Had the top ripped from the letterbox at some ridiculous hour of darkness last night. Dad heard the little fuckers do the deed & then drive off down the road.
No other damage & what was done is easily fixed, but normally it’s a calling card indicating that there’s more to come.
It has actually happened before, both to us & others in the street. We used to have a wooden letterbox until it was sheared in two at ground level.
Being sadistic, dad bought a new metal box & attached it to a solid pole which sits more than a couple of feet in the ground & is solidly held in place by concrete which not only surrounds the pole, but also fills it.
The intent was, that if they ever tried to kick the pole out of the ground, their leg would probably suffer first. That sucker don’t move at all.
The whole resignation thing is now done & the contract for the new job is signed.
Far easier than first thought. Originally I was planning to pickup the letter of offer on Friday & go in on Saturday morning & resign. This plan changed when the Human Resources person preparing the letter wasn’t available. I called at 11am Monday morning & made the journey to the Radi hotel in Adelaide & signed the contract on the spot. By 12pm, I was back at the Club & waiting for Tuesday to come since the boss doesn’t work Mondays.
With absolute surprise, the boss walked in at about 12:20 to print something off in his office & then play golf. As good a time as any, I printed off my resignation letter & walked into his office. Five minutes later, the whole ordeal is over.
I don’t think any nerves were involved with the resignation, because it all happened so fast. Had I been forced to wait until Tuesday morning, I would have tossed & turned all night & put way too much thought into it.
With all the conflicting thoughts about whether I’m doing the right thing, it’s good to all be out of the way. Nothing that has happened since has made me want to stay. I’ve raised the issues of the Club I have with the Captain & yesterday reiterated those concerns to no avail. For some bizarre reason, they think this General Manager is a walking God! It won’t be much longer before the entire staff in the office has been fully turned over. Crazy Shit!
The photo below is the brand spanking new Ramada Pier Hotel. It's very surreal to know that in just over four weeks time I'll actually be working there.
A bigger version of this shot is in the "perspective" section.
There is still a fair bit of work being done which explains the bulldozers & fences. Apparently the fitout is underway for the opening in the first week of December. I have a feeling I'll be celebrating New Years Eve there!
A quick rant about Channel 10’s decision to move the time of The X-Files to some really late time on a Saturday night. When you move a program that has had the same timeslot for eight consecutive years, it would be natural to assume that the final series would have priority on that time slot.
This lack of ratings for the show in the 8:30 Saturday timeslot, is not that people aren’t watching the show, but merely that everyone who is a fan is also in their 20’s & generally like to go out on a Saturday night. No one is watching the show when it’s on, but instead, there are thousands of video recorders that turn on to facilitate viewing at a decent day & hour. I’m surprised there aren’t massive drains on the power supply at precisely that time!
Lets hope they don’t axe the show entirely. Hey, I’ve seen worse decisions made! For example; Australian Survivor - what the hell was that?!?
I’m putting myself out of my misery here. It’s news that just has to be kept under wraps from friends & work colleagues, until all details have been finalised & everyone knows where they stand. By Sunday, I won’t care who knows, but for the moment, this little web page is the only source of this information.
As of 11:20am, I am (unofficially until all forms signed), the Management Accountant of the Ramada Pier Hotel, Glenelg.
The building is yet to be completed, though fitting is underway. The opening will occur during early December with an official opening in March 2003.
I still have four weeks with the Glenelg Golf Club, & I imagine that the current GM will be the complete bastard that he has been so far, so I’ll need to be really organised for the next person. Whoever gets this job will need to have their shit together, because they don’t just do general accounting, but will have to pickup quite a few of the GM’s responsibilities.
I feel bad for the leaving some people behind, primarily Dave, who will have to put up with someone new yet again, Karen, Daryl, Martyn, catering & bar staff & certain greenkeepers. I know changes will be made to management sooner rather than later, but it all comes too late for myself & this is an opportunity too good to just let pass by.
I’ll be on the same pay, but I’ll have a designated car park & being less than fifteen metres from the sand of the Glenelg beach is benefit enough!
Australia now has “Vanilla Coke” to add to the normal & lemon varieties. I had my first taste just a few days after release & although it’s not my kind of taste, it wasn’t something I would refuse if it was the last drink on earth!
I would like to see Cherry Coke brought back at some point. It made a very brief appearance in the early 90’s in the can format with various other flavours only to be banished after a few weeks, honouring it’s limited edition title.
I wonder why the Vanilla variety wasn’t brought out the same way & test marketed, or did I miss the whole process?
