Well it has been almost two months since I wrote last. Work has worn me down and it is hard to write when you're tired. Lots has been happening.
Mum has been here. We went to the Blue Mountains. My work situation has to some extent fallen apart. Summer has arrived. There is an election for which I am feeling disenfranchised. Xmas trees have arrived.
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So mum was here. She came for more or less three weeks. Lily gave her a terrific welcome considering it was seven in the morning - much to my surprise and artfully proving my warning and pre-apologies to be unfounded. Picture bears no relation to text. Ariel warmed up. It was good to see her. It was school holidays so kids were around a lot. Abi had sent along some silly outfits as is her want. Ariel was a rather good pirate and Lily was a ballerina. Actually they both do ballet. Left toes in left toes out etc. Being with my children is hard work so mum got a bit tired by the last week and I think was happy to get home to the overcast sanity of SW18. It was a good excuse to see extended family though and I know she enjoyed meeting up with dad's Sydney based cousins. Next time we will get to see more of them.
It was sukkot when she was here. We bought a sukkah and ruminated on the exorbitant cost of being a Jew in Australia. Today I went to work and the shopping center I walk through on the way to the office has put up xmas trees. Totally bizarre, it being really rather hot at the moment and no doubt getting hotter. Personally I didn't really notice xmas in New York - must have been all the Jews. Anyway this is a bit odd. Also this week there is a near plague of flies. In five or so trips to Sydney of what I thought counted as scrupulous due diligence I do not remember a single fly. Now there are a heck of a lot. I don't understand it. It's not like it's not hot in New York. Seriously there were less flies per cubic meter in the refet at Kibbutz Yahel than there are in Sydney and there aren't those sticky fly papers everywhere. Apparently this is temporary for another month or so. On the beach Lily was not happy and proceeded to flick ever more sand into her eyes, ears and mouth trying to ward them off in a downward cycle of misery. Mum did buy me a boogie board (read: small lay-on-top surfboard) for my birthday which has been good fun - kids enjoyed pretending to surf.
There is an election going on here. The election consists of unpopular short old codger who has been in power for a decade versus young other guy, who has not, and speaks Chinese rather well. All polls predict young guy will win - Kevin in 07. John - the old guy - I saw him interviewed. Such an phenomenal lack of vision and ideas - I was amazed. The election so far seems to have consisted of an ever increasing series of astonishingly blatant bribes from old guy to the electorate on a scale that way goes way beyond the chutzpah and financial ability of anything an Israeli PM would try. Policy is only slightly clearer than in the Middle East. Everyone seems to have a "bring on the bribes" attitude but I can't really claim to have my finger on the pulse of yet another strange land. I am bemused. I also don't have the vote. Voting (if you have one) is compulsory here, it is illegal not to vote. I feel disenfranchised.
We went to the Blue Mountains a couple of times in the last couple of months. About 2 hours away and really very beautiful. Great trees. Great hikes. Good food. Mark and Tara (S' brother and wife) came the first time. Great to see them again. Second time was with mum. Kids had a blast of course.
Soccer - scored a hatrick last time we played having purchased a rather lightweight pair of soccer shorts to replace the heavyweight sweat-shorts I've been lugging around. Have to see the urologist as got enlarge prostate - I'm getting old. So does Olmert apparently. I wonder if he has to go the toilet in the middle of the night too?
Which brings me to work. So I had bought into this idea of turning this incredibly dysfunctional but rather profitable company around as part of a team of five or so people that seem to know what they are doing. Problem is that one of them, the CEO, was fired. Another, the CFO, decided to go elsewhere. A third, the head of Asia-Pac sales, engineered his way out. Leaving two (for now). Not enough to turn it around. So I'm considering my options. I'm not going to write much more here. Suffice it to say that this situation has not made me happy. It has made me very stressed actually.
That is about it. Sharon got us built-in cupboards. Actually she did a hell of a lot more than that of course - as in raise the kids, go to work and keep me sane. Now I'm done. Time for dinner.
