Here we are with "our" cup: []

(for those who don't know me already, I'm the one sitting down on the right, touching the cup) 

Wow!! The championsleague-Cup is nothing compared to this one, FB !!!!! []

I even look very harrypotteresque ...as if it could be a port to another magic world [lol]

congrats FB!

that is cool that y'all won!

I am home sick again - well still

I went to work yesterday and they made me go home -

got new drugs from the doctor so I hope to feel better tomorrow and maybe even get to sleep some

thing1 went back to the doctor yesterday

she is off the crutches, wearing a shoe again and able to walk almost normally

can't run for a while though  - but at least she can put on pretty shoes with her Christmas dress

she and her fellow student council members went to an elementary school in chalmette (st bernard parish) yesterday and had a christmas party for the kindergarden class there

there were 22 children in the class

this is an area that had 100 % of the structures flood and very bad wind damage (just east of new orleans)

they are struggling to come back and many of the families have no jobs

alot of people in that area make their living catching seafood and they lost their boats with the hurricane

anyway - they had raised money at school and bought presents and stockings for the kids

em said each child had a trash bag filled with wrapped gifts

clothes, toys and candy for everyone

they played games and sang songs and had cookies and drinks

she really enjoyed herself and felt good about doing this

her dad met her at the school

he called me enroute and was describing the hwy leading from mississippi into st bernard

said there was not one camp left on the lake - only the occasional sign saying whose house used to be there - could see over to lake catherine - no trees left - not one structure standing nor anything rebuilt on that road - he was overwhelmed

glad he got to be part of the party too

he needed it

our new floor is partly installed in the kitchen / dining area

more to go in later today

we hope to put up our christmas tree friday - it goes in the room that had to be redone

when this one is finished we have to replace the floor in the den and I still have not decided what I want -

more decisions!

time for a nap

 

 

Renee......hope all of you are feeling much better really soon......

Aww... FB, that is a great picture of you! 

Renee, you sound like a girl I work with.  She was sick and sent home on Friday, came in Monday and was sent home again.  She stayed away today.  I really hope she's back tomorrow.  And I hope you can make it back tomorrow, too!

Renee did you get a flu shot?  Some people I work with that received the shot have become quite ill.

I'm going to say it again.

I want to be a Victoria's Secret model.  That's the ultimate sexy.  And they get to walk down a runway with Justin Timberlake singing "SexyBack" and staring at / following them down the runway.

I just need to grow a few inches and lose about 60 lbs.  I have the figure, just a little more than I need.  Oh, and long flowing, bouncing hair.  I could get that.  And I can do the flirty sexy stare thing.
 

December 20th

 

George Grosz : nude and "to Philipp".......maybe Ida knows someone whose name is Philipp[]

 

[lol] ...but , honestly, MaM, which woman with SOME brain would wanna look like Barbie?????[rolleyes]

Thank you. It's certainly better than most - I can bear to look at it at least [lol]

Hey aunties... the big talk out with my boss is over. It has been
postponed to today 9 a.m. and lasted until now. It was as horrible as
expected and I'm completely destroyed - but at least, I'm not fired.
There's still the "work" side of it, thank God; you can't just fire
someone because you don't like him anymore - at least not that easily.
I just don't know if I shall feel eased now ... it's really not nice
when someone tells you for about 2 hours why he doesn't like you
anymore and why he'd prefer to work with someone else, and counts each
little fault your ever made in 5 years ... and you can't really defend
yourself because you know your monetary future depends on her signature
within the next 24 hours and so in fact on staying calm and acting
professional.
Well at least I managed not to kill her and not to cry, so that's quite
something.

Oh Tina, that sounds really horrible. Apparently she is the one who's acting completely unprofessional - "doesn't like you anymore" - that's childish! Hope you'll find another job soon!