Anyway, I’m sticking to the good old original & if people like the new taste, they should start drinking like fish. It all helps the share price!
On the tv last night was a telethon for the victims of the Bali bombings which occurred on the 12th. Up to now, I’ve been rather selfish, looking after my own interests with this potential new job, etc.
I think I’ve disassociated myself with it to some degree. These attacks have killed Adelaide residents, which makes it all too close to home. Thankfully, for want of a better word, I didn’t actually know any of the victims personally. The potential for further strikes is the thing that worries me now. Where, when, how. To date, they’ve been completely unexpected.
I walked along the Glenelg foreshore on Saturday to get a bit of exercise. My attention was caught by two separate people who kept looking around, but kept a close eye up toward the hotels on the shoreline. For all I knew, they could have been waiting for something to happen. Two years ago, I would not have given such an activity a second thought.
My condolences go out to the many families that have been effected by the bombings in Bali. The focus has been on the Australians, but numerous other nationalities were involved which highlights the randomness of terror strikes. Future attacks will occur. I’m almost certain that the current state of the world will result in more senseless violence.
Until then, I plan to stay vigilant, but not cut myself off from society in order to stay safe. I just hope that people don’t run & hide away but remain strong & not intimidated by these scraggly, bearded freaks.
I've had the call regarding a second interview. Next Wednesday is the day of reckoning, with the final choice being made on the Friday.
I'll be meeting both the owner of the Pier Hotel & the general manager who I'll be reporting to. It will feel as though the first interview never took place, having to front two completely different people who are going ask all the same questions.
I don't know whether I'm as confident for this interview. I guess I'll just play it by ear & hope to hell it all works out!
Well, I was right. Yesterday was one of the longest days ever. Thankfully, it all ended rather well.
The interview was good & even before it was over, they said I would be called back for a second interview with the General Manager who I would be reporting to.
The job sounds good. I’ve come close to talking myself out of it! Don’t ask me why. It’s just a fear of biting off more than I can chew perhaps.
Starting in a new building, with new equipment, new people, how can that be bad?
Today is going to be the longest day. I’m waiting for this interview tonight, but time is going to drag. It’s always the case, I knew that before the day started, but even though it feels like I’ve been here for days, only a couple of hours have passed.
It’s been nearly a full week since I was offered the interview. I would have liked them to have booked it within a day or so, rather than the torture of six days!
Never have I seen so many people scratch themselves during a film. Just the sight of creepy crawlies makes some people start itching, so for most it was definitely a case of facing their phobia.
I’m not one for spiders, whether they big, hairy fuckers or tiny, scampering ones. They are all the same & if in my vacinity will invariably end up on the bottom of my shoe.
It’s a good film overall, harking back to many “B” grade horror/comedy films. The spiders are all great & the computer graphics are flawless when compared to a big budget film like Star Wars 2, which had obvious errors.
We actually went to see the film after a dare between my sister & another friend dared each other. The friend had to see Eight Legged Freaks because she is afraid of spiders & my sister had to see Goldmember. One part of the dare has been done, now my sister gets to stand up fulfil her side of things with Austin Powers. Yeah, Baby!
Ordered a few pins over the net from the site selling merchandise for the upcoming Cart race in Queensland & the Bathurst 1000 being held this weekend.
One of the hassles of ordering online is the amount of freight that gets attached. When you only want small things, as I usually do, the value of freight is generally more than the actual product.
In total I ordered three pins and was going to be charged freight on two separate orders due to their weird shopping cart system. Even though it was going to cost me a packet, it was still going to be worth it!
On Wednesday I received a parcel, the size of a shoebox. It even had to be signed for! Inside the box was empty except for the three pins firmly taped to the bottom of the box!
Overall, these merchandising companies have one standard way of sending stuff, no matter what it is, big or small.
Thankfully, whoever processed the orders put them together & only charged once for the freight.
Part two of the possible job saga. (not up to date? See the post below!)
Out of 35 applicants that have put their hand up for the job, I’ve been informed that only 3 at the most will receive an interview. Those odds are pretty steep.
However, I am one of those three! Yehaaaa!!
Apparently I present well on paper, which considering the effort put into the application, is literally amazing!
Tuesday is the day for the interview, so I’m hoping that it’s all that I hope it will be.
It all happens when you least expect it. I’ve just had a phone call regarding my application to the Pier Hotel.
I’m imagining it’s for an interview, but I’ll call them back when I’m out of the office!
Lets just say, I’m shaking a fair bit at the moment. I took a punt when I applied, so to have the call is a bit of a shock.
