So. My daughter and I went to the Remembrance Day service at our village's war memorial yesterday morning.
As usual, being England in November, it was wet, cold and windy. And we could barely hear the vicar mumbling, although the old soldier who accompanied him in reading the names of the village's war dead was loud and clear. And the scouts and guides, and the policeman laid their wreaths, and we sang 'Oh God, our help in ages past'.
And we prayed. Which is strange for me, being an atheist. I don't know what it is exactly I do, but somehow just look inside myself and think about these young men and women, past and present, and spend some time in silence. Sometimes the problem with being an atheist is you don't have the same opportunity as churchgoers do, to gather together and express your shared beliefs, and your commonality. I had thought of taking my daughter into Sheffield, to the big service at the cathedral. But somehow standing with a few dozen fellow villagers on a windy corner seems more appropriate.
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As for the rest of life? Ha! I always feel slightly absurd writing about such a mainstream job on an 'alternative lifestyle' site. There ain't nothing alternative about my life! But. Given the complete lack of any team leadership, I am ringing around my fellow team members in France, Spain and Italy, and putting some structure in place myself. No, it ain't exciting news. But these are five people's jobs, including mine, that seem to be hanging by an increasingly thin thread here. And no-one is leading or co-ordinating us. So I'm re-establishing our weekly meetings, summarising our work, and ensuring we publicise as much as possible how valuable we are.
What pisses me off so much is that the guy who we all assumed was our replacement team lead has not held a team meeting in months, and has not been in contact. What would doubly piss me off is if he gets a shoo-in to the regional lead position without any competition. Because I could do a fuck of a better job than him.
But the main thing is I'm trying to take our team's future in my hands, rather than waiting on our pathetically useless management to do it. And the guys I've talked to on the team are on-board and enthusiastic. I don't want to be all melodramatic about 'shaping the future' and all that. But it is time for a bit of empowerment, for me, Marco, Thierry, Jordi, and Arturo!
So. Life is good. It's scary but good scary. At least I'm trying to do things; make things happen. Long may it continue!
Love
L x
p.s. Just walked Merlin, and had the pleasure of watching him poo a dishcloth. It was like watching some bizarrely revolting magic trick. The one with the handkerchiefs up the sleeve. What's that? Too much information? Oh, okay.
As usual, being England in November, it was wet, cold and windy. And we could barely hear the vicar mumbling, although the old soldier who accompanied him in reading the names of the village's war dead was loud and clear. And the scouts and guides, and the policeman laid their wreaths, and we sang 'Oh God, our help in ages past'.
And we prayed. Which is strange for me, being an atheist. I don't know what it is exactly I do, but somehow just look inside myself and think about these young men and women, past and present, and spend some time in silence. Sometimes the problem with being an atheist is you don't have the same opportunity as churchgoers do, to gather together and express your shared beliefs, and your commonality. I had thought of taking my daughter into Sheffield, to the big service at the cathedral. But somehow standing with a few dozen fellow villagers on a windy corner seems more appropriate.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
As for the rest of life? Ha! I always feel slightly absurd writing about such a mainstream job on an 'alternative lifestyle' site. There ain't nothing alternative about my life! But. Given the complete lack of any team leadership, I am ringing around my fellow team members in France, Spain and Italy, and putting some structure in place myself. No, it ain't exciting news. But these are five people's jobs, including mine, that seem to be hanging by an increasingly thin thread here. And no-one is leading or co-ordinating us. So I'm re-establishing our weekly meetings, summarising our work, and ensuring we publicise as much as possible how valuable we are.
What pisses me off so much is that the guy who we all assumed was our replacement team lead has not held a team meeting in months, and has not been in contact. What would doubly piss me off is if he gets a shoo-in to the regional lead position without any competition. Because I could do a fuck of a better job than him.
But the main thing is I'm trying to take our team's future in my hands, rather than waiting on our pathetically useless management to do it. And the guys I've talked to on the team are on-board and enthusiastic. I don't want to be all melodramatic about 'shaping the future' and all that. But it is time for a bit of empowerment, for me, Marco, Thierry, Jordi, and Arturo!
So. Life is good. It's scary but good scary. At least I'm trying to do things; make things happen. Long may it continue!
Love
L x
p.s. Just walked Merlin, and had the pleasure of watching him poo a dishcloth. It was like watching some bizarrely revolting magic trick. The one with the handkerchiefs up the sleeve. What's that? Too much information? Oh, okay.