Well, it's a Thursday afternoon and I'm in the company flat reading the entire Help section for some computer aided translation software I bought a while ago. You guessed it - I'm sick.
I started feeling not so well on Monday afternoon but thought nothing of it. Tuesday brought severe aches and what felt like a temperature. I broke out the remaining Lemsip from my last trip to the UK and soldiered on. After a broken night's sleep I went to deregister at the Burgeramt and picked up some Grippostad C (nearest thing to Lemsip in Germany that I've found) and went in to see what I could get done.
After mentioning that I wasn't feeling so hot, I was summarily sent home by the producer and one of the administrators. And told to find out if it was swine flu, and not to come back until the doctor said I was safe to. So, I spent Wednesday lunchtime failing to see a doctor and wandering aimlessly around the town centre until I headed home and dozed until heading out for my leaving drinks. Not many people showed, but I assume they thought I'd be too sick to go out.
I saw the doctor this morning, and they confirmed I had ticked the boxes to get tested for swine flu (have been exposed to it in last 7 days - it's in the office, aches, fever), tested me for it, signed me off sick and presented me with a bill of 20.10 EUR for the visit - much less than I'd thought - and 170 EUR for the swine flu test. Couldn't believe it. My agency is trying to find out if it should be covered under E111/EHIC but I suspect not - flu medicine might be, but this is just to satisfy the office's reporting requirement to the Gesundheitamt, I think.
So, I was out in the morning, back by around 10:30, rested up, faffed around on the internet, did some very sweet translations for the school exchanges, got tired of the internet, started reading the Help system so I know what I can do with this rather expensive software, suddenly was starving and drained so shuffled across the road and bought supplies to make several days worth of pasta and meatballs and got back just in time to avoid being rained on heavily.
It's frustrating to be out sick for the last 3 days of my contract, especially when I had everything on track to finish up the validation. But, as I've said of others, having no slack is poor planning. I've been working extended hours for almost 6 months now, eating badly, getting almost no exercise and sleeping on a sofabed. I pretty much asked for this.
I'll take it easy today - I felt absolutely fine apart from a sore throat in the morning but the aches are back now and I've started coughing, so I've probably become infectious and should not be in the office anyway. Still not sure about karaoke tomorrow, might not be a good idea. No point in a) infecting everyone b) going when I can't actually sing anyway.
Although I'm not much of a believer in anything, I do subscribe to a karmic-style "it will come back to bite you in the end" theory. Time to try to do things a little differently.
Thursday, 13 August 2009
Saturday, 25 July 2009
What do you call this?
Even I'm tired of the "I'm not dead" routine. Let's skip it. There's only so long you can carry on not doing something before you have to admit you've failed to do it.
There are many things I've been failing to do, like exercise, eating healthily and keeping in touch with people. Most importantly, I've been failing to get on with doing the annotated translation, the last stage of my MA. Apart from the fact that the Distance Learning Centre at Sheffield has just announced it's started a staged closure (supporting everyone currently enrolled but not taking any more students) I really don't want to let it drag on any longer, even if I am allowed a second extension. I finally exported it from the translation tool today and started editing the English and adding annotations, although some of the translation is so rough that it's almost certainly not correct and I still have a good bit of 19th century Japanese to translate into modern Japanese so that I can translate it into English. Unfortunately, I'm still trying to figure the first step out.
I managed one small victory today, doing the first run for the "4 weeks to 1 mile" running podcast I bought - although it is the third time I've done it, with the previous two not being followed by any more running that week. I'm achieving a lot at work, but it doesn't feel like it. Nothing feels rewarding or fun. Not completing files, not things going to plan, not my paycheque, nothing. Doing what I should be doing is as unrewarding as doing things I shouldn't.
Today, I manged to give myself a second dose of conditioner instead of shower gel, almost switched the coffee machine on without putting any water in and managed to annoy my downstairs neighbours by deciding to sweep off my balcony while waiting for coffee to brew - of course, they were out on their balcony enjoying the nice weather and I swept a load of petals and leaves down on them. Left me feeling rather stupid.
I've had two good nights sleep, but I don't feel like it. Maybe I am hitting the limit of working 10 hour days 5 days a week. Work has been pretty stressful, with editing taking a lot longer than it ideally should. Plus lots of other messing around, none of which directly involves me, but leaves me thinking there but for my circumstances go I.
I do want to go and devote weeks and week to the annotated translation, and spend more time exercising and keeping in touch and somehow getting things done without feeling tired and stressed all the time. I'm really worried that I won't be able to get enough work freelance (I have enough saved up to do me the rest of the year, though), and anxious about getting my residency permit in Switzerland. Not being in the EU any more is going to be strange.
The other thing I've been doing is depressing myself by reading the blogs of some very talented and knowlegeable translators, wishing I was where they are, and once again considering biting off more than I can chew by looking at the OU degree in English and French.
They did have a link to this, which looks good:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-research-englishnext.htm
For the moment, it goes in the vast pile of things I really should do but haven't got around to doing.
There are many things I've been failing to do, like exercise, eating healthily and keeping in touch with people. Most importantly, I've been failing to get on with doing the annotated translation, the last stage of my MA. Apart from the fact that the Distance Learning Centre at Sheffield has just announced it's started a staged closure (supporting everyone currently enrolled but not taking any more students) I really don't want to let it drag on any longer, even if I am allowed a second extension. I finally exported it from the translation tool today and started editing the English and adding annotations, although some of the translation is so rough that it's almost certainly not correct and I still have a good bit of 19th century Japanese to translate into modern Japanese so that I can translate it into English. Unfortunately, I'm still trying to figure the first step out.
I managed one small victory today, doing the first run for the "4 weeks to 1 mile" running podcast I bought - although it is the third time I've done it, with the previous two not being followed by any more running that week. I'm achieving a lot at work, but it doesn't feel like it. Nothing feels rewarding or fun. Not completing files, not things going to plan, not my paycheque, nothing. Doing what I should be doing is as unrewarding as doing things I shouldn't.
Today, I manged to give myself a second dose of conditioner instead of shower gel, almost switched the coffee machine on without putting any water in and managed to annoy my downstairs neighbours by deciding to sweep off my balcony while waiting for coffee to brew - of course, they were out on their balcony enjoying the nice weather and I swept a load of petals and leaves down on them. Left me feeling rather stupid.
I've had two good nights sleep, but I don't feel like it. Maybe I am hitting the limit of working 10 hour days 5 days a week. Work has been pretty stressful, with editing taking a lot longer than it ideally should. Plus lots of other messing around, none of which directly involves me, but leaves me thinking there but for my circumstances go I.
I do want to go and devote weeks and week to the annotated translation, and spend more time exercising and keeping in touch and somehow getting things done without feeling tired and stressed all the time. I'm really worried that I won't be able to get enough work freelance (I have enough saved up to do me the rest of the year, though), and anxious about getting my residency permit in Switzerland. Not being in the EU any more is going to be strange.
The other thing I've been doing is depressing myself by reading the blogs of some very talented and knowlegeable translators, wishing I was where they are, and once again considering biting off more than I can chew by looking at the OU degree in English and French.
They did have a link to this, which looks good:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-research-englishnext.htm
For the moment, it goes in the vast pile of things I really should do but haven't got around to doing.
Friday, 22 May 2009
A system that works
First of all, a system that doesn't - trying to finish packing at 2:30am for a 5:00 am departure. I did some packing on Tuesday night, but ended up finishing on Wednesday night with the last few things in the case. We went out to have a meal at Klosterhof and then on to Star Room for karaoke. They close at 12:00 on a Wednesday, so I would have plenty of time to go home, pack, get up at 5:00 am, leave the flat at 6:00 am and be at the station for the S-bahn at 6:30 am and on the train to Zurich from Haupbahnhof at 6:50 am.
Except someone managed to convince them to stay open until 1:30 am. By that time there were no trams and we missed a night bus, so ended up walking home - which takes longer if you're trying to shepherd a group of rather drunk people. Got back in at 2:30 am and did more packing and for some reason finally got around to patching up the rip on the inside leg of my favourite pair of jeans. Set the alarm for 5:00 am and got into bed around 3:30 am. Woke up at 5:00 am, stretched and thought that I could really do with a few more hours sleep, looked over again... and it was 5:30. Threw stuff into my bag in a total panic, and managed to forget everything in the kitchen (chocolates, parmesan, vitamins, medicine) and somehow, my music player. By the time I realised it, I was halfway to the station on foot as there were no early morning buses on a bank holiday. So, kept on going. Lugging a suitcase over Frankfurt's tiled pavements is not fun.
I got there just in time to see the previous train leave - so I'd made good time - and when I got up on to the platform I decided I needed a drink. (It was feeling thirsty and thinking about my effervescent vitamin C that I hadn't taken that made me realise I'd left all the stuff in the kitchen behind.) There were three prime sample of Frankfurt youth at the vending machine, one of whom asked me in excellent English if I'd mind throwing my suitcase at it as it was refusing to vend.
In the end I decided to walk through the station and down to the tram, where there was an earlier service to Hauptbahnhof that gave me enough time to grab a coffee and some pastries on the way to the platform. The journey was nice - we didn't go through the Rhine Valley, but still some nice scenery. My plan to read Splendid Monarchy for my MA was a total fail, and I spent most of the time staring out the window or snoozing. The train was never anywhere near full.
When we were nearly at Zurich, I texted David and asked him to come and meet me, as I was too tired to try a repeat session of "lug case and bags via public transport". He came out and we went back to the flat, then he went to get some shopping while I snoozed. We then headed out in the evening to a barbeque at some friends of himself's, all Google employees. They had a very interesting little barbeque, Son of Hibachi.
This morning we headed into Zurich Hauptbahnhof to get a Halbtax card for me and if possible a commuter pass for himself. We piled out of the flat in 10 minutes after waking to get there before our 24-hour passes from the previous day ran out, and himself forgot his passport photo. I had no problem getting the Halbtax card, which entitles you to half price tickets on everything except commuter passes - it is available to everyone, even tourists. Himself thought he couldn't get his pass with no photo, but the lovely man at the counter told me that when I got a commuter pass, they could issue it to me without a new photo as my photo would be on file... so himself, who already has a Halbtax, was able to get his commuter pass. We were given temporary cards until ours arrived in the post, and the wallets they go in have the Zurich transport map on the outside! A system that truly works.
We then spent the rest of the day in Ikea, restraining ourselves from getting anything but what we needed - some crates to move and some lights. I also got a cute set of hanging files. And the obligatory plate of meatballs. Will purchase lots when I go there again next week. We're going to get a sofabed to sleep on until we can get our stuff over from the UK. The plan is to get a Transit and take over most of the furniture, then get the flat redecorated and rented out.
So, I'll be here until June 2 at the earliest, or maybe a few weeks more depending on how delayed my project is in Frankfurt. They'll let me know and I can head back up, and I have another 8 weeks on my contract for this year. We'll see when I'm where!
Except someone managed to convince them to stay open until 1:30 am. By that time there were no trams and we missed a night bus, so ended up walking home - which takes longer if you're trying to shepherd a group of rather drunk people. Got back in at 2:30 am and did more packing and for some reason finally got around to patching up the rip on the inside leg of my favourite pair of jeans. Set the alarm for 5:00 am and got into bed around 3:30 am. Woke up at 5:00 am, stretched and thought that I could really do with a few more hours sleep, looked over again... and it was 5:30. Threw stuff into my bag in a total panic, and managed to forget everything in the kitchen (chocolates, parmesan, vitamins, medicine) and somehow, my music player. By the time I realised it, I was halfway to the station on foot as there were no early morning buses on a bank holiday. So, kept on going. Lugging a suitcase over Frankfurt's tiled pavements is not fun.
I got there just in time to see the previous train leave - so I'd made good time - and when I got up on to the platform I decided I needed a drink. (It was feeling thirsty and thinking about my effervescent vitamin C that I hadn't taken that made me realise I'd left all the stuff in the kitchen behind.) There were three prime sample of Frankfurt youth at the vending machine, one of whom asked me in excellent English if I'd mind throwing my suitcase at it as it was refusing to vend.
In the end I decided to walk through the station and down to the tram, where there was an earlier service to Hauptbahnhof that gave me enough time to grab a coffee and some pastries on the way to the platform. The journey was nice - we didn't go through the Rhine Valley, but still some nice scenery. My plan to read Splendid Monarchy for my MA was a total fail, and I spent most of the time staring out the window or snoozing. The train was never anywhere near full.
When we were nearly at Zurich, I texted David and asked him to come and meet me, as I was too tired to try a repeat session of "lug case and bags via public transport". He came out and we went back to the flat, then he went to get some shopping while I snoozed. We then headed out in the evening to a barbeque at some friends of himself's, all Google employees. They had a very interesting little barbeque, Son of Hibachi.
This morning we headed into Zurich Hauptbahnhof to get a Halbtax card for me and if possible a commuter pass for himself. We piled out of the flat in 10 minutes after waking to get there before our 24-hour passes from the previous day ran out, and himself forgot his passport photo. I had no problem getting the Halbtax card, which entitles you to half price tickets on everything except commuter passes - it is available to everyone, even tourists. Himself thought he couldn't get his pass with no photo, but the lovely man at the counter told me that when I got a commuter pass, they could issue it to me without a new photo as my photo would be on file... so himself, who already has a Halbtax, was able to get his commuter pass. We were given temporary cards until ours arrived in the post, and the wallets they go in have the Zurich transport map on the outside! A system that truly works.
We then spent the rest of the day in Ikea, restraining ourselves from getting anything but what we needed - some crates to move and some lights. I also got a cute set of hanging files. And the obligatory plate of meatballs. Will purchase lots when I go there again next week. We're going to get a sofabed to sleep on until we can get our stuff over from the UK. The plan is to get a Transit and take over most of the furniture, then get the flat redecorated and rented out.
So, I'll be here until June 2 at the earliest, or maybe a few weeks more depending on how delayed my project is in Frankfurt. They'll let me know and I can head back up, and I have another 8 weeks on my contract for this year. We'll see when I'm where!
Sunday, 26 April 2009
Rollercoaster
Well, I can't keep titling the posts "I'm not dead".
