I have been working at my current job since August 2022. Well, since August 8, 2022, if you want to be precise.
That means in six months, I will celebrate my 2 year employment. Ever since I was a child, I have been told that I have to join a union, for my own sake. I have been wanting to join one, but I have always been putting it off for another day - mainly because I couldn't afford it and I didn't really need it when I wasn't working. My only permanent jobs has been three years in a supermarket, in an office in Scotland and where I work now. Three permanent jobs since 2007. Other times I worked had been through a temp agency, and even then I didn't know if I needed to join a union. So I didn't join one.
Now, with me working full time, and making enough, I can now afford to join a union. I joined the cheapest one I could find. It will set me back a whopping $83 a month. The first six months are free, however.
Now, I know that there has been a LOT of talk in the US about how unions are bad, but I see them as a good thing. They can help me if I somehow feel like my employer is treating me bad. If I get laid off unexpectedly, I can get unemployment funds for 2 years. More than enough time to allow me to find another job, if required. 2.254 million people in Denmark are members of a union. It's encouraged to be a member from the time you start your higher education. I just never joined one until last week - when I am almost 40..
But at least they'll help me if I, for some reason, get treated unfairly at work or if I get laid off out of nowhere
For the past few weeks, I have taken on more and more supervisor like tasks, which is a definite improvement from my usual workload. Before I was just picking the items - now I am half running a team. It was never in my interest to do any of this, but I quite like it. The fact that it's come as organic as it has, just makes it better.
Who knows where I am in a year? Three? I might be running the entire team on my own.. Only time will tell.
Speaking of time - it's time for me to learn a new language. I speak two fluently, so now I want to add a third language. I just need to pick out the language I want to learn. Spanish? Italian? French? I don't know yet.
Well.. One of them. I am still going to Italy this year and the US next year. It's the year after that, I am changing.
You may recall, a few blogs back, that I was going to the Philippines. I had a bit of a think earlier today, and I have decided to swap the Philippines for Japan. More specifically - Tokyo. I have always wanted to go to Japan on holiday, and now I have the opportunity to go there.
It's still a ways away, so lots of time to save up and plan what to see and do. I know someone in Japan, so I might ask that person to be my tour guide, unless that person suggests it by themselves.
But why do I want to go to one of the biggest cities in the World as a person who does not like big crowds? Well.. It's pretty simple: I want to learn how to be comfortable in big crowds. My trip to Italy and the US will definitely help towards making me more comfortable with a lot of people.
I have been in places with a lot of people before, but that was in a large open area. The biggest crowd I have been in was 120.000 people at a festival in the UK. The population of Tokyo, if you count the entire metro area? About 41 million..The city of Tokyo alone is 13.9 million.
So now it's pretty much settled: Italy later this year, the US next year and then it's off to Tokyo for a two week holiday. I just need to know how much the flight and hotel is, and how much spending money I need to bring with me. Lots of time to figure that one out, though..
With me living with 8 other people, each living their own lives with vastly different ways of doing things or different traits, eventually there'll be some form of disagreement or something will annoy someone else. I have lived here for about 3 years, and usually it's been on the small side of things. Not turning off the light in the kitchen when people are done, over-using the washing machine, having small shindigs at 3 am on a weekday and not cleaning up after themselves in the kitchen.
Then there's more.. Severe.. Things that people can do, that impacts the other persons life and body. I have been guilty of two of those things. 1: Being loud with my singing, and 2: my snoring. The person in the room next to mine is someone who is suffering from Hyperacusis. That type of condition is a type of reduced tolerance to sound, making it extremely uncomfortable when someone is singing too loud or snoring too loud.
I didn't think my snoring was an issue until last Saturday morning at about 5:50 am. I woke up to a sound that can only be described as someone using a hammer on the wall at full speed. It continued for about 10 minutes or so, and then it died down. I thought it was me dreaming something, or imagining things, so I asked one of my other housemates if he had heard anything. He heard it as well, so it wasn't my imagination. It was only when I met the guy in the room next to me, that I got an explanation for it.
