The end of another year - 2010

and quite a fucked up one at that. Overall, disappointing!

So, work still sucks, and I don't think that's ever going to change. Hopefully, I get to do the CAD course in March next year, and can start a new career with that. The prospects where I am now are zero. How do you come back from 3 years with no increases? Once again they fucked up my commissions, and I heard today that is was eventually corrected, but too late for this months run, so I have to wait for January run to get the money owed to me. And get this, the "change" to my account set was done by some squint/slant eye in China for fuck sakes!!

Business prospects look OK, but as usual clients are not making decisions. One deal I started on last year Feb (2009), and for which we submitted a RFP response in Oct, last year (2009), has been postponed again, to Jan next year (2011). Do me a fucking favor guys, make a decision, one way or the other. Win or lose, I really don't care anymore. But I got management who are all over me for this, wanting continuous feedback, and update, and crap.

As for  the public sector accounts, a) we are not a BEE account (LIU), b) we don't belong to a member of parliament, c) we are not related to any corrupt politician, and d) we don't do bribes. So, do you really want to be wasting time responding to their requests for services? Do me another fucking favor guys, get real! We are like never going to win in that space!

On the home front, the princess is, as always, beautiful! She is just the level headed one in the family, and I have no idea how she puts up with all the crap from the 3 men in her life. But she does, thankfully!

LuckyL did well at school.  Very well in fact. He passed with good marks, and goes into his final year of high school. he also made prefect. Doing great with the bikes, still having a lot of fun, fixing (and breaking), and is a star in the garage.

GMan, well, that was a disappointment. He dropped out of varsity, basically throwing away the biggest opportunity of his life. Now he's a "working" person, much like the rest of us, only he does not have a real job yet, and he's going to struggle to find one, if he does not want to work for one of his "poker cronies", which is where he has had 2 job offers from, but it's really nowhere work. But that what you get if you don't have a degree today in South Africa. I am making him pay his way from now with regards insurance on his car, petrol, services, as well as his cellphone costs. Adds up to a tidy sum each month. Don't think the Princess will make him pay for board and lodging as yet, but that's the next issue I will  broach with them. The kids actually believe they could live cheaper elsewhere, well, that's a surprise waiting for them.

Overall, as I said in the opening, a rather fucked up year. 2011 can only be an improvement. When I get this CAD course done, I can start shopping around for drawing work, be it mechanical design or architectural, and start to subsidies my income. Hopefully, it will grow to a point where I will restart my CC (LUI) and become independent. LuckyL did the best at school for Engineering Graphic Design, and he is keen to study to be an architect. his motivation is that he knows with that degree, he can always be self employed! And, if my CC gets off the ground, he can join me, and we can do the drawing work together. I have a lot to teach him, and he can sign off my house plans!!

The dogs are OK. Slowly growing out of the "eat anything we can find" mode, but still need to be exercised / entertained, and I'm not the person for that. Never have been, and never will, so hopefully LuckyL is going to start doing that.

The Xmas hampers for the kids in thew squatter camp was probably my best effort yet. Will probably start planning for another one next year. Watch this space.

Anyway, that's my 2010 year. All of the best to you and yours for the festive season. Be safe, and keep coming back. I'm not done here, but just had to get this post out in case I decided there was nothing else worth posting this year!

Salagatle!