Had a blissful Easter weekend in Zurich, arriving late on Thursday night to meet up with himself at the apartment he's subletting while a colleague is seconded to the US. On Friday we walked down to the lake and around the old town, through some beautiful gardens and down the west side of the lake. Saturday was spent in Horgen, where himself is flat-hunting, and we saw one possible place - the ground floor of a 3 storey house, gorgeous but out of our price range. I swear the current tenants were a German/Swiss version of a certain couple we know in north Wales.
Sunday was spent at the zoo, with an additional adventure on the way there as we had a ticket check on the tram and after we'd happily handed over out tickets were told they were the wrong ones. The inspector warned us there is a 80 CHF fine, then took us off at the next stop to buy the correct tickets instead of charging us. The ticket machine didn't take notes. We didn't have change. He didn't have change. His colleague didn't have change. He told us to keep going on our wrong tickets, break notes at the zoo and get the right ones back.
The zoo is quite large, but did suffer from a bit of that "animals in a cage" feeling. The elephant keepers had batons, which I haven't seen before. Mind you, one of the elephants took it off the keeper while he was hosing them down and he just put his hand out and they gave it back. There's also a huge tropical dome, which is amazing but very uncomfortable with the high humidity. We had coffee and cake and wandered home.
Monday wasn't quite as hot as the other near-sunburn days, so we went out on the lake. It was billed as a cruise, but was more like a modified ferry journey. This suited us, as we wanted to look at potential neighbourhoods from the water. Some were added to the list as a result of being able to see how built-up or not they were.
Got back into work on Tuesday glowing (mentally and physically). I knew there would be some kind of comedown, but was not expecting to be called into a room with a number of other people to be told that our end client was terminating our agency. The rest of the week was spent in a blind panic and deep uncertainty about whether we could - let alone would - continue beyond the end of April when the termination took effect. Many hours were lost meeting new potential agencies and discussing our situation, during which some unsettling facts were discovered.
The weekend was spent checking on tax and residency laws, reading sample contracts and constantly on phone and messenger to each other. This week was more of the same, although I started skipping the agency meetings and tried to concentrate on getting some work done. Old rumours ran riot, new ones abounded and as the week dragged on with no information from the end client, people started to make plans.
In a wonderful demonstration of their unique modus operandi, an email with a request to speak to all of us individually went around at 5:50pm on Friday, when most people had gone home. I was in work until 8:00pm waiting to talk to HR and did get some questions answered, but not all of them and now, with four days to go, I still have no contract to sign. But it looks like there can be one, although all this was worked out by my good self, instead of the end client who caused the problem.
After talking to himself about the expenses involved in moving to Zurich, I've decided to stay on if possible. A few things will need to be worked out, but hopefully it will be possible. The other option would be just not taking the return flight after the May bank holiday weekend (which is on Friday 1 May here). Looking forward to going back for a few days for a break, even if it is to close up the flat for decoration.
Other good news: himself has had an offer on a flat - in one of the new areas we started looking in after Easter, excellent to get to work, smaller than he really wants, but about the same size as our current one and renting is incredibly expensive - and I got written confirmation from the Finanzamt that they don't want any money from me.
Reality check: I am applying for an extension for my MA. I'm just nowhere near far enough with my translation to be ready in 6 weeks, even with 2 weeks off. I keep putting off sending in the form, which I think shows how much I hate doing it. But this is one thing I can't afford to get wrong, especially after the poor mark on my last essay.
So, one more (short) week of uncertainty, and then hopefully back to business as usual.
Had a blissful Easter weekend in Zurich, arriving late on Thursday night to meet up with himself at the apartment he's subletting while a colleague is seconded to the US. On Friday we walked down to the lake and around the old town, through some beautiful gardens and down the west side of the lake. Saturday was spent in Horgen, where himself is flat-hunting, and we saw one possible place - the ground floor of a 3 storey house, gorgeous but out of our price range. I swear the current tenants were a German/Swiss version of a certain couple we know in north Wales.
Sunday was spent at the zoo, with an additional adventure on the way there as we had a ticket check on the tram and after we'd happily handed over out tickets were told they were the wrong ones. The inspector warned us there is a 80 CHF fine, then took us off at the next stop to buy the correct tickets instead of charging us. The ticket machine didn't take notes. We didn't have change. He didn't have change. His colleague didn't have change. He told us to keep going on our wrong tickets, break notes at the zoo and get the right ones back.
The zoo is quite large, but did suffer from a bit of that "animals in a cage" feeling. The elephant keepers had batons, which I haven't seen before. Mind you, one of the elephants took it off the keeper while he was hosing them down and he just put his hand out and they gave it back. There's also a huge tropical dome, which is amazing but very uncomfortable with the high humidity. We had coffee and cake and wandered home.
Monday wasn't quite as hot as the other near-sunburn days, so we went out on the lake. It was billed as a cruise, but was more like a modified ferry journey. This suited us, as we wanted to look at potential neighbourhoods from the water. Some were added to the list as a result of being able to see how built-up or not they were.
Got back into work on Tuesday glowing (mentally and physically). I knew there would be some kind of comedown, but was not expecting to be called into a room with a number of other people to be told that our end client was terminating our agency. The rest of the week was spent in a blind panic and deep uncertainty about whether we could - let alone would - continue beyond the end of April when the termination took effect. Many hours were lost meeting new potential agencies and discussing our situation, during which some unsettling facts were discovered.
The weekend was spent checking on tax and residency laws, reading sample contracts and constantly on phone and messenger to each other. This week was more of the same, although I started skipping the agency meetings and tried to concentrate on getting some work done. Old rumours ran riot, new ones abounded and as the week dragged on with no information from the end client, people started to make plans.
In a wonderful demonstration of their unique modus operandi, an email with a request to speak to all of us individually went around at 5:50pm on Friday, when most people had gone home. I was in work until 8:00pm waiting to talk to HR and did get some questions answered, but not all of them and now, with four days to go, I still have no contract to sign. But it looks like there can be one, although all this was worked out by my good self, instead of the end client who caused the problem.
After talking to himself about the expenses involved in moving to Zurich, I've decided to stay on if possible. A few things will need to be worked out, but hopefully it will be possible. The other option would be just not taking the return flight after the May bank holiday weekend (which is on Friday 1 May here). Looking forward to going back for a few days for a break, even if it is to close up the flat for decoration.
Other good news: himself has had an offer on a flat - in one of the new areas we started looking in after Easter, excellent to get to work, smaller than he really wants, but about the same size as our current one and renting is incredibly expensive - and I got written confirmation from the Finanzamt that they don't want any money from me.
Reality check: I am applying for an extension for my MA. I'm just nowhere near far enough with my translation to be ready in 6 weeks, even with 2 weeks off. I keep putting off sending in the form, which I think shows how much I hate doing it. But this is one thing I can't afford to get wrong, especially after the poor mark on my last essay.
So, one more (short) week of uncertainty, and then hopefully back to business as usual.
Sunday, 5 April 2009
Spring has sprung
Yesterday was a lovely day, sunny and fine, until I decided to go to the shops and we had a rather impressive sun shower. But I am now stocked up on all the essentials - and some chocolate biscuits.
Been having a lot of fun reading reviews of the new season of anime in Japan, ranging from "For those of you who have already figured out that this is a big load of garbage and isn't worth wasting your life on, here's a picture of a bunny. Please enjoy it and move along," to a reviewer actually going out and finding an animated icon of a little Pac-Man type thing shooting itself in the head to put in place of the number for "x out of 5" in his review. Only Japan could bring you an animated series based on a lavishly illustrated "erotic" choose-your-own-adventure game.
Other than that, actually made some progress on my Annotated Translation yesterday. I'll try to edit what I did (got very choppy towards the end as I lost concentration) and if all goes well I might be able to do another section today. The will is there but the brain power isn't always with it. Staying up until way past bedtime playing with fish on Endless Ocean did not help. At all.
I keep trying to convince myself I can translate, but this ain't simple game dialogue. It's painful even when I ignore the Meiji era quotes which I can barely decipher. I really need to improve my reading...
Been having a lot of fun reading reviews of the new season of anime in Japan, ranging from "For those of you who have already figured out that this is a big load of garbage and isn't worth wasting your life on, here's a picture of a bunny. Please enjoy it and move along," to a reviewer actually going out and finding an animated icon of a little Pac-Man type thing shooting itself in the head to put in place of the number for "x out of 5" in his review. Only Japan could bring you an animated series based on a lavishly illustrated "erotic" choose-your-own-adventure game.
Other than that, actually made some progress on my Annotated Translation yesterday. I'll try to edit what I did (got very choppy towards the end as I lost concentration) and if all goes well I might be able to do another section today. The will is there but the brain power isn't always with it. Staying up until way past bedtime playing with fish on Endless Ocean did not help. At all.
I keep trying to convince myself I can translate, but this ain't simple game dialogue. It's painful even when I ignore the Meiji era quotes which I can barely decipher. I really need to improve my reading...
Friday, 3 April 2009
Work life
Got back in full daylight! The internal employee in charge of locking away consoles went home early and so did I. I was the subject of some justified mockery for acquiring a console through purchasing via our team leader and I've managed to hook it up to the mobile broadband and it is happily updating itself.
In other work-related news, our boss' boss - the one who draws on bananas - left his notebook on the formerly mentioned internal colleague's desk. We promptly got hold of a newspaper-cutting style font and wrote a ransom note demanding chocolate, and added a picture of a kitten for good measure. It took him about two seconds to figure out who had done it. He gave us some chocolate eggs, even though he really didn't owe us anything after rumbling us.
There are some pale candy-pink cherry trees on a nearby road, one I only walk up when I've got the bus. One is in magnificent full bloom and two more not far behind. It will always, always make me think of being on Kyoto's Path of Philosophy with my parents. It's 10 years since I met my homestay family this year - must do something special.
In other work-related news, our boss' boss - the one who draws on bananas - left his notebook on the formerly mentioned internal colleague's desk. We promptly got hold of a newspaper-cutting style font and wrote a ransom note demanding chocolate, and added a picture of a kitten for good measure. It took him about two seconds to figure out who had done it. He gave us some chocolate eggs, even though he really didn't owe us anything after rumbling us.
There are some pale candy-pink cherry trees on a nearby road, one I only walk up when I've got the bus. One is in magnificent full bloom and two more not far behind. It will always, always make me think of being on Kyoto's Path of Philosophy with my parents. It's 10 years since I met my homestay family this year - must do something special.
Twilight hours
I got back to the flat in almost-daylight yesterday. Woo.
There's a bit of a fin de siecle mood at work. The automated metal blinds are malfunctioning and opening and closing relatively randonmly so we're in darkness for most of the day. At least it's better than not being able to work because of glare. We've been banned from our own breakout room and most-used kitchen because of guests for most of the week and today will have to go out onto the roof garden and cross to the other side of the building to come and go into our side as the breakout room is the only other access from the lifts/stairwell. I went out and bought hand soap for the ladies and gents in our side as the in-sink pump had run out and the cleaners replaced the soap with watered-down washing up liquid. Nice.
Everyone is still busy, but discontent and looking around. The money is good, and the experience, and the people, but it's still almost not worth it. There are rumours about the agencies which disturb me greatly. I've already popped them in the 'incompetent' box, but it's looking much worse than that. The flats haven't been cleaned in weeks, and most people are now cleaning them themselves. Handing the cleaning contracts over to the people who allegedly clean the office hasn't made any difference so far.
Need to do my accounts this weekend, as it's nearly tax time. With the constant overtime, I am earning nicely, but will be paying for it. Oh, and as freelancers we have been officially liberated from the tyranny of the German 10-hour maximum working day and no working on Sundays. We can now work as long as we like whenever we like, with authorisiation of course. 10 hours still sounds like a good limit to me.
And, oh yes, my Annotated Translation. I do need to actually pass this MA at some point. That is the plan for tomorrow.
There's a bit of a fin de siecle mood at work. The automated metal blinds are malfunctioning and opening and closing relatively randonmly so we're in darkness for most of the day. At least it's better than not being able to work because of glare. We've been banned from our own breakout room and most-used kitchen because of guests for most of the week and today will have to go out onto the roof garden and cross to the other side of the building to come and go into our side as the breakout room is the only other access from the lifts/stairwell. I went out and bought hand soap for the ladies and gents in our side as the in-sink pump had run out and the cleaners replaced the soap with watered-down washing up liquid. Nice.
Everyone is still busy, but discontent and looking around. The money is good, and the experience, and the people, but it's still almost not worth it. There are rumours about the agencies which disturb me greatly. I've already popped them in the 'incompetent' box, but it's looking much worse than that. The flats haven't been cleaned in weeks, and most people are now cleaning them themselves. Handing the cleaning contracts over to the people who allegedly clean the office hasn't made any difference so far.
Need to do my accounts this weekend, as it's nearly tax time. With the constant overtime, I am earning nicely, but will be paying for it. Oh, and as freelancers we have been officially liberated from the tyranny of the German 10-hour maximum working day and no working on Sundays. We can now work as long as we like whenever we like, with authorisiation of course. 10 hours still sounds like a good limit to me.
And, oh yes, my Annotated Translation. I do need to actually pass this MA at some point. That is the plan for tomorrow.
Tuesday, 24 March 2009
Not quite
What I shouldn't be doing but am: eating biscuits. I'd forgotten how much I like Oreos. At least I walked to and from the station today.
What I should be doing but am not: my Annotated Translation.
Instead, I'm trying out my decaf coffee and doing kumihimo (6-strand hira utsui for anyone who's interested) while watching TV. Go me.
What I should be doing but am not: my Annotated Translation.
Instead, I'm trying out my decaf coffee and doing kumihimo (6-strand hira utsui for anyone who's interested) while watching TV. Go me.
Narrow escape
So tired last night I forgot to set my alarm - thankfully woke up half an hour late which is salveageable. Must run...
Sunday, 22 March 2009
Still not dead, just rather tired
I've always liked Parkinson's Law, oft quoted by Dad: "Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion." I've decided to come up with one of my own: the goodness of a day is inversely proportional to the amount of sugar consumed for stress-related reasons.
