Something for the bored people among you

Thought you might enjoy this! Turn up your speakers and play!

http://www.chunk.co.uk/snowball/

Yes, Im bored... just want to go home and start the Christmas celebrations!!!! Also waiting for a fax before I can update a case, but it's still not arrived. SIGH!!!

Love,

Also randomly...

Aparently if I was a reindeer I would be:

You Are Vixen

Sexy and sultry, you're the one all the other reindeer dream about. Why You're Naughty: That fur pulling spat you got into with Dancer over Santa. Why You're Nice: Because even when you're nice, you're still delightfully naughty!

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

Just thought I'd share that with you;)

I am crap at thinking of decent headings for blog posts...

Dear all,

Thought I would delight you with a blog post before Christmas. My system at work is down and so is my server, which means I have no access to my cases, so I have some time to spare:).

First of all I want to wish everyone


Merry Christmas and a Very Happy and Healthy 2006!!!


I am well. Work is going better and better. I am starting to feel like I know things now. The prospect of being the Dutch desk on my own from January 4th is still daunting, but I should be able to manage ok. Customers can be a pain in the backside, but overall they seem to respond well if you call them as soon as you receive their complaint (within 24 hours). If you then let them talk and explain themselves they tend to calm down. Quite a lot of the time people that complain just have no reason to (they are months or even years out of warranty most of the time, but still want us to do repairs free of charge etc), but if you are willing to listen they at least feel that their complaint is being acknowledged. Giving customers good news is of course the best feeling. Generally my advice when complaining is: nag on and you will get something;)! The people in my team are the best complainers when it comes to their own problems.

Life generally, when I have time to enjoy it, is also great. Derek's holidays have started, so he has some more time for me:). It was damn hard getting out of bed this morning with a sleeping beauty next to me that I just wanted to cuddle up to! I am really looking forward to tonight, when we are meeting some friends for the traditional Christmas get-together, and I am also very much looking forward to Christmas at Derek's. It is so weird to think that last Christmas is already a year ago. At the same time I am so used to having Derek around, when this time last year he'd only just come home from Denmark! I have got everyone a present, thankfully no Christmas eve rush for me. Luckily I have the Monday and Tuesday after Christmas off (as I work UK hours I have all bankholidays off:)): I really need those extra days to relax, stay in bed with Derek till the afternoon, have Derek-sandwiches (not with Derek on it;), but made by him and for those of you who haven't sampled them: they are the best sandwiches in the WORLD) with left-over turkey for lunch, go for a nice walk, watch silly Christmas TV and all those things that are so great around this time of year (which definitely does not include going shopping on boxing day (such a ridiculous concept, considering that Brits spend a FORTUNE over Christmas!).

On Saturday I went to Edinburgh to do some Christmas shopping (not because it's better, just because I wanted to meet up with my friend Barbara). I was slightly hung over from the night before, so it was not too much fun in the crowds, but I managed to do the necessary shopping. I even went into Harvey Nichols, hehe;). For anyone expecting a present from me from there: NO CHANCE. The cheapest thing that I might buy for someone I could find was a diamante (yes, that means FAKE) brooch that cost £80!!! Not quite within my budget...:'( Edinburgh is so stylish around Christmas. In Glasgow everything blinks, coloured lights everywhere, tackiness all round and that is great. In Edinburgh on the other hand they only have tiny white lights that don't blink and everything looks so pretty. It always amazes me how different these two cities are, when they are only 50 miles apart! Edinburgh is great to stroll through every couple of months, but Glasgow is home in all its tacky splendour.

Back to work now (or pretending to anyway as all systems are still very much down).

I hope you are all, or will all, be enjoying the holidays! Drink one on me.

Lots of love,

Weird?

You Are 70% Weird

You're so weird, you think you're *totally* normal. Right? But you wig out even the biggest of circus freaks!

How Weird Are You?

Drink & fun

Dear all,

The dinner last night was lovely. Derek's dad really is a great cook. The families got on well too. Drink was flowing very freely and everyone got fairly drunk (apart from my mum who, sensibly, only had one glass of wine). It was fun! The taxi ride home was interresting;).

In other news: if I was American I would be

Your Political Profile
Overall: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal
Social Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal
Personal Responsibility: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal
Fiscal Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal
Ethics: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal
Defense and Crime: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Check out www.blogthings.com for lots of fun tests. I discovered it through my friend Gerard's blog (see http://spaces.msn.com/members/bhoygary). It's fun, especially when you're bored at work!

Hope you're all well!

Love,

Graduation & real life is hard...;)

Dear all,

I graduated!!!!! Yesterday I graduated from the University of Glasgow with an MPhil in Scottish Literature. From now on you will therefore have to refer to me as Mariken Schipper MA MPhil;). Only joking of course. I had a nice day with my family, my mum, dad and Jan are over, and Derek. I will miss being a student so very much though...

Life as a full-time employee is really not as easy as I thought. I mean I am very very very happy an grateful to have a reasonably well-paid job, in a lovely team of people, don't get me wrong, and I am very very happy with the pay I receive each week too, but it is hard to get up at 6.55am each morning (yes, that's BEFORE 7am). If, like me, you have been a student for the past 5 years, used to doing things in your own time and used to getting up whenever you felt like it, it is really quite tiring. I now understand why people don't feel like cooking when they get home, and why people are tired by the weekend.

Tonight me, my parents, and my brother will travel to Cumbernauld to have dinner at Derek's house. His dad is cooking venison for us. My mum has met the family before, but my dad and brother haven't. Quite exciting and scary really, but I'm sure we'll have a good time!

Back soon!

Lots of love,

Mariken
xxx xxx xxx

REAL JOB!!!!

Dear all,

I am very very very happy to announce that I have a JOB!!!! With Lenovo (the Chinese company that took over IBM's PC business) in Greenock.

It is a Customer Relations job (and in Dutch as well as English), but with a difference. 'We' receive the cases that are too complicated for the help-desk to deal with, as well as complaints from large companies (or executives that have written to the big boss). The job involves a lot of networking within the company. I won't be on a phone all the time, as I would receive e-mails with all the cases that require solving and I can then go solve them in my own time. They usually take from 20 days to solve, envolving different departments etc.

It seems like an exciting job that will give me a lot of experience dealing with big executives and things like that. I am quite amazed I got it, as a requirement was that the candidate have a 'proven track record' in 'excellent' customer service, and I knew that there were two more candidates with experience. The recruitment lady said that this manager was apparently very picky and that he was very positive about my interview, saying that I have excellent communication skills (yes, I like talking;)) and that I am very intelligent.

Proud of myself:)!!!!

Love you all!!!

Mariken

Interviews

Dear all,

I had an interview at a company called Indigo Lighthouse (see http://www.indigolighthouse.com which strangely does not say anything about contact lenses! and no, I'm not making it up;)) today, in my lunch hour. I think it went well:). They 'do in' contact lenses. They outsource (is that a word??) for companies in The Netherlands such as Pearle and EyeWish, as ll as many companies in Britain, and the rest of Europe (YES Britain IS part of Europe;)). I liked the sound of the role, a combination of dealing with customers and branches in The Netherlands, and communicating by e-mail, post, and phone. They are a young company that is growing fast and therefore there is much room for progression. The atmosphere seemed really nice and the office is much more cheerful than the one I am in now. Hope they liked me too:)!

Tomorrow I will leave work at 1pm (after saving up 3 hours by working an extra hour on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) to travel to Greenock. There I have an interview at IBM, with both Addecco and Manpower. The one is for a temporary customer service role, the other for a permanent business-to-business role. I would definitely prefer the second one, but we'll see how we go. If, theoretically, I get offered both an IBM role and the Indigo Lighthouse role I will go for the second one, not least because it is snap bang in the middle of Glasgow's city centre. It pay slightly less, but the pro's (less travel, smaller company) are larger.

Will let you know how I get on!

Love to you all,

Mariken

Good and bad news

Dear all,

I never told you, but my grandfather was in hospital with a broken hip and arm. It didn't look good for a bit, because of some complications, but he is back home now, thankfully. Hope he will be mobile again...

Good news on the job-front too! I HAVE AN INTERVIEW WITH IBM in GREENOCK on FRIDAY!!!!! Also a phone interview for a different position with IBM tomorrow morning at 8am. Also heard from a recruitment agency looking for someone for a Dutch customer services position in the city centre of Glasgow. YEAH!!

Unfortunately I will not even be considered for my dream job, the post of International Student Advisor at Strathclyde university. That's a shame!!!

Job is still boring. Especially as I'll be back doing the most boring stuff (when I was doing something slightly more exciting for the past week), because of some sort of re-organisation... SIGH!!!

But hopefully I won't be doing it for much longer;)!!!

Love you all!

Mariken

Job (crap though)

Dear all,

No word from me in a while. I am temping at Abbey national and still applying for millions of jobs, hence the silence... Job is very boring, but it will keep me going for now. Trying to remain positive, but it's bloody hard.

Hope you're all well! Autumn has definitely arrived here: rain rain rain cold cold. Even go wet feet: blegh!

On the positive side: I had the most lovely weekend with Derek. We went on a road trip to St Andrews on Saturday which was really nice. He is just so so so so lovely:). Sorry, getting a bit carried away there...;)!

