Time to Start Anew

Well today is my last regular day at work here at The Baltic Times. I'm sure that I'm going to come back to finish up some stuff at some point. I have to write a few invoices so that I keep getting the 10% commission every month that I was promised. It also means that I might not be posting for a while, because I won't have free access to a computer, but don't worry I will continue to post even if it won't be every day as it has been up until now.

This picture was taken this past weekend in Madona at the dance following the "žeton vakars" for the high school that Ļena went to. The other two people in the picture are Māra and Mārtiņš. They both graduated with Ļena. I don't know what Mārtiņš is doing with his finger, but I'm sure it is meant to be cool.



Anyway, so I guess that is all for now. Wish me luck.

Quick Post

Sorry no picture today, I just wanted to say hi and that we are heading to Madona for the weekend so we should have some great pictures from there when I come in for my last day of work on Monday.

I'm Back

Sorry I was sick for the last two days and hence my reason for not posting, but now I'm back and ready for more. I don't know if I mentioned this before but Dad was in town visiting for a few days, I didn't get to see him much because he was running around doing things for work, but here is a picture of when we went to lunch one day. I like this picture because I think Lena look particularly good in it.

Vincent's First Month

Hey here is a picture of my nephew Vincent upon arriving home from the hospital after being born. He is about a month old. We were all a little worried that he was dangerously underweight from the first pictures we were sent here, but he seems to be growing fine and should be running around and causing trouble in no time.

Early Post

I know that I usually post later in the day, but today is a busy day with a bowling tournament at the end of it. Yes, it is that time of the year again when The Baltic Times organizes a bowling tournament for the diplomatic community, and that is one of the most boring event I have ever attended. On the up side this could be the last bowling event that I will attend. Anyway enough with the complaining and more with the photos. This is a picture of me with my "Krāsu tevs" (Frat Big Brother). I know that all of my pictures have been of Lettonia, but that will change soon as soon as I have time to copy the pictures off of my computer at home and bring them to work to post them. Things like that take time which I don't have a lot of.



To make up for the third Lettonia picture in a row here is a link to a better Latvian photo blog. Canned environments.

Hey That Guy

This picture was taken right after I recieved my "Krāsas" (colors). Lena mentioned that there is a contest "Latvijā" (in Latvia) somewhere where you can enter pictures that have interesting people or things in the background. The guy in the background is one of our new "fukši" (pledges), but I have no idea what the heck he is doing.



In other news I decided not only to post a photo a day, but also to use a Latvian word everyday to expand your vocabulary. (You can thank me later)

Welcome to my Photoblog

So much to tell, so little time. I haven't blogged since Friday so let me start there. Friday I had my Olderman Exam which went well, but not as well as I would have wanted it to. Saturday I went to watch the fencing tournament, where Andris from our frat won. Woohoo! Sunday was a lazy day filled with shopping and relaxing. Monday during Lunch Dad and I went to go get me a digital camera. We bought the Canon PowerShot A85 it is great a will fill the little free time I had very nicely. The best part of the camera is that now I will beable to post pictures of the stuff I talk about on this blog. On Monday night I received my colors in the fraternity. The first few pictures that I'm going to post will all be from that night. Needless to say I was really up to par on Tuesday, but today I'm feeling much better. So here is the first photo. (Drum Roll)



This is a picture before I got my colors with Andris who won the fencing tournament and has been teaching me fencing for the past few weeks.

Bizz, Bizz

Well, last night I passed my fencing test and I have the scars to prove it. Today has been filled with the Big Project and nervousness about the Olderman Exam I have to take tonight. The Olderman Exam is a general exam about the Fraternity, it's history and the way things are done. After that I have to sing three songs that I'm not sure I know, because I have been running around all day I haven't had time to look at them. The big thing is the exam if I don't pass that then there is no point worrying about the songs, so in a "worst-case" situation I can save them for Monday, but that will be cutting it really close. If all goes well tonight then Monday I will find out if I get my colors or not. Anyway, as then say in Latvia..."hold your thumbs" (cross your fingers).