There's nothing quite like arriving home 30 mins before bedtime. I got into work a little late after not getting out of the flat on time then going to the bank to find out what had happened to the "proper" card (EC Card) I was supposed to have received weeks ago - they had no idea and just re-ordered one for me. Then came a fun but very long lunch break spent watching G get the bank cashier to help her pay a bill and C finding out that he had been cut off a second time for not paying the same mobile phone bill.
What I was doing at work took far longer than I'd hoped, and I ended up leaving after realising I could barely type straight any more, and one message in particular engendering hysterical laughter. Then it was into the supermarket for yoghurt and muesli for breakfast, more Lavazza coffee, decaf Lavazza coffee for when I really shouldn't be having any, and, after I wandered around with C trying to find ingredients for brownies and ended up in the Imported Foods aisle, a box of Oreos and Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix. It wasn't a good day in terms of sugar.
An unfavourable sequence of trains kept me waiting for 20 minutes at my least favourite place, Hauptwache station. There are only two buses an hour at this time of night, so I walked home - at least I got the exercise in and managed to avoid the rain. Snow is forecast for tomorrow, so back to the winter coat.
In theory I'm where I want to be - translating at a major international company and taking on even more responsibility by editing. But once you open this particular box and step inside, nothing seems worth it. Yes, I'm sure it all looks very shiny from the outside, but it makes me think very, very fondly of places I walked away from because I considered them not good enough.
I have 10 more weeks here (including this one) before I go on a 2 week last push to get the Annotated Translation for my MA done, which is the last component. I started it last weekend, but didn't get too far. And obviously will not be doing any tonight. In between now and then, I have Easter in Zurich with himself and the May bank holiday weekend (that's Friday here on the continent) back in the UK for the final clearout of the flat.
And somewhere in between, some sleep. Time for the German sleepy tea...
There's nothing quite like arriving home 30 mins before bedtime. I got into work a little late after not getting out of the flat on time then going to the bank to find out what had happened to the "proper" card (EC Card) I was supposed to have received weeks ago - they had no idea and just re-ordered one for me. Then came a fun but very long lunch break spent watching G get the bank cashier to help her pay a bill and C finding out that he had been cut off a second time for not paying the same mobile phone bill.
What I was doing at work took far longer than I'd hoped, and I ended up leaving after realising I could barely type straight any more, and one message in particular engendering hysterical laughter. Then it was into the supermarket for yoghurt and muesli for breakfast, more Lavazza coffee, decaf Lavazza coffee for when I really shouldn't be having any, and, after I wandered around with C trying to find ingredients for brownies and ended up in the Imported Foods aisle, a box of Oreos and Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix. It wasn't a good day in terms of sugar.
An unfavourable sequence of trains kept me waiting for 20 minutes at my least favourite place, Hauptwache station. There are only two buses an hour at this time of night, so I walked home - at least I got the exercise in and managed to avoid the rain. Snow is forecast for tomorrow, so back to the winter coat.
In theory I'm where I want to be - translating at a major international company and taking on even more responsibility by editing. But once you open this particular box and step inside, nothing seems worth it. Yes, I'm sure it all looks very shiny from the outside, but it makes me think very, very fondly of places I walked away from because I considered them not good enough.
I have 10 more weeks here (including this one) before I go on a 2 week last push to get the Annotated Translation for my MA done, which is the last component. I started it last weekend, but didn't get too far. And obviously will not be doing any tonight. In between now and then, I have Easter in Zurich with himself and the May bank holiday weekend (that's Friday here on the continent) back in the UK for the final clearout of the flat.
And somewhere in between, some sleep. Time for the German sleepy tea...
Thursday, 5 February 2009
Important!
I searched for "German phrases" thinking I would get to the bank one of these days and wanting to know how to say "Does anyone here speak English?"
I found this page - because you never know when you'll need to know the word for "anti-tank gun" or how to say "Don't try any tricks!"
I found this page - because you never know when you'll need to know the word for "anti-tank gun" or how to say "Don't try any tricks!"
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
I'm not dead - and rabbits!
I was going to do an update the other day, but going into Blogger from my usual bookmark was giving me a page in German where the only options I could make out were "Change Password" and "Create Account".
First, the really important news - rabbits! I was walking back after having gone to the supermarket down the road (where I completely failed to find bin bags despite it being quite obvious what they look like worldwide) and walking up between the blocks of flats on the next road over - the blocks have their small/thin/side end to the road and there are raised grassy areas between them with areas to hang laundry, etc. And right at the end of one, I saw a tiny shadow with long ears! And as it shot away towards the road I saw another, larger, one on the raised grassy area. Happiness.
I didn't see any last night, as I was out until silly o'clock doing karaoke. It's amazing how many rock songs are perfectly suited to it - someone always does Hotel California, and Immigrant Song and Paranoid (both the Garbage one and the Black Sabbath one) are wonderful as well.
Tonight, came back from work late as usual, and walked back from the station but seemed to lose half the muscles in my legs about 4/5 of the way back and had to clump along noisily and gracelessly for the last bit. Certainly scared off any rabbits around.
Not much else to report really - working away, trying not to eat just because I'm lacking energy, enjoying the work and hanging around with colleagues. Very much looking forward to being back in Reading next weekend for Valentine's day - so much so that I had convinced myself during the week that it was this weekend, and was worried about my flight being cancelled due to snow. sigh
In other news, I think I've found a text for my annotated translation, a chapter from 近代天皇制への道程 (The Road to the Modern Emperor System)by 田中彰 (Akira Tanaka). He is an established historian so a safe choice, and I've always been interested in the role of the emperor - be it real or imagined - in the Meiji Restoration and subsequent events. So, should be interesting both to translate and to research around. More work to be done...
First, the really important news - rabbits! I was walking back after having gone to the supermarket down the road (where I completely failed to find bin bags despite it being quite obvious what they look like worldwide) and walking up between the blocks of flats on the next road over - the blocks have their small/thin/side end to the road and there are raised grassy areas between them with areas to hang laundry, etc. And right at the end of one, I saw a tiny shadow with long ears! And as it shot away towards the road I saw another, larger, one on the raised grassy area. Happiness.
I didn't see any last night, as I was out until silly o'clock doing karaoke. It's amazing how many rock songs are perfectly suited to it - someone always does Hotel California, and Immigrant Song and Paranoid (both the Garbage one and the Black Sabbath one) are wonderful as well.
Tonight, came back from work late as usual, and walked back from the station but seemed to lose half the muscles in my legs about 4/5 of the way back and had to clump along noisily and gracelessly for the last bit. Certainly scared off any rabbits around.
Not much else to report really - working away, trying not to eat just because I'm lacking energy, enjoying the work and hanging around with colleagues. Very much looking forward to being back in Reading next weekend for Valentine's day - so much so that I had convinced myself during the week that it was this weekend, and was worried about my flight being cancelled due to snow. sigh
In other news, I think I've found a text for my annotated translation, a chapter from 近代天皇制への道程 (The Road to the Modern Emperor System)by 田中彰 (Akira Tanaka). He is an established historian so a safe choice, and I've always been interested in the role of the emperor - be it real or imagined - in the Meiji Restoration and subsequent events. So, should be interesting both to translate and to research around. More work to be done...
Saturday, 24 January 2009
Happy days
I take it back - the shower may look ancient, but with the excellent water pressure in the building it does the job very nicely. This makes me very happy.
So, a week with mostly ten-hour days and still feeling like there isn't enough time. Several colleagues are in work today, and they're still recruiting like crazy. Really, really enjoying it.
Stumbled home last night and watched an entire season of anime - I think I may have worried the neighbours by laughing out loud for several hours, but they got me back this morning by playing Euro-pop at high volume.
So, a week with mostly ten-hour days and still feeling like there isn't enough time. Several colleagues are in work today, and they're still recruiting like crazy. Really, really enjoying it.
Stumbled home last night and watched an entire season of anime - I think I may have worried the neighbours by laughing out loud for several hours, but they got me back this morning by playing Euro-pop at high volume.
Tuesday, 20 January 2009
Well mixed
Good: got a lot of work done, got a power adapter, the flat has a bath (although there's still no heat in the bathroom and I don't know if I'll be staying here), figured out the bus route, recovered my grammar guide from the office book stack, ate none of the chocolate I brought back as a team present. Treated myself to some sushi in the department store food section I ended up doing my food shop in - two each mackerel, tuna and egg. Yum.
Bad: the phone charger sold to me by the T-Mobile shop is the wrong one for my phone, my brand new top has a hole in it, the shower in the bathroom looks like the one my grandmother used to have, the water tastes absolutely vile. Had lunch at the Chinese takeaway in the supermarket, which I was trying to avoid, but I was starving and wanted something warm. I deliberately didn't go to Lush before I left as I know there's one here, but it's much more expensive and is out of stock of things... which I've never seen in Reading... and doesn't get them in again for two weeks.
But on balance, getting better. Oh, and it's stopped raining. Not sure which category the amount of coffee I drank today goes into.
Bad: the phone charger sold to me by the T-Mobile shop is the wrong one for my phone, my brand new top has a hole in it, the shower in the bathroom looks like the one my grandmother used to have, the water tastes absolutely vile. Had lunch at the Chinese takeaway in the supermarket, which I was trying to avoid, but I was starving and wanted something warm. I deliberately didn't go to Lush before I left as I know there's one here, but it's much more expensive and is out of stock of things... which I've never seen in Reading... and doesn't get them in again for two weeks.
But on balance, getting better. Oh, and it's stopped raining. Not sure which category the amount of coffee I drank today goes into.
Et tu?
I bought a small electric toothbrush on Sunday to bring over - I really noticed the difference when I didn't have one here last time, and they plug into shaver sockets which are universal. Except this flat doesn't have one at all.
And I forgot the phone charger for my German mobile, which is now almost dead.
Oh well - at least I feel like I had a decent night's sleep. The duvet was incredibly thin, especially with the heating still building up, but I found a second one in the cupboard so that worked nicely. The bed is very strange, but didn't stop me sleeping. Apart from the bedroom door, none of the internal doors actually close - they're all hung wrong and scrape on the floor and don't line up with the frames.
So, a bit of shopping at lunchtime, methinks - adaptor plug, toothbrush, phone charger...
And I forgot the phone charger for my German mobile, which is now almost dead.
Oh well - at least I feel like I had a decent night's sleep. The duvet was incredibly thin, especially with the heating still building up, but I found a second one in the cupboard so that worked nicely. The bed is very strange, but didn't stop me sleeping. Apart from the bedroom door, none of the internal doors actually close - they're all hung wrong and scrape on the floor and don't line up with the frames.
So, a bit of shopping at lunchtime, methinks - adaptor plug, toothbrush, phone charger...
Monday, 19 January 2009
Auspicious?
Well, that could have gone more smoothly - but no permanent harm involved.
I got about 2 hours of sleep last night between packing until late, being unable to sleep and getting up just a smidgen before 5:00am in order to get a taxi at 5:10 for the coach at 5:30 to check in at 6:30 and fly at 7:10, land at 9:45 German time and be in the office about 11:00am. That all worked out, although I was feeling fairly miserable by the time we landed. Grabbing a Meal Deal in the Boots in Terminal 2 Duty Free was an excellent idea - much as I would have loved to go to Nero, the queue did not allow it.
The adult businessmen on the flight were worse than children - twice the amount of hand luggage they should have, throwing it in under unoccupied seats, stowing luggage in the emergency exit and being told off by the stewardesses, same guy stowing his coat in the emergency exit and being told off by the bursar and when the bursar tried to go back to the front of the plane he caught someone using their iPhone.
The normal passport control desks at Frankfurt were closed for some reason, so everyone from my flight ended up milling around the terminal for a while before we could get out - at least the cases were out when we finally got to them. I took out some cash, and without thinking asked for 500 Euro, forgetting I have a withdrawal limit of £200 on my card. That was refused, but thankfully a quickly done second request for 200 Euro was successful...
No problems getting back to the office and had a nice coffee with friends before being thrown in at the deep end. I'm not doing the project I thought I would be because something more important had come up... but still translation and looking forward to it. The rush involved meant that it was 8:15 by the time I left. Himself also contacted me to let me know the bank had called about a refused transaction on my card. Must sort that out soon.
I had been told I was going back to my old flat - which was great as a) I know where it is and b) I left a lot of stuff there, like coffee filters and tupperware. However, the office had lost my keys. So I ended up with keys to another flat. I hoped? assumed? that someone would help me get over to the flat, but by the time I'd finished what I was doing they had mostly staggered home after hitting the 10-hour German time limit. So, a not entirely fun evening of dragging luggage around an unfamiliar area - my case really doesn't like the bricks they use for German pavements.
That said, I did find it first time (a miracle for me, I know) - all the credit goes to Google Maps for showing me what the area looked like, I'm much better with that than any kind of directions.
The flat is very nice, quite large and even has a bath! Don't know if I'll be staying or not. But the heating isn't on so that will take a little while to kick in. To top it all off, I have brought the wrong adaptor plug (US/NZ instead of Europe) so have no plug-in power for the laptop. I shall leave it here for tonight...
I got about 2 hours of sleep last night between packing until late, being unable to sleep and getting up just a smidgen before 5:00am in order to get a taxi at 5:10 for the coach at 5:30 to check in at 6:30 and fly at 7:10, land at 9:45 German time and be in the office about 11:00am. That all worked out, although I was feeling fairly miserable by the time we landed. Grabbing a Meal Deal in the Boots in Terminal 2 Duty Free was an excellent idea - much as I would have loved to go to Nero, the queue did not allow it.
The adult businessmen on the flight were worse than children - twice the amount of hand luggage they should have, throwing it in under unoccupied seats, stowing luggage in the emergency exit and being told off by the stewardesses, same guy stowing his coat in the emergency exit and being told off by the bursar and when the bursar tried to go back to the front of the plane he caught someone using their iPhone.
The normal passport control desks at Frankfurt were closed for some reason, so everyone from my flight ended up milling around the terminal for a while before we could get out - at least the cases were out when we finally got to them. I took out some cash, and without thinking asked for 500 Euro, forgetting I have a withdrawal limit of £200 on my card. That was refused, but thankfully a quickly done second request for 200 Euro was successful...
