expensive to fly her and so stressful just not realistic unless absolutely necessary).

If I was on mainland Europe - Spain, France, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania waddever - I could buy a little campervan just for me and muttley to do our wanderings around in with our passports but more importantly could make return trips to the UK by ferry for peanuts compared with airfares.

And my other one is (altho I am only a few hundred metres from the sea right now) to move to a beachfront property (well I spend half my life on the beaches!) But I know I don't ever want to live where the sea is cold or I cannot get to it quite quickly as I know I love 'living on the edge'. I was awake until about 3am in bed last night looking at various places on my Nexus. I know what's prompted me to bring my plans from the back of my mind to the forefront again is the fact that my son is talking about buying a property here next to me. It sort of set off an alarm in my head saying 'But I might not still be here by then!'

Obviously this is not the thread for those who are PERFECTLY HAPPY WHERE THEY ARE RIGHT NOW AND CAN'T ENVISAGE EVER WANTING TO CHANGE ANYTHING.

I'm interested in hearing from those who (even if they are happy right now) still have plans hatching in the back of their head for some future date! Because it gives me more ideas!

Hi Tang - I read your thread with great interest because I suspect that many of us have some sort of yearning but in reality it is unlikely ever to happen for one reason or another.

You are in a position to actually act on your dreams and it seems to me that all you have to do is decide which one to follow!!

For me there is one dream that I have had ever since I can remember, and that is to go to live in Africa on a game reserve - helping with rescue and rehabilitation or whatever. I very nearly did this in my late teens, but ended up as an animal nurse in this country instead for one reason and another.

I am now probably far too old to be of any use, and there is also the small problem of my husband Therefore, this is one dream that will remain a dream.

Hiya love the idea and thread but off to work now will reply though.

Oh thank gawd for you - I was reading thro' your post and ready to type 'you are NEVER too old blah blah ....'

Then I saw your comment about your husband and, as per usual, I am spluttering my nightcap here lol!

Hi Tang, well that has never been me so chances are I will be on this thread often (time permitting)

It's four or five years since I finally realised that I am getting older faster than I can do what needs doing round here. There's virtually no firms who can do good renovation work, no brickies, carpenters, sparks, or any of those so it's down to me, my online work also increased about then, so a move looked like the answer except that SWMBO wasn't keen........until our beloved Baruska died suddenly last June, then she wanted to move plus realised that another winter here was not a good idea.

Many of the things that are tax free in UK are not if you are resident abroad and in CZ the tax people are not nice and attending interviews with an ex communist tax inspector with a replica AK47 on his desk is a bit daunting (Well I sincerely hope it was a replica ) so a home base in UK was desirable and that's now done, but we haven't moved yet, and I know at some point OH is thinking about getting a flat in the nearby town where she was born and brought up.

So the dream now is to sell this place, get moving to Suffolk, and make sure our lovely Rianna has the best retirement we can give her.

Losos I have been out viewing a 3 bed house and a 2 bed garden flat and just returned and am starving and now YOU are making me splutter my food!

People are AMAZED I don't 'register to pay tax' in Cyprus and not the UK (I think from memory UK threshold is around 5K - in Cyprus it is around 19K! so I wouldn't be paying hardly any!)

But I just cannot seem to get around to nailing my flag to the mast of a ship that I still often think of as a 'banana republic'. So I have to deal with all sorts of complications and hurdle over barriers.

Just CAN'T bring myself to do it - apply for CYPRIOT Residency or Citizenship!

Well Tang I wouldn't know where to begin with my bucket list. First off after this winter of discontent I'd love to move from this country (which I don't consider "Great" anymore) to one with a decent year round climate, where hard workers are rewarded and not hounded or taxed to excess, where stupid rules and laws don't exist. If you know where this Utopia exists please let me know. Unfortunately unless I get divorced I can't see me leaving these shores! Another thing on my list is to travel but having many dogs and other circumstances won't permit at this time but maybe when I retire?
I'd like to have another decent show dog.
I'd LOVE to get all outstanding DIY jobs FINISHED at this house!
Not too much to ask is it?

I think the threshold is 10K or it willbe soon (Before the next election)

There was a time when going non resident for tax purposes was a good idea but in (or around 2004) the EU finally got it's act together and now banks and building societies etc. are obliged under EU law to inform (Via UK HMRC) other EU tax authorities of any interest, dividends, prizes, or whatever that you receive from any UK source.

When interest rates were much higher we had some money in a savings account, our bank looked at the address I had provided in CZ and assumed I was resident here, and informed the CZ tax authorities who wrote a nasty letter saying "you will attend here on such and such a day at such and such a time or we will send a Police escort" They only let me off because I had saved the end of year tax certificate the bank sent me and showed it to the guy in the tax office. (The one with the repilica AK47 on his desk )

So I would say you are definately best to stay as UK resident for tax purposes. It's fairly easy to meet the requirements if you fly back to UK a few times a year and HMRC will correspond with you wherever you want them to, they'll even write to you in Ouagadodo

Your 'list' of things doesn't sound all that 'unachievable' to me. It's not beyond the realms of feasibility. It's the dammed dogs tho isn't it? Even being committed to ONE puts the brakes on a lot of things I might consider - more than one, well?

Cyprus is pretty lawless. Drives me insane at times. But I only need a short while back in UK and seeing how much more of a 'nanny state' it has become since I left for me to 'appreciate' the lawlessness of Cyprus!

(Small example - painters are painting our block. Roger in penthouse above me who, like me, always leaves his doors open) came home to find not only his verandah furniture 're-arranged' but an ashtray taken from his kitchen out on the table with dogends in it! When he complained about it to his CYPRIOT partner he just shrugged. Couldn't see anything wrong with people doing that lol!

Well my dream is that one day I will have a house, somewhere on the outskirts of a city but really in the green, with some land around that I can keep a couple of ponies, goats, miniature pigs and chickens. And obviously dogs.

I used to want to be an actress (I trained as one and have a degree in drama) but have recently halted this because I realised I don't agree with the industry (as a dedicated feminist I refuse to pervert my views and subject my body and soul to the scrutiny of male spectators, film makers, casting agents and simply the whole industry).
So at the moment I'm pursuing my second dream, to work as a dog trainer!