Big life changes
The longer days and warmer weather, that mark the start of spring, always feel like the right time to welcome in something new. Last spring was no exception, with an intense round of homeware shopping at Albany Mega Centre helping Jack and me realise it was time to make the big changes.
Jack and I have been together for nearly 30 years, 27 of them married. The kids left home a few years ago and I started to get a bit restless. While Jack was happy with the quiet life at home, I had a new lease of life. One night out with the girls I met Rashid. I repelled his advances at first but eventually, the allure of something new became too much.
It was an afternoon of spring homeware shopping at Albany Mega Centre that gave me the courage to let go of the old and embrace the new.
It started in Adairs. We were looking for bedding for the spare room. Over the last couple of years, I had been sleeping in the spare room on a regular basis. I’d go out to an event, a concert, a party or just out dancing with my girlfriends. Coming home late, I’d sleep in the spare bedroom, rather than wake Jack up. It happened so often, that we started to refer to it as my room.
We were at Adairs looking for a new duvet and sheets for the spare bed. They had a huge range to match every style. Jack suggested a white duvet set with a grey symmetrical pattern. I looked at him and wondered, “Does he even know me?” I said nothing, buying a bright Middle Eastern-inspired duvet, a deep purple valance and black sheets, without even asking Jack what he thought.
The next stop was Bed, Bath and Beyond for a new set of towels for the spare bathroom. I met Rashid and he flattered me, making me feel young and alive again. I resisted at first but after a few weeks, we started to have an affair. Sneaking home at night and brushing my teeth in the spare bathroom had allowed me to get away with it for so long.
Jack found a set of brown towels which looked very similar to what we had in our ensuite. I said that I didn’t like them. Jack looked disappointed, seeming to realise that I wasn’t only rejecting the towels but the past they represented. I found a plush vibrant orange set of bath, hand and face towels that looked exotic and fun.
Jack was keen on a new reading lamp to replace the one that recently fell and smashed. At Lighting Direct, there was a huge range of options and I suggested a couple of modern desktop lamps to Jack. He rejected both, showing me a very conservative floor lamp that looked almost identical to the old one. At that moment the light came on, in more ways than one. I knew my time with Jack had come to an end and it was time for a fresh start.
When we got home, I told Jack how I felt and all about Rashid. He was upset but I think he knew, as much as I did, that it wasn’t working. The time for a fresh start had come and a few days later I moved out.
A year on, Rashid and I are living an action-packed life together. Jack has found a new partner who wants to live life at his pace. Jack and I remain good friends and often laugh about how that day at the Albany Mega Centre allowed us to spring-clean our lives and find new happiness.