"Wow, you must be really excited"

Is the standard response upon hearing I'm moving to America to marry Jeremy. And you'd think I'd be bouncing with joy and delirium and reply "YES! I can't wait!" Instead, I tend to wrinkle up my nose and shrug "mmm yea, it is exciting...bloody terrifying though".

Because I know it's going to be tough. Not the Jeremy part - that's going to be amazing, and genuinely does make me want to do my best Tigger bounce - but the New and Different part.

You see, I've done this before. I moved to Boston straight after Warwick, to live with Jeremy and do my Masters and start my happy-ever-after. Except it didn't work that way - I couldn't get a job after uni , was hopelessly dependent on Jeremy for everything (money, transport, company), I had no friends and found myself drifting into a dull depression.

I think it was the week when I watched about 5 seasons of America's Next Top Model back-to-back that I realised I had to take control back and I decided to move back to England. It was a good decision - Jeremy and I survived the return to distance and I got a good job, and reasserted my independence.

Now here I am, about to move back to Boston, and I know it's going to be tough - I know it's going to take a huge assertion of will and energy and I'm not the most energetic person at the best of times.

So yes, I am excited but I'm also scared - there's no room for messing this one up and returning to England is not an option. Here is my list of actions that are going to stop me from reverting to my ANTM watching self:

1. Learn to drive - shameful, I know, but laziness and public transport have so far delayed this particular rite of passage. However in America, there is only laziness and that's not gonna wash.

2. Join a club - not sure what club exactly, but something where friendship may occur without me having to stand on street corners with a sign saying 'lonely, be my friend'.

3. Get a job - unlike my newly graduated self of 2007, I now have skills, or at least some extra stuff written on my CV, so hopefully this wont be an impossible task. Getting a job should also help with the friendship goal and will mean I can go clothes shopping, which will produce seratonin.

4. Visit my friend Christina in NYC often. Before, Christina was in Argentina being cool. Now, she's in New York being cool and that is much closer. I can but hope that some of the coolness will rub off.

5. Join a gym - so that even if I am friendless, I can at least get off the couch and stop myself assimilating that way (sorry to all my non-fat american friends, I was being facetious)

6. Maintain my accent. Last time, I allowed it to slip dangerously close to the american norm. This time I'm determined to maintain my identity, which also means refusing to alter my accent, even when no one understands me and bus drivers ask 'are you european or something?'

All of the above are going to shield me from drifting back to an ANTM stupor of yesteryear...And of course, Jeremy's going to be there too. I'm gonna be fine. Bounce.