Mmmm Beer

Hi folks, all right as rain here.
Indeed, there's plenty of rain here.
Today, work consisted of learning how to wash my hands properly. Don't you love health and safety.

On another note.. I've had a splendid idea.
Infact, Katherine and myself have been missing our dose of German beer for a while now. So we've decided to brew some beer ourselves! Of course I'm too lazy to do homebrew properly, thank god for the beer factory. Getting a place like this to do the hard work is affectionately called putting down a brew.

Unfortunately, we can't decide which one! Help us out, and choose one for us - vote now.
Here are the details.
http://www.thebeerfactory.com.au/brewersreserve.html
And the price... that's for 50 litres.

Mmmm Beer!

New Job Ok

So the new job would seem to be much more my sort of thing. Definately alot more of what I want to be doing. Testing, Programming and plenty of Nerdy Tech details.

Katherine's officially allowed to breath out, not having to support both of us will definately take a weight off.

And I got told twice today to take my tie off! Score! ;-)

Another new start

So, yesterday, I quit my job.

I start the next one on Monday for these guys. Which is actually where I wanted to work in the first place.

why exactly

One of those typical oddities that pops up once in a while.

Who invented the rotating train seat.

A genius stroke, well made, and durable design.
It MUST be from the days of investment in the future. When public works were not measures in revenue, but rather of benifit to the public.
Still, it's odd that such a well designed feature never caught on anywhere else.
It's a basic need for alot of people to face in the direction of travel, I don't understand it.

Who would have thought.

So, I start work tomorrow!
Working for these guys.
Should be interesting, of course I'm not allowed to say what exactly.
And I also got another offer of work from a company that turned me down before. Unfortunatly it's come too late, I've already commited to the first job.
I also had 2 interviews last week for permanent positions. One of which I felt was a good interview, and the other in which I managed to forget all I know about programming. Still, I may have recovered.
So next week I'm starting work. And the week after I may still be going to interviews.

This should keep me going 'till the visa comes through!
O.k. I'm off to sit on my arse till I have to get up for work.

Tara then.

Oh. And I'd better go wish my parents happy 30th anniversary.

Brushing up on my Australian

Today was another day, another interview.
In the morning, i took K_ to Brighton-Le-Sands. It reminds me of Ali G's locale of West Stains. It was K-lassy down there. The greek pillars on the houses. The popularity of the mono-brow. The mobile disco vehicles, with white rims. The lovely seaside view of Sydney airport and a refinery. However, by far the K-lassiest was this numberplate.


And I wasn't too happy about the open aggression aimed at me. They want to rub me out. It was even publicised in shop windows.


So... If successful, this interview would have me working in a casino. Sounds exotic doesn't it? I wish, it would involve sitting in a windowless room, trying to get the casino networks working with each other. Not so exotic though.
And after the interview I took the opportunity to brush up on my Australian.
So I took a detour to the Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling harbour.

There's alot there. I think maybe I got to see 1/5th of the displays. I think that's my dead time sorted for before and after the next interviews!

News, Views and Prospects.

So it's been a week since my last post.
Lot's of things have happened in the last week to keep me busy. A quite novel experience.

Most important in my mind, the southern hemisphere winter solstace.

So now I can officially look forward to summer, and the weather and dark days theoreticaly MUST get better from now on in. Low and behold in 6 months I may even be complaining that it's to hot, instead of shivering next to the only heater in our apartment.

Other incidents of note this week.
Some people actually want to talk to me about jobs. I had 3 interview situations last week. Several more are organised for this week. And suitable jobs have started popping up on all of the Job Sites. (Although K. would have you believe that I just wasn't looking hard enough before.)
I've even managed to wear-in my interview shoes, so I no longer limp into interviews. Instead I have progressed to a kind of shuffle which seems to remind most people of a Green Mile walk.
Naturally, some of these interviews were with recruiters, who often like to check that you have all of your limbs attached, and can find an anonymous office in the Sydney CBD before forwarding your resume to actual employees. However, eventually one of these recruiters has to find me a job, murphys law dictates they can't always sell me a goose.

K's looking forward to her holidays. I'm looking forward to working.
And unfortunatly the casual work continues to take back burner to the longterm job search.

Newsworthy is also the confirmation of my good character by the PSNI and UK police service. Something that quite suprised me, since I thought that the NI police had dirt on everyone, even if it was made up. So that's an official green light to the final visa application. Now it's just a case of getting everything togeather in one application.

Going to bed lastnight I mentioned that K had only 4 hours till she had to get up again, to which she answered, "What's it matter to you, you don't have to get up at all". And to be honest, that's certainly how I feel, I wish I didn't have to get up to call recruiters all day and leave messages with their receiptions which will never be answered. I really wish I could just work in a bar for 6 months. Unfortunatly, that would be the death knoll for any professonal career in Australia.
As one recruiter told me, "you could always try your hand at working as a recruiter, it's easier than getting a Job". Indeed, all the recruiters I've spoken to sofar, are infact english rather than Ozzie.

Anyway, I'm rambling now... time to talk to some receiptionists again. Bye. D.
P.S. Chin up, as my da would say, "Don't let the bastards get you down!"