Back again soon. Hopefully with news of a nice job;)!

Love,
Mariken

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

Dear all,

Yes, I am sad and to get more birthday wishes I put on my blog that it is my birthday. Hehe. Clear lack of cards through the post this year, so thought I'd drop a hint;)!

Party is soon, I promiss. Job first!

Love u all!

Big big big cuddles,

THE END

I have printed out my dissertation. It's called

The Past is the Future: History and Contemporary Issues in Naomi Mitchison's Historical Fiction

Great...

That's it. Over. Done.

If anyone wants to read it (!!!) do e-mail me and I'll send you an e-mail copy;)!

Love,

The End in Sight...:'(

Dear all,

I just handed in my dissertation for a last inspection by my supervisor. Great, you might say. And of course it is. I does give me a great sense of achievement to be able to hand over another "book" written by myself:). On the other hand though ... when I was walking down the stairs and out the door I suddenly just felt so so sad! This is my last week as a student! Probably for ever! I am going to miss being a student so so much. The fun times, the great books I discovered, just being part of a special part of society really.

I do look forward to finding a job I'll enjoy, and to having some money to spend. My first job will probably not be all that enjoyable though, or bring in that much money! But hey, let's stay positive! It is exciting to start a new chapter, and a few days ago I was even positive about moving to Cambridge. I know it's going to be hardm especially as I don't like not knowing what is ahead, but it will also be new, exciting, and fun:)!

In other news: I went to the doctor yesterday and got treated for a minor problem I had (I will spare you the details!). I need to heal now, which means I can't have sex for the next 3-4 WEEKS!!! Poor me... Anyway... You didn't really need to know this! I do apologise. I'm Dutch so I can't help but be frank about these things;)!

Going to go and search for some more jobs the now. Wish me luck!

Love,

Photo's and jobs

Dear all,

Attempt number two at writing this post... SIGH.

Do check out the gorgeous photo's Derek took on our wee holiday up in the North-West. Aren't they just glorious?
http://www.protactin.co.uk/photos/lochaline

In other news: I have another interview!!!! It's with IBM in Greenock. I know I have the IT-skills of a grandmother, but I will receive full training. Also I will solve more organisational problems and let the engineers to the technical part;). To give you some idea of what the job will be like, here are the questions they sent me, and my answers:


"Customer Relation questions

Can you give me 3 real life examples of where you have had to solve a customer issue by either your own resolution or by interfacing with another organisation to close the issue?

1. In my role as a board member on a Student Accommodation Committee I solved students' problems on a regular basis. For instance when I found that the dryers in our building weren't working. People had made several complaints, but nothing was being done. I went to the reception in my official capacity and talked to the manager. Because I complained on behalf of many people their voice was heard and the dryers were replaced the following morning.
2. In the same role I helped organise many large events for several hundred students. On one occasion something had gone wrong with the ticketing, which meant that people who had paid did not have a ticket. At the venue the staff, understandably, refused to let people in that I knew had paid for their ticket. I talked to the manager, explaining the situation and acknowledging responsibility for the mistake. After some consideration the people were let in.
3. In my time on several staff-student committees I have resolved many issues between the university and the students. For instance problems with examinations. If more than one student complained about a certain question on an exam I would bring this up at the staff-student meeting. By explaining objectively how a certain question was not clearly stated, or was not covered by the material studied, I managed on several occasions to get the grading changed in the students' favour.

Can you also advise how you would tackle the following situations:

RolePlay 1:
Mr X is going on a business trip at the weekend and you promised to have his laptop repaired and returned to him by Friday . The Repair Centre calls you on Thursday to advise that they are short staffed and they cannot return Mr X's laptop until next Monday . Mr X leaves on Saturday for a business trip and needs his laptop. He is very irate and needs a solution. How would you handle this situation?

First of all it is very important to acknowledge Mr X's complaint, and to take responsibility for its resolution. He has a good reason to be upset, and it is important that he feels you understand his situation. The first thing to do is therefore to apologise on behalf of IBM. I would go on to explain the situation calmly to him, and would then ask him if he would accept a different laptop on loan, until his own laptop has been repaired. To alleviate the situation I would also try and arrange for his data to be transferred from his laptop to the one he will receive on loan.

RolePlay 2:
On 1st April Ms Y based in France ordered 1 server and 100 laptops for a customer installation. The order was due to be delivered on 1st May and the installation was due to start on 7th May. It is now 15th May and the following issues have been encountered:
1. 1 server arrived but does not boot up
2. Only 85 laptops have arrived
3. 5 of the laptops have UK power cords
4. There is a 10% functional fallout rate on the laptops
5. 2 of the laptop boxes had water damage
6. The customer wants to cancel their order. This is a new customer and they are not too impressed.

As with RolePlay 1, it is very important to acknowledge Ms Y's complaint, and to take responsibility for its resolution. She has every reason to want to cancel her order. I would first of all apologise on behalf of IBM. Because she is a new customer it is all the more important for her to have a positive image of IBM, so that the company can retain her.
I would do everything in my power to try and resolve the situation as quickly as possible, ensuring thereby that she does not cancel her order. I would explain that I will try to have as much of the installation as possible up and running within the coming days, explaining that I would send out an engineer to take care of this. He would replace the power cords, and boot up the server so that the customer would be able to use about 78 of the laptops. I would also ensure 25 more laptops are delivered asap. If IBM's customer relation rules allow for it I would offer Ms Y a discount, or something similar to entice her into agreeing on my resolution.
If she is still unwilling to take this offer I would liaise with my manager to try and come to an even better solution. If she still says no after I've tried everything in my power I would organise for the faulty installation to be picked up and I would cancel her order. This would however definitely be the last resort. "

It really sounds like a challenging job that does not get boring, which is good. Moreover it will teach me some marketing and retention skills that might come in handy when (or if?) I apply again to Explore Learning in about a year's time. Because I really still want that job!

yesterday I had another interview at a recruitment company as well, which was slightly disastrous. The lady had called me the week before and had asked me whether I spoke German, as well as Dutch. I told her the situation, namely that I understand German really well and have an A-level in it, but that I cannot speak it very well, but for the right job would be very willing to put in some effort. I then met her yesterday, and she asked me about it again. I gave the same answer. But she insisted that she had told me to work on it before the interview, yes in 5 days or less, and said they were going to test me there and then. I told here I did not know about this, so we arranged the interview for Friday. But when I got home I found this all a bit too ridiculous, especially when I thought about the fact that it was DEBT COLLECTION... Not really the job for me. By the time I got home IBM had called me as well, so I called her back to tell her I was not interested. She then asked if I would be ok with traveling to Greenock! Yes, for the same job! I felt great being able to tell her that I already have an interview with them, through a different recruiter! Yeah, point scored for me:)!

So I will now write my cover letters (one in Dutch and one in English) to IBM, and I hope to have that interview very very soon! Back here soon to tell you how it went!

Love,

NO JOB (CRAP CRAP CRAP!!!!!!!)

Dear all,

This is the e-mail I received today... So nice that they cannot even be bothered to tell me to my face! Sorry, bit upset. Just really really loved the place and thought it would be the ideal job for me. I would have moved down south, if necessary immediately, for it! I felt the interview went really well, especially as Laura stressed that they are not expecting marketing experience, as they specifically recruit graduates... Anyway. At least they liked me!

Regret Unsuccessful After
Interview

Dear
Mariken,

Thank you for attending your recent interview for the post of Assistant Director.

Unfortunately, after full and careful consideration, I regret to advise you that on this occasion we will not be furthering your application.

However, I would like to thank you for your interest in Explore Learning.
I would like to add that Laura did provide a lot of very positive feedback. She said you were a lovely person, who clearly demonstrated her enthusiasm and passion; but unfortunately we need someone who will be stronger in the marketing/sales side of the role, which Laura felt wasn't your strength.

I do hope that this will not be too much of a disappointment, and would like to take this opportunity to wish you every success in your search for suitable employment.

Yours sincerely,

Kate Richardson

Yes, I'm lovely, enthusiastic and passionate! Great.

I have another appointment with a recruitment company on Monday and I still hope to hear from Stirling university.

Derek has taken the sponsorship offered to him by ARM,whichc means he will move to Cambridge in about 6 months... AAAHHHH:'(! I am sad about that. It is a great opportunity for him though, and I would not want him not to take it just because I am so attached to Glasgow. I know that he is the best thing that's even happened to me (cheesy I know), and that I want to be with him. The plan is that I will move down too in about a year. I guess we can always go back after he finishes, if that is what we both want.

Dissertation is nearly done, so then I can fully focus on finding that job! Great... I have jobs coming out my ears by now!

I hope you're all well:).

Love,

Less stress, but complaining all the same...

Dear all,

Thankfully I'm a bit less stressed. My dissertation is going quite well, and I might, if I'm lucky, even finish it early:)! Also still applying for what seems like THOUSANDS of jobs. From customer services to receptionists, to coordinators, to whatever. Endless. Got call from customer services recruiter in Edinburgh today, but she seemed to think that a 3 week delay (because I'm still studying) was too long... Sigh! Surely three weeks is very short?? Also got an e-mail from one is Glasgow asking whether I had knowledge of computer hardware and software (!!). Didn't say anything about that in the job description (as I obviously would not have applied if that was the case!). E-mailed back that I only have a basic IT-certificate (and even that is stretching it as most of you will know;)).

