Ahhhmmmm.... ok?!?

Just to give you an impression of how quick everything here changes:
10am: I'll stay here till the end of the year. Definately!
1pm: The local site manager makes up his mind and decides to stay instead of taking the new assignment, and will therefore only take his holidays, which is 2 weeks in October and the whole December. So I'll stay over Christmas and New Year's.
4pm: The site manager informs the bossboss about his decision and tells him that, in his opinion, it makes sense for me to stay here anyway. Bossboss thinks that it might be better for me to see different construction sites before I start my own, but has to discuss this with my direct boss first.

On the bottom line the only thing clear by now is that I'll stay here for the next 5 weeks - after that... I have no clue.

HOLY SHIT, I'M A CONSTRUCTION SITE MANAGER!!!

...well, you might think that this is no news, but it actually is!
Ok, as most of you know, the original plan for me was to stay at Spain for 5 weeks to get some on-site training, then Thailand (siiiiiiigh) or Qatar till the end of the year, so once I would start my project in France I'd have about 3 months of training once I'd take some responsibility. Sounds reasonable, doesn't it?
But life takes a sudden turn every now and then, and as the local Contruction Site Manager walked through the door today and closed it behind him (this door is ALWAYS open), I knew something was the matter. To make a long story short: He'll take a new assignment and therefore I'll be the local manager till the end of the year! In the meantime they try to find someone who speaks Spanish and can do the job after me. Doesn't sound THAT bad, right? Think again, 'cause there's a rub in it: He'll leave mid of next week, which leaves me 5 working days and a weekend to learn the job. AAAARRRGGGHHHHH!!!!!

...but there's a good side to everything: I'll abandon my beloved hotel room soon (only a few days) to move into an apartment, so if anybody feels like having a short-trip to the south of Spain, you're more then welcome!

¡Viva España!

I arrived save and sound in Sagunto, which is about 15min by car from Valencia. Can't say anything about how work is going to be, since the local construction site manager will only be back tomorrow, but the first impression is that everybody is rather relaxed and I can wear jeans and t-shirt - love that!
What I can do is to give you an impression of where I'm staying.
Soooo, this is my hotel: It's very close to the beach, too :-)

And this is my room... I think it's the first time that the catalogue-picture looks exactly like the room itself. What else... maybe it's worth mentioning that it has still 28°C and that I got a company car (ok, it's a white Seat Ibiza, but it's new and since I'm in Spain, driving a Seat is ok(ish) ). Friday we have a "keep up the good work"-party from the construction site and I've already been invited to join a fireworks competition and a local feast. All in all I think I can stand the thought of spending 5 weeks here, easily ;-)

Today I’m saving your life…

(ok, this post became MUCH longer then I intended it to be, but I guess if I could take the time to write it you can read it just as well, don’t you think? ;-) )

…or at least 94 minutes of it. I just happened to watch the most PATHETIC movie ever. Maybe it’s a waste of time to read this review, but by writing about it I kinda make up for watching it. Understand what I mean? No? Ah well, just read it!
Ok, the movie’s called “Dinner with friends”, starring Andie MacDowell, Dennis Quaid, Toni Collette(?) and Greg Kinnear. ANY movie starring Andie MacDowell should be labeled “Don’t!!!” in the first place (Groundhog day and Green Card are exceptions, but certainly not thanks to her), so I should have known better… I’m loosing track again, so on with the review. Summary: Two couples in their late thirties, who have been friends for many years. One couple breaks up, the other couple is devastated. The separated couple gets new partners, new lifes and becomes happy while other couple questions their relationship and the long term friendship because of their friends’ new found happiness, but decides in the end that things are actually good the way they are. That’s about it.

The verdict:
#1: I am determined to hate that film. It’s like a road movie – I hate road movies! You get to know the people and accompany them for a certain period of time in their (usually meaningless) life. No setup, no complication, no retard, no climax, no resolution. I’m really old fashioned (e.g. simple) when it comes to movies: If the knight doesn’t kill the dragon and saves the princess, I’m not happy and would like to sue the box office for stealing my money. Where’s the point in watching a knight on his way through the woods, reflecting on recollections of his meaningless life? Boooooooring! (In case he commits suicide in the end, he’s forgiven!)
#2: No music, except for the end. Maybe it’s the editor trying to tell me “This conversation is far too meaningful for you to be distracted by such a random thing as music”…well, thanks for robbing the opportunity to actually not listen to the crappy dialogues for a moment.
#3: Don’t tell me what to do! I like to figure out the message of a film myself, in case there is any. It doesn’t have to be served on a silver plate with a giant neon-sign saying “precious advice”, thank you very much. It was like reading an American “life quality” book about how a marriage works, how to cope with changes and how to “preserve the magic”. WTF?
End of movie criticism, I think you got the general idea.

