Working at Spain

Hi again. Sorry for being a bit late.

I'm not going to write everyday, I must tell you, but I'll do it as soon as I can and wants. The fact is I work all day and when I arrive home sometimes I don't feel like writing, if you know what I mean, I hope you will. But today I feel like it, so I will.

As i told you before I have a lot of new experiences, people, habits to write about. I told you about this guy whom I called (and I still name him like that) "the fat bastard". He's still being a fat bastard, but he's getting better, or I believe I'm being less critical with him. The fact is he's being naughty, disgusting and sometimes even unbearable but I noticed everything's just because he wants to be my friend and that's why he's behaving like he does. He's married, but I don't know with whom, she might be a saint or worst than him, as he's always talking about nasty sex matters and his porn film collection wich seems to be really large. The most amazing is he shares it with his father in law, wich I believe is just unthinkable. I guess you know what kind of guy he is, but he's not a bad person, or at least not yet.

Let's talk about something different, let's talk about my company. It's a big amercian company, but the Spanish branch. So when the main company is efficient, and loyal with employees our mother house in Spain is another whore house (I'm sorry for being rude, but that's how we'll say it here). I mean, everybody hates everybody, there's no good bosses at all (except for one or two whom I never met) and none of the employees has good talks about them. My own, in fact, expends half the day sleeping, and I really mean sleeping, at her desk. She does it really well, so if you look at her you don't really notice, you have to get close to her, as she has her hand on the mouse, and her head up. But her eyes are closed and sometimes if something awakes her she jumps on her chair. My work mates also don't really like her, but it seems they don't like any boss at all, they are really bitchy if you know what I mean.

And also I still don't have a desk neither a computer and not even a chair. So I just wait somebody leaves her/his desk to use a PC for a while, unless somebody is on holidays, then I have a desk for some days. So it's being 2 months and I'm still like the first day. I might say they also call me "el becario" wich means I'm a student not being payed, wich is not true at all, I'm another employee and that really anoyies me, and also they don't give me enough work, wich I could be doing, and sometimes even better than them (I'm sorry for being arrogant, but it's damm true). So I have to expend 9 hours a day doing nothing, wich is horrible for the kind of guy I am, and also I could be bad for my future. I hoped it'll change but today I receive some news.

I'm being moved to another department, in the same place, but a different department. That means I have to meet new people, and also I have to forget everything I learned and the realtions I made. It's like starting again. I just hope at the new department they'll treat me better and give some work. The problem is my boss (the sleepy one) told me about that change but she likes me and she wants me to be back soon, but her boss wants me to be at the other one because there's more need for programmers there. I'm just impacient for the change, and for the next one because I'm sure they'll change me again.

I'll mantain you informed about this and all the new events in my recent life.

Farewell.

Manoel.

The eternal Problem

Hi all of you.

I want to ask you about looking for friends. It might be just me, as I'm a bit shy sometimes (the people that knows me don't believe this, but it's totally true), or it might be the circunstances. But the fact is it's really hard to meet people. Specially when you don't have time during the week for any social life at all, and you don't know anybody here except for a few, and you don't know even where to go. I'm trying as hard as I can, I promise, but it seems to be hard nowadays.

in the past it was easier for me, I believe because I was younger and a bit more of an alcoholic. But know I'm getting old (not that old, I know) and everything is turning difficult. I can't have friends (to go out) at my working place because of the differencies: age, marital state, and also (why not telling you) because I don't think we'll link (I hope it's right to say it like that, but I'm sure you'l understand it).

It was easier at London, not because people was different but because I knew some and I could go out with them and new friends of theirs. The fact is that me and my flatmates aren't able to meet new and interesting people yet, and we're trying. I'll just wait, because I know there's some things I could do and some events I could go, and it might be just a matter of time. It's only three months that I'm here and I can't expect better.

But, as I said, some people that I met aren't suitable for myself, specially some of them (do you remember the "fat bastard"). I could be a bit elitistic but I don't think so, I just think they're not right for myself. And also there's some nice people I met, but they don't seem to want to go out with me, not because they don't like me but because they have their own social life and I might not be making enouhg effort to mix with them.

So I guess it's my own fault. I promise I'll try harder, so I'll have some more exciting stories to tell you. Meanwhile I'll tell you about my job and the people around me wich is quite interesting and funny.

Regards from a very Spanish place as Madrid.

Manoel.

PS: If ever somebody told you about the "Madrileños" being "chulos" (arrogant) I should tell you they were totally right about that.

Yes, I'm back.

Hi again, once more.

Although I'm not where I would really wanted to be I'm glad to be here. This is not as fascinating as it might be London or any town at England, but it has it's own charming. There's also millions of stories I got and most of them could be hilarious if I have the inspiration to tell them.

I should tell you about working at an office, wich remainds me of a TV series I watched from BBC, it was called "the office". I found some similitudes between the serie and my own life. Althoug I don't have a "David Brent" boss I have plenty of them without being bosses, specially one of them whom I gave the name of "Fat Bastard", taken from the Austin Powers Films. If you had seen that film and the guy, you'll understand what I mean. It has nothing to do with him being fat (I was fat once) but with the fact that he is actually fat and also as horrible as that guy on the film, he also gives me the creep anytime I see him. But I'll talk about him in the future as I have a lot of things to tell you about him, and I'm pretty sure I'll have some more soon. I also see how blind are spaniards (or even anybody at an office?) with new ideas. The answer for the question "Why are we doing it like that?" it's always "We've been doing it like that for ages" wich is not valid for myself. So I guess i'll have a lot to fight, unless they fire me for being too efficient.

As you see and I constantly repeat again and again I have a lot of things to tell and not that much time considering I'll tell you about things that happened some time ago, I'll try to be as fast as possible so next time I'll tell you about things that happened yesterday instead of last month, but that's going to be hard. I also have problems with my bank, they are charging me 20€ just for having red numbers (I hope it's said like that, if not just ask me about it) for just 7 days when the average is they wait 10 days to charge you anything, it's like they are stealing me that money, but that's always a problem with banks at Spain, you might know it.

My flatmates are really nice, although I have some problems with them and also some arguings, I'm not going to tell you anything bad about them. Not because they might be reading this (I'm almost sure they're not going to) but because that's something completely normal and also they are really nice. I'm sure it's totally normal to have some differences with your flatmates. So I'll leave the flat matters alone.

But, as I told you, there are millions of facts, things, curiosities I can tell you about Spain, Madrid and my new working life, so I gues you'll not be bored.

Farewell.

Manoel.

PS: I'm just waiting for you to know about the "fat bastard" hee's kind of a character. I'm sure he'll make a really good and hilarious book. I might just tell you he also remainds me of a book character from "Confederacy of Dunses" called Ignatius J, Really, but even worst.