Apparently, my snoring has kept him awake. To the point where he had to be put on sick-leave from his studies, and has decided to move out when he can. Now, me being someone who cares about others, apologized to him and told him, that it wasn't my intention to cause any inconvenience. When we started the conversation, he was pretty aggressive towards me, almost raging at me for keeping him awake at night. I guess my tone of voice calmed him down, because ten minutes later, we were talking like adults, and not hurling abuse at each other. It was quite nice, because it gave me an opportunity to diffuse what could easily have ended with throwing hands.
I am happy it didn't get to that. I am not a violent person, and I am very afraid of any sort of conflict. We both apologized to each other. Me, for keeping him awake at night, and him for the knocking on the wall at 5:50 am on a Saturday morning.
I have decided to look for somewhere else to live, though. I found a place in Copenhagen with people who are between the ages of 39 and 55. They look like a bunch of nice people, so if I am getting that available room, I am sure that I will be happy there.
As for my snoring - well, I am looking into that. I have found a few products I would like to try out. so hopefully they will help me with my snoring. I ordered them today, and they will arrive in a few days. I will test them out and see if they help my snoring, and my general sleep pattern, which is not good. I might order some more products, so my snoring can be eliminated, or reduced by 95%.
So yes - solving a dispute like adults CAN be achieved, if you just remain calm, keep a calm tone of voice and admit your mistakes, if you have made any. That's also how you can achieve a happy personal life. Remain calm, don't raise your voice and acknowledge any mistakes you might have made. Pro tip!
The time is almost upon us - the time where we will get a new monarch. It will all happen from the Parliament building in Copenhagen on Sunday. I have thought of going, because I do love the royals and I'm very proud to be a Dane. On the other hand - a lot of people are expected to be there, and I don't do well with that. I might just stay home and watch it online.
It's the first time in 900 years that a monarch abdicates.Now it's time for Crown Prince Frederik to ascend the throne and rule Denmark. He's very well liked by the people. 82% of people asked believe he'll make an excellent King - and I agree. He'll be great!
I hope you had a safe and fun New Years party. Here, nothing major happened. I stayed home, playing video games until 2 am, where I got ready for bed. Laid down at 3 am, fell asleep quickly thereafter.
2024 is going to be a good year. I can feel it. From development at work to more holidays abroad. More concerts. More self-restraint. What do I mean by that?
Well... 2023 was my fattiest year ever, meaning I ate a bunch of fatty foods, which I can feel on myself. So this year, I will try to eat healthier. More salads, less pizzas. I also want to kick the soda habit. At least, I want to cut back massively on my intake of soda. It's definitely not healthy for me. I also want to get my doctor to perform a check on my overall health. That means I have to spend one of my days off to get fully examined, from head to toe. The last time I did that, I was told that my cholesterol was too high, so I am now curious if things have improved or have gotten worse. I also want to figure out why I am so tired all the time, even thought I get 7 hours of sleep every night.
But that's for later this month. Now I just want to enjoy being back at work. Its been a while since I have been working, so it was nice to get back into the grove again. Tomorrow's Wednesday, so we're close to the weekend.
Oh also, on New Years Eve our beloved Queen, much to the shock of everyone, told us that she would intend to step down on the 14th of January, 2024. In other words: Abdicate. Now it's time for Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary to show us what they are made of. I am guessing it'll be a great thing, because they are both loved by a majority of the Danes. Naturally, there are people who would want to abolish the monarchy, but I like it. It's a great tourist magnet for Denmark, plus it's pretty neat to say that I live in an actual kingdom.
Merry Christmas! I hope yours has been great. Mine was excellent. Good food, good company and some great gifts.
My sister and her fiancée gave me new pots and pans, and my mother gave me World of Warcraft cook book. 216 pages of the best food from Azeroth, so I am excited to dive into that and cook some great stuff.