Good grief that sounds horrid. How does she expect that to help anybody? [:S]

Well done for making it through.[}] 

She seriously told me that she was
disappointed I didn't thanked her for her input in an article I wrote 5
years ago (!!!) - while she didn't even thanked me in articels I have
in fact totally written for her, how can anybody become that narcistic?
Well... however, it's over...

Thanks
a lot for your sympathy and support - I guess  she was not really
planning to help me, it was simply all about making me throwing away my
job under pressure voluntarliy, so that she can give it to her
beloved  other assistant who's constantly flirting with her since
3 years.

Caren...... I am so totally sorry that you had to endure hours of a horrible person such as your boss.

 

I think you need a group hug from the Aunties.....sending you a sympathetic ear. 

Thanks
a lot my dear friends, it's so important to me to have someone to talk
about this, who isn't involved himself! ...And ever count on me when
you feel horrible too. 

Hallo Caren, you have all my sympathy. I do timework in the moment, and I'm just in an office where I feel my self very uncomfortable, work together with an realy unfriendly smoking young lady, who didn't unterstand that work together are a kind of given and taken. For her it's only taken without given, but I'm out here as soon as possible, that I have agreed with the timework company. One of my goals for next year is to search a new job that's fit's better to me.

If I unterstand it in the right way, you like your job and the only problem is your boss? I believe you will find a way to handle this, but it's not easy if you do nothing right in the opinion of you boss, that is realy hart, of course we all need a fair feedback, so that we know that we on the right way with that what we are doing and if we do a realy good job, than is it also important that this will be accepted.

Hey sunshine, we all need some days off now, don't we?
Yes I really like my job... there are so many lectureres at university, who don't even like the teaching part; I'm certainly not one of them. I like going to conferences too or working for my research projects. It's mainly the interaction between me and my boss which is horrible and begins to affect everything apart from the teaching part. For example she writes an article together with my collegue, doesn't tell me anything about it and complains afterwards, that I didn't participate. She wants me to inform her about any single step I do -but when I tell her anything about my projects she doesn't show any interest ...(so yes, at a certain point I stopped giving her weekly reports).

 Sue the Bi_tch !

 I'll send you over a digital recorder, tape the conversation if it happens the next time and take her to the cleaners. Totally unprofessional and appraisel given with intended malice.

And im not one that recommends the legal option. believe me...sometimes its the only thing that makes them get in line. Some management have absolutely NIL people skills.

Sending a big kiss Tina. X

Hey, Caren, it sounds like you don’t have a Human Resources Department which is unfortunate.  They are great at resolving matters like this.  If your boss has any management skills whatsoever you should have not only been told what is wrong but also what needs to be done to make things better.  If she didn’t do this and you didn’t ask, set up another meeting with her to establish a plan of expectation and at the end of that meeting set up another meeting for a month in the future just to review the past month to see if expectations are now being met and that things are improving.  You should also start keep a log of events with dates and times of troublesome things that happen.  Then a month from now you can be very specific about any grievances you have.    Obviously you don’t want to lay blame.  Things should always be stated to her as “What can I do to better this situation?” or when expressing a grievance with her, you’d say, “It would have been helpful to me if you…” instead of “I hated it when you…”or “You shouldn’t have…”.  You always want to leave the impression you’re doing everything you can to make the situation positive.  If only negativity is brought to the meetings nothing will improve and life will be miserable for you both until someone leaves.  I work for a large company and they offer employees courses in effective communication skills and giving and receiving feedback.  These were a tremendous help to me both in and out of the office so I hope these tips are of some help to you. 

Thank you Dave and Lawrence. I tried some of those "positive" questions you mentioned Lawrence but the situation is very tricky... all the short run work she gives to me, like writing expertizes or doing lectures for her is all to her satisfaction, at least she can't find any fault (that's why she can't throw me out). She's just not interested in my research project anymore, or at least not as much as in the research project of my collegue... and I can't just change that after having already put all my work in it for 2 years. This is all very hurting for me because we have been quite good friends some years ago, she's 12 years older than me and was like an elder sister and mentor for me and promissed to support my career. But from that moment she got power over me all friendship was gone.

