Reminds me of my life. I live nowhere. At this very moment I'm acctually in a hotel room half a planet away from home and I have (extremely crappy, but still) internet and a roof. I also have money in my pocket but not enough to turn my life around. My credit is bust.

I have a job though, working for people who think I'm trustworthy enough to give me lots or responsibilities but I can't tell anyone about my situation because that would most likely break the bond of trust that we have. I'm abroad to help my company land a deal and to coach a team through the implementation phase. I'm very, very good at what I do. Better than most people I've met. But. I. Just. Can't. Turn. My. Life. Around.

I used to do drugs. I still do. But I used to, too. Not so much anymore, though. A joint now and then.

Not looking forward to going back to my "home" country. Being on a business trip is bliss. Just blissfull.

EDIT: In my mind I got here by following a dream. I followed it too far. Damn you HN. You keep inspiring me to try to do great things.

We're just one-upping one another, right?

Thank you - I was thinking about The Machine Gunners when I read this, but couldn't remember the name of the book - some strong childhood memories associated with that story.

Also Mike Carey's "Felix Castor" series (urban fantasy which I highly recommend BTW). One of the characters is a giant spider who lives under Hampstead Heath. Maybe if I ever visit London I'll swing by there to see if I can figure out why it's such a common trope.

Yeah, I too thought of Rouge Male. There is a 1976 movie of it starring Peter O'Toole worth watching. On Amazon Prime.