Explore Learning got back to me: they are willing to pay up to £100 in travel expenses, and if I go to, if my interview goes well, a later Assessment day (they have one every month), then I can book a plane early and that might then cover most of the cost.

Derek's interview in Cambridge (I won't tell you too much, as he will want to tell you himself!) went really well it seems. The company said that if he gets through he would (only) study in Livingston for 6 months, and then move down, while going back up for some 2 week study periods. I really want to be happy for him if he does get through, but secretly (or not that secretly) I still hope he will stay in Scotland...

I had a look at the Explore website, and quite a few of their centres are in commuting distance of Cambridge, so that would not be too bad. Only thing is that I really don't want to move down south! It's just so bloody difficult ... dammit:(! I just wish I knew where I stood...

Anyway. Still really more stressed than I thought then... I should not complain! This is an exciting time;)! Wish I could enjoy it as Derek does.

Hope you're all happy, healthy and RELAXED!

Love,

Interview&stress

Dear all,

My interview yesterday went fairly well, and I have a 'real' interview next Wednesday at the Explore Learning Centre in Edinburgh. Great you might say? Well, it is. But there are a few misgivings I have.

One: They don't pay for travel expenses... Traveling to Edinburgh obviously isn't a problem, but if I get through to the next round (I might not of course!) I will need to travel all the way to Surrey and that would cost a fortune. I've e-mailed them, as they say you can ask if you have any problems, and hope they do pay at least some of my costs.

Two: The next round, this is if I get through, is on Monday the 19th... I am way way way too busy to go all the way to Surrey then! I hope I can arrange a different date.

Three: They only have vacancies in England... As you know I really don't want to move. Derek will also be in Livingston for the next year, so that makes me all the more resolved not to move (eventhough he does have an inteview in Cambridge on Monday).

I guess I just need to think about what I really want and wait and see how I like this Explore Learning centre. I am still hopefull I might hear from Stirling University, and I am also applying for two jobs in housing associations that look like the kind of jobs I would enjoy (a combination of helping people and organising).

I was so so stressed yesterday. It was just all tumbling down on me. All this job searching, and Derek's searching, while trying to finish my dissertation was all proving a bit too much for me. Thankfully Derek was as sweet and understanding as always and he has the ability to make me see sense and calm down a bit:). Feeling a lot better today, even though the recruitment agencies I called have not Dutch customer services jobs currently on offer...

I'm going home now to write. Tonight I am gong out to dinner with Derek and the family, as it's his dad's birthday today:). Looking forward to a quiet weekend with Derek:).

Love,

Where to start...

Dear all,

I've just come back from a fabulous two week holiday. Do read Derek's rendition of the first week on http://www.mrsmond.blogspot.com. It was so nice to show Derek all these lovely places that I used to go to when I was wee. The highlight was definitely our walk to Loch Tearnait. Lovely lovely.

After we put Derek on the bus mum and me then went to Caithness for one night, on our way to the Orkneys. The next day we took the ferry to St. Margaret's Hope on the Orkney mainland (which I would call an island too, but hey). Our B&B (&D as we also had dinner) there was great! Lovely views from the living room, big bright rooms, my own room with en-suite. Ann, who runs it, was lovely too and the other guest was a very friendly old minister who we chatted to every morning and evening (and who shared his whisky with me:)!!!).

I don't know where to start. We had such a lovely four days up there. Some rain, but also lots and lots of sunshine. The Orkneys are fairly flat with lots of farmland and quite a lot of wee villages. Lots of cows and sheep too. Really much cuter than I thought it would be;). The cliffs are spectacular though. We walked to "The Castle of Yesnaby" which is a massive column of rock sticking out the sea at the cliff side. It was so amazing. We also went to see some, if not most, of the many archeological sites they have. Circles of stading stones, villages and tombs that are 2-5000 years old! Very very impressive. The main towns of Stromness and Kirkwall were also very nice to go and see. And Orkney is paradise for jewelry lovers like me, because they have so many gold and silver smiths. Mum bought me beautiful earrings for my birthday:). I am already saving up for the matching necklace! On the way back we stayed the night in a haunted castle/youth hostel in Culrain, Sutherland. The journey to it was so great. Sutherland is so empty and so beautiful, especially when the heather is flowering and the sun shining. After that we drove via Ullapool (wow! gorgeous!) to Dunblane where we stayed for our last night, and mum's birthday. Unfortunately the B&B was not great... Bit sad, especially as it was mum's birthday... Thankfully the Stirling Arms in Dunblane did a lovely dinner. The whole holiday was really special and I had such a great time:)!

In the meantime the job hunt has been going exceptionally well:)! I have a phone interview with Explore Learning on Thursday (do keep your fingers crossed for me!) and a recruiter I e-mailed got back to me and I'll hopefully have an interview for a customer services job (with a large opticians or something in the city centre:)!) soon! I am also applying for the position of Alumni Relations & Development Manager at Sterling University. All sound pretty promising really:)! I'll keep you posted of course.

I've really got to get back to my dissertation now!

Lots of love,

More exciting news&also more worries (updated version)

Dear all,

Yesterday I had another interview with a recruitment company. This time HR Consultancy (what a creative name eh;)?) . It went really well. As was to be expected they could really get me a job right away, but obviously I am still writing away. The job I might be able to get is with Honeywell in Motherwell. I would be business to business after-sales, so that would be ok. Would make 15-16,000, which is not too bad either really. Only problem is getting there by public transport. Am going to find out whether that is possible, and if it is viable HR will put me forward for the position. Fingers crossed!

I checked just there, and yes, it would take me 1hr10mins(!!!) to get there, when it would take about 30mins by car!!! Christ (excuse my language). As Derek said: I should not restrict myself too much, so putting up with it till my position changes is the best option. I will see what other recruiters offer me though, and pick the best option money and location wise.

I also sent my CV and cover letter etc. to a company called Explore Learning. They are looking for graduates with an interest in education and management to work for them as Assistant Directors to help set up new learning centres. There is one in Edinburgh, but there is not one in Glasgow. It is for children between 5 and 14 and they give them tutoring in English and Maths. The role would involve running and marketing the centre, as well as actually tutoring the children in the afternoon. It sounds like a great job for me, as it combines two of my favourite jobs, teaching and organising. They would pay about 18,000, which is great, and the mobility in the company is high, so if you are good you will move up quickly. The only problem is that my Maths is very bad, but I should be able to keep up with 5-14 year-olds eh;)? I am really excited about applying for a 'real' job that I would actually love to do. I really hope to hear from them.

Derek's searching is going well too I think. His interview at the Institute went really well; he is on the short-list! If they find him a company that will take him on he will become a Doctor! Hope they do, because it really would be a great opportunity to do something he really loves. He also got head-hunted from Monster, so will apply for another job in Aberdeen. So many options!

Only problems on the horizon are council-tax and the lack of a driving license. I really need to find out how much I am going to have to pay next year, to find out whether I can afford to live with Meena... I mean on 12-17,000 I am not really going to be able to pay like £100 on top of my rent. Or, if I do I would not have very much more to spend than I have now! I love my flat so much though... I need to really think whether it's worth the money. I think I am also going to have to get my driving license...:(. I don't particularly want to, but if I want to increase the chance of finding a job I might have to. I can't imagine what I'll feel like if the only reason for not getting the a particular job would be that I can't drive!

Dissertation is progressing well:). Chapter is finished!!! Really looking forward to going on holiday now and showing Derek where we always used to go on holiday. Also can't wait to see the Orkneys. I am tempted though to take work with me on holiday...thinking about it...

Should go home now and have some dinner and then relax!!!! Tomorrow it's packing, some work, dinner with Fi and Derek, and early bed, as bus to Oban leaves at 8.20AM.

Hope you're all well&happy!

Love,

Gooood news!

Dear all,

Meena got into Law and Derek has an interview at the ISLS (Institute of System Level Engineering)!!!! YEAH:)! Let's hope and pray he gets in. I think he has the right profile (although I might be slightly biased;)), and he really wants it, so they should be smart and let him in.

I'm good too. Hope to have next chapter finished in 2,5 weeks time, before I go on holiday. Still reading the now though...

Hope you're all well!

Love,

Back again

Hello!

Finally a post from me (you must have missed me;)!). First of all the link to the Greece pics (with comments from Derek) http://www.protactin.co.uk/photos/greece?page=1 I especially love the one of the pool:)!

I've just been working away really. It's been going well. First chapter is finished (that's more than a third done)! I've been spending weekends with Derek, which is always lovely. I have plenty time for my dissertation (a second one is so much easier than the first!) so I am taking it fairly slowly. I am actually enjoying it:)!

Highlights of the past weeks:
Derek and me visiting Largs (yes, we are getting OLD!). Not really that much to do, but the sea air was nice and we went for a lovely meal (our favourite passtime).
Going to Jongleurs. We got a free and a half price ticket (from a local nespaper) and went there last weekend. It was fun, though I would not pay full price (about £13!).

