Alan Morris, aka Gooner, aka Sharky.
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My Nicknames.
Why am I called Gooner?
I am a big supporter of Arsenal Football Club, Arsenal's nickname is the Gunners & their supporters are called Gooners. Many years ago a friend I was talking with, called me Gooner & was overheard by other people who started to call me Gooner, this continued to the point where everyone called me Gooner & people who didn't know my name used this nickname. People in the UK generally use this nickname.
Why am I called Sharky?
In 2014 whilst having a break in Spain I was taken ill & because of my illness, I had a large part of my right leg removed. The resulting scar looks like I have been attacked by a large shark, a few friends in Spain told people that I had been attacked by a shark & once again the nickname has stuck. People in Spain generally use this nickname.
A little history about me.
In brief, I was born in Walthamstow in London & moved to Fareham in Hampshire at the age of four. I grew up in Fareham, went to school, had my first girlfriend, my first job, my first everything really, all happened in Fareham. I have also spent time living in both Orlando, Florida, USA & Los Alcázares, Murcia, Spain. I love getting out, meeting new people & trying new things.
In September 1990 I had a life-changing car accident which left me in intensive care for three months & visiting the hospital rehab unit for a year. I still have some problems related to the accident now, the loss of sight in one eye & a poor memory being a couple of them. Since then I have been trying to do some of the many things on my Bucket List. My big passion is travelling and now I have discovered escorted coach tours, I spend lots of my time planning new trips and how to spend my money when I do eventually manage to win the lottery.
After my mum became ill in 2007, I became her full-time carer. Whilst having a break from looking after my mum in 2014, I went to Spain for a week's holiday. Unfortunately, I became very ill, contracting Necrotizing Fasciitis & Sepsis. While I was in intensive care in Madrid, my mum passed away in the UK. I am still recovering from the effects of both illnesses & have now left England.
I am now living in Los Alcázares in Murcia, Spain. My Doctor agreed with me that it would be the best thing I could do for my health. The warmer weather makes it easier for my breathing & the fact that the boardwalk along the beachfront is very flat & has plenty of rest stops, means I can get some light exercise. Most days between the end of April & the start of November I go for a morning swim in the Mar Menor.
Unfortunately, in 2018 I spent 12 days in a hospital in Murcia being treated for Deep Vein Thrombosis which has meant I find it difficult to exercise again but I continue to swim when I can & I get about mainly on a disabled scooter.
In 2021, I went under the knife again having a hernia operation in the hospital. Unfortunately, after being released from the hospital too early, I had to go back to the hospital for a further 11 days to clear an infection up.
Work Experience.
I have had many jobs since I was a teenager. At the age of fourteen, I was doing a paper round, working part-time in the local paper shop cleaning the shop & stocking shelves, whilst also doing a football pools round. At fifteen I stopped working in the shop & doing the pools round & began working weekends in a local garden centre. At first, I worked in the yard as a yard boy, helping customers find what they wanted & carrying goods to people's cars for them. After being there for a while I began working inside on the tills as a cashier before leaving the week I left school. As soon as I left school I got a 3-year apprenticeship with British Gas. After completing my apprenticeship I became a Gas Service Engineer until I had a serious car accident in 1990. After this, I worked for British Gas & Transco in the offices as a clerk.
After taking redundancy from Transco, I lived in Orlando in Florida & worked cleaning swimming pools & as a taxi driver. On returning to the UK I worked as a website designer for some big companies including; The Dixon Group, Wandsworth Borough Council & several smaller clients. I worked for British Telecom trying to break their website & notifying their developers how I had done it. I also worked at Alton Sixth Form College as a Senior IT Technician. In between these bigger jobs I have worked in Asda as a customer assistant, at Travelex as a Travel Money Advisor, & at various pubs working behind the bar & have given voluntary computer lessons in the local library.
What am I doing now?
It's 2023 & I am now in my 8th year living in Los Alcázares, Murcia, Spain. After many COVID restrictions were slowly lifted last year I was able to start to scratch my travel bug itch again. This year I will be starting off as I mean to go on & have a cruise booked for February.
I have also booked to see a couple of concerts in the first half of the year. I will see Rod Stewart & the band Simply Red when they appear in concert at different times throughout the year. My sister has already booked to come out to Los Alcázares for a week, so I am looking forward to seeing her. My cousin Paul is finally marrying his long-suffering better half Sara & I am looking forward to their wedding, providing that all the strikes that are currently continuing in England let me travel to it.
I am also trying to think about what to do for Christmas & New Year in 2023. After many Christmas & New Years spent on my own I have decided to try & take a holiday over that period this year. I want to get away somewhere new, if you have any suggestions for me to get away to, please leave me a comment at the bottom of the page.