Speaking of cooking great stuff.. I have so many ideas with food, that I might need a full week to test all my ideas. One of them is to cook some bacon until it's 30 seconds from being burnt, and then set it to cool off. Then, I'll use my chopper to grind it into dust, and then mix it into some salt, so it'll become bacon salt. Or - maybe I'll just grind it onto fine bits, to sprinkle that on food!
I also want to make my own chilli oíl, but I am guessing it isn't that hard to make. Just take some olive oil and shove some chillis into it, and leave it to infuse for about a month or so. Maybe longer..
I also want to make my own jerky, but for that I need a dehydrator, which I don't have yet. Maybe that's my next purchase..
I have long been wanting to travel and to see the world. Most of my life, I haven't had the financial opportunity to pay for my own holidays, but now with me working, I can finally save up and enjoy holidays overseas. It started with the United States back in May. I am still blown away by the fact that it was back in May. I feel like I have just been there last month. Anyway!
Now that I have a stable income, I can now plan ahead for the next three years of holidays. They are as follows:
Italy with a friend next year. We're still debating on where we are going to go. I want to go to Rome, but my friend doesn't know where she wants to go. We'll get there soon.
In 2025, it's back to the USA again, to visit a friend in New York and take part in an American Halloween. Hopefully that'll be a fun time. I need to look at when it's best to book the flight. I might book it this time next year. The last time I went to the US, I went with Lufthansa via Frankfurt. This time I am planning on booking a direct flight from Copenhagen to New York, and luckily there is an airline which offers just that. I am willing to spend more on a direct flight.
In 2026, I'm heading to Southeast Asia, to a country in the western Pacific Ocean: The Philippines. I have always wanted to visit, and now that I have the money and ability to do so, I am definitely taking that trip. The Philippines is a big country, so there are many places to visit. I just need to find the right city to go to.
With all this holiday planning, I am thinking back to where I have been on holidays or layovers. It turns out, that I have been to quite a few places. Sweden, Norway, the UK, Spain, Portugal, the Czech Republic, France, Malta, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Germany, the United States of America and the Netherlands.
One of these countries is one that I never want to visit again. To me, it's extremely overrated and I hate the capitol city. If you want to know, it's Paris. In movies and on promotional videos, Paris looks wonderful. Some might even say magical. But spend a few days there, and you're extremely disappointed with how filthy it is, how crime infested it really is and just how run down things are. Prague, on the other hand, was absolutely fantastic - even if I got drunk on absinthe and passed out..
Anyway - For my next three holidays, I need to save up as much as I can. So far, it's going pretty well.
On Wednesday, I was informed that my employer would provide champagne for us on Friday, because the company is doing well. Friday came, and the champagne was poured.
It was awful. In fact, it was so bad, that it left my throat feeling VERY dry, which is not how I like my champagne. But still - drinking a glass of champagne on company time, whilst getting paid for it, is not as bad way to end a miserable week, because oh BOY was yesterday bad.
But it was a nice treat for us, and even though the champagne was terrible, it was quite nice to have 15 minutes where I didn't have to think about work.
Where I didn't have to think about deadlines. About drivers who mess up. About anything other than the quiet and the taste of the champagne.
Would I buy it for myself? Absolutely not. Was it expensive? I think it was. I am employed at a billion kroner company, after all, so they can afford to splurge on champagne.
But now - well, now is the weekend, and boy is it gonna be good! I plan to do my laundry tomorrow, and get some well earned rest!
It's almost Christmas, so I have been out buying presents today.
I forgot how expensive that is. I'm happy it's Christmas once a year.
All in all, I have spent 1700 kroner, or $250/£200, and I am not done yet. I still need to buy three gifts and a bottle of champagne, so it's gonna be a very expensive next few weeks.
Speaking of expensive..
For the past few days, one of the wheels on my gaming chair have shown signs of failure. The chair is just over a year old, so there's still warranty on it. Today, the wheel broke off completely, so I have written the company to say that their product is faulty. It looks like the welds snapped.