I am still worrying about the future. Derek has to wait and hear from HMGCC and the Engeneering Doctorate to see what he'll be doing and where, Meena needs to hear from Law at Glasgow to see wwhat she'll be doing and where, I need to find a job and I need to hear from Meena and Derek to find out where I'll be next year! Argh! Thankfully I know that if Derek moves south I can stay with Fiona for a few months (as I would otherwise have to sign a 12-month lease with Meena (if she is staying...)) I hope you can still follow what the **** I'm talking about!

Anyway. I should get back to work! Hope you're all well. Miss you all!

Love,

Derek's graduation & utter sadness

It was Derek's graduation day yesterday. Thankfully I did not catch the news before, so we had a lovely, sunny, happy day in celebration of his fantastic achievement. I'm so so proud of him!!! He looked so cute in his robe! I watched the ceremony on the screen in the Hunter Halls together with Katie. He only had two tickets, so his parents were the only ones in Bute Hall. It was very impressive.

After the ceremony we took some pictures and then we went to Tennents for a wee drink (yes, BEFORE lunch! In true Scottish style;)). Derek had booked a table in Mimmo's and we had lunch with his parents and sister. So nice to be part of the celebrations; I felt like part of the family:).

We were still blissfully unaware of the horrible news from London. We got home and took a nap and then when the radio alarm went off we heard the terrible news. I was just so shocked it make me feel sick to my stomach. We watched the news, but decided we would meet Derek's friends in town for drinks as was the plan. I mean: what can you do. It turned out to be a nice night in the end, even though I was sad. I am glad I could not glue myself to the tv as I probably would have done had I been home. As you probably know I am a news-addict...

This morning we watched the news for a couple of hours. It is unimaginable what the people in those carriages must have gone though. My thoughts are with everyone that got caught up in this. Thankfully my dear friend Marieke is ok, as she said: " I had luck". All my other friends who have friends in London say that their friends are ok too. Thank God for that.

I don't know what else to say about it...

Hope you're all well.

Lots of love,

Greece...:)

Dear all,

Derek and me had a fab fab time in Greece. The island we were on was pretty, the hotel nice, food great, drink great, nice private beach, pool. What more do you want really for a week of relaxation!

On Friday the 27th we took the plane to Athens very early in the morning. It was with Air Scotland (part of Air Greece) in a rickety old plane (and Derek was happy to point out to me how these low-cost airlines save on upkeep etc...). It was fine though, and we arrived safely in Athens. We waited for the suitcase and Derek went for a loo-break. Unfortunately this took a bit long (surprisingly;)), and by the time he came out everyone had already left... I was about to run into the men's toilets and shout "Derek!" (in a naggy voice: Derek can give you a rendition);)! We were met by a rep that said: "Oh, there you are, the 'lost' ones." Slightly embarrassing. We got on a bus that took us to the hotel. First thing we did, in true Greek (/Mediterranean) style, was go for a wee siesta. Lovely:). We had a room at the front of the hotel. No sea view, but on the shade side, which was good for me. Airco in the room was good too.

Over the next few days we didn't really do much. We just enjoyed the lovely weather (30-35C. Sunshine, sea-breeze), the food and the drink. I read a lot (nearly three books in a week!). Derek enjoyed the sunshine (a bit too much at one point) and I stayed in the shade. Still managed to burn, in the shade with factor 20 on!!! Not too badly thankfully.

We also went to Eretria (the town nearby) to go the the market there. We got a lift in by Phillipous, our rep. Derek jokingly said :"So you'll pick us up again about 1pm?", which he didn't seem to enjoy, hehe;). The market though was great! The fruit and vegetables looked so lovely, and huge! We bought some strawberries (the best I ever had!), apples and some olive oil for Derek's dad. We wanted to take the bus back. We found a time-table and people waiting on the bus. They were all on the 'wrong' side of the street though, we thought. We checked, and yes, we needed to go in the other direction. This was a two-way street with cars parked either way, so there was no space for two cars in the middle, let alone for two busses! Typical;). I saw that this wee shop sold tickets, so we got tickets and asked what time there was a bus. The shop keeper said there would be one about 12.45. On the timetable there were NO BUSSES at that time... Weird. The bus did get there about 12.45. It was very full and warm, but we made it to the hotel safe and sound.

The food in the hotel was good, though somewhat repetitive. They pretended to have themed night, but the food was essentially the same every night. The black olives were especially gorgeous. They just burst in your mouth and fell right off the pip. Mmmm. I love Greek food, so for a week it was good. Did feel like I had olives coming out my ears though by the end of the week.

The bar was nice too. It opened up onto a big terrace with a view over the garden and the sea. The waiters were cute and funny, the cocktails very nice, and so was the drambuie;). Not too expensive either. The only downside was a 'piano-man', or actually a keyboard-man that played badly... Our 'favourite' was "Oh Ah Hoki Hoki Doki(3x), that's what it's all about!". Great... There was also a disco outside an an 'amphi-theatre', but we never went. The reps were a bit disappointed and one accused us of always 'hiding'. We just like to quietly sip our drink and chat and enjoy the breeze really (how boring eh?). Derek didn't even enter the "Mr Palmariva" competition... I'm sure he would have won;)!

On Wednesday we went to Athens, on an organised trip with guide. Wow, that was fab. The city itself is not that exciting, but the 'piece de resistance' was of course the Akropolis. Wow. So much better than in the pictures! Unfortunately I had forgotten my student card, so the guide made me pay the €12 entrance fee (which I'm sure she pocketed, as she had tickets left over after handing everyone one!!). After the Akropolis we were left to roam the old town. Derek and me first went to this big park, which was really nice. Nice and shady too, which was good as my arms and chest were covered in (itchy) heat rash... The high(/low)light there was a tortoise eating (!!!) a dead pigeon. Then we went for a cold beer, and on search for the flee market. Found it in the end. Went for a bite to eat, some lovely mezze (starter/tapas), in this case a bowl with some sort of meat stew and lovely home-made bread. Mmm.

Soundbites:
"Hmm, beep?"
"I suppose it's better than rape!"
"I hope to f*ck that's not an olive!"

It was my first time on an organised holiday like that. It was nice for a week of relaxing times. When I have the money though I'd prefer to organise my own holiday. This was a cheap, practical and pleasant solution though!

Will give you URL for the pics soon, and might add some more info later. Off home now though to start work on the dissertation (yes, START, work... 3months to go!).

Derek flies to Luton this afternoon, on his way to Milton Keynes for a preliminary job interview tomorrow. Yes, MILTON KEYNES in BUCKINGHAMSHIRE... That's what I thought. Of course I am trying to be supportive, and I am very happy he got an interview, but people that know me know that I would really like to stay in Glasgow (and so would Derek actually if he has the chance), but I love Derek and I would move down there if he does get offered a good job that he would really enjoy. He doesn't want to force me to make that sort of descision, but I would make it if I had to.

I have an interview on the 5th of July with a company that does multi-lingual customer services. Hope they can give me a job for October, so that I have financial security untill I find the elusive 'dream-job'.

Anyway, really off home now!

Hope you're all well&happy-bouncy!

Love,

GREECE!!!!!

Hello everyone!

Just wanted to remind everyone (not meaning to make you jealous of course;)) that I'll be in GREECE for the coming 7 days. 27 degrees, sunshine: what more do you want eh?

Exams went ok I think.

Back here in a wek's time!

Love
xxx

Yeah! and no cocktails

Dear all,

First of all: my last essay was described by my supervisor as "excellent"! Another A! I can't believe it... :)! Enough bragging eh?

Last Friday Derek and me went to Leith docks for the elusive cocktail party. First of all I forgot to take the invitation, so we had to race back and just managed to be at the station on time, only to discover the train was 15mins delayed. At Edinburgh it took ages to get a ticket (we didn't get one on the train and you need one to get out the station), as there was only one ticket place. Really annoying if you want to be on time! We got into a taxi with a crazy Italian at the wheel who drove recklessly while shouting, with his head out the window in true Italian style, to all other road users holding him up. At the docks we took a wrong turn, as the invitation was not very clear, and 15 pounds poorer and 10mins late we finally arrived. We were welcomed by marines with flags and one with a gun, which made me feel a bit weird... The ship the party was on was an Estonian naval ship called the 'Admiral Pitka'. The party was the 'launch party' for the ship's mine sweeping mission. The crew was mostly Dutch, with some Danish, Estonian and English. The ship will eradicate the last mines from the North Sea. A few months back a Dutch fishery boat pulled out a bomb or mine, and the thing blew up, killing three people. That is one of the reasons to (finally!) do something about it. Derek and me talked to some Dutch navy people, drank free wine and beer (no cocktails!) and had some nibbles. The ship was not as big as we had expected, but it was nice all the same. Unfortunately I didn't talk to the Consul. I did talk to the lady that I had talked to at the consulate, and she told me that they are hoping to expand. Bureaucracy is holding them back apparently. Maybe one day they will call! After the cocktail party we were invited to come to another ship for a disco, but the music sounded like Dutch dance and the thought of spending an evening with 98% men did not exactly appeal to Derek. It was funny to see some slightly older women flirt with all these young, I'm talking 18/19/20-year old, guys;). We decided to meet up with my Dutch friend Barbara in the city centre. Was nice for her to finally meet Derek. We had a few drinks and a late night snack and then we took the last train home.