The Best Worst Day Ever

Today started off bad. I was late getting up and going to work then we had two Major set backs with the Big Project. We are behind schedule and today we thought that we would move ahead, but document problems push us back to Monday. The other big problem was that we lost the space that we thought we were going to move into, but everything is O.K., because I just got back from a meeting where we found a bigger and better place that is just slightly more expensive. It is a good thing I over estimated a few things in the budget to cover these kinds of situations. In other news I have to take my fencing test today, so of course I'm a little nervous, but I've been doing fine so far and the only thing I was worried about was the fact that I was having a bad day and I didn't want that to affect my test. I have been reassured by the turn of events surrounding the new place. That is all for now. Have a nice day.

Busy, Busy, Busy

I've got soooo much to do and so very little time to do it in I don't know what is going to happen. I have to memorize I bunch of stuff for Lettonia by Friday so that I can pass the exam. The exam is the big thing at the moment. The Big Project is way behind schedule, but it will have to wait until next week, because I have to get this Lettonia stuff done so that Dad can see me get my colors, while he is here. I only have two problems with the Big Project and they are that I don't have the money right now and that if we don't get things done so we might lose the space we want to move into by the end of the month. Other than that things are going well. Well, actually I haven't been able to see much of Lena, because of all the stuff I have to do, and it has been really depressing me. I want to spend more time with her, but I guess that will just have to wait until next week. She starts school tomorrow, which means that we are going to see even less of each other. Right now it sucks, but I just keep telling myself that all this is just so that latter on in life everything will be taken care of and we can be together as much as we want. Sorry, ranting again. Anyway, in other news I gave up hard alcohol for Lent which starts today. I still haven't found a church that I want to be a part of here in Riga, but I figured I'd give something up for Lent anyway. Hey, anything that washes away your sins can't hurt. Except the Spanish Inquisition.

The Weekend Re-Cap

It is that time again for the Weekend Re-Cap. On Friday Dad arrived, but Lena and I only got to see him for a few minutes because we were on our way to Madona to see Lena's family. Friday night we walked around Madona and ate a lot. On Saturday we slept in and then went to visit Lena's grandmother and her aunts who only speak Russian. So it was a learning experience for me. Now, I know from where Lena gets her attitude. She has an aunt that likes to argue just as much as Lena does. That night we met Lena's friends Liga, Ieva, and Aleksis for a night on the town in Madona which means sitting in the only bar I've ever sat in, in Madona which is run by a guy named Harold who speaks German and likes to fish. After we were all kind of drunk we went home and went to sleep only to wake up early so that we could catch the bus back to Riga. We arrived in Riga on Sunday afternoon and met Dad for an early dinner before I had to go to "Paukstundas" (fencing) at the Lettonia house, I received a couple of bruises, but it is all part of the fun. After Lettonia I went home and tried to get some sleep but that didn't happen and after a few hours I had to leave to go get Dad so that we could go to Paddy Whealan's to watch the Superbowl. The usual crowd of expats were there it was fun until the game started. The Eagles choked as all Philadelphia teams choke. The city has broken my heart so many times I don't know if I can ever trust it again. The last quarter of the game was a joke the Eagles Quarterback Donovan McNabb was definitely no aware of the clock, because as they ran out of time down by three points to lose the game. Because I stayed up watching the Superbowl I didn't come to work yesterday. It was nice I slept until one and worked on the project a little before I had to go to Lettonia again. I have to go everyday this week with a whole lot wrapping up on Friday. If everything goes well next weekend I should receive my colors and then I can focus on more important things like Lena.

An Anouncement

Today is my brother's birthday. You may remeber him from such roles as : "My Brother", "The Guy Who Lived in the Next Room", and the award winning "Hey, its that Guy!" Anyway all joking aside I just wanted to wish him a happy birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADAMS!!

Sink or Swim

Well, I handed in my letter of resignation today. I'm going to work until the end of the month, but that will be it. Then it will be either sink or swim. I don't know how it happened, but I've been running around like a chicken with it's head cut off, and it doesn't look like I'm going to stop anytime soon. If you have been reading, then everything that I've been waiting for and planning is going to happen this month. It is funny how things work out. Actually it is not funny at all, it is crazy. Anyway, let me just stop myself before I start ranting and raving. I've said my piece for the day.

