What I like most

What I like most about my work at the moment is measuring crystal structures. I now know how to do it well enough and once in a while I get new structures to measure and solve. Like right now I've got this crystal being measured and I'm really waiting for the results. The measurement will be done like twenty to five so I have to wait for it to finish. Then I would want to solve it but I have to go home. Of course I want to go home but I also want to solve the structure. I could do it at home but that would just be too much. Now as I won't solve it, I'll have a good reason to come to work tomorrow. I have one crystal to measure tomorrow and then I have to wait for more. Sort of unluckily my work involves things other than measuring and solving structure. I'll have to get those things done.

What I like most about my daily life at the moment is the bnd and climbing. Luckily for the bnd (and me), he's also now into climbing. It's great since I can combine two of the things I like most. We've been hanging out way much with the bnd. It almost seems like too much though I'm not getting bored or anything. I noticed that I was sort of involving him in things I've been planning with other friends. Like without asking the other friends. I don't like the idea of being like a "package deal" so I'm trying not to do that.

Me and the bnd have taken loads of friends climbing with us. It's fun to show new people a sport they might not have tried otherwise. I mean I would not have tried climbing if someone had not asked me to come with them (and look at me now). I think a few people have gotten interested so I'm waiting forward to taking yet another person to buy the equiptment with. It will be at least the fourth person I take to that one store. (I'm hoping to get a discount for myself soon.) Personally, I think my climbing ability has not gotten better in a while. It's sort of frustrating partly because the bnd now climbs the same routes I do and he's only climbed for a few months. Though I do have to say that sometimes it is about height and thus I probably still am better technique-wise. We've now been trying to go twice per week but my problem may be in simply not trying things that are difficult enough. (btw my hands are now sweating...) But maybe next time I will try some new route I've not done before. I want too get good for the summer bouldering season.

So if you want to try climbing, then all you have to do is ask. You might be surprisingly good at it. And even though it might not go very well the first time around, I can assure you that the next time it will be more fun. :)

Old e-mails and Italy

I was just organizing my old e-mails. I kind of have to since I'm running out of space like all the time. The truth is that I've never figured out how to move more than one e-mail at a time from one folder to another and I have been using the same program (pine) for like ages, years. I should look into it sometime, maybe. But what I learned - don't read old e-mails. I mean it is way weird. Like I "accidentally" read some e-mails from my ex before he was one and it wasn't a good idea at all. I was like "is this how it was?", "I don't remember this". - Now I do remember - Weird. But yeah, I also read like e-mails that I'd written since someone had replied and left my message in the end and I was like "what this how I thought at the time?". It's like reading an old diary, really.

So I was in Italy. It was really weird being in a place where they know just by looking at me that I'm not local. See I always try to fit in when I go on trips. I feel like one gets into less trouble that way. Like I don't look at maps if I don't really have to. But there was no way that would have worked this time. Thus I went for the "I'm an exchange student here - I've been here for a couple of months now and know how to get around..." That didn't really work either since I dind't once get one the best bus to get to the hotel and actually get off at the right stop. Either I was in the bus that stopped further away and did get off at the right stop eventually or I was on the right bus but got off too early. I blame it being always dark while I was on the bus.

The first night it was actually sort of lucky I found the hotel at all. I was on the bus that stopped further and I didn't even know it would not go past the hotel or which stop I have to get off at. Luckily my hotel was located on this big street and the bus was going on it. But then it turned. I was like "uh oh" and got off on the next stop. Then I was like "I guess I have to walk back to the big street" and I did but the way just seemed really long and I was getting sort of afraid I might not find the hotel. Once I got on the big street I actually had no idea which direction I should go. Luckily I chose the right one. There was this sign that I though was to my hotel but it was actually to a hospital by the same name. Luckily my hotel was almost right across the street from the hospital. So loads of luck involved in me getting to the hotel. Luckily I am a rather lucky person. (knock on wood)

My social experiment didn't go as good as I'd hoped. But my "surviving in a country where I don't speak the language" -skills most likely did. I did eat pizza at the hotel room for two nights when someone else most likely would have just gone out to eat. But I'm not good at going out to eat alone in a strange city. I feel accomplished that I got any food at all, really. And besides, it was cheap. Five euros compared to like twenty. And I was really tired after being at the conference all day so going to the hotel, getting a pizza from this place 20 meters from the hotel and eating it while watching MTV (like the only channel with partly english shows if you don't count bbc news) and then reading a book till ten and then sleeping was just a good idea in the end. I'd rather experience the wonders of going out to eat with good friends than stress about it when I just need some sustenance for myself.

But more on the trip later, perhaps. I have to start leaving work now to go climbing. (My lecture ended early so I did not feel there was any point in starting something other than organizing e-mails or writing this blog - I'll have more time to do actual work tomorrow. I get to measure some crystals :D)