Mum has been here. We went to the Blue Mountains. My work situation has to some extent fallen apart. Summer has arrived. There is an election for which I am feeling disenfranchised. Xmas trees have arrived.
.JPG)
So mum was here. She came for more or less three weeks. Lily gave her a terrific welcome considering it was seven in the morning - much to my surprise and artfully proving my warning and pre-apologies to be unfounded. Picture bears no relation to text. Ariel warmed up. It was good to see her. It was school holidays so kids were around a lot. Abi had sent along some silly outfits as is her want. Ariel was a rather good pirate and Lily was a ballerina. Actually they both do ballet. Left toes in left toes out etc. Being with my children is hard work so mum got a bit tired by the last week and I think was happy to get home to the overcast sanity of SW18. It was a good excuse to see extended family though and I know she enjoyed meeting up with dad's Sydney based cousins. Next time we will get to see more of them.
It was sukkot when she was here. We bought a sukkah and ruminated on the exorbitant cost of being a Jew in Australia. Today I went to work and the shopping center I walk through on the way to the office has put up xmas trees. Totally bizarre, it being really rather hot at the moment and no doubt getting hotter. Personally I didn't really notice xmas in New York - must have been all the Jews. Anyway this is a bit odd. Also this week there is a near plague of flies. In five or so trips to Sydney of what I thought counted as scrupulous due diligence I do not remember a single fly. Now there are a heck of a lot. I don't understand it. It's not like it's not hot in New York. Seriously there were less flies per cubic meter in the refet at Kibbutz Yahel than there are in Sydney and there aren't those sticky fly papers everywhere. Apparently this is temporary for another month or so. On the beach Lily was not happy and proceeded to flick ever more sand into her eyes, ears and mouth trying to ward them off in a downward cycle of misery. Mum did buy me a boogie board (read: small lay-on-top surfboard) for my birthday which has been good fun - kids enjoyed pretending to surf.
There is an election going on here. The election consists of unpopular short old codger who has been in power for a decade versus young other guy, who has not, and speaks Chinese rather well. All polls predict young guy will win - Kevin in 07. John - the old guy - I saw him interviewed. Such an phenomenal lack of vision and ideas - I was amazed. The election so far seems to have consisted of an ever increasing series of astonishingly blatant bribes from old guy to the electorate on a scale that way goes way beyond the chutzpah and financial ability of anything an Israeli PM would try. Policy is only slightly clearer than in the Middle East. Everyone seems to have a "bring on the bribes" attitude but I can't really claim to have my finger on the pulse of yet another strange land. I am bemused. I also don't have the vote. Voting (if you have one) is compulsory here, it is illegal not to vote. I feel disenfranchised.
We went to the Blue Mountains a couple of times in the last couple of months. About 2 hours away and really very beautiful. Great trees. Great hikes. Good food. Mark and Tara (S' brother and wife) came the first time. Great to see them again. Second time was with mum. Kids had a blast of course.Soccer - scored a hatrick last time we played having purchased a rather lightweight pair of soccer shorts to replace the heavyweight sweat-shorts I've been lugging around. Have to see the urologist as got enlarge prostate - I'm getting old. So does Olmert apparently. I wonder if he has to go the toilet in the middle of the night too?
Which brings me to work. So I had bought into this idea of turning this incredibly dysfunctional but rather profitable company around as part of a team of five or so people that seem to know what they are doing. Problem is that one of them, the CEO, was fired. Another, the CFO, decided to go elsewhere. A third, the head of Asia-Pac sales, engineered his way out. Leaving two (for now). Not enough to turn it around. So I'm considering my options. I'm not going to write much more here. Suffice it to say that this situation has not made me happy. It has made me very stressed actually.
That is about it. Sharon got us built-in cupboards. Actually she did a hell of a lot more than that of course - as in raise the kids, go to work and keep me sane. Now I'm done. Time for dinner.
Except there are some more photos...
Here is a funny sign from the Blue Mountains (Click to enlarge).
Here is a picture of Lily with Uncle
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And here is a picture of all of us in the BMs with a famous rock formation in the middle.
OK that really is it.