The Weekend

What can I say? Friday was fun. Saturday was a blast. Sunday was terrible. Monday I'm tired and queasy. Everyone catch that? Let me start at the beginning. Friday after work I went to Lettonia which was fun. Saturday during the day I went to a fraternity fencing tournament, but had to leave before the fun started, because I had to get ready for the party. The party was a blast. Everyone showed up, which was my biggest worry going into the party, because last year for my birthday very few people showed up. After the party a bunch of us went out for drinks and Pelmeni so we didn't make it home until 4 or 5. Needless to say I was pretty far gone by the time I got home. Everything was fine until the next morning when I was woken up by the sound of someone doing the technocolor yawn. Only when I completely woke up did I realize that it was me. Needless to say the entire next day was spent making long-distance calls on the big porcelain telephone. Every half hour on the dot. You could have set your watch by it. I couldn't even keep water down. Anyway that's enough of the enthralling visualization for one day. Today I'm feeling much better. It will deffinetly be a name day that very few people will forget.

8351 Karlis's in the World.

Well, today is my name day, and it has been constant running. I have had sooo many things to do that I still don't know if I'm going to be able to do it all. After celebrating at work, I have to go to Lettonia for more fun in the sun, but Lena's uncle whose in Riga for the night wants me to go drinking with him and buy a car from a guy he knows. Lena's uncle Valdis is more myth than person. The stories about him are bigger than him. He's the only person I know who has gone to work in another country and then gets there and decides not to work, because he was offered a better job than the one he was promised. OK, I'm not going to continue to talk about him, because it just upsets me, but now I'm faced with the situation that I have to get out of drinking with him so that I can go drink with the Lettonia guys. Oh, well I'll think of something. Stay tuned for the party update and hangover on Monday.

Blogger

I don't know if the last post worked so I'm not going to re-write it. There was really only one important thing that deserves repeating and that is to wish my mom an happy names day, but I still don't think that she read this blog. OK, thats enough for now. I'm tired.

Better Day

Today, I'm doing much better (thanks for asking). No sick feeling, and only minor nervousness about having to fence everyday for the next three weeks. There is something soothing about whacking another guy with a steel blade that takes away fear. In more good news for my final test I won't have to worry about being strapped into protective gear, because there won't be any. No shirt, a helmet, and a heavy cloth that protects the lower parts. In case you haven't noticed, I have gone completely into "Lettonia" mode. Much to the dismay of Lena. These are going to be a tough three weeks, but if successful it means that I will beable to spend more time with her, and as the project with Gary gets underway it means more money for us. I just hope that she understands. I have a few things planned that I hope will cheer her up when things get crazy and I'll be spending most of my time at Lettonia.

Fear

I am currently ill, because of the McDonalds that Lena and I had at lunch. I think I eat McDonalds too infrequently for my stomach to handle it. Lena loves it, but realizes that it is unhealthy and only eats it when she gives into the temptation that is McDonalds. They pump the smell of burgers and fries into the street so that everyone that walks by gets a craving. Worse then being sick is that fact that today I have to fence in Lettonia and now on top of being incredibly nervous I am also sick. I don't know why I'm nervous. Actually I know exactly why I'm nervous, but I don't know why it is a crippling nervousness. During fencing, each fencer is strapped into protective gear. I have a fear of being strapped into anything. I don't know where this fear came from. Most people avoid things that they are afraid of, but I can't avoid fencing. I have to fence so that I can get my colors when my Dad comes to visit. He is going to be here from the 4th until the 22nd, and there are many things that I have to finish before the 14th of Feb. deadline. Anyway, I think I've exposed enough weakness for one day.

Go Eagles!

Last night I watched the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Atlanta Falcons. OK, so I didn't see the end of the game, but they were winning when I left in the middle of the 3rd quarter. I had to go because otherwise I would have had to walk the 40 min. home in the -2'C weather. It is a great feeling. Fourth time is the charm. Now it is on to the Superbowl. Which I will be watching Live at 1:30 AM on Monday morning. In other news, Lena and I spent all day Saturday just relaxing, but because I was out last night watching the game I don't feel anymore relaxed than normal, but overall things are going well in my life. I just need to keep control on the projects I have going on right now, while at the same time trying to keep my job long enough to quit. The next big thing on my plate is getting my colors in Lettonia. My day is coming on the 4th of Feb, and I have until the 14th to get everything done. It doesn't leave me with a lot of time, but with a little luck and a whole lot of studying I should be able to get things done. Somehow this turned into larger post than I intended, but I guess I've said everything I needed to say at this moment.

Quick Post

I'd like to wish my Mom a Happy Birthday, I don't think she reads this, but I thought I should say it anyway. In other news, there is no other news other than this blog that is one of the featured blogs on blogger.com. Iraq.