Nataly

OK... All of you who are throwing rocks at it... take 10 points off. There is no such thing as a valid 8 second IQ test; I mentioned it was more of a stress timed event than an IQ test. It was for fun, people... And yet, no one can still explain the Kardashians to me.

I'm not happy because I'm poor, but in spite of it! Sheesh! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

your bike leathers

Hard to believe I've been off work for 10 months! I'm slightly nervous about my first day in a new job tomorrow, but excited as well... Finally, money coming INTO my bank account

I got 28, but it's more of a "general knowledge test" "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Awww shucks - thanks John

Ya well it kinda makes you think... If it's a small world in terms of bumping into people you *like*, you better be careful about making too many enemies because they too could be around every corner!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Ah ha ha!!! Shows how obsessed I was with studying over the past few years that I thought you meant a school grade!! Congrats dude!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Oh yay!!! Do you own said appartment or just renting? If it's a new purchase - CONGRATS!!!

At least tell us why ya big tease!!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Meh... Moved to Nice (very close to Monaco) in December... All that tacky bling-bling gets old after a while Call me crazy but I don't think a fancy car makes a guy any more "manly"... Actually, I think it makes him look like a bit of a numpty! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Yeah... It's funny how quitting everything and coming over here seemed like such a crazy thing to do in the middle of an economic chrisis... But in my heart I knew if I didn't try, I'd always wonder "what if"... Honestly, it's been tough over the past several months as all my savings disappeared, but I wouldn't change it for anything in the world

Watching that makes me sick to my stomach, but it prompted me to read about emergency stops to refresh my memory... I personally think that it's quite rare when something is 100% one person's fault - usually there are *several* contributing factors... Looks like the driver had no business turning like he did... Looks like the biker could have avoided the crash or at least minimised it... And for sure, driving off was a bastard thing to do. Thanks for posting - good to be reminded to keep an eye out (both for car drivers and for bikers). Just a shame it happened in the first place... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Wow... Just emailed the RCMP 'cause I need a criminal check for my role in Ghana... The lady who answered my query is the mom of an old friend from school!! Cool

Or, if you're *really* lucky, you can end up finding a job that you really love, so you don't even have to look for your happy-place elsewhere

Man, that is SO true!! Good for you - downsize till you drop!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

It's impossible to pick just one... My favourite peeps are: >JohnMitchell - such a positive attitude and a total sweetheart. >Ryoder - makes me laugh ALL THE TIME! >Shroppy - he's just one cool dude. >LisaH - just the nicest damn person *ever* AND she sends glittery/confetti stuff through snail mail!!! 'Twardo - for the constant witty/smart-ass comebacks. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Yeah, saw that one a couple of times - still makes me cry! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Give a man a fish, and he has one meal... Teach a man to fish and he can feed himself for life... For any project, the ideal situation is to have a good feedback/follow-up/review... In this case, the timing is fixed, which is why it's so important to work closely with the locals at every step of the process in order to hand over all ideas/knowledge in a sustainable maner. It's easy to create spreadsheets that I understand - it's a lot harder to create processes that everyone can use and that will continue to work once I'm no longer on location. I don't think the culture will be the biggest challenge, because it will be obvious that I come from a different background (the rest of the team on the project are all locals)... When differences are clear, people tend to expect misunderstandings and paradoxically work harder to iron them out and/or avoid them.... I think it's always hard to really understand what the needs/constraints are... There is a natural tendency to want to discard old methodologies in favour of newer technologies, but people often don't exploit the good things about tried and true wisdom. Anyway, I've done lots of this sort of thing before, but never outside of big (western) companies. So I'm super excited about it even though I'm also shitting my pants a little!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Bwaahaaaaa!!! Shroppy, you crack me up "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I love listening to Steve Jobs speak - his passion is so infectious "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Ghana. The objective is to set up an accounting system for a local NGO that conforms to Ghanaian tax laws and suits the users' needs. To train users on said system, and to produce a user's guide. A 5 month volunteer mission with a Canadian NGO. Should be pretty challenging. Perhaps not as obviously satisfying as actually "feeding the poor" but at least I can feel good about putting my expertise to good use... Besides, it's not just people who need help - it's hard to get real progress without the right infrastructures in place... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Yeesh! Goes both ways... Doesn't sound like she had very caring neighbours (or family members), but also doesn't sound like she was especially integrated into the community herself... Sad indeed... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I was just sitting here thinking... A few years ago, I had a great job, lots of money, was a home-owner, had a fantastic boyfriend (whom I thought I would marry and have babies with), a family and friends that love me (and his family loved me as well), was living in one of the coolest cities in the world, et cetera, et cetera. You know, all the things you think will make you happy. But I was miserable. Today, I am broke, jobless and squatting at a friend's. I'm in a long-distance relationship that seems unlikely to bear fruit, I'm far from my friends and family, and all my stuff is in storage (what little I have left). And I've just accepted a 5 month volunteer role in Africa, even though it means I have to sell my bike to raise money!! Been surviving on "ketchup soup" and rice for the past several months... And I've never been so totally, utterly happy

I don't have any horror stories... The worst house-guest is only the worst because he used to arrive in my pristene appartment and leave it looking like the tazmanian devil had paid me a visit... He's still a good friend though