It’s been a busy few months, which for the most part were spent helping to organise a conference and all the associated chaos therein. There were no major disasters, fortunately. The exhibition stand didn’t fall on anyone, nobody got agressive during the debate and there were no paper-cut injuries from delegates rushing to pick up [...]
Also filed in Accommodation, Belgium, Brussels, Bruxelles, Cats, Enthusiasm, Moving In, New appartment, Relatives, Staying In, Swearing, Tea, Tradition, appartment, family, fear, furnishings, lunatics
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I’ve got an idea. First, though, I thought I’d set the scene.
According to a recent article in the Observer, there are lots of new graduates, fresh from university with good degrees and strong CVs, and yet due to the recent economic turmoil, this new generation of bright young things are all failing to find those [...]
Also filed in Arguments, Authority, Community, EU, Electricity, Enthusiasm, Environment, Government, Independence, Newspaper articles, Newspapers, Society, Technology, Things I like, Things to do, Timing, Waiting, employment, energy, graduates, recruitment, renewable energy, roofs
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I’ve written previously about bad experiences whilst shopping, so here’s an interesting twist I encountered last weekend. I went into a Philips audio shop to look for some headphones, and I found myself checking out a pair of swish Sennheiser wireless headphones that looked a bit pricey but pretty good. My bad hearing however means [...]
Also filed in Demands, Gadgets, Interrogation, Panic, Shop assistant, Shopping, Technology, audio, expensive, headphones, hearing, hi-fi, sound
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Here are some fine examples of the sort of sentences you can find in EU press releases which might leave you unconvinced that, as the EU’s communications chief Margot Wallström puts it, “communicating with the citizens of the European Union has been a primary concern for this Commission from the very start.” It’s not hard [...]
Also filed in Ambiguity, Berlaymont, Brussels, Bruxelles, Confusion, Conversation, EU, EU publications, European commission, Future of EU, Government, Music, Questions, Words
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Apologies for the lack of entries of late, I’ve been doing a bit of travelling, most of the visits for the first time. Some photos, if you’re interested, can be seen in the picture gallery.
Of course, in an ideal world I’d be sitting here with a full-length beard, several battle scars from my daring encounters [...]
Also filed in Air travel, Experiences, Going Out, Herbal teas, Northern Ireland, Shop assistant, Spain, Sunday, Tea, Timing, Train stations, Transport, Weekend, family, reality, speaking, trains
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I’ve changed the theme on this blog and also, hopefully, begun the process of writing entries more regularly. A lot has happened since my last post, I’ve been to stranded in Strasbourg in the snow, I’ve watched the Belgians out in force to try and preserve the unity of their country, and I’ve found myself [...]
Also filed in Air travel, Clear sky, Conversation, Cooking, Dating, EU, Environment, Geneva, Going Out, Journalism, Lakes, Mountains, Nature, Plenary session, Relationships, Strasbourg, Things I like, Transport, Update, Work, Writing, breakfast, cafe, careers, holidays, snow, trains, weather
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I’ve been thinking about establishment. Partly it’s because, in my new job as a journalist on EU affairs, I’ve been in contact with several MEPs and commissioners and this morning I was taking pictures of the president of the European parliament for a feature on, yep, you’ve guessed it, electric bikes.
What also prompted these thoughts [...]
Also filed in Awards, Bikes, EU, Establisment, Europe, European parliament, Fellowship, Honours, Journalism, MEP, Membership, Networking, Obscure, Post-nominal letters, Questions, Recognition, Society, The Guardian, Thoughts, Tradition, Wine, champagne, reality, social status
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It’s a time for change once again. Last week I was informed that I had successfully obtained a position as a journalist with The Parliament magazine, which was fantastic news for me because it’s a continuation of similar sort of work to that which I’d been enjoying for the last 5 months at the European [...]
Also filed in Accommodation, Alarms, Arguments, Banks, Brussels, Conversation, DIY, Doctor, EU, EU publications, Europe, European parliament, Experiences, Forgetfulness, Fresh Start, Friends, Hospitals, House, House-mates, Independence, Journalism, Moving In, Patients, Plants, Routine, Rules, Security, Staying In, Surgery, Swearing, Windows, Writing, appartment, careers, emergency services, existence, fear, flat, furnishings, insurance, lunatics, personality, procedures, reality, screaming
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Personally, I don’t worry too much about pillows. However, I may be in a minority here,
judging by last weekend’s trip to IKEA to help a friend move into her new flat.
As we wandered around the vast warehouse, I wasn’t allowed to go and look at the kitchen knives until I had answered concerns regarding whether [...]
Also filed in Arguments, Brussels, Conversation, DIY, Experiences, Facts, Friends, Going Out, IKEA, Sarcasm, Staying In, Things I dislike, You Couldn't Make It Up, appartment, boredom, colours, flat, furnishings, personality, pillows, reality, sleep, towels
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I think it might be a wise idea if I carry a card around with me. Unlike a business card, which usually makes its appearance after the champagne and chit-chat (“Ha ha, yars, yars, you must come round and look at the tennis lawn sometime”), it would be the first thing I hand to other [...]
Also filed in Anger, Brussels, European parliament, Events, Experiences, Friends, Futility, Going Out, Grand Place, Journalism, Newspaper articles, Ordeal, Security, Spain, Thoughts, Words, Work experience, Writing, You Couldn't Make It Up, business, business cards, cafe, coffee, existence, fear, grandchildren, humanity, insurance, jokes, lunatics, meetings, organised crime, personality, political beliefs, reality, receptions, risks, screaming, skip
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