No problems getting back to the office and had a nice coffee with friends before being thrown in at the deep end. I'm not doing the project I thought I would be because something more important had come up... but still translation and looking forward to it. The rush involved meant that it was 8:15 by the time I left. Himself also contacted me to let me know the bank had called about a refused transaction on my card. Must sort that out soon.
I had been told I was going back to my old flat - which was great as a) I know where it is and b) I left a lot of stuff there, like coffee filters and tupperware. However, the office had lost my keys. So I ended up with keys to another flat. I hoped? assumed? that someone would help me get over to the flat, but by the time I'd finished what I was doing they had mostly staggered home after hitting the 10-hour German time limit. So, a not entirely fun evening of dragging luggage around an unfamiliar area - my case really doesn't like the bricks they use for German pavements.
That said, I did find it first time (a miracle for me, I know) - all the credit goes to Google Maps for showing me what the area looked like, I'm much better with that than any kind of directions.
The flat is very nice, quite large and even has a bath! Don't know if I'll be staying or not. But the heating isn't on so that will take a little while to kick in. To top it all off, I have brought the wrong adaptor plug (US/NZ instead of Europe) so have no plug-in power for the laptop. I shall leave it here for tonight...
Monday, 12 January 2009
Ouch
An icy week with not much good in the way of news either.
Although the contract is almost sorted, still working on other things which - depending on how they work out - will make things even more complicated.
Got the results back for my last essay. Let's just say they contain the word 'disappointing'. I really went for it on this essay, but it's just not good enough. It didn't feel like an MA essay, just a good BA one, and the tutor isn't going to let that pass. It's one of the things I like about her. Not that it does me much good now. All the more reason to go for the annotated translation, if I tried for the thesis I'd probably just hurt myself.
Not a ray of sunshine recently... was incredibly cranky by the end of last week but had a great time in London on Saturday with friends and brother and spent yesterday in my pajamas doing not much. Must get out and buy milk.
Although the contract is almost sorted, still working on other things which - depending on how they work out - will make things even more complicated.
Got the results back for my last essay. Let's just say they contain the word 'disappointing'. I really went for it on this essay, but it's just not good enough. It didn't feel like an MA essay, just a good BA one, and the tutor isn't going to let that pass. It's one of the things I like about her. Not that it does me much good now. All the more reason to go for the annotated translation, if I tried for the thesis I'd probably just hurt myself.
Not a ray of sunshine recently... was incredibly cranky by the end of last week but had a great time in London on Saturday with friends and brother and spent yesterday in my pajamas doing not much. Must get out and buy milk.
Tuesday, 6 January 2009
Resolution
First, some comedy. Sent to me by otouto's other half, the truth about Wii Fit. I absolutely agree. I have sworn more at Wii Fit than anything else, even Zelda bosses. Its cheerfulness is part of what makes it so insulting. You have to be bloody-minded for it.
Next, just how sweet Okami is - feeding rabbits. After you've fed a group of animals, they permanently emit hearts whenever you're near, even when they're asleep. かわいい！
Just done 12 minutes of 'jogging' on Wii Fit, as a pathetic attempt to make up for being sat on my rear end all day. I was bouncing That Contract back and forth between the agency and a HR-savvy friend, and on chat to someone else in the same situation trying to find anyone who can advise us on German tax liability - while trying to get through an explosion of activity on the twinned school talkboards. Net result was barely moving until about 4:00pm. I'm going to try to go for another round before dinner.
Learned a new word yesterday - venepuncturist. The nice people at NHS Blood Service who put the needle in. One of them kindly came over to check on me when the smart scales complained that it the flow had gone a bit slow... and adjusted the needle. Now, I can only really do blood donation if I don't look and don't think about it too much, but I instinctively looked down and the sight - and sensation - will be with me for a while. The guy doing the questionnaires had a ball with the list of countries I've been in for over 6 months in my entire life. Must remember to book an appointment next time though - it took nearly 2 hours without one.
I'm sure I had more witty things to say, but they've slipped my mind. Shall try to get out more and have more to comment on!
Next, just how sweet Okami is - feeding rabbits. After you've fed a group of animals, they permanently emit hearts whenever you're near, even when they're asleep. かわいい！
Just done 12 minutes of 'jogging' on Wii Fit, as a pathetic attempt to make up for being sat on my rear end all day. I was bouncing That Contract back and forth between the agency and a HR-savvy friend, and on chat to someone else in the same situation trying to find anyone who can advise us on German tax liability - while trying to get through an explosion of activity on the twinned school talkboards. Net result was barely moving until about 4:00pm. I'm going to try to go for another round before dinner.
Learned a new word yesterday - venepuncturist. The nice people at NHS Blood Service who put the needle in. One of them kindly came over to check on me when the smart scales complained that it the flow had gone a bit slow... and adjusted the needle. Now, I can only really do blood donation if I don't look and don't think about it too much, but I instinctively looked down and the sight - and sensation - will be with me for a while. The guy doing the questionnaires had a ball with the list of countries I've been in for over 6 months in my entire life. Must remember to book an appointment next time though - it took nearly 2 hours without one.
I'm sure I had more witty things to say, but they've slipped my mind. Shall try to get out more and have more to comment on!
Monday, 5 January 2009
Check one
One New Year's resolution at least partially kept - went and donated blood today. Feel the usual happy but slightly light and stupefied. Working my way slowly through the To-Do List left over from 2008. Some are easy (send thank-you letters and emails) and some are a bit more involved (sort out pension).
I still don't know if I'm going to Germany or not. There was a great deal of progress on the contract today, but still some sore points and now deep thinking - in the absence of much concrete information - about what German tax liability is like. I still have some time, but it would be nice to know as so much else hinges upon it.
Need to get back to my MA work soon, specifically deciding on a thesis or a translation - I'm interested in nationalism and propaganda and the way in which the people were influenced by them between WWI and WWII, but it's a very big topic. Or an annotated translation, but my reading is still not strong enough and just understanding enough of a text to know if it's suitable or not takes an obscene amount of time.
Himself picked up Okami for the Wii on sale on New Year's Eve, and it's wonderful. I've mainly been watching him play it, but I could definitely play it myself. If only for the unutterably sweet cut-scenes when you feed the animals. And there's the pseudo-Japaneseness of it all which I enjoy.
New Year's was great - Wales was freezing, literally - the pond in our friends' back garden was solid and himself was able to walk around the edge of a reservoir on one of the two walks we went on. It was too cold to be out for long, but really enjoyable. Our friends' neighbours' dog had puppies, so we spent a while cooing over nine adorable baby labradors as well.
Oh, and it snowed! Today, while I was walking around. Hope it's also dumping it down in the mountains in Europe, as himself is going snowboarding from this weekend.
I still don't know if I'm going to Germany or not. There was a great deal of progress on the contract today, but still some sore points and now deep thinking - in the absence of much concrete information - about what German tax liability is like. I still have some time, but it would be nice to know as so much else hinges upon it.
Need to get back to my MA work soon, specifically deciding on a thesis or a translation - I'm interested in nationalism and propaganda and the way in which the people were influenced by them between WWI and WWII, but it's a very big topic. Or an annotated translation, but my reading is still not strong enough and just understanding enough of a text to know if it's suitable or not takes an obscene amount of time.
Himself picked up Okami for the Wii on sale on New Year's Eve, and it's wonderful. I've mainly been watching him play it, but I could definitely play it myself. If only for the unutterably sweet cut-scenes when you feed the animals. And there's the pseudo-Japaneseness of it all which I enjoy.
New Year's was great - Wales was freezing, literally - the pond in our friends' back garden was solid and himself was able to walk around the edge of a reservoir on one of the two walks we went on. It was too cold to be out for long, but really enjoyable. Our friends' neighbours' dog had puppies, so we spent a while cooing over nine adorable baby labradors as well.
Oh, and it snowed! Today, while I was walking around. Hope it's also dumping it down in the mountains in Europe, as himself is going snowboarding from this weekend.
Friday, 26 December 2008
Unintended gifts
I was reading a book on arthritis (Mom is starting to suffer from it in her hands), written by a nurse in 1985. There's a paragraph lamenting the lack of nutritional education among young mothers and therefore the impossibility of their children being well fed or knowing how to feed themselves. The whole things ends up with the blithe assertion that women are responsible for the working power of the nation. I'm never going to be able to read this kind of thing again after that essay...
Mom and Dad were happy with their gifts, but Dad would have been a lot happier if I hadn't given him my cold. Sorry about that.
And himself sent me this adorable picture of the changeover of Chinese zodiac years.
Mom and Dad were happy with their gifts, but Dad would have been a lot happier if I hadn't given him my cold. Sorry about that.
And himself sent me this adorable picture of the changeover of Chinese zodiac years.
Sunday, 21 December 2008
Ooooh yes...
Himself managed to find his present. So, I thought I'd get him another one, and kind of took a chance on something that I hope he'll like but not quite sure.
He's got me the latest edition of Rough Guide Japan, which I really wanted. While we were sitting around in Waterstones talking about what to get for his brother, himself suddenly said that what he should have asked for was... what I've got for him! I don't think it will arrive in time - we're both gone as of tomorrow morning for Christmas - but if I'm lucky I'll have a 'we tried to deliver' card that I can pick up from the sorting office before we go to Wales for New Year.
Result.
He's got me the latest edition of Rough Guide Japan, which I really wanted. While we were sitting around in Waterstones talking about what to get for his brother, himself suddenly said that what he should have asked for was... what I've got for him! I don't think it will arrive in time - we're both gone as of tomorrow morning for Christmas - but if I'm lucky I'll have a 'we tried to deliver' card that I can pick up from the sorting office before we go to Wales for New Year.
Result.
Thursday, 18 December 2008
Twinkle twinkle little tree
If anyone reading this might be talking to Mom - I suspect that limits it to Dad and possibly otouto - don't tell her, because this is one of her Chrisse pressies!
This is a kit for a Christmas tree made from star-shaped cushions (with a pompom on top!) that I got in Hobbyra Hobbyre in Nagoya, not this year but last year. I failed to make it in time for last Christmas, so that was one of the impetuses behind me going out and getting a sewing machine. I'm quite happy with how it turned out, especially seen it was my first time using a sewing machine and by far the most ambitious thing I've ever tried to sew.
That was actually quite fun. Now for the fabric bowls.
This is a kit for a Christmas tree made from star-shaped cushions (with a pompom on top!) that I got in Hobbyra Hobbyre in Nagoya, not this year but last year. I failed to make it in time for last Christmas, so that was one of the impetuses behind me going out and getting a sewing machine. I'm quite happy with how it turned out, especially seen it was my first time using a sewing machine and by far the most ambitious thing I've ever tried to sew.
That was actually quite fun. Now for the fabric bowls.
We know you got
I did a favour for a friend a little while ago. It meant a lot to her, it didn't particularly inconvenience me although it did require a fair amount of trust.
We met up for dinner last night, and she brought me a thank-you present, this little psuedo-kokeshi!
She said the little blurb on the box made her think of me - I was unreasonably chuffed by the whole thing. My cheeks still ache from smiling. It's going to live on my desk, and I shall affix the included sticker and badge to something, probably my electronic dictionary and only-me bag.
Mind you, the other side of the box says 'I love Dexy's Midnight Runners' - their "Come on Eileen" was mercilessly redone as "Come on Arline" by boys at my school in France and resulted in an unfortunate incident with one of said boys, a locker door and my temper finally fraying. It takes a lot, but it can happen...
We met up for dinner last night, and she brought me a thank-you present, this little psuedo-kokeshi!
She said the little blurb on the box made her think of me - I was unreasonably chuffed by the whole thing. My cheeks still ache from smiling. It's going to live on my desk, and I shall affix the included sticker and badge to something, probably my electronic dictionary and only-me bag.
Mind you, the other side of the box says 'I love Dexy's Midnight Runners' - their "Come on Eileen" was mercilessly redone as "Come on Arline" by boys at my school in France and resulted in an unfortunate incident with one of said boys, a locker door and my temper finally fraying. It takes a lot, but it can happen...
Friday, 12 December 2008
Loving it...
...as my former manager at a certain large company used to say when things were going down the drain. As usual, my source of work isn't disappearing anywhere soon. This spontaneously appeared while I was writing an email to submit my hours for a translation project.
Mine and only mine
Sorry for the lack of posts - been working away on lots of things, just nothing interesting. Plus I think I've been treating this very much as a travel blog, so not much to report after coming back!
Last essay is safely handed in, now I have to find a thesis topic or annotated translation piece. I have filed my tax return after doing far more research than I felt comfortable with on liability for tax in Germany. Someone at one of the accountancy firms I spoke to asked someone in the expatriate tax department at Deloitte & Touche in Reading to call me and they seem to agree. Phew.
In other news, my favourite bag - a black waist pack that I used as a shoulder bag, bought in Japan back in 2003 or so and just big enough for a Lonely Planet Japan and a camera and a map - went to its eternal rest in the summer after I managed to put a rip in the bottom of it. Probably Lonely Planet Germany on top my keys. I was figuring out it was on its last legs at the craft fair I did with himself's mom in July, and one of the other stands there was a lady selling handmade bags. We got talking. I remembered I had some lovely aizome fabric I bought in Ise last year. And this is the result!
The main body of the bag is blue denim, with a wide stripe fabric for the outer pockets and flap, plus a thin stripe fabric for the lining, and a little of the wide stripe for an inside pocket. It's perfect!
I had a discussion about brand goods with a friend in Japan while I was there. She saw a designer bag as a status symbol - I'm successful, at my age I can afford one of these. Maybe, but I keep getting stuck on buying my lovely Dakine bag in Frankfurt - let me get you another identical one from out the back, Made In China. I'd much rather a handmade one of a kind item than a mass produced one. It's the same as the burst of happiness I felt when someone commented that one of bracelets could never be taken for anything but handmade. I like that.
