how to tell that you haven't been entirely unpopular...

Do you remember my drooling when Vienna's branch of Tiffany's opened last year? Well, it looks like my (ex-)colleagues know exactly how to make me a very happy bunny by giving me this beautiful necklace with heart-shaped pendant. I won't say they can mind-read exactly as I'm afraid I must have voiced my longing for some jewellery in a turquoise box often enough for them to remember, ahem. Apart from this gift and some very exquisite chocolates they also gave me the coolest going-away card (a collage of photos and nice comments) ever. Yep, last night's farewell dinner was very nice indeed.

My first two days at the new job couldn't quite rid me of a distinct headless chicken feeling but I hope that a week of training in Dublin (could be worse, eh?) will put the head back on, preferably filled with the skills I will need. I probably won't post next week as I don't intend to go near blogger on my work notebook.

Be good.

waterproof mascara

I'm wearing it just in case and have already had some wobbly moments. A visit to our accounting section to collect my severance pay has put me in a more light-hearted mood. Still, nostalgia prevails.

nostalgia²

As returning readers of this humble site know (only too) well, I'm quite partial to my morning walks through Volksgarten, due to end tomorrow, unless I get up earlier and take a detour to my new place of work, which I'm not really planning to do.

Needless to say, it seems that the trees and shrubs have never been so green and the lilac never so lush and fragrant as this week...

As I'm taking out the last bits of paraphernalia of my desk drawers, giving them a cursory blow, it once more dawns on me that is so, well, FINAL.

Just as well I got to dry practice this exercise and its attendant feelings of wistfulness 3 months ago when I vacated my workplace 3 stories below in order to move on up to the glamorous position I am holding for another 10.5 hours.

The countdown has started.

broadband

So. Cable guy paid me a visit yesterday morning (thankfully, the "between 8 and 12" turned out to be a reasonable 9:30) and pronounced the antenna outlet faulty. When he had replaced it replaced it, the "cable" light on my modem was steady instead of blinking in one-second intervals. Very promising indeed. I stopped short of kissing his feet/offering sexual favours - you get the idea.

When I returned to my flat yesterday evening, the cable light was blinking away merrily, continuing to do so all night. Same this morning.

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

I just had a nice little chat with Helpdesk Guy who obviously knew his supervisors were listening in as he was super-friendly, making sure to use my surname in every sentence and interjecting a snazzy gegebenenfalls (should the situation arise) at least as often. It's working now but I may have to trek to the back of beyond to exchange my modem for a new one. Like, gegebenenfalls.

petals

Picture taken on yesterday's office outing to the banks of the Danube. Aaaaah.

Wish me luck for tomorrow. The "Broadband Fixer", i.e. one of UPC's technicians will visit "between 8 and 12 a.m." (how I love their precise times!).

In return, I wish you a great weekend, make it a sunny one.

happy in a happi

For the last time today, I'm going to participate in my favourite annual event among those Coma HQ co-organises and takes part in. For this purpose, we've all donned our happis and are going to spend the day on the banks of the Danube. My part in today's activities? Teaching origami (my repertoire includes: pig, leaping frog, classic crane with floppy wings, kimono, samurai helmet, heart, clover, box, cherry blossom) which, believe you me, can be quite challenging an undertaking in gale-force winds.

in the gloom of doom

For several days now, I have been in a very strange mood indeed. Admittedly, I'm in very-strange-moods-indeed most of the time as people who know me more intimately would be happy to point out, but this current mood is a mix of nostalgia and apprehension. Today next week will be my last day chez Coma HQ. True, I've been bored out of my mind more often than not and have experienced my fair share of frustration for manifold reasons. Then again, it IS my first ever proper (arguably) job and just as I had no prior experience of ending a relationship, I have never quit a job before.

Much as I usually embrace Challenges and Change with capital Cs, I have obviously grown quite comfortable in the snug little niche I've come to inhabit here over the (almost nine!) years never mind the fact that I have spent the greater part of my week days in the same area since 1990, the main university building being just a stone's throw from Coma HQ. A staggering 17 years.

Inertia has become my heraldic animal, so to speak, but I have spoilt it like a pet.

sole searching

I actually came back from my sunkissed week in KLU on Friday already but my broadband internet at home was acting up (again) so I couldn't post.

What I did last week? Well, buying shoes, mainly: While I was at it, I also bought a pair of Crocs. Interestingly, it says "Made in Mexico" on the sole of the right shoe and "Made in China" on the left. Globalisation at its best, I guess.
The reason why I returned to Vienna on Friday was that I was supposed to attend a felting crash course on Saturday together with Novala. It was cancelled at short notice but thankfully la Novala didn't cancel the Power Point crash course she gave me to save me from potential embarrassment in my new job (beginning next Thursday. Countdown!). She greeted me in a t-shirt bearing the logo of my new company. Which is actually an arch enemy of the one she works for. Subversive element, eh?

Happy Easter

As I'm off to KLU soon I want to wish everyone (who's celebrating it) a Happy Easter weekend already on "Green Thursday" as it is known here. I probably won't be back in Blogland until the 16th. I suppose you better get used to longer periods of silence from yours truly as I won't (be able to) post from work in my new job. And probably be too tired to do so after work... We'll see.

I got those lovely tulips from Coco last Friday and am planning to hand them over to my Dad's custody in the hope that they will last longer in Carinthian soil.

Ooops. I did it again.

Raid H&M's kiddies dept. that is. I blame the Mermaid as if it hadn't been for the lovely hairband she'd worn on Friday, I wouldn't have had to check out (in vain) 2 branches. Instead of the hairband I bought a very nice polka-dotted dress and the green ballerinas above. By the time I got home at night my feet were killing me, but hey, they were only € 9,99...

alive and kicking

I know I promised you an update on the likely casualties resulting from my Indian experiments for yesterday but I had the day off and my broadband internet connection at home was dead for the greater part of the day.

Well, it did turn out rather nicely and the guests made the appropriate enthusiastic noises. The photo shows me preparing the main course, "butter chicken". The name is rather misleading as there is only a tiny cube of butter in the saucy bit. I'd have called it hard-to-get-by-spices-chicken instead... I think I'm actually going to include the dessert (a milky pudding with a hint of cardamom and saffron) in my repertoire.

Just as well I have Coma HQ to retire from my action-packed day off which included:

• cleaning the living-room windows
• meeting an insurance guy to discuss the (very impressive indeed) employee benefits that come with my new job
• making sure that the boiler service man doesn't mess up my water temperature again (luke-warm baths are so NOT what I need)
• picking-up a battery for my Mum's digital camera
• giving a private English lesson
• doing some shopping (more on that tomorrow)
• going swimming with the Mermaid followed by dinner at my place and 2 episodes of Desperate Housewives on TV