I haven't abused it, and I haven't exceeded the weight limit either, since the chair can support up to 150 kilos. I am not near that weight, so I'm guessing it's a production error. According to the Danish Sale of Goods Act of 2003, any product purchased comes with a 2 year right of complaint. That means if anything breaks under normal wear and tear within those two years, the company I have purchased the chair from, can either refund me the complete amount, or send a replacement item. I might just go for the money back and buy a different chair somewhere else. But for the moment, I am sitting on a chair with 4 wheels instead of 5.
We'll see what happens..
I have been gathering Christmas wishes from the family, so now it's time to buy the presents.
I will spend my Saturday buying the gifts, so my weekend is gonna be a bit expensive, but it will be worth it. I am able to get people what they want for Christmas - something I was unable to do when I was unemployed. Also, my sisters fiancé has a 30th birthday on December 15, so he'll get an extra gift on the 24th of December.
In other news: My hands have been very dry - to the point where my skin has been splitting, causing bleeding and pain. I bought a repair creme today, and it's 100ml, or 3.38 floz.
118 danish kroner.. That's insane, but if it helps, it'll be worth every single kroner.
These past few days, my diet has been terrible. Really terrible. Always some oven based meal, with absolutely no nutritional value to speak of. On wednesday, my dinner was nuggets and fries. Not the healthiest meal ever. The following day, meatballs and fries. Again, not the healthiest meal ever, but I didn't fancy cooking anything. As a result, I have had more frequent toilet trips, and today was a rough one..
I haven't had dinner today, because I went for lunch at an Italian restaurant in my home town. My aunt turned 70 last week, so we were all celebrating today.
When I got there, I was greeted by everyone, and immediately I was given a glass of prosecco. Usually I scoff at prosecco, because I prefer real champagne, but this one was excellent. It might actually be the one I am buying for our new years shenanigans in December. Anyway!
At the restaurant, there was a three course meal waiting for us, consisting of anti pasti for starters, the main course was veal with potatoes, vegetables and a mint/lemon sauce. The dessert was panna cotta. All three courses were excellent, and me being a picky eater surprisingly ate all of it, even if the panna cotta didn't agree with my taste buds! After the meal, we hung around and talked, giving me a reminder why I love my family so much. We're always having a good time! A few hours later, I went home to relax and process what i had eaten. It was nice to spend time with family, even if it was just for three hours. Me, being the idiot that I am, decided to walk home. for context: It's a 3.7 mile walk home, that would take me an hour and a half. Half way into my walk home, I felt the need for a toilet increase. I sat a course for the local super mall, and I made it in time. I did my business and decided to just hang around at the mall, buying a bottle of coke before taking the train the last stretch home. When I arrived at the station, I began the short walk home. At the half way mark, I again felt the need to use a toilet. I sped up my walk, and made it home in time, before anything bad happened. I again did my business, and I finally settled down in my room and started watching some YouTube videos, while snacking away at some potato chips.
Suddenly, I felt queasy. Very uncomfortable. My heart began to race. I knew what that meant, so I headed straight for the toilet. I will spare you the details, but it was horrible. Both ends were leaking. Let's just leave it at that.
I am now finally relaxing, with my stomach seemingly calm. However, it's just a matter of time before that changes.
Side note: I did write in the family chat and ask if anyone was feeling the same way that I felt. Nobody did, so it's either me who has some form of stomach bug, or I have eaten something that my body violently rejects.
Also, my mother went to Italy on holiday, and she brought me home some good quality olive oil. The kind you only need to use a little bit of in order to get amazing results.
I have also put up a sign in the downstairs kitchen, saying that they need to keep the kitchen tidy. Does it help? No. Not at all. They are still putting stuff on the kitchen counter - clean plates and cutlery, that they can't be bothered to put away once they've cleaned them.
I almost give up, at this point..
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