On with on-topic - off-movie statements.
Personally, I make a huge detour around general-life-advise books, because I don’t need or want books to tell me how I am supposed to see things.
Therefore, my humble opinion on that matter: if you are married to someone and every day you turn the keys to your not-yet-paid house and you feel like all of a sudden a heavy weight pulls you down every time you walk through that door, is it so hard to tell that something is obviously wrong? Maybe it’s something you can work out, maybe not. You’ll realize by talking to your better half and find out if you can cope with it. Go figure and bare the consequences. Some people are better off being separated.

And relationships in general? Watch out, big bummer news coming up: People change! Shocking? It gets better: It’s ok, because it’s part of the deal.
The matter of the fact is that the person you fell in love with is the person he/she became before you were together, and the other way ‘round. You don’t give up (all of) your individuality by becoming part of a couple, well, most people don’t, so you will naturally develop AS WELL based upon the person you were before you became part of a couple. That can result in nasty surprises as well as in good ones. Some people change intentionally to please their partner, but you can only change so much, and maybe in the end there’s nothing left of you. Compromising in little things is fine, but giving up who you actually are? Not really… at least that’s what I think.

What it all comes down to is that people are different, and personality-wise the setup for a happily-ever-after couldn’t be worse than between men and women, but I always thought that a relationship is not supposed to be work, it’s supposed to be bliss; it shouldn’t make your life more complicated but put you at ease. Down at the core I’m a hopeless romantic, so I think if you are lucky enough to find a certain someone who you love and, equally important, share the same wavelength with, chances are good that you can happily grow old and wrinkly together. Enjoy the things both of you like together and be happy for the things that make your partner smile like a child the night before Christmas, but that you’ll never understand.

…maybe I should start writing general-life-advise books and become f***ing rich ;-)

What is art anyway?

After 2 weeks I finally got off my ass and saw a bit of of Tours with some other students. The main attraction is the cathedral, which is located only a 1 minute walk from my house. I have a weakness for cathedrals, certainly not because of their utilisation but because every cathedral is a piece of art. If I think about how long the production of a tiny facade-fragment must have taken, I can’t help myself but love it.

We also visited a few museums – Tours has a loads of art collections.The enormous amount of paintings and statues made me wonder what qualifies it as art. Certainly, all of the pieces must have taken hours to manufacture and are technically outstanding, but so are some chairs/tables/sofas and still they are not generally considered as art, then again you have modern “art” where someone paints 3 canvases blue and sells them for 500k. It might sound strange, but to me 99% of the pieces exhibited at a normal museum are not art. They are well manufactured pictures, not more. To me art is something that releases an emotion; something that makes me smile, gives me the chills or intrigues me in a way I can’t explain. If I find one single painting in a museum that does that, the visit was totally worth it. The best example to show you what I mean is my favorite painting “Skrik” also knowen as "Der Schrei" by Edvard Munch”. ...actually there are 4 versions of this painting, all in different styles. This one's my favotite.
It is exceptional in so many ways that words can’t express how awesome it is (at least to me). In the museum right around the corner I found a painting that managed to creep me as well – not as strong as “Der Schrei”, of course, and the photo can’t nearly mirror the desperation and angst you can see in the eyes of that woman when you move really close to it, but it gives you an impression.
(click on the pic to enlarge it, so you can have a closer look on the eyes - then you'll know what I mean) Over and above that, I found a painting that made me smile – not because of its content. It seems like there was a time when it was easy to get away with plagiarism. On the description it said “Inspired by the Mona Lisa” Well…it’s a bit like shopping at the fake market in Shanghai and find a shop where they sell sneakers with a sign saying “Inspired by Adidas/Puma/Nike”. Hilarious!

Dreams, sweet dreams....

...being a student again makes me feel like my head is about to explode every now and then as paying attention all the time is harder then I remembered it to be. My daily rendez-vous with the Sandman whole-heartedly anticipated these days, hence my thoughts turn to one of my favorite playgrounds once more.
In dreams begin responsibilities, at least so wrote the poet. Maybe. Could it be we take our dreams too lightly, those images from places unknown? Could they in fact be angels in flight, our souls aloft? You know, recent experiences have made yours truly take another pass through the metaphysical thickets. As unlikely as it may sound in this rational age, I emerged on the side of those that cannot help but put their faith in that which cannot be explained easily. What else can you do than be open to your dreams, to embrace that distant shore? Because our mortal journey is over all too soon. I found a quote that summerizes it all quite eloquently: "Those cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, the solemn temples. The great globe itself. Yea all which you inherit shall dissolve and like this insubstantial pageant faded. Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff as dreams are made on and our little life is rounded with asleep." (In case the author is still alive he may stand up, so I can pay tribute) Sleep well, y'all, and enjoy the trips those night trains take you on.