On Saturday we went to Joe and Liisa's goodbye party at the Counting House. That was nice. The atmosphere was great in there as Scotland had just won its match against Moldova. Lots of people in football gear singing, shouting, honking.

On Monday we went to the Graduate Fair at the SECC. Was not terribly usefull for me, but Derek got lots of information about companies he might be interested in (he's better be thankfull I told him to come, as he wasn't going to;)!).

Since then I've been trying to revise hard again (well as you can see I am doing this in stead at the moment)! The A for my last essay has made me realise I don't realy have to worry about it! Doing a great job would be fab though, so bck to the hard graft!

Hope you're all alive and well!

Love

BORED

Dear all,

I am so bored bored bored with revision... only 2 weeks to go (and only 2,5 weeks till I am burning in the Greek sun:)!)

On Saturday I met up with Barbara, my Dutch/Scottish friend who lives in Edinburgh. We were supposed to meet for coffee, but ended up having a few pints and watching the cup final in Tennents. Celtic won, yeah! Not really that great after the disappointment of the week before, but better than losing. At 6.45 pm I went home to get ready for the Graduation Ball. Had been looking forward to that so much! unfotunately I was really miserable. I didn't want to be, but I was just a bit sad that Derek wasn't there (as the poor thing was busy revising) and I just missed him... Of course everyone else was there with their boyfriends... It was nice though to see some people I hadn't seen in a while and to say goodbye to some people I will probably not see much, if at all, again.

The next day at two Derek and his mum, dad and sister came to pick me up to come to the family get together in Barrhead. His cousin Susan is moving to New-Zealand and she was throwing a small going-away party. It was really nice to meet everyone. They are all a bit mental, but I feel that's a good thing. They seemed to like me too:). Was a bit of a sad goodbye in the end. Hope we can go visit Susan and her brother, who is already over there, sometime.

Derek has his last, last ever!!!, exam today! Must be a good feeling. Unfortunately he has some more things to finish before the end of term, but that should be ok. Will be good once he is finished and I'll be staying in Cumbernauld for a bit! He can make me cups of tea, bring me snacks, cook me dinner, give me massages:)! Hehe.

I really should get back to work now... It's just so boring!!!

Love

Holiday!!!!!!!

Dear all,

Not been on for a while. Been at home doing revision. Already so bored with it... Would rather write another essay or two, or start on my dissertation...

But I also have great news! Derek and me are going to Greece for a week from the 17th of June!!! Straight after my exams (on the 13th and 15th).

See
http://www.air-scotland.com/otherinfo/accommodation_disp.asp?accomm_id=2
http://www.tourtripgreece.gr/extra_services/hotels/details.php?hid=331

Looks great, don't you think?

Derek's dad found it for us. It's so cheap! 4*hotel, half-board, for a week. Won't tell you the price, but I could (nearly;)) afford it.

So looking forward to a week of relaxing, sunbathing (not burning hopefully;)), eating, drinking.

Anyway. Don't mean to make you jealous;)!

Love

Networking (how posh)!

Today I finally recieved my passport! Yeah, I can travel again! I also recieved a letter from the Dutch Consulate in Edinburgh, in which the Consul and an officer in the Roayl Dutch Navy (!) invite me to a cocktail party/reception on an Estonian naval ship in Leith harbour!!! Oh YEAH! My first ever real posh cocktail party:)! So exciting. I can bring a guest, so I will bring Derek. Hope I can blag myself into a nice job at the consulate;).

I am also wearing a skirt today and sandals (conbined with a cardigan I have to admit), because the weather is glorious. People are staring at my legs (which is due to their whiteness I sus[pect rather than their sexyness...;)).

Going to hand in my essay now!

Love

Election&job

I did an online test (thank you for the link Peter:)!) to see who I should have voted for, and according to http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com/ I should have voted SNP, had I been able to vote. I'm not even Scottish! SSP (!!!) come in close second place, Liberals in very close third. I got so frustrated hearing so many people had not bothered to vote. I would have loved to! A few more years and I might apply for Brittish citizenship... maybe. By the way...I tried to publish the wee diagram that they gave you, but that didn't work... damn. I am so computer illiterate! I just followed the instructions (as they gave you code you could copy and paste), and it still didn't work! Sigh!

Also found a job I might apply to! See http://www.spl.org.uk/news/2005_0305.html. It's for a receptionist in the Scottish Poetry Library in Edinburgh. Sounds good. Only 24hrs a week at £13,500 a year, but it does sound like an ideal job for me (apart from the computer literacy they expect, hehe, but could always get Derek to teach me:)). It is only a temporary post (a year). Hope it doesn't start till after summer, otherwise I don't even have to try apply! I do need to do uni work till the end of September (my dissertation deadline)! Guess I should just apply and see what happens.

Off home to finish that essay (aye, it's still not finished). Read a lot over the weekend, while Derek did work at my desk. Had nice weekend:)!

Love,

I love my mum&steam ahead to a FIRST!

Dear all,

My mum was over the past couple of days. Was so nice to finally show her my wee house and for her to meet Meena. Think she was quite impressed with how much of a 'lucky bastard' I am for having the flat that I have! She loved it. We didn't do all the touristy things, as my mum has already seen most of it, and just had a relaxing time. We went shopping, to the Botanics, to the McLellan Galleries and to the People's Palace. Had a really good time together. Of course she spoilt me rotten too;). Even went for afternoon tea at the Willow Tea Rooms:). Also watched a lot of snooker in the evening. Murphy hooray!

On Saturday evening Derek and his mum came to pick us up. Mum liked the Jag, although I think she thought it less impressive than she percieved it to be from far off. Derek's dad had cooked us a fantastic meal. It was so delicious. Had quite a few drinks and we chatted all night. Think my mum likes Derek's parents, even though they are totally different than us. Glad it went well. Knew it would, but still. Think she also really likes Derek now that she got to know him a bit better (not that she didn't like him before!).

This morning mum left for the airport at 7.2oam. I went back to sleep for a bit after. Had a lecture at 12 and just met my supervisor there. I will most probably get another A for my second essay!!!! YEAH! If I keep the momentum going I might actually end up with a first! Not too sure that will happen, as I think I won't get A's for my exams, but there is a possibility, which in itself is a triumph.

Off home to finish that third essay. Let's go for another A eh?

Love,

Life is hard...

Dear all,

Had a lovely lovely weekend with Derek. On Friday we went to Cumbernauld to celebrate his mum's birthday. We went to a great Chinese restaurant. Lovely food:). Thought it was so nice I got invited to such a family-thing:).

We spent Saturday in Cumbernauld and took the train to Glasgow in the evening. The next day we went to Tennents for the Old Firm! Always fun. Not so much fun for Derek though, as Celtic won 2-1! Hehe! In the afternoon we wanted to do some work in the park, but it turned out that even I am affected by the Scottish ability to totally overestimate the temperature. We were sitting in the sun with our jackets on and after about 5mins we were absolutely FREEZING! Other people were walking around in skirts and flip-flops though! Don't think I'll ever be that hardy. Sunday evening I was a bit emotional for some reason (hormones being one of them). Just suddenly felt like I'd never find a job! Bit crazy. Derek has very good shoulder to cry on though and he managed to cheer me up:). After that we went to the Uisge Beatha. Hadn't been for so long. Had such a lovely evening. Promised ourselves we'd go much more often once exams are over.

Monday was horrible! I was still slightly depressed and I was trying to write my CV, which didn't help. Then Derek suddenly walked into the library and asked me to come outside for a second. I got really worried, because it sounded really serious. He then told me that he'd had a e-mail from Agilent telling him he doesn't have the job. He was so pooped about that. The e-mail (see http://www.mrsmond.blogspot.com) said that he was their number one candidate for this one position and that they had really wanted him to work for them but that due to 'restructuring' the job got cancelled!!! How sad is that! Guess it is better than hearing you're not good enough... It's just that he was so sure he would get it, and looking back was right to be too!!!, and then this happens. Moreover his friend Andy (who has about the same qualifications) did get a job there, and so did another guy from the Glasgow Uni Computing department. Life is not fair... Only positive things about Monday were that we had an ice-cream in the sunshine and that I sent my CV to the Dutch Consulate. Quite exciting, even though I know they don't have any vacancies the now.

On Wednesday I went to the Careers Service for some advice. That was really good actually. Very helpful advice on how to make my CV even better and also found out their information centre is very useful indeed. Glad I went!

Still no essay finished (or really started, apart from the first paragraph)... Want to have at least some of it done before mum arrives (she arrives tomorrow:)!). Really looking forward to showing her my wee (or not so wee really) house and for her to meet Derek's parents on Saturday. His dad will come and pick us up in the Jaguar: my mum is all excited as she loves Jags. Let's hope she likes them too. Not too worried about it though.

I'm off to do work on the essay. Derek will be here tonight: cooking him nice (hopefully) Mediterranean couscous dish. We'll pick mum up together tomorrow.

Back soon!

Love,

New flat mate

Dear all,

Been trying to start my essay this week, but I seem to keep finding other things to do (like updating my blog)! Terrible! Got most of the material for it though, so that should be ok.

I finally wrote my CV. Sent it to mum&dad and Derek to see what they think. When it's perfect I'll send it to the Dutch Consulate in Edinburgh and I'll make an appointment with someone at the Careers Service. Am also planning to go to the Graduate Fair in June to get some more ideas and to talk to some companies.

