Moog's meanderings

Tomorrow hubby and I are off to Germany for the weekend. Not exactly for a romantic weekend away, but for the Institution of Electrical Engineers Germany national meeting. I have been invited as a trustee of said Institution, which probably means I will get bombarded with opinions about the now impending creation of a new Institution of Engineering and Technology (out of the IEE and IIE – see previous blog entries). However, it should still be good fun and there’s a talk about the Enigma machine (cf the film ‘Enigma’ – which I have not seen, incidentally) and we actually will get a fully working demonstration of an Enigma machine too!! Very exciting. It’s all happening in Potsdam (near Berlin) and we will be visiting the Sanssouci gardens on Sunday. It should be lovely and I am told that sanssouci is beautiful. We’ll take a camera and post some pics when we get back…

Hurrah – I am so happy!!! I have received a letter from the Inland Revenue telling me that having received my latest Tax Return, the no longer intend to send me any more to fill in!!! *yay*

Last week was a busy one (yet again). I have spent a lot of time doing IEE things over the past few weeks. It has been quite quiet over the summer and then at the beginning of September it all started up again. I was in London at a Benevolent Fund meeting all day on Tuesday, and we had a lot of problems at work on Wednesday. I was pulled out of a day-long meeting at 5pm to help with a problem in Production that the supervisor and technicians were unable to deal with. By the time I got back to my desk at about 7.15pm, the IEE’s SGM (to decide whether to create a new Institution with the IIE) had been under way for nearly 2 hours. I tried to get onto the website where it was being shown live, but was unable to get the live stream so didn’t get to see any of what went on. I did get updated by a friend who was actually in London at the meeting, and the motion was carried with a majority of ~74%. I am really pleased as it’s what we have been working towards for ages and there have been some differing opinions about the whole affair. By the time it was all over and I knew what was going on, I was already half an hour late for my Japanese class (and it’s a good half hour from work) so never made it.
On Thursday I went down to Cardiff after work to join up with the Younger Members Board of the IEE for the evening (although I didn’t get there until nearly 10pm because of issues at work again). We stayed in the Hilton in Cardiff which is a lovely hotel. There is a swimming pool there too, and I managed to drag myself out of bed at 6.30am and swim 60 lengths (not really a marathon as it’s only a 20m pool!) which started my day off really well. We had a full day’s meeting from 9am and then off to see Legally Blonde. It was absolutely wonderful to see both her and BabyBlonde in their new abode. Both hubby and I had a lovely evening and enjoyed helping out on Saturday with things. It’s so nice to see things working out.
Sunday we went to Church. It’s the last time I’ll be able to get to our Church until November because this weekend hubby and I will be in Germany at the Germany National IEE Meeting, and then on 7th October I am off to Japan for 3 weeks. I really found it a peaceful lovely service. I am not sure specifically what made it so, but I suppose the previous week we were making the coffee and tea at the end so spent most of the service worrying about the water boiler, etc.
Anyway, I am (yet again) in London for an IEE meeting! One this morning and another one this evening at 5pm so will be back fairly late tonight. I really ought to make an effort to do my Japanese homework on the train home as we have a different teacher this year and she’s quite strict about us doing the homework etc., but we’ll see how much of my brain is still working after tonight’s board meeting….

It’s that time of year again… If I want the Inland Revenue to calculate my tax for me I have to submit my return by 30th September. Being at the end of my two-week holiday, I thought I had better get it out of the way. This means I am in for a day of trying to go back through my paperwork to decide what figures need to go in the boxes. What fun. I do love the new online tax-return, though. It’s so much easier!
Anyway, I suppose I had better get on with it!

Wow, I can’t believe that it’s already time for the new school year.. I am staying at my parents house at the moment and there’s a school up the road, so the school buses and children walking at 8.15am were an obvious reminder of the time of year.
It’s been an extremely busy summer! Since I last blogged, I have done ridiculously long hours at work for a week, preparing for the Japanese trip; been to Japan and done the all important presentation (among other things); had my homeward flight cancelled because of a typhoon; made it to Greenbelt – Hurrah! (straight from the airport); had a week off at home with hubby (lots of shopping, reading and gardening) and come to Nottingham for 5 days at home learning how to use my sewing machine (under my mum’s supervision).
All of which has been rather exciting, but I do think I will have to split the details up into a few seperate blog postings.
Tonight my parents are taking me out to a get-together of all the people who deliver the parish magazine for their local church, then we’re going out for a meal. I wonder if there will be anyone I know there? It’s always odd to come home because lots of people know me in the village and they stop and talk to me but a lot of the time I am left thinking ‘I can’t for the life of me remember who that actually is’! having just blagged my way through an entire conversation of them asking me how my life is, where I am living now, etc. At least Mum and Dad will be there tonight to remind me who’s who!!!