Thank you all a lot for listening, I really needed that today, but I don't wanna kill the mood here any longer. When I come back I will be ready for fun again, I promise[] 

 

Caren-Tina - that sounds like an awful situation for you.

 As Lawrence and Dave have said the laws for grievance should help you, and there should be a procedure your boss is following, and you are entitled to a copy!.........sounds to me as if it is time for you to take some informal advice from an HR expert.

Yeah - I'll get some lawyer advice next year definetly... and my collegues just voted me to represent them (the junior professors) in the big administrative conferences next year... so there are crazy times waiting for me.

Something else... I just got a message from brinky... her computer cracked but she's well - but she lost all adresses for sending christmas cards... so please PM her yours if you are in closer contact to her.

Caren.  Lawrence had some wonderful advice.  good luck and we are all here for you....you know that.

Sue

caren - so sorry to hear things are still going so badly with her

this seems to be never ending - emotional abuse

I
hope you can find a new position where you can be happy or that she
leaves - life is too short to put up with the crap you are being dealt

as for the health of the family - I am a little better today - managed to work all day and not cough my head off

unfortunatly
both busy and em have the bug now and em's went straight to the chest -
she has that rattle back that she had with the pneumonia last month -
her dad took her to the doctor late this afternoon so I am waiting to
hear from them - she just got off the crutches and now this.... and
during exams!

oh my it is going to be an interesting Christmas... not very merry so far!

hope everyone here is okay - and big hugs to you caren!  

They don't look like Barbie.  [lol]  They're way hotter.  Besides, it's not about looking good.  I love that feeling of knowing I'm drop-dead gorgeous, that mens' jaws drop as I walk past them, the power I know I have.  It may seem weird, but it is a very empowering thing to feel like that.

It sounds like she's had it in for you for that long.  Maybe that's where it started.  [rolleyes]  Yes, very narcisitic.

Thanks for letting us know.  []

December 21st

 

 

Vincent van Gogh : the red vineyard and Oskar Kokoschka: sleeping girl

 

Okay, understood, MaM....[] ....well I don´t have that power either[] maybe for one day I´d just like to know what it´s like, I admit, but then again I think it wouldn´t be me somehow....hard to explain somehow[unsure] .....on the other hand....there is nothing like charme[]

Quickly while passing through Village onto more work........

FOG !!! Current situation NOT looking good for my Sons flight down from Inverness on Saturday.

Immense backlog may mean cancellations....and no Christmas visit. []

Have all but the most sensitive bits crossed at the moment.!

The fog hasn't lifted since yesterday morning in the West neither, Dave - sounds like the whole country is under "mist". Hope it clears and you can celebrate Christmas all together!

Looks like Auntie # 1 is also officially Jamie's most obsessed fan!!  - congratulations Jazzieone []

......I may just have to send you THE POSTER!!!

Mist in Germany as well......shame though when flights get cancelled[] .......keep my fingers crossed, Dave!

On fog in the movies:

 

The only time I can remember fog playing the “good guy” in a movie was in the VIPs:

 

http://imdb.com/title/tt0057634/

 

For me, as a kid, the scariest fog was in MIDNIGHT LACE.  And wouldn’t you know it was a London fog!  Until that time I had always associated fear with darkness.  Here poor Doris Day is all dressed to the nines in white and surrounded by the brightest fog Hollywood could create and she is being tormented in this blinding light that just leaps from the screen:

 

http://imdb.com/title/tt0054084/

 

Now over forty years old, these movies are dated…BUT…they are still great popcorn movies for a rainy, idle afternoon. 

 

Dave…I hope in your case old man Fog knows when to take his curtain call and exit the stage because I want you to have the happiest of Christmases.  I myself am planning to have one of the merriest in many a year.  Seems only right you should too. 