I keep thinking about everything that still needs to be done at the Golf Club before the end of the year. I feel so obligated to everything here, that I actually feel bad about actually obtaining an interview. How nuts is that?!?
I also keep thinking about how cool it would be, having a job with an amazing amount of scope for the future & being in the exact industry I have been trying to get into!
I wrote here ages ago about a girl that came into the office to deliver clothes for the greenkeepers. She was pretty good looking & if she'd continued to come in, I would have most likely taken the plunge & asked her out.
I've just found out that she has changed jobs, which would explain why she hasn't been in.
I forgot to say cheers to Peter Green from the Frenz of The Enz fanclub!
Peter puts in a huge amount of effort for the members with all sorts of merchandise. His currents efforts surround the production of a Crowded House DVD which if his previous efforts are any indication, should be a corker! How many music fan clubs go to this much grief to keep a few fans happy?
I received an order of four Crowded House CD's made exclusively for the fan club about a week ago. All are taken from the sound board at the concert & therefore sound fantastic. The quality can be seen from the prices that some of these albums get traded for on ebay. Most go for around five times what they were bought from the club for!
Thankfully, this weekend is a nice long one with Monday being a public holiday celebrating, umm, I have no idea, but I'll accept it!
The week just closed has been a long one. To summarise, we have a new receptionist at the club, my employment contract has yet another nice big error in it, so the boss is still a dickhead & on Thursday I actually submitted an application for another job.
The job is for another accounting position & yes, I know I've said I'll never take another accounting gig, but this one is with a brand spanking new hotel, being built as I type! Put simply, it's more of a management accounting role, supervising other staff, choosing software & systems to be used, etc. Hopefully an interview is forthcoming & I can find out just how good the position will be.
I haven't put in for any other positions & I won't unless it's really interesting & will be beneficial to me. I'm not in any hurry. The Club wants me signed on until mid 2005!
Sit down & take a load off your feet, it's the Friday Five. This one is short, sharp & shiny for a guy. We don't consider shoes to be much of a fashion statement! Anyway, here goes;
1. What size shoe do you wear?
Size 6. That's what it is in the Australian sizing system anyway!
2. How many pairs of shoes do you own?
I actively wear only two pairs. A pair of sneakers & work/dress shoes.
3. What type of shoe do you prefer (boots, sneakers, pumps, etc.)?
Sneakers are good & comfy but I know the shoes are more appropriate for going out.
4. Describe your favorite pair of shoes. Why are they your favorite?
I used to have a favourite pair of brown Rivers shoes. They're still around somewhere. I wore them for years & they just never wore out!
5. What's the most you've spent on one pair of shoes?
I pay what I need to! I'm not overly fussy about cost because I'm usually ecstatic if I can find a pair that fit!
Just had a good little online chat to a good mate I used to work with.
Bugsy, (nick name of course) is one of those characters that everyone likes & is only self conscious when sober.
The last time I saw Bugsy was at his farewell bash about four weeks ago & tonight he's in Brussels & then in a couple of days, off to the czech republic. Certainly a long way from little old Adelaide.
I've also found out that his drinking exploits in all these far away lands are being documented in a web site set up for the journey. The link is as follows; Magnificent 7.
He's got just under a year left of travel, then he causes more havoc in this fair city.
We finally get the ninth season of The X-Files. It was promised in July but no acknowledgement was made until the weekend.
After eight years of being hosted by the one channel, on the same day & the same time each & every week, the station has decided to compress the season into ten weeks, doubling up the episodes on a Saturday night.
The series has been a ratings success for the past eight seasons, so the decision is a bit perplexing & disappointing. I’m sure there will be many fans that will be taping the shows from now on.
After weeks of wanting to see The Sum of All Fears, I’ve managed to check it out.
Apart from the four drunk twits that talked during the entire film, it’s a pretty good film. It makes you wonder what sort of protocols would actually exist under the threat of nuclear war. Would they really all stand around yelling at one another & making really bad decisions? I hope not!
It was good to see the acknowledgement of Mt Weather, which is one of those top secret COG (Continuity of Government) sites. Whether they would take the US President to the underground facility is in question since there is supposedly a secondary government already in residence 24/7 (I love conspiracy stuff!).
I was a little disappointed with the Air Force One, which looked more like a rickety old plane which didn’t sport the actual paint job, compared to the real Presidential bus.
Most critics are caning the film due to it’s linking with terrorists, etc, but I think it’s time people got back to viewing films for what their worth. The basis of the plot is reasonably obvious in the trailer, so those that would find the film disturbing should be able to gauge whether it is appropriate.
