Saturday, February 11, 2012

Time flies when you're having fun!

And even when you aren't sometimes! Where to start?
Well, the new job is really busy and despite having a system which throws up all your accounts sorted however you like, management still insists on emailing stupid Excel spreadsheets with loads of different colours (the meaning of which I don't know) with missives that say things like 'Team please do all the green accounts before you go home'. And basically, if you get this and have loads of cases you just have to stay back and complete it. No matter how long it takes. And you have to get 3 hours 'talk time' every day which only registers calls of 20 seconds or more, so if you get the dreaded Telstra 10 second message woman you have to talk really s l o w l y to make 20 seconds. Because I'm not taking inbound calls yet I am not getting 3 hours a day, and am a bit bored with having to submit records of all my actioned cases. C'mon guys I'm not 19 years old. So we shall see how this pans out - I mean the people are really nice but some of the stuff is just ridiculous. 
Robin has managed to get the apartment in Katty fairly well sorted out but still doesn't have decent wifi and had to invest in a gas geyser for the bathroom. So much expense that we weren't really expecting: geyser, inverter, new laptop, spare bed. I've stopped counting but I just have to make sure I can pay the bills....
I was really looking forward to spending some time at the pool this summer (ha there's a joke) and I STILL haven't been to the pool. And probably never will. Since we got back on 1 December there's been about 12 hours of sunshine. So totally boring. I had a whole bunch of summer clothes made by Master-ji in Delhi last year and I despair of ever getting to wear them.
I had to buy some new software for the computer to get the slide scanner operational so hopefully I can get some old holiday snaps scanned in my spare time (the time that I am NOT spending at the pool!). And I bought a USB turntable so that I can convert my records to MP3 and stick them on the iPod. Well that's the plan anyway. Having a few issues with, I believe, 'the interface'. Whatever that is. I'll try again tomorrow.
Oh and I had a horrible eye infection that lasted for 2 weeks - I was rather lucky I panicked when I had a sore eye and managed to get into a specialist straight away. The pain was awful and I ended up having 3 days off work (always a good look in your first month) and couldn't even sit in the loungeroom because the skylight made the room too bright (with this overcast weather. Ha!) And I couldn't wear my contact lenses for 2 weeks. But I did manage to get to the T20 cricket - I'd never been before and it was SUCH FUN! I must make more effort to go see some games in India next time.
'Rosemary's Baby' is on the TV - I remember being scared witless reading the book when I was a teenager. So far, so strange.
I will try to report more regularly, eye infections notwithstanding.....


Sunday, January 22, 2012

Busy as a one armed paper hanger with an itch

That's what this week has been like. I managed to avoid having anyone come over on Monday night to say bye bye birdie to Robin so we got to spend a little time together, before I had to leave him when I went to work on Tuesday. Predictably I was a sooky lala for most of the day but toughed it out to hang in there at the office and receive endless messages from sir about the luggage, the queues, the excess baggage charge and the rip off refreshment prices. He got charged excess luggage by THAI (but really he DID have 60 kg and they only charged him $208 for a couple of kilos) but I think he did pretty well to squeeze himself and all his luggage onto the chockers jumbo. After 12 hours in Bangers airport he then got to Kathmandu where they had to have 3 goes at landing cos the one runway was full as 8 flights landed at once - sounds like the local supermarket car park on Saturdays! Anyway, he finally made it into town and the hotel where he was only going to spend a couple of nights before moving to the 'luxury' apartment - remember the one with 24 hour electricity GUARANTEED.
Well what can I say: not 24 hour electricity, no hot water into the kitchen (what, you mean you wash up in HOT water?), no glass in one of the windows in the loungeroom (he found that out after his first night there and it was 0 degrees), no gas connected to the gas cooktop, no drinking water and I can't remember what else. Such an adventure. Oh and the shower curtains I bought him at Red Spot Boutique didn't have curtain rings. And his helper threw a box down the stairs which contained the glasses. Oh and a bottle of beer exploded all inside his new fridge. I'd better stop now.....
He had his first dinner party last night which despite being deprived of electricity seems to have gone well. But I do wish he would stop sending SMS messages like 'how much baking powder do I add to flour for pastry' and 'what spices do I need for nachos'. Strewth.
The view where I get off the train...
I meanwhile have been working away very busily (for not much result it must be said) but I get to wander around the Botanical Gardens in my lunch break which I rather enjoy. Every night since Robin left I have been out for dinner so I am looking forward to a quiet one this evening....
Have a great week and stay tuned for more adventures!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Long time no see

Hi everyone and Happy new Year (better late than never). I could say something stupid like I can't begin to tell you how busy life has been, but since I am about to tell you how busy life has been, I shan't. If you see what I mean.
New Tear's Eve was quite boozy and fun-filled, especially the bit where we jumped on the Wii to try downhill skiing etc - luckily we had the safety bean-bag in front of the TV in case of accident. We didn't need it though. Somehow.
Robin and I went to day 1 of the India Australia cricket test - a great day's cricket but India have been oh so disappointing - and continue to be so. They have some of the best batsmen in the world but they just can't pull it together on the field. Sad really but I am winning bets with my Indian friend... if I can ever collect the $$$.
Beautiful Babai River, Bardia NP, Nepal
Speaking of which I have been at my new job for nearly 2 weeks now and after a very strange start it seems to be going well. It took over a week for them to get me the important paperwork to sign - they didn't even know my surname!!! And they still haven't sighted any ID. But they DO have my bank details so I am looking forward to visiting the ATM on Wednesday. Woo hoo!
Robin is flying back to Nepal on Tuesday and so life has been a flurry of last minute bro love visits from his mates, late evenings which seem to be centred on bottles of wine, and STUFF everywhere. He is having a few 'issues' with the 'advertised amenities' of the apartment he was planning to rent, not the least of which being the 'guaranteed 24 hours electricity'. I guess the guarantee was for 24 hours a week, not per day. Our dear neighbours had a spare barely-used counter top fan oven/grill which they have given him (and it only weighs about 20 kg) and of course electricity would be good for that. And the fridge, computer etc etc. Better him than me...
So I will be back to single working girl status again which of course has good and bad points. Robin will be spending the first few weeks in Kathmandu getting some stuff sorted out (like electricity) before going trekking with Baz and Howie (from our recent trip there) walking from the western border of Nepal east for a couple of months. Then, hopefully India for a very exciting trek in Nanda Devi. After that there are a few plates spinning at once - just have to see how long we can keep them all up on the sticks! I'm hoping to get over there around monsoon time but who knows. If I can work out where he is.
I am going to head off now and enjoy the brief bit of sun - hasn't this summer been a bummer so far?
Take care and I promise updates will be much more regular once BSR gets to the 'du and everything goes crazee!