A series of unfortunate events...

...well, I have't been adopted by the Baudelaire family, and Lemony Snicket is not trying to hunt me down (in case you don't know what I'm talking about, you should read more!), but I feel like someone or something else is. As if the last months weren't desasterous enough, the whole farce reached its peak last weekend, so I ended up on the Dutchie's floor, disturbing his first night of peace after 6 long months (still sorry, but I'll make up for it). On Sunday I took my flight to France and, still at the airport, I received my welcome gift by being charged for lousy 5kg of excess luggage. 30 bucks $#(_$*#'{!!!!!! On the flight I wanted to wach the DaVinci Code on my laptop, but the format couldn't be recognized, so I didn't do anything. After my arrival I talked the time away with an Australian rockband that was touring the globe for 2 yeas (pleasent exception) and thereby underestimated the distances on Charles de Gaules; I only made the train by running with my 25kg suitcase, a bag and my laptop. At Tours my host femily was supposed to pick me up. Guess what: nobody was there! So I called the mobile number I had been given by the school, but since my french was hardly enough to order a drink, I only understood that the woman on the other end of the line wanted to meet me somwhere at 7pm (it was 5:30 back then) and that she proposed to take a walk through the city in the meantime - with 30kg of luggage?!? yeah, sure!!! The Frenchies I asked for assistence to translate weren't much help either. At 7:15 the dad and one of the girls FINALLY picked me up. The "car" was already packed to the roof already, 'cause they had just returned from their holidays, and by trying to fit the suitcase in the care they broke its wheels - now I need a new one :-( The took me to their... let's call it house. To give you an image: I think Marc Dutroux would have felt quite comfortable there. Ancient and no maintenence since the French revolution... shitty room and a bath"room" with a mixture of tub and shower where not even a midget could stand properly ...ah well. I carried my crap to the 3rd floor, chatted a bit with the family (Oui... non... huh?). Later on daughter No.2, the mum and the dog arrived. I was instucted not to run in the garden 'cause the dog doesn't like it - fine with me. I went to my hammock in disguise pretty early and waited for the Sandman. Next day started fine: Nice school, good teacher and the realization that my french is not that bad after all! Spirits high I went "home" with the dog greeting me with loud barking, the moment I opened the gate. After opening the dooor I'd let him sniff so he'd know that it's ok to let me in - and he did. So I put my crap in the kitchen and wanted to climb the stairs to fetch a towel to do my homework in the garden. Apparently the dog is a bit forgetfull, so he decided that it is NOT ok to go up there. He made his point by biting me in the leg.
Long story short: I went back to the school to ask for another family, went to the doc to get a vaccination refresh and moved in with a new family the day after.
Now I live in a house in the city center, have quite a big room and 3 boys in their twenties around. I hope that family proves to be as promising as it seems at first glance.
Next time I'll give you a little tour through Tour.
A bientôt!

Breeeeeathe....

It's been a tough week, challenging both professionally and personally. However, I know, I still owe you a detailed report on farewell-party No.2 - sorry, but I'm I still need pics. Only thing to say by now: Thanks to everyone who joined or wanted to join. I'll miss all of you and will make sure to give you a visit everytime I'm in Munich. *sniff* ...ok, enough of that sentimental stuff!

Back to business. Last week I got my last introduction talks at Power Generation (PG) HQ - everyone is kind, helpfull and trying to make my work easy. Just great.
Wednesday I headed off for my first leadership workshop. Yes, me will be a boss-lady. Watch out, peasants, I'll make your days living hell if those fields are not tilled well ...MUHWAHAHAHA!!!! *cough*;-)
Met a lot of interesting and nice people - since it was a PG-exclusive training, it helped a lot to get to know a bit more about my new employer and the large variety of tasks covered. Perspictives are more than promising.
Today I drove up to Gelsenkirchen where I'll stay till Sunday, when I'll be heading off to France. Got my host's address and details today. The letter was in french and I was pleasently surprised that I understood almost all of it! Maybe my french is not as poor as I suspected it to be :-)
Attention, Madames et Messieurs, j'espére temps très palpitant. A bientôt!