Special offer on Newsfire and Inquisitor
If you buy Newsfire this weekend, you get a free license for Inquisitor, a search extension for Apple's Safari browser. Go get it while it's hot!Posted 20th August 2006, under Internet | Comments off
Meetings turn me into a drooling zombie
I was forced to attend a meeting on the company's upcoming rebranding with some soulless marketing brand consultant monkey-in-a-suit (who seemed to have some pronounciation problems, insisting on calling it "reeebrääääänding").I'd completely forgot how mindlessly boring meetings can be, and had to start tricking my mind into staying awake. Thankfully, it was over within an hour. An hour too long.
Posted 21st July 2006, under Life | Comments off
On relationships
The most common problem in any relationship is a misunderstanding. Miscommunication, or lack of communication altogether, only serves to exacerbate that. Unless nipped in the bud at the earliest possible time, it will fester like a cancer on the relationship.The girlfriend and I are currently separated by land masses, an ocean, and half a dozen time zones. While that won't always be the case, our options for communication, apart from actually physically being together once every 3-4 months, have been limited to a mix of email, instant messaging, VOIP & webcams. Ample room, therefor, for communication problems to arise. Ample room for things to go unsaid, issues to go unresolved. And while we have been very prudent to not let that happen, to lead an honest relationship in which we can speak about any matters weighing on our minds, other, predominantly job-related factors, work against us being able to communicate properly on a regular schedule. I've recently moved from Zurich to the Grisons, starting at a new job here and promptly having to do the work of two people, as my co-worker decided he needed a 3-month sabbatical, and my girlfriend is getting buried at work with project management issues as well as her regular work. Having her ex-boyfriend working in the same, small company doesn't help much at times, either.
She is afraid of moving to a fairly unfamiliar country, having to deal with a foreign language (even though the Swiss pride themselves in their English-speaking abilities, however atrocious it usually comes out as - it's all about understanding people, right?). Afraid of being relegated to house-keeping work and waiting on my every whim. Of course, that is the exact opposite of what I want her to be doing. I want her to live a fulfilled life, and I realize I can only make up half of that. Humans need purpose in life, and housework and cooking chores went out of style as the number one happiness-inducing female pastime in the 1950s.
And yet, I'm more than confident that we will overcome all our issues, our fears, our anxieties. The Tao says the will to give up is greatest just before success, and I have a feeling that this is what we're currently going through. We're both stressed-out, unhappy about various parts of our current lives, and while we'd never "give up" on our relationship, the constant stress just wears us out. Despite what is currently going on, she is the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, and she has professed as much to me. By this time next year, if all things go as planned, we'll be married and living together.
And the thought of that fills me with love and butterflies and everything in-between, is that we've recently had our first anniversary together as a couple, and, most importantly, as (semi-)husband and wife. I asked her when we first met whether she wanted to be me wife, and she answered "Yes" without hesitation.
How can I NOT be happy about that?
Posted 18th July 2006, under Life | Comments off
Finally getting round to it...
Just a quick update, so it's not looking like I'm procrastinating too much. Finally got my move done up to my alpinePosted 13th July 2006, under Life | Comments off
Saying Good-Bye to Zürich
I've lived in Zürich now for the last 5 years, having moved here in May 2001. My first time living alone, away from my parents. One of many "firsts" that I had here. First time with a girl where I thought "she's the one!", first time I got my heart thoroughly trampled on (by that very same girl, a few weeks later), first and hopefully last time I visited a psycho-therapist (because of the heart-trampling and issues brought up by that), and many other, more mundane "firsts". All in all, a hefty learning experience, albeit not one I'd wish on anyone. "It's part of growing up!", I hear the amateur psychologists in the audience crow. And they're right, of course.While I'm happy to be leaving Zürich, with all it's nastiness, grime, and abject arrogance, I can't help but feel a bit sad that I'm leaving missed possibilities behind. Looking back, it was the first time in my life that chances were given to me where I was in control of the final decision. What I did with those are what define me, make me who I am today. Some chances were great, some of which I blew, some seemingly great chances merely turned me into a scapegoat, or a stepping-stone to others on their way to the top. Don't get me wrong, I'm not bitter about those people. I cannot help but feel sorry for those still stuck in such an unforgiving, soulless place, being told "This is what life is about!". Zürich, Switzerland encompasses most of what life definitely is NOT about. And I'm not talking about the high price of whiskey-colas served in the bars.
Thus, to sum up my years in Zürich: Zürich sucked, and, like a raving left-winger disgusted with Bush, I'm leaving for MUCH greener pastures.
Posted 12th May 2006, under Life | Comments off