Two days ago we got a new flat mate. She was really stressed about exams and was suffering from insomnia and then her flat mate also left for a few days. She couldn't cope too well asked if she could move in with us for a bit. Thankfully we have a spare room. It's a bit weird to share the house with two people now, but she needed our help so that is more important. Unfortunately my mum will now have to stay in my room when she's visiting next weekend, but that should be ok too.

Ok, back to work now! Should really start that bloody essay...

Love,

New phone&my supervisor is great!

Dear all,

I got a new phone yesterday:)! YEAH! I am sad, I know. It's a Nokia 3200: camera, WAP and all sorts! Crazy eh? Fiddled with it for ages yesterday. Great to be able to send Derek goodnight message again, and to be able to receive them:). Still sad I lost the first ever message he sent me...:'(.

This weekend Derek stayed over as usual:). We both needed to do work though, so we only spent evenings, nights and mornings together. Nice all the same:). Because he's been so sweet about lending me money, and about buying my phone (I'll pay him back once I can get to my money of course!) I cooked him a nice meal last night. A sort of casserole with beef, vegetables and passata, with couscous. Was nice. He's been so stressed lately with assignment due today, lecture to give (yes, GIVE) on Friday and project to finish, as well as exams coming up.

Over the weekend I attempted to do work. Mostly fiddled with phone and thought, which always seems so unproductive. Did figure out what I'll do my next essay on though. Today I met my supervisor to discuss my progress. I was so nervous, because I still don't have a clear topic. He was very pleased though. He was happy with my choices and suggested some themes I might want to discuss. Very useful, and I feel so much better now!

I also received the form for my new passport. They want me to type up a statement about the robbery. Moreover I need to hand in proof of that I live here, namely a council tax bill. Hope there are no problems...you never know with these bureaucrats. I also need Dutch size passport photos...they're bigger apparently than UK ones... Doe sit even matter? They scan them in anyway, so they could change the size! Hope the photo shop can sort it out for me tomorrow.

Hope you're all well.

Love,

Mope

Mopy mood today.

Think it's caused by:
1. Meeting with supervisor next Monday: he's expecting a dissertation proposal AAHH
2. Lack of mobile phone waves passing through my body
3. Lack of goodnight messages
4. Lack of sweet comments after "I got ROBBED" entry ;)

How sad am I. How can you miss a mobile? Stupid. It makes me realise how addicted I am to it. I will get a new one though...but I will try to be less attached to it, honest!

Today I tried to do work, but instead I rearranged my room. The result is any designer's dream, but it does not get my dissertation proposal any nearer to getting done. Did some work, and think I know who I might write on. For those 1 in a 1,000,000 that has heard of her: Naomi Mitchison. She's written about 50 novels, poetry and lots of short stories and there is very little criticism written on her (but two dissertations alread I believe...). She fascinates me (about why maybe later).

I called the consulate in Edinburgh again. They had not heard my message! I left one though! Damn. The lady I eventually got on the phone was very sympathetic though. She will send me the forms, and I can come in next Wednesday. Let's hope no one has decided to use my stolen ID for criminal purposes in the mean time! (If you do meet anyone claiming to be me: be ware!;))

Should go home now. Starving. Do some more reading and give Derek a call.

Love,

How Not To Get Robbed

Dear all,

I am in Liverpool at the moment, visiting my best friend Dieuwerke (Dee for non-English speakers). Great to spend some time with her. Liverpool is a nice place too. Nice shops and pubs and we went to the theatre on Friday.

On the way back from the theatre, at about 11pm, we decided to take the bus to be safe. Across the street from Dee we got off the bus. We crossed the first half of the double cariage way and then waited to cross the second half. It was very busy. We noticed some youths behind us kicking a cup of ice about. We were about to cross when one of them suddenly grabbed my bag and ran! I held on to the handle, but it snapped... I didn't even scream, I just said "They've got my bag, they've got my bag!" and then started sobbing. It was just so horrible! I realised I had absolutely everything in that bag, my keys, all my bank cards, my phone, my European ID card. I just panicked. We went into the house and went upstairs. Dee was a star: she made me a cup of tea and helped me to calm down. I immediately called my dad to ask for the numbers of my Dutch bank, to immediately block my credit card. I then just started calling all the important people. They were so helpful, and after a while I could even laugh. But then I really just wanted to talk to Derek. I had all my phone numbers in my phone, so I called 118118, only to discover his number is not listed! I just started crying again. I then called Meena, who thankfuly had his mobile number. I called him and that made me feel better. Strangely he had already switched his phone off, then decided to switch it back on, with me ringing minutes later! He must have felt it or something;). I then also called Virgin to block my phone. They will sned me a new sim with the same number though, which is great. I love to imagine what those guys thought when they realised they just got £4 and a crap, old phone! Hehe. Unfortunately it is an awful lot of hastle for me... On Saturday me and Dee went into the police station to report it. The police man was very sweet. Made me feel better too. Also sent everyone an e-mail asking for their numbers, as they were all in my phone. Also tried to contact the embassy, but they are all closed over the weekend! Crazy! Also need a birth certificate to get a new ID...

How could I have prevented this? I mean we took the bus to be safe! It is rediculous!!!!!!! Feel afraid on the street now, and I am also very suspicious of groups of black youths. I don't want to feel like that! Don't want to judge people for what they look like! Horrible.

Trying to enjoy my time here, and I am. Won't let them ruin my time with my friend. We went on a nice walk yesterday, and today we went to Chester which was really nice. Tonight we're going out dancing and I am going to try my very best not to be scared!

Love you all! And thank you for all your sweet messages!

I forgot&Easter

I totally forgot to tell you the most important thing that happened when I was in the Netherlands. Ineke was ill! I never got to see her. I was so sad about that. I mean Ineke looks forward to her birhtday for months and everything is planned in advance, etc. etc. And she was looking forward to seeing me so much as well. Thankfully, a "geluk bij een ongeluk" (is there an expression for that in English?) I had forgotten her easter bunny, and Derek, the sweetheart, sent it to her so now she does have a present from me.

On Thursday I went back to Glasgow again. On the train to Zwolle I was thinking: maybe i'll run into Maaike (my best friend from secondary school). In Zwolle I got on the train to Amersfoort. Last minute I decided to get into a different carriage, and when I walked in THERE SHE WAS! That was such a coincidence! I think it was predestined:). Chatted all the way to Amersfoort. She is doing well I think: still together with Joost, she is studying in Utrecht now. So happy to finally see her again. Hope we can stay in touch this time:).

On Thursday Marjolein arrived. First she gave me and Derek a few hourse alone, whcich was sweet:). Had a chat on Thursday night and on Friday we took her on the Glasgow City Tour, whcih is terribly touristy, but really quite good. Friday evening we went for dinner at the Bothy (lovley: I recommend it highly. The men in kilts (and for the boys girls is short tartan skirts) are very yummy too). At night we went to the Counting House, where we met up with Fiona and Craig. After that we went to the Cube together. Not sure I liked that too much... On Saturday we had a very relaxing start to the day, and then we showed Marjo some buildings in the city centre and the Modern Art Gallery. And at night we went to watch Italy-Scotland ( 2-0:(!!!) in Tennents. Marjo left in Sunday and me and Derek went to his. Had a lovely big Easter dinner:). Nice to spend Easter at his!

Yesterday and today I sorted out what I will be revising for my exams and I also e-mailed lots of book shops in Glasgow. I think I'll take up a part-time job as I could really do with the money. It might also give me a chance to get a full-time job in a book shop after I finish. Would like that:). It's not the biggest of carreers,, but I would enjoy it and i can look out for whatever presents itself after that.

Derek had his interview at Agilent today! It went really well! He is on their short-list now, together with his friend Andy who also applied there. Would be so funny if they both end up working there! They should here in late April whether they get a job there. So exciting!

I should really go home now... Off to Liverpool tomorrow to visit Dee:). Look forward to seeing her:).

Back soon!

Love,

Netherlands and blog-problem

Dear all,

Hello from The Netherlands! Been here for 6 days now. Actually starting to miss Glasgow, and miss Derek even more. Nice to be home though: mum's cooking, lots of treats (they spoil me;)).

Visited Susanne on Saturday, which was nice. Her house is starting to take shape now. Hope she gets to celebrate her birhtday there. Apart from that I've not done much really. Felt like a wee holiday, so not done much work either. Nice and relaxing:). Packed just there, so ready to go home tomorrow morning. Bit of a train dilemma: do I take the 7.30am train and arrive way too early at 9.41am, or do I take the 8.30am train, which arrives at 10.41, which means that if I have an hour delay (which is unlikely, but not impossible) I'll probably be at the check in too late...? Not sure yet. Think mum will tell me to take first one, but I don't fancy getting up so early...;)

I've been trying to update my profile for a while now (as Derek left Denmark in December, I wanted to change that bit). I change it, save changes etc. and then the next time I look it's still the blooody same!!!! ARGH! Any tips? Guess just try again later... Sigh.

Gonna make cuppa tea now! Have a nice EASTER !!!

Love,

Update attempt no.2

Dear all,

I tried to update my blog last week, but unfortunately the server went down or something and the whole post was lost in cyber space...

