Nov
26
Planning time!
Filed Under Daily
6 months left before the next step! Time to make some plans again, Time to get stressed in other words. It takes about 6 months usually for me to figure out what I will do next.
The worse situation and the most probable one would be that I do not find any job at the end of the second semester and I need to find a place to stay in Manchester. I could last another year or so staying here after June 2008. That would take me somewhere till June 2009. By that time, finding ANY job will be my priority.
The best situation would be a smooth transition, meaning a job as a trainee in London in a law firm! YEEEEAA that would be cool! I would take 2 weeks vacation to go somewhere in Europe. I still want to visit South America and take some nice pictures.
I will apply for the Canadian visa as soon as my retirement funds are transferred. That would be another adventure. Moving again to another continent and finding a job there. Canada seems to be crisis proof so far. They also need bilingual people in French and English. I could work as an IT or a research company. This would be maybe a backup plan. Not ideal but not too bad for my taste.
I will start to send out my CV today. It takes for ever for them to answer. In fact, I would like to find something in Manchester and stay around. I like the city! But there are more opportunities in London.
We shall see.
Nov
26
Cool sound from Mutemath-Spotlight
Nov
25
ANZ and ING.au in Australia
SG and ING.fr in France
BARCLAYS and HSBC in the UK
If I could I would have opened one in Ireland as well since it was free but due to stupid administrative complications I could not. It is actually very good to have a bank in as many countries as you can because for a basic account it is FREE. It is harder to open one because of all the administrative requirements so I usually open one when I can, even two if it is easy! In Ireland, there was not any problem because it belongs to Europe and it uses the Euro. Every bank transaction was free, even cash withdrawal using my french credit card. I should check and open a ING.uk here in Manchester.
My body is still really really sore today, I was hoping it would go away but it did not. I only hope people who did the hike with me get as much pain as I do :). I could not find any magnesium salt in powder, they would greatly help!
Nov
24
Sore everywhere!
Filed Under Daily
I think every part of my upper and mid-lower body is sore! The climbing did take a lot from me! The swim was slow and painful today of course but there were not many people in the pool which is nice. I think the winter weather has some effects on people. Some slow pokes are quite resilient and they are still there sadly.
Chebet seems to feel the financial burden of living in a big British city like Manchester. I wish I could help her but as long as I do not have a job myself, I cannot help anybody but myself.
I finally got a letter giving me internet access to HSBC, my second British bank. But I have not received anything else from them so I had to go to the bank and asked about the debit card and the bank information. The lady looked at me like if I was a stranger who lied to her when I told her that was all I had received from them. She then went and looked into their files and found all the relevant stuffs I needed. She told me as if I was an idiot that when I opened my account, I was told to come and pick them up. Of course, I replied kindly that nobody has told me anything. They will have to re-issue a new pin code since I did not come to pick up the card within 2 weeks!
I have also received my 3rd french credit card. This is the first time I had to change so many cards with the same bank in less than 6 months! I hope they will not charge me any fee but I doubt about it!
Nov
23
Jack’s Rake!
Filed Under Daily
That was the name of the natural crag, Jack’s Rake, that we climbed through! It was windy, snowy, rainy and extremely slippery. I had lots of good thrills during the whole hike which was short. I came out with a serious scratch on my left leg. It was bleeding during my shower and it became quite painful after. Consequently I was a bit slow this morning during the swim.
I am glad I am in one piece today!
Nov
21
Friday Expectations!
Filed Under Daily
Friday has always been a good day in the week! It’s the beginning of the weekend and the end of a long and boring day of Trade Mark classes. The teacher in the class is extremely good and he knows his material by heart but, “god damn it!”, he is dead boring.
I had a very long and good sleep yesterday since Thursday’s night was not enjoyable at all so I am hoping I will stay awake. The afternoon session for today is a seminar, it’s mainly a practical session during which we go through exercises to prepare us for the final exam. It is usually more interesting that the lectures.
I had very good swimmers in my lane today. They were extremely fast. Nowadays whoever pass me will not do it over 2 laps. He or she will have to stop quickly after. I wonder if I swim faster than when I was in Australia or Ireland. I personally think so. Maybe not extremely fast for each lap but for the whole 6 kms, I am sure my speed is reasonably fast from the beginning until the end.
The movie tonight is “The chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”, I shall attend as usual. It provides me with enough of social contact for the rest of the week ;). Policy in our hall has changed for the best, from now on there will be a regular cleaning of the kitchen by building personal which is nice. They do a better job than us and I do not have to feel aggravated every time I remind my flatmates to do so!
The weather’s forecast for Sunday Hike is bad 🙁 !
Nov
19
Slept like a baby!
Filed Under Daily
Awesome! A good sleep always repairs my shoulders. They were a bit sore due to the intense rhythm. This week, the hiking club is going to Langdale, it is probably one of the best spot in the Lake District. I hope it will not rain because it is a unique chance for excellent photos.
I threw away lots of unused food yesterday. I cooked some nice chicken with Uncle Ben’s sweet and sour premade sauce. It was delicious and I have enough for 3 meals.
Nov
18
I almost finished half of the two assignments for this week and we are only Tuesday night, which is quite good. I will finish the one for Thursday tomorrow and the one for Friday on Thursday ‘s evening. Amy told me she outspent a bit last month. I saw the number and it was a bit scary for a single month. Sometimes I spent that much but it was for something special, like my ski vacation or my camera. She is lucky, her mom can pay for her.
Yesterday and today the swim was very tiresome. I had little sleep and I swam a bit faster than usual. I decided to stop the beers. They interrupt my sleep because I have to go to the bathroom. I am trying some sleeping tea.
Nov
17
During two weeks, my blog existed in two locations simultaneously. Indeed, it was broken and I had to repair some components. From the outside world, it looked unchanged but only one link was the real one: ptran.redirectme.net.
My current blog is stored on Eno’s linux box in the US and even though it is extremely stable it might disappear one day. This is why I prefer to keep my independence towards his site using the forward link.
I found several version of a song I felt in love with:
When the stars go blue by Tim McGraw
When the stars go blue by Venke Knutson and Kurt Nilsen
When the stars go blue by Ryan Adams
When the stars go blue by Bethany Joy and Tyler Hilton
When the stars go blue by Blake Lewis
Nov
16
Reading Sunday!
Filed Under Daily
After the little electro-shock last week, I came to realize that it is urgent for me to read quickly the material about Intellectual Property. I can do very good if I work a little bit more. It is indeed just a bunch of rules to learn and I have a very good memory. Of course the more you know, the more flexible and rich your essays are.
This week is the last time where they will provide pizza for the movie night. What a shame, I enjoy this regular social meetup with a bunch of residents in this building. Chebet expressed some annoyance concerning her flatmates and particularly one of them who would not clean. I am happy I took steps quickly to ask for help among my flatmates. We still have the cleanest kitchen. I even requested them to buy something and Kat did. Not everyone will do but at least the majority of my flatmates are making an effort and it is easier this way.
I requested the cancelation of the bank draft last Thursday and I was told the money should be transfered directly to my ANZ winthin 6 weeks. Very annoying! Too much money involved!
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