Last essay is safely handed in, now I have to find a thesis topic or annotated translation piece. I have filed my tax return after doing far more research than I felt comfortable with on liability for tax in Germany. Someone at one of the accountancy firms I spoke to asked someone in the expatriate tax department at Deloitte & Touche in Reading to call me and they seem to agree. Phew.
In other news, my favourite bag - a black waist pack that I used as a shoulder bag, bought in Japan back in 2003 or so and just big enough for a Lonely Planet Japan and a camera and a map - went to its eternal rest in the summer after I managed to put a rip in the bottom of it. Probably Lonely Planet Germany on top my keys. I was figuring out it was on its last legs at the craft fair I did with himself's mom in July, and one of the other stands there was a lady selling handmade bags. We got talking. I remembered I had some lovely aizome fabric I bought in Ise last year. And this is the result!
The main body of the bag is blue denim, with a wide stripe fabric for the outer pockets and flap, plus a thin stripe fabric for the lining, and a little of the wide stripe for an inside pocket. It's perfect!
I had a discussion about brand goods with a friend in Japan while I was there. She saw a designer bag as a status symbol - I'm successful, at my age I can afford one of these. Maybe, but I keep getting stuck on buying my lovely Dakine bag in Frankfurt - let me get you another identical one from out the back, Made In China. I'd much rather a handmade one of a kind item than a mass produced one. It's the same as the burst of happiness I felt when someone commented that one of bracelets could never be taken for anything but handmade. I like that.
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
Pass!
Just got my results from the September exams - I've passed! I thought I did, but it's nice to know for sure.
Happy with my Japanese-English translation mark, and with the one from the presentation in Japanese, seen as it went a little pear-shaped. Wish I could have done more for the Writing in Japanese, but it's a fair mark for what I did do.
Final essay (have an extension from last month) due in on Friday, then I have to make a decision on doing a thesis or an annotated translation. I may be back in Germany in January, which makes the translation much more attractive... but I have to come up with some kind of topic first!
Anyway - one big hurdle passed!
Happy with my Japanese-English translation mark, and with the one from the presentation in Japanese, seen as it went a little pear-shaped. Wish I could have done more for the Writing in Japanese, but it's a fair mark for what I did do.
Final essay (have an extension from last month) due in on Friday, then I have to make a decision on doing a thesis or an annotated translation. I may be back in Germany in January, which makes the translation much more attractive... but I have to come up with some kind of topic first!
Anyway - one big hurdle passed!
Friday, 21 November 2008
Haiku time!
I noticed while posting the last post that I have a tag 'haiku' - we did haiku and also senryuu at the Japan Foundation course last night. Where haiku celebrate the beauty of nature, senryuu are ironic or sarcastic social commentaries in the haiku 5-7-5 syllable format.
隣には
知り合いの人
世界、狭！
Sitting beside me
Someone I already know
This world is so small!
Turns out I'd already sent emails about the MA to the guy sitting beside me, but neither of us realised until the people beside us started talking about JET and we joined in.
Although my favourite one of the evening has to be one where he came up with the idea and I managed to fit it into 5-7-5 syllables - you had to do four seasonal ones, with this one for spring and the last line already there:
二日酔い
誰のせいだろ
桜かな
I'm so hung over...
Who is to blame for this pain?
The cherry blossoms!
The かな doesn't actually mean 'could it be?' but just emphasises the cherry blossoms, but we used it like that anyway. And the apparently official practice of allowing a line to be one syllable over also worked in our favour, as the middle line if spelled correctly is 8 syllables... Lots of fun had by all.
隣には
知り合いの人
世界、狭！
Sitting beside me
Someone I already know
This world is so small!
Turns out I'd already sent emails about the MA to the guy sitting beside me, but neither of us realised until the people beside us started talking about JET and we joined in.
Although my favourite one of the evening has to be one where he came up with the idea and I managed to fit it into 5-7-5 syllables - you had to do four seasonal ones, with this one for spring and the last line already there:
二日酔い
誰のせいだろ
桜かな
I'm so hung over...
Who is to blame for this pain?
The cherry blossoms!
The かな doesn't actually mean 'could it be?' but just emphasises the cherry blossoms, but we used it like that anyway. And the apparently official practice of allowing a line to be one syllable over also worked in our favour, as the middle line if spelled correctly is 8 syllables... Lots of fun had by all.
Tuesday, 18 November 2008
Discomfort, horror and thievery
Did two things I haven't done in ages on Monday: cycle and bead. The cycling wasn't too bad, I hadn't forgotten nearly as much as I had feared, but having lent the bike to someone considerably taller than me while in Germany, I neglected to check the seat height and nearly killed myself as soon as I stopped and realised my feet weren't anywhere near the ground. Action Bikes in the town centre kindly lowered the seat for me.
I haven't beaded in about 9 months now, so it was good to get something simple yet very nice indeed - this curved bar and crystal bracelet kit. I'm a big fan of kits, they give you a nice finished product and also teach you a new stitch or technique. I'm never particularly original anyway.
Things have been happening, just not particularly noteworthy ones - the bathroom tiling is now finished, which is a big thing... and I'm now working on my last essay for the MA, which is about the Japanese 'comfort women' in WWII. It really is horror after horror, right down to Imperial accountants working out "how long the women would last". It's due in next Friday and although I will be very glad to see the back of it I do want to do a good job.
Another one on the list of dubious firsts, I saw someone attempting to pickpocket yesterday. He wasn't very subtle, but it made me realise just how vulnerable people are - he took a bag right off the back of a chair while the woman's boyfriend was looking in his direction and rummaged through it, it was hidden behind his coat over his arm, but I was sitting behind him. I just stared while it was happening, I couldn't believe it. After he dropped the bag and went on to another table, I walked up to the woman and asked her if she was missing anything - she wasn't and as the man realised he was being watched he quickly left. Very unpleasant.
Off into London today to work on the essay again in the confines of the SOAS library, and hopefully meet my brother and his girlfriend for dinner. I realise I haven't written much about Japan, partly due to the phone keyboards and partly just from being with people all the time I was there - no time alone to fill with writing. I will put some highlights here, such as The Confusion of the Three Firemen in Kanazawa and other noteworthy incidents.
Back to war crimes...
I haven't beaded in about 9 months now, so it was good to get something simple yet very nice indeed - this curved bar and crystal bracelet kit. I'm a big fan of kits, they give you a nice finished product and also teach you a new stitch or technique. I'm never particularly original anyway.
Things have been happening, just not particularly noteworthy ones - the bathroom tiling is now finished, which is a big thing... and I'm now working on my last essay for the MA, which is about the Japanese 'comfort women' in WWII. It really is horror after horror, right down to Imperial accountants working out "how long the women would last". It's due in next Friday and although I will be very glad to see the back of it I do want to do a good job.
Another one on the list of dubious firsts, I saw someone attempting to pickpocket yesterday. He wasn't very subtle, but it made me realise just how vulnerable people are - he took a bag right off the back of a chair while the woman's boyfriend was looking in his direction and rummaged through it, it was hidden behind his coat over his arm, but I was sitting behind him. I just stared while it was happening, I couldn't believe it. After he dropped the bag and went on to another table, I walked up to the woman and asked her if she was missing anything - she wasn't and as the man realised he was being watched he quickly left. Very unpleasant.
Off into London today to work on the essay again in the confines of the SOAS library, and hopefully meet my brother and his girlfriend for dinner. I realise I haven't written much about Japan, partly due to the phone keyboards and partly just from being with people all the time I was there - no time alone to fill with writing. I will put some highlights here, such as The Confusion of the Three Firemen in Kanazawa and other noteworthy incidents.
Back to war crimes...
Monday, 10 November 2008
Friday, 31 October 2008
Photos!
I haven't quite finished - no captions yet on the second Hakone trip and the Nikko trip - but mostly done. Photos from Japan 2008!
Thursday, 30 October 2008
Sunday, 26 October 2008
But...
On the train to Kanayama to change to the Meitetsu line out to the airport, if I can do it in seven minutes. Overcast and drizzling, so the UK won't be too much of a shock.
That was never three weeks.;_;
Friday, 24 October 2008
手ぬぐい
Rain again today. Dad has gone to see a Vermeer exhibit while I figure out what to do with the rest of my shopping list, case space and money.
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Electric City
In Akihabara, getting maps for visiting my new clients tomorrow. Got some of my comics second hand, but not many. Also got an RPG for the DS and some Asian Kung Fu Generation CDs! Must get back, wake Dad up and get us some food.
Tuesday, 21 October 2008
We're on the Old Tokkaido Road!
Turned back, now having lunch before sailing across Lake Ashi. Third time I've done Hakone, first time I've done it clockwise!
Monday, 20 October 2008
Sunday, 19 October 2008
We're on the way to Nikko!
Friday, 17 October 2008
This will hurt later
Safely on board the unreserved part of the Hikari Superexpress 400 departing Nagoya at 6:20 after being told last night there were no reserved seats left - smoking or non-smoking - until 8:30. I need to be in Narita as early as possible, which from Nagoya on the first shinkansen of the day is 10:00, to meet Dad. At least I now have plenty of time to change at Shinagawa.
Thursday, 16 October 2008
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Monday, 13 October 2008
Sunday, 12 October 2008
Saturday, 11 October 2008
Friday, 10 October 2008
Thursday, 9 October 2008
Wednesday, 8 October 2008
いくらとイクラ
昨日とてもおいしいレストランを偶然に見つけて楽しい夕食ができました。
はいてすぐウエータがちいさなおさらをテーブルにおき、「イクラ食べれますか」と聞きました。
私はえっ？と思って、いくら食べられるってどういう意味ですかと聞きました。もしもうすぐラストオーダーですか？
ウエータはしばらく困ったまま立ち止まりました。「あのう、魚のタマゴ。。。」
小さなおさらにイクラがありました。
日本語はまだまだですね。
On the rails again
We've ended our three days in Kanazawa - it's a lovely, compact town with loads to offer and really nice people. Now on the Hakutaka Limited Express to Naoetsu where we change for Nagano, then on to Obuse where we're staying tonight. It's a beautiful day, and I'm going to stare out the window...
Tuesday, 7 October 2008
Monday, 6 October 2008
Best laid plans
I don`t know what went wrong between me talking to the Finnair customer service rep and checking in at Heathrow, but clearly something did.
We decided to be a little paranoid and leave early, up at 6:00 and out at 6:50, leaving Takeshi at the station to continue on and take photos of Mapledurham before continuing on his tour of places associated with English writers. We got into Terminal 3 in good time. Only to find there was no flight to Helsinki listed. Or any Finnair flight, for that matter. Check the e-ticket again. Definitely says T3. Very apologetic man at the information desk says the flight is in fact from T1 and we`re the 40th people this morning to ask. Off to T1 we go.
We come out of the connecting tunnel at check-in area A, Finnair are in area R. Which turns out to be out of the other side of the main hall and halfway to T2. When we finally check in with BA, they have no record of us sitting together on the flight to Helsinki. The best they can do is sitting behind each other. And as for the Helsinki-Nagoya flight... 28J and 51G. We got through security with no problems and had a nice cooked breakfast, followed by himself setting his out-of-office at the internet cafe. The flight to Helsinki was fine, with a rather canteen-style pasta shells bolognaise for me, and couscous for himself - thankfully his meals had been registered. Wandered around a small section of Helsinki Airport for 2 hours and got a most amusing box of Moomin-themed sweets for Bill.
We boarded to find a mother with a young child had taken my seat and that of a young French guy, he had let her child stay in his seat so she was still in mine. He was in the same situation as us - trying to sit beside his girlfriend. I swapped with her, which meant I lost my aisle seat and neither myself nor himself could get anyone to swop. Watched Kung-Fu Panda and Iron Man and several episodes of Bones - prefer CSI, I know the main character for bones is meant to be a bit reserved, but I couldn`t get to like her at all.
Arrived in Nagoya and picked up the phone with no problems, got on a train and programmed in numbers as we went into the city center. I tried to call Narita to get a announcement put out to tell Bill which post office in Narita to go to, but it went like some horrible comedy routine. She kept offering to give them my number, I kept explaining I needed to tell them where to get their phone first. She continued to offer to give them my number. We had something to eat and found the last large locker in the station for our cases, then headed out to Nagoya Castle. It was incredibly hot, and we even got a bit burnt.
Bill and Austa arrived with no problems, and although they had never heard the announcement they had got the phone. We grabbed a quick bowl of noodles and got the Shirasagi express train out to Kanazawa, arriving in the beautiful station with its traditional gate theme at close to 10:00 and staggering across the road to the hotel, Dormy Inn. Himself made use of the sauna and onsen, which I have yet to do.
Anyway - day 2 in Kanazawa is starting, so I will report on Day 1 later!
We decided to be a little paranoid and leave early, up at 6:00 and out at 6:50, leaving Takeshi at the station to continue on and take photos of Mapledurham before continuing on his tour of places associated with English writers. We got into Terminal 3 in good time. Only to find there was no flight to Helsinki listed. Or any Finnair flight, for that matter. Check the e-ticket again. Definitely says T3. Very apologetic man at the information desk says the flight is in fact from T1 and we`re the 40th people this morning to ask. Off to T1 we go.
We come out of the connecting tunnel at check-in area A, Finnair are in area R. Which turns out to be out of the other side of the main hall and halfway to T2. When we finally check in with BA, they have no record of us sitting together on the flight to Helsinki. The best they can do is sitting behind each other. And as for the Helsinki-Nagoya flight... 28J and 51G. We got through security with no problems and had a nice cooked breakfast, followed by himself setting his out-of-office at the internet cafe. The flight to Helsinki was fine, with a rather canteen-style pasta shells bolognaise for me, and couscous for himself - thankfully his meals had been registered. Wandered around a small section of Helsinki Airport for 2 hours and got a most amusing box of Moomin-themed sweets for Bill.
We boarded to find a mother with a young child had taken my seat and that of a young French guy, he had let her child stay in his seat so she was still in mine. He was in the same situation as us - trying to sit beside his girlfriend. I swapped with her, which meant I lost my aisle seat and neither myself nor himself could get anyone to swop. Watched Kung-Fu Panda and Iron Man and several episodes of Bones - prefer CSI, I know the main character for bones is meant to be a bit reserved, but I couldn`t get to like her at all.
