Goodbye, laptop "Corse"

I mentioned that my laptop was broken. Now it's gone. And it's all my fault.

Although I figured that it would cost more to repair than to replace, I figured I'd get a quote on it anyway. I just needed to get the address of some local repair guys so I could get them to take a look at it. (Apparently LaptopTec are pretty good at repairing individual components rather than swapping out entire boards like most folks do.)

I put the laptop in a bag, got the address from the local cybercafé, then got distracted looking for a place to stay. By the time I was done, I'd organised a viewing at a nice place in Bondi Junction -- and left without my bag. The place had signs up saying "thieves are about" and "watch your stuff" so I kept checking it every so often, making sure it was still on the floor under my desk.

I obviously had some kind of brain failure, because I utterly forgot about it until I'd been gone for about ten minutes. Unsuprisingly, it was gone when I got back. I left my details at the desk in case it shows up, but I'd be foolish to expect it back now.

It wasn't much of a computer -- it was three years old, and about the cheapest that was going at the time -- so I'm not as fazed as you might expect. Heck, I'd seen enough posters up saying things like "help I've lost my laptop and my thesis/novel/music collection that I've been working on for years please return the laptop I'll give you money" so I was pretty big on keeping anything important in at least two places.

There's an old saying in IT: No backup, no sympathy.

Take the "Whether?" with you

The Dutch folks must have liked me, because they've made me a job offer. The big question now is whether to take it.

It looks great

The company culture seeemed pretty fantastic — the phrase like one, big happy family came to my mind just after a couple of minutes waiting in the kitchen.

The salary could be better, but the benefits are the best I've seen. Seriously. They have allowances that cover language lessons, sport, travelling to work, buying a computer at home, and even rent. There's plenty of holiday time.

It's for a new project, so I'd be responsible for choosing the technology as well as making it useful for people. The direction they'd like to go is Plone and Python, with which I've had great experience.

But is it for me?

Actually, the role has a certain element of déjà vu. It's more management than development, and there's more than a touch of system administration. Development is a core activity, but it just may not be room to write software every day. In other words, it's just like my last role in New Zealand.

I don't mind a little bit of management, and I certainly don't mind system administration. But I learn the most with development, and I like learning. I even wrote software developer on my immigration card.

Overall opinion

I think I'll have a great time with the organisation, if I take the job. It'll be relaxed, and fun. If I was settling down, it would be close to perfect.

I don't know about challenge or career direction, though.

Goodbye Berlin

I've got a flight in the morning to Amsterdam for a job interview. This Easter weekend, I might be somewhere a bit more familiar...

Good old Blighty.

Is anyone going to be in the London area this weekend?

The clock keeps ticking

Living in the student residence has made all the difference. I've had a constant expectation of social interaction, which means that I've spent very little time on personal pursuits like reading or software projects. I've had no convenient Internet or phone access, which means that I've had relatively little contact with the world outside Berlin. It also means that job-seeking is a major chore. To top it all off, the sheer cost of this room has put a big dent in my savings.

My original plan included looking into the work situation here, finding nothing, and returning to London. That might still happen, but it's a bit more complex now.

I've enjoyed learning the language, and going back to an English-speaking country to work seems too comfortable. On the other hand, my German is still at a relatively basic level: it's entirely possible that working in a German office will push straight through enjoyably challenging and right into frustratingly difficult.

To top it off, I'm starting to feel what could be described as homesickness. I'd like to visit good old New Zealand, eat some tasty food and catch up with friends and family. At the same time, I don't think I'm ready to come home for good. If living in an English-speaking country is too comfortable, I think I need a new category for living in the country I grew up in. Then again, challenges come from all kinds of sources – not just work or language.—

The Clash understand

My return flight is scheduled for this Sunday, but I've got to decide whether to take it. I'm currently unemployed, and after school finishes next week I'll be homeless. The choice should be easy, right?

Yeah, it should be. But it isn't.

It's been a fantastic couple of months. Let me tell you, though, it feels like much more. They say time goes faster as we get older; I reckon it's more to do with how we spend our time. Working long hours was certainly rewarding in its own way, but I sometimes found the months flitting by as though they were cars passing on the street.

My life has changed again, pretty drastically, which is always a bit un-nerving. At the same time, I know that I've changed before and I'll change again. In some respects I feel like I'm living life backwards: I've gone from running my own business, to consulting, to working for a big company to working for a small company. Now I'm a poor student, living a relatively care-free life. What comes next? I don't know.

Bon Jovi understands

I booked an 8-week course, and I'm just past the half-way mark. I've already learnt more here than I expected; not just German, but about myself.

My first couple of weeks were a bit confused, but I knew they would be: I was changing my life pretty drastically. Then I started to wonder if I was too late to learn; I seemed to have a lot of trouble in class. At the same time, I felt like the outsider at home. I wouldn't say there were problems, but I didn't find myself "clicking" with anyone.

Part of it boils down to simply being in a different situation than the other students. Most people in this school are here on a break from University, and they're here on their parents' dime.

A few weeks later and I'm feeling much more comfortable with the people and the situation, not to mention the language.

Where will I be living in two months' time? I can't really say at this stage, but it'll be wherever the work is. As much as I'd love to dedicate the year to studenty life, my savings only last so long before they need a top-up...

Wilkommen

I'm here, I'm alive, and my German is awful.

I had something of a mission trimming down my possessions to a level that I could take on the plane. Big thanks to Barnes and Kellie — I couldn't have done it without them.