The highlight was:

On Tuesday the 8th of March Derek and me celebrated our 1-year anniversary:)! We went to Mimmo's (again, yes) for a nice quiet dinner. Unfortunately the dessert (sticky toffe pudding, but it was more like sticky pudding with toffee sauce) was so sweet that I felt sick for about 2hrs afte dinner... Had a lovely romantic evening and night anyway:).

This weekend I was supposed to be busy with my essay, but Derek came over for the weekend. Had a nice cosy weekend. Did manage to do quite a lot of work in fairly little time, so that the essay is actually nearly finished:)!

On Thursday I'm off to the Netherlands for a week. Visit my parents and I'll also visit Ineke, my former employer, as it's her 40th birthday on Friday. Hope to get to see Susanne's house. It's nearly finished now I think.

The post last week was really long...but not as talkative today... Ah well, I'm sure you can do without all the trivia;).

Love

Birthday&relaxing

Dear all,

On Friday it was Derek's 22nd birthday. He came round in the afternoon and I give him his prezzies. Think he was happy with them. He'd had a bit of a lousy start to his birthday so I cheered him up a bit:). We went to the Museum of Modern Art, which was nice, and went for a coffee. The went home, got changed and went to Mimmo's for an early dinner. It was great. Especially desert was to DIE for. Gorgeous. Then went to the Loft. Had a wee Drambuie and cigar;). Derek was celebrating together with Laura, Cammie and Ross, so there were lots of people. Shame we couldn't all sit at the one table, or at least in one group. After that we went to the QM. Didn't stay long though. We were surprisingly sober at the end of the night, which was good.

Went into town on Saturday and met up with Katie, then went to Cumbernauld. Just had nice relaxing Saturday night. Today Derek showed me Cumbernauld; his old house, schools etc and the town centre. I now understand why people want to have the town centre knocked down! Boy, it's UGLY! Staying for dinner, then head back home, with my new PC:)! So happy about that.

Hope you're all well!

Love

Laptop misery and drunken night with Fiona

My laptop is fucked, you already knew that, but it now turns out to cost €560 to repair (£400):(!!!!!!!! ARGH! &*(&%$^(*))*%^*$£^&£&^U& No thanks, I would say.

Yes, anyway. I paid for half of the laptop a bit more than a year ago and now that money has just gone... Thankfully I can use an old pc that Derek's got left over (it used to be his sister's). So grateful. I cannot afford to get a new one just now!

Talking about money: the IBG is late for a change! I neeeeed the money, as I'm going to Ashoka with the ESE guys tonight, and as I promissed to take Derek out to dinner on Friday. It used to come on the 21st, then on the 23d, but now sometimes even on the 25th. As long as it's not even later! Guess I'll have to take out the credit card, or just go into the red a bit more. This is one reason I am looking forward to having a job: money!

On Monday (yes I know, that is a weekday) I had Fiona for dinner. Hadn't seen her since she got engaged. Her ring is really pretty and she seems so happy:)! We had dinner and then decided to go to, surprise surprise, Tennents! Fiona insisted on celebrating hard; had a few drinks too many, but it was a good night. Of course there were the usual drunken old men talking to us. Always fun!

I was a good girl and managed to go to my 10am the next day. I'd even done the homework too!

Off home now, and I need to pop into town to get Derek a wee prezzie (have already got big prezzie, but can't tell you what it is, as he will read this! Duh).

It's also our anniversary on March 8th, so need to think of a wee thing to get him, just to let him know how much he means to me. Still can't believe we met a YEAR ago! We might go to the theatre or something to celebrate. Need to think of what to go and see... any suggestions?

Back soon!

Lots of love

A

Dear all,

Spoke to my supervisor today and he is even more happy with my essay than he was before!!! Yeah! "Definite first-class quality". I am a genius;).

E-mailed five Scottish publishers over the past week, and already got a reply. Good, but it did say that there are no current vacancies, but that I should send my CV and they would keep me informed. Hmmm... Also e-mailed Waterstones, as I would not mind working in a bookshop for a bit. I will send my CV to the Glasgow branch.

I'm starting to think also about essays, disertation, exams. I mean it's all still far away (next essay in 3 weeks, last one in 3 months time, exams June 21-25, dissertation finished in September). Lots of time! But I am already halfway through this year... Sad really. This is/was my very last year as a student, probably EVER. Honours classes finish in a few weeks time, so after that I won't really be a student as I will have only 2 lectures a week. It's just strange if you think about it. The end of an era of my life... Snif.

Helene came for dinner yesterday. Cooked chicory in ham and cheese-sauce, with spagetti (I was gonna make lovely wee potatoes with melted butter and herbs, but Helene doesn't like potatoes!) and home made burgers with spring onions and spices. Jummy! Think she enjoyed it too:). Unfortunately she had to leave really early, because she still had to prepare for a meeting the next day at 9am. It was good to catch up though, and we'll meet again soon.

Hope to meet Fiona soon. She got engaged!!! It was quite a shock, but I am now very happy for her. Think her parents haven't quite recovered from the shock yet, but hope they can be happy for her too.

Tonight Derek's coming for dinner and then we're going to the Loft to celebrate Iain(ESE Iain)'s birthday and the fact that he is leaving for a round-the-world trip next week. Look forward to a wee bit of partying:)! Don't know what we, or me, are or am up to for the rest of the weekend. Do some work I guess, and maybe go to Superfly tomorrow? We'll see. Derek was also planning on showing me Cumbernauld (OH YEAH!), show me his old school and stuff.

Off to a Post-Grad meeting now to discuss our progress and think about exam topics etc.

Back soon!

Love

Good times

Dear all,

No news really, but just wanted to report that life is gooooooooood:)! So happy in Glasgow, with Derek, with all my friends:).

Not been up to much exciting stuff really. Changed my eating regime (more veg and less crap is the basic idea) and i go swimming a lot in an effort to lose some weight. Not that I'm fat;). Derek's diet is working very well for him, although I think the cravings are starting to get the better of him. He lost 4kilo's! (11 pounds) in 1 week! Amazing! My regime is not as effective (lost less than a kilo in 1,5 weeks...) but i'm sure it'll work in the long run. I am not really bothered anyway:).

Me an Derek are celebrating Valentine's day with a home cooked three-course meal:). Look forward to cooking it together in my lovely new kitchen. It's his birthday soon too: need to come up with a good present! Cannot believe we met nearly a year ago! Time flies.

Might be going on holiday twice this summer, but more about that later!

Hope you're all very happy too:)!

Love

Frustrations

Got word about my laptop a while back. According to the factory it's got DAMP in it! I am 100% sure I never came near my laptop with drinks, condensation or any other dampness, and still they can say that that's what it is and thereby demand that we pay for the bloody repairs! It is just rediculous! What do you do? They can just say anything and get out of paying! Bloody bastards!

Anyway. Hopefully better news soon!

Love

Relaxing times

Dear all,

Don't really have much news. Spent the past week at Derek's, as his parents were on holiday in Egypt. Had an amazingly (maybe too much so) relaxing time. It confirmed to me how lovely Derek is:) (sorry honey if you're blushing now;)).

Didn't do much really. Went out on Friday and Saturday though. Friday it was Kit's birthday. It was nice, but a bit difficult to talk to anyone as we were sat round a big table and the music was too loud to hear anyone not sitting next to you... Decided to go home after and not join the rest for a night in the Art School. On Saturday it was Iain's birthday. Went to Nice and Sleazy's first, which posed the same problems: music too loud to talk... Went to Barfly after, which is not really my favourite place on earth, but had a fun night anyway:).

On Sunday we both decided to do 4 (yes, 4 whole!) hours of work. I worked on my essay. I already got 69% (nearly an A, Dutch aquivalent would be an 8 or 8.5 or something), but I can rewrite it as wthe official deadline is at the end of the course! I will, most probably, get my first A! YEAH! Proud me.

On Monday I went back home. Weird how quickly you get used to being around someone all the time! Miss it, although I do feelI still have a need for my own space. Think he does too, and probably even more so. Webnt swimming together in the afternoon and will do it again on Wednesday. We'll be so fit in a few months time;)!

Talked to Dee last night. Hadn't spoken in ages. Bad how you just forget to call. Was nice to talk to her. She just sounds so happy:)! Plan to have dinner with Fi tomorrow, as haven't had proper night together in a while. Will be nice to catch up.

New kitchen is standing in the corridor and will be fitted tomorrow! YEAH! So great. It's probably ready on Thursday or Friday. Finally real cooking;).

Will be logged out v soon!

Love

Hectic

Dear all,

On Wednesday, or actually Thursday morning very early, Derek came over, as we had to leave very early on Thursday. The report was finished! 'Slightly' on the late side, but finished all the same. Thank God for that. That was one stressful day and night...

Anyway. Promised I'd not talk about it anymore:). On Thursday we took a cab to the airport. First we had a fry-up there, which cost a whopping £8!!!!! And was manky... Damn. Then Derek bought some presents for Sinterklaas. Bought me a very pretty bag and brooch:). We then walked to the gate, only to discover we'd lost my wallet! AAA! As if the night before had not been enough strain on our wee hearts we got another panic-drawn adrenaline rush. Thank God it turned out Derek had put it in his bag, but in the back pocket. We made it!