Arrived in Nagoya and picked up the phone with no problems, got on a train and programmed in numbers as we went into the city center. I tried to call Narita to get a announcement put out to tell Bill which post office in Narita to go to, but it went like some horrible comedy routine. She kept offering to give them my number, I kept explaining I needed to tell them where to get their phone first. She continued to offer to give them my number. We had something to eat and found the last large locker in the station for our cases, then headed out to Nagoya Castle. It was incredibly hot, and we even got a bit burnt.
Bill and Austa arrived with no problems, and although they had never heard the announcement they had got the phone. We grabbed a quick bowl of noodles and got the Shirasagi express train out to Kanazawa, arriving in the beautiful station with its traditional gate theme at close to 10:00 and staggering across the road to the hotel, Dormy Inn. Himself made use of the sauna and onsen, which I have yet to do.
Anyway - day 2 in Kanazawa is starting, so I will report on Day 1 later!
Sunday, 5 October 2008
Thursday, 2 October 2008
Enjoy the silence?
Well, here I am - I feel like I've successfully jumped off one ledge only to find myself preparing to jump off another. Germany was successfully left - minus not closing my bank account and leaving half my books there, but I have a trip freshly booked to go back in November and close and collect as appropriate. Exams are done with - I didn't have the energy to study during the last few weeks, preferring to spend any spare time decompressing and attempting to sleep, but the exams themselves went okay with no blanking or freezing. I'm sure I could have done better if I'd studied more, but that would be an alternate universe.
Monday and Tuesday were spent frantically tidying up as I had a guest arrive on Tuesday evening, the other half of a friend I always stay with in Tokyo. The front room looks great and the bathroom like some minimalist artwork - until you open either of the cabinets, anyway. The cluttered truth is sitting in our bedroom and the computer room until such time as we get around to doing something with it. Probably involving throwing half of it out.
Next on the list was getting some new trousers, since I managed to destroy two pairs in Frankfurt, and I had to face the unhappy fact that I am my usual size only if I get the more expensive M&S trousers whose definition of 'stretch' is a bit more flexible than the cheap ones. I was also ready for a sit down after just walking into town, walking around and coming back, which does not bode well for Japan, where I usually spend all day every day walking. All my own fault, of course (nothing made me choose a packet of pain au chocolat and a coffee over a tray of fresh pineapple and water in the supermarket in the mornings) but still bodes painfully.
Still feeling very unprepared for Japan, but we have the essentials - passport, tickets, money, hotel reservations. Will pick up the phones at the airport and can then do my mobile blogging with pics as I did last year. Looking forward to seeing Kanazawa, which I haven't been to before. Cleared off the camera's memory stick in anticipation. Time to make a dent in that hosting I've paid for...
One final night out tonight, taking my guest and meeting some friends in Sweeney's pie shop, and then it's into bed and up early tomorrow to get to the airport. Have been reading some pretty mixed reviews of Finnair so hope they're all right. Their customer services certainly weren't as bad as I'd heard - ended up calling them yesterday to book himself's vegetarian meal after realising he hadn't done so, and try to get us seated together.
(This was after calling my calling card people, finding out the reason I couldn't make a call was they'd switched me to a new account but then suspended it as I hadn't used it for 6 months... I was trying to use it in Germany, but as they hadn't given me the new account number, I wasn't able to. Usual fun going around and around with this with their customer services.)
Item falling off the to-do list this time is doing my tax return but if I do it online, as I usually do, I can still do it after I come back. There isn't much left to assemble it all, it just takes time and I'd rather not start it now. That will slot into November, along with writing my last essay (on the status of women in interwar Japan and Korea and how it led to their vulnerability to the 'comfort women' system) and trying to come up with a thesis or annotated translation topic. And trying for the nth time to find a tiler for the flat. And catching up with a lot of friends.
Monday and Tuesday were spent frantically tidying up as I had a guest arrive on Tuesday evening, the other half of a friend I always stay with in Tokyo. The front room looks great and the bathroom like some minimalist artwork - until you open either of the cabinets, anyway. The cluttered truth is sitting in our bedroom and the computer room until such time as we get around to doing something with it. Probably involving throwing half of it out.
Next on the list was getting some new trousers, since I managed to destroy two pairs in Frankfurt, and I had to face the unhappy fact that I am my usual size only if I get the more expensive M&S trousers whose definition of 'stretch' is a bit more flexible than the cheap ones. I was also ready for a sit down after just walking into town, walking around and coming back, which does not bode well for Japan, where I usually spend all day every day walking. All my own fault, of course (nothing made me choose a packet of pain au chocolat and a coffee over a tray of fresh pineapple and water in the supermarket in the mornings) but still bodes painfully.
Still feeling very unprepared for Japan, but we have the essentials - passport, tickets, money, hotel reservations. Will pick up the phones at the airport and can then do my mobile blogging with pics as I did last year. Looking forward to seeing Kanazawa, which I haven't been to before. Cleared off the camera's memory stick in anticipation. Time to make a dent in that hosting I've paid for...
One final night out tonight, taking my guest and meeting some friends in Sweeney's pie shop, and then it's into bed and up early tomorrow to get to the airport. Have been reading some pretty mixed reviews of Finnair so hope they're all right. Their customer services certainly weren't as bad as I'd heard - ended up calling them yesterday to book himself's vegetarian meal after realising he hadn't done so, and try to get us seated together.
(This was after calling my calling card people, finding out the reason I couldn't make a call was they'd switched me to a new account but then suspended it as I hadn't used it for 6 months... I was trying to use it in Germany, but as they hadn't given me the new account number, I wasn't able to. Usual fun going around and around with this with their customer services.)
Item falling off the to-do list this time is doing my tax return but if I do it online, as I usually do, I can still do it after I come back. There isn't much left to assemble it all, it just takes time and I'd rather not start it now. That will slot into November, along with writing my last essay (on the status of women in interwar Japan and Korea and how it led to their vulnerability to the 'comfort women' system) and trying to come up with a thesis or annotated translation topic. And trying for the nth time to find a tiler for the flat. And catching up with a lot of friends.
Saturday, 27 September 2008
Denied
The paternoster in the Arts Tower is being serviced - so I won't be able to try going around the top this time. Damn. Maybe when I graduate...
I can't connect to the Uni wireless network for some reason, so am on a terminal with a broken keyboard - backspace doesn't work and neither do half the number keys on both the main and numeric sides. Explains why it took me so long to log in, since I couldn't see what was going wrong...
Friday was chaos. The Japan-UK Live message boards, which have been virtually silent since I started, suddenly had a burst of activity which ate into my post-in bed at 3am trying to pack time. I am eternally indebted to Z for not only taking some stuff of mine to store, but then taking even more stuff from work when I realised I didn't have the stomach for going to the post office at lunchtime and trying to send it from there. I will have to go back some time in November. For karaoke too, of course.
The project looks like it will be okay, although apparently the product has now been delayed - news to us. Many kind words were said to me as I left, which I was very happy about - we all worked hard and we got it done when it looked like it couldn't be.
Have done the Writing in Japanese exam and the presentation - both went okay, but would have been better with a modicum of preparation. Only myself to blame for that one, so I have to hope that the marking isn't too strict and my basic level is enough. I didn't want to have to say that but there it is.
I'm going to head off to dinner now with some of the staff, and also stop using this keyboard before I put it through the window.
I can't connect to the Uni wireless network for some reason, so am on a terminal with a broken keyboard - backspace doesn't work and neither do half the number keys on both the main and numeric sides. Explains why it took me so long to log in, since I couldn't see what was going wrong...
Friday was chaos. The Japan-UK Live message boards, which have been virtually silent since I started, suddenly had a burst of activity which ate into my post-in bed at 3am trying to pack time. I am eternally indebted to Z for not only taking some stuff of mine to store, but then taking even more stuff from work when I realised I didn't have the stomach for going to the post office at lunchtime and trying to send it from there. I will have to go back some time in November. For karaoke too, of course.
The project looks like it will be okay, although apparently the product has now been delayed - news to us. Many kind words were said to me as I left, which I was very happy about - we all worked hard and we got it done when it looked like it couldn't be.
Have done the Writing in Japanese exam and the presentation - both went okay, but would have been better with a modicum of preparation. Only myself to blame for that one, so I have to hope that the marking isn't too strict and my basic level is enough. I didn't want to have to say that but there it is.
I'm going to head off to dinner now with some of the staff, and also stop using this keyboard before I put it through the window.
Wednesday, 24 September 2008
Over the red line
We're still on 10-hour days. But somehow, we've done it. I was in late tonight trying to figure out if we'd missed anything when things went strange with the bug logging system, and had to move my own leaving drinks to tomorrow, but I think - I think - we've got everything. Unbelievable.
Some people had still gone to the pub, so we met up there and went to karaoke. I'm enjoying it more every time although I really have problems singing. I can now switch between my 'high' and 'low' voice within one song, even one sentence if all goes well, but it still sounds terrible. But lots of fun. Sang some Abba and REM, the obligatory Duran Duran (how is it I still remember the lyrics after all this time?) and completely messed up Gorillaz, which is turning into a weekly event.
And we may go again tomorrow, after the rearranged leaving drinks. Why not? I'm too tired to study anyway... although I do need to sort the packing out. I may need to arrange a second piece of hold luggage.
I am now officially dangerously tired, after messing up and accidentally sending one translation to the school mailing list in response to the wrong original email, thereby convincing myself I'd sent both and not sending one until someone realised a few days later. Dammit.
The only other news is that after Z sent me a link, I've been listening to a load of Gackt songs. I like.
Some people had still gone to the pub, so we met up there and went to karaoke. I'm enjoying it more every time although I really have problems singing. I can now switch between my 'high' and 'low' voice within one song, even one sentence if all goes well, but it still sounds terrible. But lots of fun. Sang some Abba and REM, the obligatory Duran Duran (how is it I still remember the lyrics after all this time?) and completely messed up Gorillaz, which is turning into a weekly event.
And we may go again tomorrow, after the rearranged leaving drinks. Why not? I'm too tired to study anyway... although I do need to sort the packing out. I may need to arrange a second piece of hold luggage.
I am now officially dangerously tired, after messing up and accidentally sending one translation to the school mailing list in response to the wrong original email, thereby convincing myself I'd sent both and not sending one until someone realised a few days later. Dammit.
The only other news is that after Z sent me a link, I've been listening to a load of Gackt songs. I like.
Saturday, 20 September 2008
Living for the weekend
It's Saturday. I'm having breakfast before going into work. I think that sums up the week nicely. If it wasn't a flagrant contravention of German labour law, they'd have us in tomorrow as well. Three of us from the UK team will be in to process, enter and fix a truly unreasonable number of bugs.
In other news, Iwase was fantastic as usual and it was a wonderful night out. I would come back here just so I could go there again, and I regret not going there more. Frankfurt has tube mice. And I saw a steam train last Saturday.
Working 10 hours a day - particularly when you know the next day holds more of the same - is pretty tiring and study hasn't had much of a look-in. Today will also be spent at work, working, if we're to have any chance of getting what needs to be done done by when it's needed. I had a brief fantasy of being there in body and studying at my desk but it is not to be.
So, feeling very underprepared for my exams... the plan was that I would spend 6 months translating and ace them, but instead I've spent 7 months reading and proofreading US English and occasionally modifying it. I'm sure it's a skill, it's just not the one I wanted.
Anyway... once more into the office and then I really need to pack. Everything.
In other news, Iwase was fantastic as usual and it was a wonderful night out. I would come back here just so I could go there again, and I regret not going there more. Frankfurt has tube mice. And I saw a steam train last Saturday.
Working 10 hours a day - particularly when you know the next day holds more of the same - is pretty tiring and study hasn't had much of a look-in. Today will also be spent at work, working, if we're to have any chance of getting what needs to be done done by when it's needed. I had a brief fantasy of being there in body and studying at my desk but it is not to be.
So, feeling very underprepared for my exams... the plan was that I would spend 6 months translating and ace them, but instead I've spent 7 months reading and proofreading US English and occasionally modifying it. I'm sure it's a skill, it's just not the one I wanted.
Anyway... once more into the office and then I really need to pack. Everything.
Monday, 15 September 2008
Well, hello there
Sorry it's gone all quiet - I managed to respond to a busy week by feeling I had to do something when I got home and ended up staying up far too late and spending the week in a vicious cycle of tiredness. Still trying to recover, but feeling much better.
So... less than 2 weeks to go in Frankfurt. Less than 2 weeks to exams. Work will reach giddy new heights of busyness as of tomorrow, and I'm coming around to the fact that there is far more stuff in the flat than I have room in my case for.
I've drawn up a list of things I'm not going to take and will pass it around the UK team at work in case anyone wants anything. Anything else can stay for the next resident. Will have to a trial pack at the weekend. And organise some kind of going-away gathering for work.
Another development was finally getting a place on the Japan-UK Live! school exchange translation team, which is pretty quiet at the moment but could change, and also my first piece of work from a new client. They asked me for the first page as a trial and then asked me to do the rest, which I was delighted with - only to find an email in my inbox after getting home tonight to say I'd left a line out. Not fatal I suppose, but not what I wanted as a first impression.
It's birthday season, so we were out tonight with another birthday person from the UK team. I ended up getting the presents and was delighted that they were well received - amusing tshirts can be hard to get right. We have another birthday coming up in two weeks as well, and my farewell do, and I'm going back to the wonderful Iwase with Z for one last time on Wednesday.
Must pack some study in there somewhere.
The bar we ended up going to tonight is the same one we went to for G's birthday, and we always seem to have the most insane conversations there. Our new mottos for the place are "What happens in Klosterhof stays in Klosterhof" and "You shouldn't have had the first one". Definitely making our own fun.
Here's to not being killed by this week. One down, four crazy days to go...
So... less than 2 weeks to go in Frankfurt. Less than 2 weeks to exams. Work will reach giddy new heights of busyness as of tomorrow, and I'm coming around to the fact that there is far more stuff in the flat than I have room in my case for.