Even so, I'm pretty sure I chose the wrong things to take, the wrong accommodation and probably the wrong direction in life. Oh well.

The people I'm staying with are great. There's an amazing mix of people there, and in fact the course itself is the same. I think that everybody comes from a different country, and nobody is American.

It's pretty cold here!

Prosit Neujahr! Happy New Year!

Warning: very long post ahead.

Wahey! It's 2007 already. We all live in The Future now.

I remember thinking about the future. I remember realising that we couldn't just keep using years beginning with 19; we had to run out sometime. I worked out how old I would be when the time came, and thought to myself: I can't imagine being that old. I'll almost be a proper adult!

These days, it's those 19— years that seem so far away.

What does 2007 hold for me?

I proclaim this year to be The Year Of Doing Stuff Properly, No Seriously For Real. I've done a lot of things in my life; I've seen what's out there. I don't think I'll stop Exploring and Discovering, but it might be time to ramp up the Building side.

I won't go listing my whole goal catalogue (especially with so many of them being technical or geeky), but in 2007 I expect to achieve goals like:

• Learn a language well enough to chat at the bar (or the bus stop)
• Cook decent meals on a regular basis (groceries not restaurants)
• Learn some kind of structured dance (more than adlib monkey-flapping)
• Live somewhere long enough to really talk about it
• Work as a contractor or freelance
• Develop software in a truly agile team

I'd still like to fit some poetry, acting or a musical instrument in there somewhere, but that's not really going to be in-theme.

Romance

No full-time relationships for me, hopefully. Like sushi from the sushi-man, I've had enough of that to do me for a good while to come.

Of course, I suppose the dancing and the cooking would work much better with company. I'll probably wind up accidentally falling into another relationship. Gah.

Work

I expect to spend a good chunk of the year out of the workforce. Study will be a big change for me, but it'll be a refreshing experience.

I expect work to be challenging when I am gainfully employed, and I'll love almost every minute of it because it'll the good kind of challenging.

Travel

Quiet and solid, compared with the whirlwind of 2005 and the lightning storm of 2006.

I think I'll appreciate my own back-yard, and see more of Britain. (I'd like to say the same about Germany while I'm there, but I think time and money will keep that on a leash).

Friends

I've been running low on super-close mega-friends. That's mostly my fault for keeping myself to myself (and for being in a different country).

I'm not going to deliberately work on this, but I wouldn't be suprised if taking classes gives me good opportunities to bond with my fellows. Theatre and film was brilliant for that.

Sports

As if.

Life management

I'll put a bunch of techniques to use in the hopes of improving my personal productivity. Some will work for a while, some will keep working, and one will radically change my life.

---

Wow, I just spent several hours trying to respond to GodAwfulPoet's wonderful greeting. I might split up this post into a series when I wake up.

Update: I did actually split the posts but never published them like that.

Update March 2007: Almost a quarter through the year and the predictions are going all right. Now they're serving as excellent encouragement.

Top tip for London

Don't leave your bag unattended while you go inside to get drinks. Especially when there are signs saying things like:

Bag thieves in the area.

Don't leave your bags unattended.

I know, I'm a fool and I've got nobody to blame but myself. Luckily, it only had a couple of valuables inside (and only one was irreplacable).

• My camera and memory card
• Asthma-style inhalers
• A new electric shaver
• A notebook with some journal notes, most of which had been typed in here.
• A collection of Edgar Allan Poe-try
• A souvinir pen or two from my travels
• A box of Space Man candy sticks (mostly eaten)
• An expensive-ish software engineering book

...and a partridge in a pear tree. The journal is a bit of a loss, everything else is just a bit inconvenient.

Actually, the bag itself was pretty useful — it was the rugged zip-off daypack from a Macpac backpacker's backpack. Much sturdier than the Secret Santa bag I use for weekend trips away.

Roskilde, day 1 - mea culpa

If you were taking more than a week off work to go to a festival in a foreign country (and paying a fair chunk of money for the privilege), what would you bring with you?

This is part 1 of a series of updates.

You'll need your passport, for sure, a sleeping bag, some clothes, maybe something to read. If it were you, instead of me, maybe you'd also bring your tickets.

That's right, I was in Denmark but I left my festival tickets on the desk in my room in England. They told me and my innocent companion that they would only let us in if someone in England took a photo of the tickets and send the photo to them by e-mail. Of course, it couldn't possibly be that simple...

Our bags went inside the campsite where we couldn't get at them, my phone was missing all the useful numbers and burned through its credit with sky-high roaming charges anyway.

Luckily there was a couple of no-shows at the local youth hostel, so we did get a bed for the night. I will owe many people many favours before this is over!

I am employed

It's time to dance and sing for joy: I have just had a phone call with some excellent news.

There's a formal written offer coming in the mail on Monday, and the salary is not a compromise. Goodbye, money troubles!

Provisionally, my start date will be two weeks from next Monday. This leads me to consider a spot of travel (taking advantage of those ridiculously cheap flights ). Sweden? Germany? Croatia? Perhaps just a little jaunt around the rest of Britain.

I don't need to unwind on a beach in Greece -- it's been six months since I was at work, so I'm pretty relaxed already. I saw posters suggesting snowy Russia for Christmas break, and that looked very cool (no pun intended). I think I'd want to travel in a group, though, to enjoy it properly. I don't read Cyrillic (other than the letters for vodka) and besides, I'd have to fiddle around with their visa system.

Suggestions?