 

eek! Are they really cancelling flights? I'm flying home tomorrow... [unsure]

Hope all goes well for you (and your son) Dave []

yes unfortunately many flights are being cancelled. my grandparents flight to ireland has been cancelled twice (yesterday and the day before) and all BA domestic flights have been cancelled out of heathrow both today and tomorrow. thankfully my grandparents have booked on a flight from leeds (just a 4 1/2 hour drive for them earlier on in the fog!) which hopefully takes off in 15mins. we have everything crossed too.

Dave hope your son gets sorted out i know exactly how stressful it can be (what about the train? or could he drive down?) 

FB hope you get home ok too, my thoughts are with everyone trying to get somewhere to be with their family over the next few days :)

 katie

x

Good luck to all "fog-victims"!!!!  





[img]http://www.smileycentral.com/sig.jsp?pc=ZSzeb068&pp=ZJxdm087YYDE[/img]

grandparents, aunty and cousins flight landed [] they are on their way!

I´m so happy for you, Katie.....

oh Dave, I´ve just seen in the news that the fog will stay the next day(s?).....isn´t there the possibility that they´ll take the train instead??  *sigh*

Oh []... I will cross everything crossable with you!

Dave -that is terrible news!  I hope the weather improves so they can come in!

good
news late yesterday - em does not have pneumonia again - I was worried
- she looked better today - went to school half a day to take her exams
and came home. the jazz for juniors cd arrived today so that cheered
her up.

we are flooding here today - tons of rain since yesterday and more thru tomorrow

one of my nephews went skiing in colorodo and is stuck there - may get out on christmas day but even that is iffy

if you want to see a funny video go to www.wwltv.com and look for benny grunch video

they have a whole album of goofy songs with local references that we enjoy hearing every christmas

gota go drive thru the flood water... hope all of y'all are well and safe

 

 

A starlit night....Wow!!!  No fog at all!!  I´ve seen Orion at its best....and taurus with Aldebaran and the Plejades......

ehem...sorry, I got carried away....

December 22nd

 

 

Georges Seurat and Gabriele Münter: meditation

 Thanks everyone for asking re the lads.[]

Renee..Sends much hugs to you all at the minute...

 Not been on here since yesterday afternoon, ADSL has failed due to FOG.....yep....the damp has got into the main control box 3 miles down the road and damaged the circuit boards.Dial up only available, so am on laptop.

Fog is just terrible because its all farm land round here and flat and many rivers..Not looking good for boys coming down at the minute at all.Trains are fully booked.Drive is a 20 hour round trip even on best of days. In this fog ?? Just not up to that at the minute.Maybe tomorrow.

Atroi !...Munich...[lol][lol] ...........SCHALKE !!!!!

Hopefully the adsl will be back on later today, but reports say fog here for next 2 to 3 days....i certainly cant remember such a long period of dense fog in all my life.

 

Wonderful news Katie...Wonderful ! []

Hallo Katie, nice to hear that your family is landed. In the news I heard in the morning that there are great problems with the flights due to the foog in London and thats a lot of people sitting in Heathrow, with out knowing, if there flight goes.

The blizzard in Denver is making national news. It’s screwing up flights all over the country. My heart goes out to those who have loved ones who are being kept from heart and home.

Just thought I'd pop in quickly to say Merry Christmas and toodle pip []

My case is (almost) packed and once I've jumped in the shower quickly, I'll be ready to go. I just have to hope they'll let me carry some of my presents on as hand luggage, because there was no other way to fit any clothes into my suitcase! [lol] 

All I need now is to get my weary self to the airport and hope for the best. I don't think the fog is going to be a problem, it only seems to be affecting the bigger airports and Bristol seems to have escaped ok. My main problem is that I didn't get as much sleep as I'd hoped last night - I was somehow up until 3.30am wrapping presents and curling ribbons [rolleyes]

Ah well, I'll probably snooze on the plane.

Better dash!