We got to Schiphol safe and sound, had a nice lunch there and then went to Coevorden. Finally got there at 4.45pm. We had zuurkool stamppot (a Dutch type of sauerkraut with mashed potato, banana and raisins), which was nice. Don't think Derek was too sure about it though;). The next day we went to Groningen to visit Ineke, my Grandad and pick up Jan and the cats. Must have been a bit of a weird day for Derek as neither Ineke or Grandad speak English, but think we managed ok to translate. That night we went out with an old friend of mine, Susanne, and her boyfriend Marco. Had a great time! Derek got on with them really well, and Marco's English got better and better after a few beers;). Had a few too many... But made it home safely only to find my mum still up writing Sinterklaas poems! Crazy.

The next day we still had to write our poems, so spent most of the day doing that. Was quite a struggle for Derek, but they turned out really good at the end. It's only a bit of fun anyway. Took my laptop to the computer shop (I pray it's ready in 3 weeks, so that mum can take it to Scotland!) and Derek installed some extra RAM-memory in my parents computer to make it run faster. That night we (finally, 1.5 months late) celebrated Sinterklaas. It was a lot of fun:). Nice to have Derek there as 'part of the family':).

The next morning we had to get up very early, as we needed to catch the plane at 12.40. Mum took us to Zwolle, because there are no early trains from Coevorden on Sunday. Got to Schiphol by 10.20am, so we were number 13 to check in;)! Had something nice to eat and flew back. Derek's mum was so sweet as to pick us up:). We did get stuck in the car park, but managed to get out in the end. Went home only to discover the heating had broken! It was bloody FREEZING! Couldn't get it to work, so had to make do with the gas fire in the living room and the wee electrical heater in my room: BRR!

The coming week I'll spend at Derek's:) as his parents are on holiday. Look forward to a relaxing week, and to finally have some quiet time together without reports to worry about.

Hope you're all very well!

Love

Netherlands

Over the next couple of days, from Thursday to Sunday to be precise, I'll be in The Netherlands. If anyone wats to reach me: I'll be using my Dutch sim!

Derek is still writing... The poor thing. He is a genius though, so I'm sure his report will be brilliant!

Back here soon to tell you how my wee break was:).

Love

Orange? Or Drunken Night with Fiona part 4567

Dear all,

On Friday I spent a tiny wee bit of time with Derek, which energised me:). He's still stuck in his report... but the deadline is Wednesday, so there are happier times ahead:)!

Friday night I went to Tennents with Fi for some pub-grub and some pints. It was a drunken night, but for a change it wasn't us;)! Hadn't been out with Fi in ages and ages and we really needed to catch up on some girly talk:). Only problem with Tennents on a Friday night is the hordes of drunken 30-70 year old men... I mean it's fun(ny) usually (as they talk shite and buy you pints;)), but this time the particular guy that was trying to talk to us got quite annoying quite quickly. He kept calling me 'an orange' (as I was wearing orange jewelry) which at first I thought was a sectarian comment, and I was adament to point out I'm an agnostic. He then clarified himself by winking and saying I was 'very fruity'. Hmm... He then bought us a pint. Should have said no of course, but hey, I'm Dutch (cheap!) and therefore could not refuse. He kept asking me where I was from etc., over and over and over again, which worked on my nerves... Thank God he realised he was too drunk, and went home. All in all it was a god night though. Must have spent about 3,5 hours in there, just talking away. Always good!

On Saturday I didn't really do anything. Did a bit of uni work, watched telly. On Sunday I was hoping to meet Derek, but he was way too busy...:'(. I will be so relieved when this bloody report is handed in! So will he of course, even more so as he's the one typing it.

On Thursday we'll fly to The Netherlands (as I already mentioned before in this blog: sorry if I repeat myself). Really looking forward to having time with him, and with my parents and brother. They'll have some time to get to know oneanother a bit better. it'll also be nice to show him where I grew up.

Uni is going well. Remarkably on track with the reading for the honours courses. I am even starting to see what I would like to write my dissertation on! Yeah! I would like to focus it on Scottish women's fiction between the wars:)! Catherine Carswell, Willa Muir, Nan Shepherd etc. Do read them! They are great:). Never thought I would go into 'feminist' writing... Always said I wouldn't, because I fear the stigma of being a woman writing about women's fiction. I guess though that as I get older these 'novels of development', about women finding who they are mentally, sexually, what their place is in the world, become more and more interesting to me. In this particular period there is so much going on in fiction and art generally (think Joyce, DH Lawrence, Woolf, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, The Glasgow Girls), as well as in the feminist political movement, that it makes a fascinating subject. Would like to read some more Virginia Woolf, DH Lawrence as well as male Scottish authors of the period to get a better feel for the period. Do let me know what you think (if you have some kind of clue of what I'm talking about that is;))!

Anyway. I'm sure by now I've lost my readership... Sorry! Back here soon! Off home now, as I'm having Derek for dinner (although I think it'll be pub-grub or chippy;)).

Love

Reading

Dear all (I know that there are people out there that read me, although I cannot fully comprehend why...)

I spent a big part of last week doing work and worrying about going back to uni on Monday. Thankfully I managed to catch up ok, ok enough to go back anyway. Then they announced in my class today that they changed the schedule, so me reading "The Quary Wood" by Nan Shepherd (read it: lovely book) like crazy over the past couple of days was a slight waste of time, as I should have spent it on Sorley MacLean's poetry (if you like poetry, try his "Dain do Eimhir"(yes, it is poetry in Gaelic, but he translated it himself) collection. It is very passionate, about love, war, loss, memory, politics, about life really:)).

Spent Saturday with Derek:). Was really nice to see him, as hadn't for 5 whole days (very long...;))! We went on a half-hearted search for Sinterklaas presents, went to see "The Aviator" (really good, though slightly long), and met up with Joe, Liisa, Peter and Christopher. Nice day:). Spent most of the next morning in bed;) and then went to Tennent's to watch Celtic-Rnagers. Even though I support Celtic and Derek supports Rangers we didn't strangle each other, so that was good. We even held hands most of the time:). Of course I'm happy Celtic won though;). After that he had to go home to get back to his report... Will probably not see him over the coming week, as the deadline is very near and the report far from finished. It's ok, as I know this is very very very important. Will catch up on lost time later!

Off home now to read some Sorley MacLean for my class tomorrow!

Love

PS Another book I can highly recommend (gee, this could change the whole purpose of this blog!) is "The Piano Teacher" by Elfriede Jellinek (she won the nobel prize for literature in 2003 I think). Derek gave it to me for Christmas. It is so strong, passionate, haunting. I read it in between all the other reading I have to do. I loved it a lot, even though it is terribly painful and sad. It's about a woman in her thirties who still lives with her mother and then discovers love and sexual desire, but does not know how to deal with it, and therefore gets hurt in a gruesome manner (this discription does not do the book justice: just read it). I think I would like to read the original (in German I assume) as well, as the translation sometimes seemed a bit lifeless.

Tsunami...

Can hardly bear to write a nice happy entry when all you see on telly is all these people that died, or are dying. It's just so so sad. What can you do? I mean I gave £10 to Oxfam, but what is that compared to all the suffering out there... NOTHING. I got very annoyed with certain programs on TV that were discussing whether we can still believe in God after this. For one I never did believe in God (guess I'm an agnostic), and for two: who the hell cares whether some person in Britain can still believe in God! What a selfish way to look at the whole disaster! Go give your time to some charity rather than wasting it that way. Fuck sake (excuse my language).

And now to my life...
I did have a really nice Christmas with Derek and his family. It was just very cozy and comfy. Derek gave me this gorgeous necklace and I got matching earrings from his parents. Dinner was lovely too.

Dee came over on the 30th:). Was so nice to spend five days with her! On Friday Derek and Fiona came over and we had a nice dinner (that I managed to drop on the floor first though!) and a lot of wine (apart from Dee who doesn't drink). Ross came over too and we went to the Uisge Beatha. I had a few pints of McEwans 80 there and got shockingly drunk... Oops. Guess it's allowed on Hogmanay! Was very embarrassed the next day though, as I realised I must have looked like an idiot too...

Sunday Derek took me and Dee out to the Chip! Had never been in before. The food was gorgeous. Went to the Uisge Beatha again after for the Sunday live music session. I was walking on my new sexy shoes (tweed with very high heels) and of course got a really bad blister... Got up early on Monday to go to Edinburgh. We went to the castle, to Holyrood and went shopping for a bit. Was really nice. Think Dee loved it too. She left on Tuesday afternoon:'(. Was sad to say goodbye. Realised how much I enjoy spending time with her, and how much I really do miss that. Hope to go down to Liverpool sometime in the near future.

Not seen Derek since Monday morning, as he is working on his report and I have a lot of reading to do (as my classes start on the 10th in stead of the 24th as I thought! Oops!). Hope to spend a full day with him on Saturday. Maybe go shopping for Sinterklaas (we celebrate it in The Netherlands on January 21st! Crazy, but fun!), have a nice meal, go to the cinema, or whatever.

Anyway, back to work now. For those of you that haven't given to charity yet: GO DO THAT RIGHT NOW! Every little bit helps.

Love,
Mariken