Remaining resolute in 2007

2007.

Jesus.

I was just starting to get used to 2006 too. Ah well, nothing for it but to adapt and move on.

I'm back at my digs in Cricklewood, after spending the past 9 days or so back at the Barmy Badger hostel in Earl's Court, where those of you with longer memories of my blog will recall was the place where this British jaunt all began. I've got a few mates back there who I still keep in touch with, so rather spend the week languishing back at my house, I went back there on the advice of Nick, and had a great time also. Christmas itself was an Orphan's christmas - most of the people at the Badger had left, and so there was only about 15 or so people there. We had a good feed, and Nick and I splashed out on a carton of genuine, Tasmanian, imported from Australia James Boag's beer. Which went down an absolute treat compared to the crap pommy lager you normally have to drink here.

I also bought a bottle of OP Rum and a few Bundaberg ginger beers, and mixed up some highly lethal Dark and Stormies, which also went down well.

New Year's eve, if I'm to be honest, wasn't as good, for me at least - I managed to get fairly depressed last night about the usual stuff - being away, not seeing family for such a long time, missing all my mates back home. So it wasn't as good as it could have been. Still, I hung around at the pub till midnight with Nick, Karl and a few others, watched the fireworks that always happen around the London Eye, then toddled off back to Cricklewood.

All in all, it was a good week - nice and relaxing, and just what I needed.

So, to 2007.

First of all, work. We just moved our office this past week - still in the same building, but instead of sharing an office with another company, we have our own floor all to ourselves. One thing I want to do is really up the ante on the work I'm doing. Our boss is shelling out a ton of money for this new office, and I want to repay that confidence he has in us by really pulling in some new business for him. So, between now and when I come back for a month in April, I'm going to be working my arse off.

After I get back here in May 2007, the plan is to keep working until, well, when I get sick of it here. My Visa runs out in March 2008, so sometime between now and then I'll pack it in, spend a month or so travelling through Europe and then wing my way home.

I'm also rapidly coming to the conclusion that I am not qualified to choose housemates, although drama does seem to follow me around like monsters follow PacMan.

While this doesn't involve me per se and I am still getting on well with everyone in the house, it's only because I don't want to touch this one with a ten foot pole. In a nutshell, one of the guys I live with is a net junkie, and spends all his playing this game with real money involved, online. That's how he makes his money. Anyways, somehow he acquired a girlfriend (a real one) but the relationship turned bad. So now he sends messages to her saying he's going to kill himself, and she (I have no idea how she got my number) rings me and asks me to check on him for her, since she gets worried because she can't ring him.

This is because of 2 reasons.

1. He deliberately ignores her calls.
2. He has a habit of smoking a shitload of weed while drinking great liver-crippling draughts of this extra strong Polish beer he likes and passing out, to the point where nothing can wake him.

Wait, 3 reasons.

3. He's a dickhead.

So, I'm just avoiding this one as much as possible and keeping my options open when the lease runs out in March. I think what I'll do is hang around here till I head back to Oz in April, and then find somewhere else once I come back. I know Nick and a few others from the Badger are looking to move out, and they've sounded me out about sharing a house with them, which would be great, so hopefully that will happen at some point.

Finally, just so you know I haven't been a complete slacker, I have some more photos for you.

Of a power station.

However, not just any power station. The Battersea Power station, for lack of a better word, is HUGE. Absolutely, totally, gigantically huge. This building is the size of Trafalgar Square, and is made entirely out of brick, which is an amazing feat. Fans of the computer game series Command and Conquer will instantly recognise the inspiration for the graphics representing the power station.



As you can probably tell though, this is not a station that is currently in operation. There are plans to do something with it- it can't be knocked down, since it's a heritage listed building. Not sure exactly what they can do with it though, since it's a real wreck these days, and the local train station is fucking terrible. Not the sort of place you want to visit on a regular basis. (Once was enough for me.)

Well, a Merry Christmas to all - and I'll be seeing you in less than 5 months back home. Scary prospect, I know.