The country’s on fire!

Literally, and for a while now. It’s just too depressing for words how every summer we become a couple of forests poorer. This time it was, amongst others, Parnitha, Athens’ very own forest and a National Park. People have been so shocked that we have had rallies and concerts to protect the burned land from becoming houses and to bemoan the State’s ineptitude that let the fire get so out of hand in the first place.

I am just as heart-broken as I am every summer, and just as sure that the mercenaries that seem to pull all the strings in this pathetic excuse of a state will let the land be built on even if it is/was a National Park, despite public outcry.

The heat is on

Summer is officially here and it’s hot hot hot. I heard on the radio that it might reach 44C this week. Marvellous! I’m constantly sweaty and sticky and dizzy from the heat. Can’t wait till my holidays! The good news is that most of the plants are dead or dying so my hay fever’s gone.

woe is me

Its spring and I’m suffering. I’m sneezing, my nose is itching and my eyes are red and itchy. In general I feel awful and I wish the flowers and the grasses would just hurry up and die already.

And to top it all I can’t even take my pills, which while not curing me do make my hay-fever more bearable. And why can’t I take my pills? Because I had the bright idea to try out homeopathy. A word of advice: if you’re allergic keep away from homeopathy for the months of your allergy.

For a couple of years now I have been complaining to all and sundry that I am constantly unnaturally tired. A friend of mine, fresh from a course in homeopathic medicine, insisted that she could solve my problem and I thought, sure, why not?

Homeopathy is very intrusive. Taking my “history” down she asked all sorts of questions ranging from ordinary to bizarre to very very private. If she was a total stranger I’m not sure how comfortable I would have been with the whole thing. She then prescribes me three little pills to be taken over three days and THEN she drops the bombshell that the whole treatment will take three months. Meaning that for three months I have to keep away from coffee, mint, cinnamon and all other medication. Three months? I say, but what about my allergy that should be hitting around the mayish (only one and a half months into the therapy). Not to worry she answered, like all doctors, will deal with that when it comes.

And now its come and all she says is. Grit your teeth and bear it, and It has to get worse to get better. And I should have known it. I never liked doctors, they’re all blithely unconcerned by the suffering of their patients. Apparently even if they are your friends.

I'm slightly hysterical, but not stressed

We are severely behind schedule for the architectural competition. The deadline is Tuesday and we have so much more to do that the mind boggles.

But I am not getting stressed. I am on the verge of hysteria though. How am I supposed to go to work tommorrow, when I have all this work to do for the competition? I'm so angsty and I don't know how I'll sleep tonight or sit still at work until it's time to leave.

The town hall complex has turned out adorable and it would be a pity not to give it in. Crazy architects like us think colourful autoCad designs are about the prettiest things...

Got to go to sleep. I have hardly slept this weekend and on Monday I have to go pretend to design rich peoples soppy villas.

I refuse to get stressed

The deadline for the architectural competition is the 20th of March and we are in very bad shape. One of us has already deserted and another seems on the brink. I have put too much time and energy into this thing to give up now but things don't look good.
BUT I REFUSE TO GET STRESSED!!!

So no updates until the deadline and my fanfic will also have to take a raincheck.

Architectural competition

I’m too tired and busy lately to update my journal like I should.

One reason for this is that apart from working 9 till whatever, I have got together with a group of architects-friends and we are trying to take part in an architectural competition for the design of a town hall complex in a small town (more like village) in Crete.

It’s slow going, the project is big and complicated and we have trouble agreeing on things, and the deadline is in a month. If I stop and think about it I get awfully stressed, so I just avoid thinking about it and hope for the best.

I went to Crete over the Christmas holidays to visit the village. It’s a typical modern ugly Greek village, nothing old or traditional has survived. It’s only redeeming feature is the lovely landscape and the beautiful views of the mountains.

I also visited Heracleion (Crete’s capital city), a rather nice medium sized city with lots of old buildings, Venetian churches and walls around the old city.

Even though I have a number of photos I doubt I'll get round to posting any. I'm lazy that way....

Working is no fun

I feel like doing a bit of venting today....

It turns out that I really really don’t like working. Or maybe it’s just my job I don’t like. It’s not that bad I suppose, but every morning I get up with a groan wishing I could just pull the duvet over my head and go back to sleep.

I always wanted to either work for the state helping design cities or public housing or else work for a high-flying architectural company taking part in innovative and interesting designs. Instead I am stuck helping design the typical ugly, cramped and not entirely legal blocks of flats that are destroying our cities. It’s disheartening, but a person needs to work. I haven’t even been working for 6 months yet and I’m already dreaming of persuading a couple of friends to open our own office together. We will most probably starve, but we won’t be selling out.

What is also typical of Greek offices is the fact that I’m overworked and not paid overtime. At least I’m paid by month and not per hour. The pay is another matter. Wages in this country as ridiculously low.

That was enough complaining for today.