Well all I have to say is that the time has been very very busy! Last week I was in Norway for a few days and it was nice to leave Sweden for a bit. This weekend I was going to go down to Göteborg, but I decided that it was more fun to stay around, even though I don’t know what I am going to do.

In education news, I decided not to take my CISSP at the last minute, mostly due to travel but also because I have not had the chance I really wanted to prepare and study. I am hoping to take it later this year, and if I have to I will take it somewhere else in Europe.

This past weekend was OK. One of my friend’s parents died and that was not so cool. I really didn’t support him as much as I should have, but the main problem was that he wanted to go out and be social during times when I just could not afford to be social, so I called and messaged a lot to ensure that he was OK and function. I als got the opportunity to hang out with Markus and Sebastian and that was quite nice as well. It’s been a few weeks since I had seen Markus since he got a new job with Phillip Morris. It’s funny how responsibility changes people…Markus is so different now that he has a job to focus him and his energies. Robin continues to work at the Castle and be a pain in the ass from to time. Maria has married Helene and that was pretty cool even though I wasn’t there for the ceremony. And overall, things just seem to be going really well for others.

In terms of my work, it’s only getting busier and there is only more and more to do. I am looking forward to a day when I am not having 8-14 meetings a day, as I truly believe that there is no way that I can possibly be productive with so many meetings. But my new manager is really supportive of the concept that I not have too many meetings and so she has been constantly asking me if I am working too much and to not to work on the weekends.

I am also getting a wisdom tooth removed on Friday, so what few smarts I have left will evaporate. But seriously, it is time for this tooth to go, especially since I cracked it not too long ago and there is no since in saving it. I have spent about SEK 7000 on dental work so far and I have probably about another 7000 to go. Luckily I have some private insurance that should help out here, but first and foremost I have to make sure that all of the paperwork is filed. And they hate paperwork. So this Friday I have to make sure that the paperwork is completed since each procedure is considered to be a seperate service and requires seperate payment.

Other than the things above, and a rather expensive trip through Duty Free (like USD600.00 on stuff that was basically 50% off), I can’t help but think that I have been doing so much, but I am not sure that I am accomplishing so much.

Well, I am not tired of LiveJournal yet, so expect to hear more from me.

Hugs, Rodney

P.S. I am starting back into the South Beach Diet. But this time around I am creating a Phase 1.5, which is a mix between Phases 1 and 2. I know it means that the weight loss will be slower and the inches don’t fall off of your waist as quickly, it will put me back into the swing of thing to begin running 7km sprints again. And besides, Operation Beach 2005 has to begin again soon anyway. By June 30th, I need to be 10kg lighter and that shouldn’t be a problem.

Is it really my fault that I like to know as much as possible about alcohol so that I can make more informed choices? On the other hand, my score in the proof area tells me I have more to learn 😉

Bourbon Congratulations! You’re 130 proof, with specific scores in beer (80) , wine (83), and liquor (113).

Screw all that namby-pamby chick stuff, you’re going straight for the bottle and a shot glass! It’ll take more than a few shots of Wild Turkey or 99 Bananas before you start seeing pink elephants. You know how to handle your alcohol, and yourself at parties.

So I know that it has been a very long time since I have done any updating of LiveJournal — basically posting nothing too serious since explaining the flight back from Sydney.

Well basically, I got back from Sydney and it has been nothing but a lot of work with not so much time to be with friends. I have a new job at work, but I haven’t gotten rid of my old 2 jobs, so basically it means that I have a lot of work to do. We have had a lot of reviews come up without much notice and they have been time-consuming. But I guess I should not complain too much…after all, 500 individuals in IBM Sweden were given notice and yet everyone I speak too tells me of the valuable role that I am playing and that they want to see me around.

A highlight after coming back from holiday was that I got to chat with Steve by phone and that was quite nice. And the phone call made me realise that I can keep friends over long distances, so that was a good thing as well. Was both in Oslo and Denmark in the same week, had a cancelled trip to Germany, and now a newly-scheduled trip to Oslo in a few weeks. I also have invitations to work with some colleagues in Copenhagen, but finding the time to do Scandic travel is a challenge these days.

In my personaly life, it has been somewhat impacted due to work. That and I have adopted a more sane approach to partying. Basically, I no longer feel that I have to party to the extreme with all of my friends every single weekend. I know know that it’s okay to actually stay at home sometimes, and that when I do go out, the party does not have to last all night long. It’s been a very liberating feeling. A very happy feeling because I have started to relax. I now have my weekend back (no longer being hung over), and I have been more productive in doing the things that I want to do, instead of limited to how far could I get on a hangover.

Today I took the train to Göteborg to hang out with friends not seen in awhile and to get away from Stockholm, if only for a few days. I was supposed to stay in Göteborg from Thursday to Sunday, but instead might come back a day early into Stockholm. It just depends.

So anyway, that’s as much of a public update as I can provide 😉 I hope that everyone is doing well and remember that you can always reach me via e-mail at [email protected]. Actually, since that e-mail address gets so much spam I don’t use it actively. But I do receive initial e-mails there and for people I know, I then give my preferred address.

Love, Peace, and Hair Grease!

Rodney