I've drawn up a list of things I'm not going to take and will pass it around the UK team at work in case anyone wants anything. Anything else can stay for the next resident. Will have to a trial pack at the weekend. And organise some kind of going-away gathering for work.
Another development was finally getting a place on the Japan-UK Live! school exchange translation team, which is pretty quiet at the moment but could change, and also my first piece of work from a new client. They asked me for the first page as a trial and then asked me to do the rest, which I was delighted with - only to find an email in my inbox after getting home tonight to say I'd left a line out. Not fatal I suppose, but not what I wanted as a first impression.
It's birthday season, so we were out tonight with another birthday person from the UK team. I ended up getting the presents and was delighted that they were well received - amusing tshirts can be hard to get right. We have another birthday coming up in two weeks as well, and my farewell do, and I'm going back to the wonderful Iwase with Z for one last time on Wednesday.
Must pack some study in there somewhere.
The bar we ended up going to tonight is the same one we went to for G's birthday, and we always seem to have the most insane conversations there. Our new mottos for the place are "What happens in Klosterhof stays in Klosterhof" and "You shouldn't have had the first one". Definitely making our own fun.
Here's to not being killed by this week. One down, four crazy days to go...
Friday, 5 September 2008
Softly, softly...
I do have official permission to use my PC at work for doing non-work stuff, but still feels very strange...
I've put up some photos of my new place - I'll only be there for another 3 weeks. Strange thought.
Work is busy and likely to get busier. So, just to really interfere, I've taken on a part-time translation assignment working for Japan-UK Live, a UK/Japan message board site between twinned schools, and started playing Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. Between that and attempting to study, I think I'll have to give up sleep...
Himself will be arriving later on, but there's only so much time I can spend at work before it gets strange. I think I will head out to the airport and have a few expensive coffees there and play Zelda... I really do get hopelessly addicted to these things, but (thankfully?) I'm not very good at the puzzle-solving and so tend to give up. But then come back later.
I've put up some photos of my new place - I'll only be there for another 3 weeks. Strange thought.
Work is busy and likely to get busier. So, just to really interfere, I've taken on a part-time translation assignment working for Japan-UK Live, a UK/Japan message board site between twinned schools, and started playing Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. Between that and attempting to study, I think I'll have to give up sleep...
Himself will be arriving later on, but there's only so much time I can spend at work before it gets strange. I think I will head out to the airport and have a few expensive coffees there and play Zelda... I really do get hopelessly addicted to these things, but (thankfully?) I'm not very good at the puzzle-solving and so tend to give up. But then come back later.
Wednesday, 3 September 2008
Denied!
The new flat is quite nice - but has no internet access. So, it will be quiet for a while. The other minor frustration was taking two days to figure out how to convert the sofa into a bed (not two days of continuous effort, I'd like to point out...)
Like most of the months of this year, September has kind of snuck up on me. I'll be in Japan next month!
... and it's now the same month as my exams. Really must concentrate.
Like most of the months of this year, September has kind of snuck up on me. I'll be in Japan next month!
... and it's now the same month as my exams. Really must concentrate.
Wednesday, 27 August 2008
Wonders of chemistry
Just got out of a bath with the Lush Mmm Melting Marshmallow Moment. Smells divine, my skin feels great - the promise of pink bathwater was scuppered by my water being slightly brown, so the end result was a kind of rosy dishwater.
This medical tar that I got at the Apotheke this morning is amazing. I only put a bandaid on to keep my hand dry in the bath, the scrape is almost healed. I was so impressed I even looked up the active ingredients. Povidone-Iodine is wonderful stuff. And all the other applications of Povidone... must rival the uses of water.
This medical tar that I got at the Apotheke this morning is amazing. I only put a bandaid on to keep my hand dry in the bath, the scrape is almost healed. I was so impressed I even looked up the active ingredients. Povidone-Iodine is wonderful stuff. And all the other applications of Povidone... must rival the uses of water.
^______^
Well, I can honestly say this was one of the most fun birthdays I've had in a while!
A fairly standard day at work - apart from my managing to email people in the US and Australia to invite them out by not paying attention to the autocomplete on our email system - and we also got our keys, addresses and a checklist of what our apartments did and did not have. I should have internet by the weekend and curtains in two weeks. I'm on the far side of the estate that most of the UK team is already in, and it's a short walk to get a tram, then either go through the a station where I can connect to the U-bahn lines I need or else change earlier, get the S-bahn for one stop and then the U-bahn a little further along the line. Although the latter option has more changes, it can be faster as the trams get stuck in traffic so the underground S and U-bahns win out.
A few people had dropped out so I invited a German translator on my team who I've become quite friendly with - she didn't show, which I thought was odd... but I managed to get my mobile phone number wrong (yet again) so she wasn't able to contact me. We had dinner at a ramen restaurant no-one had been to and it was fantastic. Glad to have put a new place on the list. The staff figured out - probably when I was handed an enormous Lush bag containing the overwhelming Think Pink hat box - that I was the birthday girl, and when the bill came around my meal was free!
Then someone broached the idea of karaoke and we headed out just past the new flats to Star Room, where we had a fantastic time until they had to kick us out at midnight. Highlight for me was singing Hungry like the Wolf with my esteemed Welsh colleague, and listening to others singing tunes from Rocky Horror Picture show and I'm a Barbie Girl. I still have Duran Duran on the brain, and also Two-Mix's Just Wild Beat Communication after we speculated on anime songs old enough to be in the catalogue.
The tram was still running so those of us who didn't live in the area headed back to the main train station where we split up. I walked back and had a Life conversation with one of the recently returned translators, which was slightly spoiled when I managed in my tiredness to not step up enough onto a curb and fall. Skinned part of my right hand and whacked my knee. Got home while he very kindly carried my bag and hat box of Lush products. I estimate a bruise the size of Luxembourg.
After getting to bed at 1:30am, I decided to set my alarm for 8:00 and get in a little later than usual. I used the Ring of Roses shower stuff and it's very nice, although it doesn't feel as immediately moisturising as what I was using. Headed into work, swang past the Apotheke to get some arnica for the bruise and antiseptic cream for my hand (got the tar-like stuff I've only seen in hospital) and struggled to stay awake. Then there was another slice of the proverbial Chinese 'interesting life' - I had given my mobile number and a list of times when I could move, basically mornings or evenings after Tuesday, not during work hours as I have things to do. So, of course, I was given 40 minutes notice to move at 2:00pm.
Much swearing later, and with both project managers out, I asked the testers to tell my colleague where I'd gone and rushed back to the flat to stuff and close the one box I had, followed by throwing the contents of my wardrobes and all my books into a suitcase. Of course, this was the day the stairs get washed, so I had wet floors and circular staircase to contend with, as well as putting a cardboard box down on a wet surface!
I was all ready and standing by the door and just gone quarter past. But there was no-one else there... called the guy with the van. On the phone. Texted my colleague. Mr. Van and my neighbour were nowhere to be found. They finally showed at quarter to three, and were surprised to see me - as they'd been waiting for me in the lobby at 2:00. Well, if anyone had mentioned a lobby I would have been there too. Anyway.
The very silver lining in all this was that as I was standing by the door watching my neighbour's things being loaded in the people-carrier, a courier van pulled up and a man got out and came to our door. And rang my bell. He had a signed-for delivery for me, at a time when I would normally be chained to my desk. My birthday card from my parents! It was pass-the-parcel with the courier's rubber envelope, followed by An Post's and finally the real envelope. Thanks Mom and Dad!
We picked up a third person's things, headed out to his flat and then ours - my neighbour is not far from me in the new area. I will take some shots over the weekend, but it looks quite nice. The gardens were being maintained when we were there, and I'm on the third floor. I just dumped my stuff and turned around, so haven't had a good look around, but it's all white and newly painted and far larger than what I have at the moment. My bed is a sofabed which isn't so great, but I can live with it for a month! I will go back tomorrow and poke around.
I got back to work and went up through the supermarket to grab a sandwich for lunch. And realised I didn't have my swipe card. I had definitely had it when I left, as I swiped out. Somewhere between leaving the office, taking the U-bahn, packing at my place, getting out at the other guy's old flat, then at his new flat, then my neighbour's new flat and then mine... it had gone. I had to be very, very nice to HR and one of the senior translators to not get sent home to find it. In another minor miracle, I found it outside my front door at the old place when I got back. Phew.
So... going to have a quick bath with one of my pressies, and then finishing throwing the last few things into bags and hopefully will be able to take it all to the new place tomorrow. Via another birthday celebration!
A fairly standard day at work - apart from my managing to email people in the US and Australia to invite them out by not paying attention to the autocomplete on our email system - and we also got our keys, addresses and a checklist of what our apartments did and did not have. I should have internet by the weekend and curtains in two weeks. I'm on the far side of the estate that most of the UK team is already in, and it's a short walk to get a tram, then either go through the a station where I can connect to the U-bahn lines I need or else change earlier, get the S-bahn for one stop and then the U-bahn a little further along the line. Although the latter option has more changes, it can be faster as the trams get stuck in traffic so the underground S and U-bahns win out.
A few people had dropped out so I invited a German translator on my team who I've become quite friendly with - she didn't show, which I thought was odd... but I managed to get my mobile phone number wrong (yet again) so she wasn't able to contact me. We had dinner at a ramen restaurant no-one had been to and it was fantastic. Glad to have put a new place on the list. The staff figured out - probably when I was handed an enormous Lush bag containing the overwhelming Think Pink hat box - that I was the birthday girl, and when the bill came around my meal was free!
Then someone broached the idea of karaoke and we headed out just past the new flats to Star Room, where we had a fantastic time until they had to kick us out at midnight. Highlight for me was singing Hungry like the Wolf with my esteemed Welsh colleague, and listening to others singing tunes from Rocky Horror Picture show and I'm a Barbie Girl. I still have Duran Duran on the brain, and also Two-Mix's Just Wild Beat Communication after we speculated on anime songs old enough to be in the catalogue.
The tram was still running so those of us who didn't live in the area headed back to the main train station where we split up. I walked back and had a Life conversation with one of the recently returned translators, which was slightly spoiled when I managed in my tiredness to not step up enough onto a curb and fall. Skinned part of my right hand and whacked my knee. Got home while he very kindly carried my bag and hat box of Lush products. I estimate a bruise the size of Luxembourg.
After getting to bed at 1:30am, I decided to set my alarm for 8:00 and get in a little later than usual. I used the Ring of Roses shower stuff and it's very nice, although it doesn't feel as immediately moisturising as what I was using. Headed into work, swang past the Apotheke to get some arnica for the bruise and antiseptic cream for my hand (got the tar-like stuff I've only seen in hospital) and struggled to stay awake. Then there was another slice of the proverbial Chinese 'interesting life' - I had given my mobile number and a list of times when I could move, basically mornings or evenings after Tuesday, not during work hours as I have things to do. So, of course, I was given 40 minutes notice to move at 2:00pm.
Much swearing later, and with both project managers out, I asked the testers to tell my colleague where I'd gone and rushed back to the flat to stuff and close the one box I had, followed by throwing the contents of my wardrobes and all my books into a suitcase. Of course, this was the day the stairs get washed, so I had wet floors and circular staircase to contend with, as well as putting a cardboard box down on a wet surface!
I was all ready and standing by the door and just gone quarter past. But there was no-one else there... called the guy with the van. On the phone. Texted my colleague. Mr. Van and my neighbour were nowhere to be found. They finally showed at quarter to three, and were surprised to see me - as they'd been waiting for me in the lobby at 2:00. Well, if anyone had mentioned a lobby I would have been there too. Anyway.
The very silver lining in all this was that as I was standing by the door watching my neighbour's things being loaded in the people-carrier, a courier van pulled up and a man got out and came to our door. And rang my bell. He had a signed-for delivery for me, at a time when I would normally be chained to my desk. My birthday card from my parents! It was pass-the-parcel with the courier's rubber envelope, followed by An Post's and finally the real envelope. Thanks Mom and Dad!
We picked up a third person's things, headed out to his flat and then ours - my neighbour is not far from me in the new area. I will take some shots over the weekend, but it looks quite nice. The gardens were being maintained when we were there, and I'm on the third floor. I just dumped my stuff and turned around, so haven't had a good look around, but it's all white and newly painted and far larger than what I have at the moment. My bed is a sofabed which isn't so great, but I can live with it for a month! I will go back tomorrow and poke around.
I got back to work and went up through the supermarket to grab a sandwich for lunch. And realised I didn't have my swipe card. I had definitely had it when I left, as I swiped out. Somewhere between leaving the office, taking the U-bahn, packing at my place, getting out at the other guy's old flat, then at his new flat, then my neighbour's new flat and then mine... it had gone. I had to be very, very nice to HR and one of the senior translators to not get sent home to find it. In another minor miracle, I found it outside my front door at the old place when I got back. Phew.
So... going to have a quick bath with one of my pressies, and then finishing throwing the last few things into bags and hopefully will be able to take it all to the new place tomorrow. Via another birthday celebration!
Monday, 25 August 2008
Er, no...
I checked my mailbox with a little anticipation today, as several people have been kind enough to threaten to send me birthday cards.
What there was waiting for me is what I suspect is a German tax number. I was hoping to quietly leave the country, but there it is, listing my passport details and everything. Needless to say, it's all in German so I have no idea what it says, but I can guess at Finanzamt.
In other news, I don't have the new address I was meant to get on Friday, or the keys I was meant to have today, or any info whatsoever about what's going on. We were meant to be able to move this evening if we wanted to. All looks like it's going to go a bit pear-shaped.
Need to get more sleep - I have been sleeping, but not very soundly judging by how awake I feel (not very). Have spent most of the day refraining from being cranky at people for reasons that are not quite good enough.
What there was waiting for me is what I suspect is a German tax number. I was hoping to quietly leave the country, but there it is, listing my passport details and everything. Needless to say, it's all in German so I have no idea what it says, but I can guess at Finanzamt.
In other news, I don't have the new address I was meant to get on Friday, or the keys I was meant to have today, or any info whatsoever about what's going on. We were meant to be able to move this evening if we wanted to. All looks like it's going to go a bit pear-shaped.
Need to get more sleep - I have been sleeping, but not very soundly judging by how awake I feel (not very). Have spent most of the day refraining from being cranky at people for reasons that are not quite good enough.
Tuesday, 19 August 2008
Night of the unexpected
Today started off rainy and cool, but I decided to walk to work nonetheless as it's the only exercise I get. It started to rain in earnest as I got there, and I was just thinking myself lucky when I slid on the grating in front of the sliding doors - thankfully they didn't close until I got up again. Nobody going in in front of me (including one of my colleagues) noticed, but I had to stop and assess the condition of my left knee for a few minutes. Ow.
P, our resident lover of facts and knower of all internal quirks, issued a new arbitrary decision about how to treat certain kinds of text, complete with a Newspeak reference, so I spent far too long (not very long, but I had other things to do) reading up on 1984. Toyed with the idea of trying to teach myself Newspeak (I think it would be wonderful if the entire UK English team walked around speaking it) but forced myself to go back to work.
My fun and delightful foray into translation has now stopped and gone to be validated, so it's back to logging bugs for now. At least I escaped at 5:30 as I had far better things to do - namely meeting my brother, who finally came over on a business trip!
I met him at the Frankfurter Hof hotel - which looks amazing - near Goetheplatz. After gawking at his room, we headed out to walk down to Hauptwache, then to the main square and the bridge, back again and down Zeil and ending up at Iwase, which has got to be my favourite restaurant in Frankfurt, even though this is only the second time I've been there. Must go more often. We had a delicious meal - mixed sushi, deep-fried aubergine, and a tempura set for him and sashimi set for me. Chatted a bit with the waitress. I was very happy that I had got a reservation - I called 20 minutes after they opened for lunch and got seats at the counter - and ecstatic that they remembered me and one of the guys behind the counter called me Arline-chan!
After much talking about work and Japan and friends and so on, we headed out again and walked up to Eschenheimer Tor and back down towards the Deutsche Bank towers, which are not floodlit and so a bit difficult to find in Frankfurt's night skyline. It was when we got there that things got odd.
There seems to be no way in. There is a hoarding all the way around the building, with something that looks like a works entrance at the front. Brother will have to call and find out how to get in tomorrow.
As we went back to walk around the side of the building (by the Ivory Club 'Contemporary Colonial Cuisine' restaurant, with massive tusks in front of the door), we saw flashing police lights and bikes rode in to block the junction, followed by a police car. Followed by a few rollerbladers. Followed by lots of rollerbladers. Brother estimated about 250. After all that was over, we crossed the road to walk back to the hotel.
And then - rabbits. We were crossing the old city wall, which has grass and trees planted in it, and brother noticed something moving. There were about ten rabbits, just grazing away in the grass, really not that bothered by the people walking past, getting as close as they could or even taking photos.
And Frankfurt normally seems so boring.
P, our resident lover of facts and knower of all internal quirks, issued a new arbitrary decision about how to treat certain kinds of text, complete with a Newspeak reference, so I spent far too long (not very long, but I had other things to do) reading up on 1984. Toyed with the idea of trying to teach myself Newspeak (I think it would be wonderful if the entire UK English team walked around speaking it) but forced myself to go back to work.
My fun and delightful foray into translation has now stopped and gone to be validated, so it's back to logging bugs for now. At least I escaped at 5:30 as I had far better things to do - namely meeting my brother, who finally came over on a business trip!
I met him at the Frankfurter Hof hotel - which looks amazing - near Goetheplatz. After gawking at his room, we headed out to walk down to Hauptwache, then to the main square and the bridge, back again and down Zeil and ending up at Iwase, which has got to be my favourite restaurant in Frankfurt, even though this is only the second time I've been there. Must go more often. We had a delicious meal - mixed sushi, deep-fried aubergine, and a tempura set for him and sashimi set for me. Chatted a bit with the waitress. I was very happy that I had got a reservation - I called 20 minutes after they opened for lunch and got seats at the counter - and ecstatic that they remembered me and one of the guys behind the counter called me Arline-chan!
After much talking about work and Japan and friends and so on, we headed out again and walked up to Eschenheimer Tor and back down towards the Deutsche Bank towers, which are not floodlit and so a bit difficult to find in Frankfurt's night skyline. It was when we got there that things got odd.
There seems to be no way in. There is a hoarding all the way around the building, with something that looks like a works entrance at the front. Brother will have to call and find out how to get in tomorrow.
As we went back to walk around the side of the building (by the Ivory Club 'Contemporary Colonial Cuisine' restaurant, with massive tusks in front of the door), we saw flashing police lights and bikes rode in to block the junction, followed by a police car. Followed by a few rollerbladers. Followed by lots of rollerbladers. Brother estimated about 250. After all that was over, we crossed the road to walk back to the hotel.
And then - rabbits. We were crossing the old city wall, which has grass and trees planted in it, and brother noticed something moving. There were about ten rabbits, just grazing away in the grass, really not that bothered by the people walking past, getting as close as they could or even taking photos.
And Frankfurt normally seems so boring.
Monday, 18 August 2008
Just slightly wrong
Thursday was odd - alarm clock had somehow gone an hour late during the night, leaving me thinking I was getting up early only to have to run to work. I was going to Dublin that evening, as Friday was a bank holiday*, and took the U-bahn - eventually, when the ticket machine stopped spitting my coins back at me. Then I realised I had left the power cable for my laptop at home and had to go back for it at lunchtime... if I'd known, I would have bought a day pass, but it was cheaper to buy a ticket to and from the flat and then out to the airport.
[*It wasn't a holiday in Hesse, where I work, but was in neighbouring Bavaria, where our head office is, so we got it anyway. Huzzah.]
Had a wonderful three days with Mom and Dad, generally sleeping, eating lovely food, going for walks and doing computer stuff. And annoying the cat, who is getting a little slower but you wouldn't want to start underestimating her just yet.
Flight back was delayed by over an hour and a half, but the pilot made good time and I got back just over an hour after I was due. Completely forgot to get milk, but managed to almost finish my current book (A Brief History of Misogyny by Jack Holland) and actually did finish the stack of post-it stickies with coloured ends that I had accumulated in Xerox. Went out and bought some more this morning and finished the book. Result.
Last week was a bit of an unmitigated failure. I was supposed to go back to studying, but ended up finding a source of fun eBooks and staying up far, far too late reading utter nonsense. Oh, don't get me wrong, it was (obviously) highly enjoyable. Just completely the wrong thing at the wrong time.
So, tonight a bit more successful in that I was actually reading something to do with the course, although I need to spend less time on the Social Science Readings and more on preparing for the exams, a mere six weeks away. Drilling on letter and report writing and kanji work, plus the second presentation (which I keep forgetting I have to do) are what I need to be doing.
This week won't be all study - my brother has wangled a business trip to Frankfurt, so I'll be going out with him tomorrow, and we're all off to see Batman on Thursday. Should be good.
And the weekends are also steadily being ticked off - this weekend free, next weekend move flat. Weekend after that himself is here, and the following weekend I'm in the Peak District at a hen and stag do, as I'll unfortunately be in Japan for the wedding. Weekend after that free, and the following weekend I wrap up my contract and leave Frankfurt - heading straight to Sheffield for exams.
Friday after that... Japan! Have been spending lots of happy hours online checking out locations and hotels and consulting with family. Can't wait - but lots to be done before then...
[*It wasn't a holiday in Hesse, where I work, but was in neighbouring Bavaria, where our head office is, so we got it anyway. Huzzah.]
Had a wonderful three days with Mom and Dad, generally sleeping, eating lovely food, going for walks and doing computer stuff. And annoying the cat, who is getting a little slower but you wouldn't want to start underestimating her just yet.
Flight back was delayed by over an hour and a half, but the pilot made good time and I got back just over an hour after I was due. Completely forgot to get milk, but managed to almost finish my current book (A Brief History of Misogyny by Jack Holland) and actually did finish the stack of post-it stickies with coloured ends that I had accumulated in Xerox. Went out and bought some more this morning and finished the book. Result.
Last week was a bit of an unmitigated failure. I was supposed to go back to studying, but ended up finding a source of fun eBooks and staying up far, far too late reading utter nonsense. Oh, don't get me wrong, it was (obviously) highly enjoyable. Just completely the wrong thing at the wrong time.
So, tonight a bit more successful in that I was actually reading something to do with the course, although I need to spend less time on the Social Science Readings and more on preparing for the exams, a mere six weeks away. Drilling on letter and report writing and kanji work, plus the second presentation (which I keep forgetting I have to do) are what I need to be doing.
This week won't be all study - my brother has wangled a business trip to Frankfurt, so I'll be going out with him tomorrow, and we're all off to see Batman on Thursday. Should be good.
And the weekends are also steadily being ticked off - this weekend free, next weekend move flat. Weekend after that himself is here, and the following weekend I'm in the Peak District at a hen and stag do, as I'll unfortunately be in Japan for the wedding. Weekend after that free, and the following weekend I wrap up my contract and leave Frankfurt - heading straight to Sheffield for exams.
Friday after that... Japan! Have been spending lots of happy hours online checking out locations and hotels and consulting with family. Can't wait - but lots to be done before then...
Saturday, 9 August 2008
Sometimes a cat is just a cat
Apart from the absurdity of dressing a cat up to look like... a cat, this article has some comedy writing and a hilarious bit of machine translation. No, I don't know how 'potato' fits in. Found it while searching for hotels in Obuse (near Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture) - Google decided I must have meant 'Abuse' instead.
Finally got around to making some hotel bookings for Japan! So happy to start making it all happen. We now have a hotel in Kanazawa, and one chosen for Tokyo. Starting to pencil in the other days as well. If I'm really lucky, I'll get to go to Hakone twice...
Finally got around to making some hotel bookings for Japan! So happy to start making it all happen. We now have a hotel in Kanazawa, and one chosen for Tokyo. Starting to pencil in the other days as well. If I'm really lucky, I'll get to go to Hakone twice...
Friday, 8 August 2008
Poetry in motion
A bored colleague sent me this:
Fontpark 2.0
Amazing animations of kanji and kana being turned into pictures! Watch out for the martini...
Not that I've had much time to surf around finding interesting websites... I'm just finishing up now after having swiped out already to ensure I don't go over the mandatory 10-hour cap that German law enforces. And next week looks just as busy.
Weekend! Time to plan for Japan in October!
Fontpark 2.0
Amazing animations of kanji and kana being turned into pictures! Watch out for the martini...
Not that I've had much time to surf around finding interesting websites... I'm just finishing up now after having swiped out already to ensure I don't go over the mandatory 10-hour cap that German law enforces. And next week looks just as busy.
Weekend! Time to plan for Japan in October!
Wednesday, 6 August 2008
What comes after Pete Tong?
Two and a half days later, I finally finish the massive update that solves the unreliable data problem.
Only for it to break all the things depending on it because neither the project manager nor myself understood how it worked under the bonnet. It's all gone to IT to get yesterday's files restored, leaving people to recreate a day of work. Damn. I wish we had a better system for this. There are some things you just shouldn't use Excel for.
Oh, and the data is still unreliable. I found updates I should have found previously but didn't.
But even more seriously, I got home and was distracted by someone outside repeating and spelling out Z's name and flat number. It was our other co-workers in the building talking to the police - his flat was broken into during the day, new laptop taken.
And it seemed like such a nice area too.
I then realised while tidying up (too distracted to do the study I really should have started on this week, with getting up early and pulling 10-hour days) that I didn't know where my camera was. Desperate, I checked in places that weren't immediately visible and found it - I must have hidden it before going to Sheffield and completely forgotten.
I guess I'll put it back where I found it and take my laptop to work for a few days.
Only for it to break all the things depending on it because neither the project manager nor myself understood how it worked under the bonnet. It's all gone to IT to get yesterday's files restored, leaving people to recreate a day of work. Damn. I wish we had a better system for this. There are some things you just shouldn't use Excel for.
Oh, and the data is still unreliable. I found updates I should have found previously but didn't.
But even more seriously, I got home and was distracted by someone outside repeating and spelling out Z's name and flat number. It was our other co-workers in the building talking to the police - his flat was broken into during the day, new laptop taken.
And it seemed like such a nice area too.
I then realised while tidying up (too distracted to do the study I really should have started on this week, with getting up early and pulling 10-hour days) that I didn't know where my camera was. Desperate, I checked in places that weren't immediately visible and found it - I must have hidden it before going to Sheffield and completely forgotten.
I guess I'll put it back where I found it and take my laptop to work for a few days.
Friday, 1 August 2008
All gone a bit Pete Tong
We came to the conclusion around 5:00 yesterday at work that all the data I have gathered over the past month or so is unreliable. This is going to take a while to put right, and I don't really have a while. At least it was a little cooler today.
In other news, I have become embarrassingly addicted to 'Cinnamoroll's Saucer Snap' on the Sanrio website arcade.
Our resident bodybuilding Hong Kong-Australian HR man took us out for what must be one of the best Chinese meals I have ever had, in Jade near the Hauptbahnhof. We had soup with dumplings, baked fish, cuttlefish and mangetout, black pepper beef, sweet and sour pork and ma po tofu followed by watermelon and a sweet bean soup. For all six of us, with drinks, it was 88 Euro. Most highly recommended.
And I finally got to see the 'dodgy' area around the main station. Mostly well-lit and very business like 'Shop und Kino' places, so I doubt I was in the truly dangerous part, but it was all very neon. Tempted to go back and take pictures, but maybe not by myself...
In other news, I have become embarrassingly addicted to 'Cinnamoroll's Saucer Snap' on the Sanrio website arcade.
Our resident bodybuilding Hong Kong-Australian HR man took us out for what must be one of the best Chinese meals I have ever had, in Jade near the Hauptbahnhof. We had soup with dumplings, baked fish, cuttlefish and mangetout, black pepper beef, sweet and sour pork and ma po tofu followed by watermelon and a sweet bean soup. For all six of us, with drinks, it was 88 Euro. Most highly recommended.
And I finally got to see the 'dodgy' area around the main station. Mostly well-lit and very business like 'Shop und Kino' places, so I doubt I was in the truly dangerous part, but it was all very neon. Tempted to go back and take pictures, but maybe not by myself...
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