Rumours of my demise, yadda yadda...

Hi all!

It's been a long time since the last post and I will admit that the passing of my Grand Mother really destroyed my blogging discipline (of which there was very little).
Being completely honest, it got me a little frightened.  More than the obvious tragedy of the death of a dear family member it really brought home the bigger picture.  Time was passing.  What was I doing with it?

A lot has happened since last we met.


The Job.

Getting straight to the meat of the matter, I have now received finally, a "fast" job.  Fast, is the Norwegian word for permanent (Think "Stuck fast").  After much stress and uncertaintly concerning my 6 month contract, it seems my ahem, hard work impressed someone.  Either that or they never found someone who could understand "Glasgi." (Read: Glasgow accent).

I have been exceptionally lucky.  After starting work there, my manager's manager moved on.  Then my manager left, leaving me alone in the department with someone who was sadly on half hours.
Then suddenly the company had acquired another company which logically (Sarcasm) meant loads of layoffs.  It was indeed as the senior director said "an exciting time."

"May you live in exciting times" being the oldest curse I know, I was not excited.

Hearing about the job cuts and general Conservative antics I'm used to happening at home, I was very, very aware of the fragility of my new job.  So I started looking elsewhere.

I also joined a Union.


A union?  Yupp.  Norway never had Margaret Thatcher.  Regardless on your standings on the idea of the workers union, Norway still has them.  And they work.  1 year into working under a series of increasingly smaller contracts was wearing thin and when push came to shove I personally believe that a combination of: working hard, proving that I was learning Norwegian, my "network" and of course my union membership all contributed.

So if you are lucky enough to get somewhere that has a Union, consider joining it.
Its really, really great for us invaders. Good for learning the "arbeidslov" (work law), meeting new people, you get great travel insurance and of course all the extras won by your Union representatives.
Put another way, if you are not in a Union, all of the rights on pay, extras etc that they win, you may not get.


Anyway, I am now nearly two years into working for the company and though its been hard for everyone, I am still there.  And I dare say I'm bloody useful now.  That's the trick I suppose, make yourself useful.  I work with some of the best people I've met and while I moan like a man trapped under a tree, it's possibly the best job I've had.







The Language.

Having rested on my laurels for quite some time, I've become great at what I know.  I've even subconsciously picked up expressions and the odd word along the way, yet even after all this time, I still get blank looks when I say something... always gut wretchingly embarrassing.  Luckily its not fatal.  If you can get over it and be interested in language then you can get through it and learn stuff.

If you get to a point where you can ask a very patient Norwegian speaker to explain what a word means in Norwegian, then you are on your way.  Well, I hope so, because that's the only milestone I can claim recently.

After talking with a Nord whose child is learning two languages, I've decided to turn my workplace into a "Norwegian" only domain.  Hopefully this will give me a venue to continue practicing while I return to studying from my book set.  Stein på Stein.  The second book in the series has seen my return more times than a doctors waiting room. Still, I believe that if you don't give up, you can never lose. (May not be applied to every situation).

In fact the very week I was hoping to start this, I got sick.  As in, "could not speak" sick.

Somewhere, some great entity is laughing at me.





The new place!

Thats right! I'm off work, typing this from our newer larger and better flat in Majorstua.  Gone is the tiny 33 Sq Metre box, it has done its job.  Spending time to renovate the new flat with fire and paint before moving in, it was quite the marathon.  Again, a very good friend helped me out with cheap supplies and great advice.  He even did half the work.  You could say he became a good friend in the process. 

We moved in finally last year in September and have not looked back.  It was another stepping stone on the path and I still can't believe this is working.

Increase in rent, but strangely, after surviving for so long on so little, its doesn't seem to be a problem.


What next?

Well, since I started this blog to follow my trials and travails in moving to Norway, i may well find that I have less and less to write about.  I think that I am through the hard bit.  It's not over.  I'm not fluent in Norwegian yet for starters, and yes, you should be when moving here.  It's only polite if anything.  And YES, you can learn the language.  Anyone can.  If you can deal with looking like a dick idiot once in a while. :)

I've been thinking of interviewing some friends who recently moved over, or others who've been here a while and get a general overview of how bad they had it.  It would be nice to compare notes regarding the increasing bureaucracy in this country, any racial walls and even moving over due to relationships, which happens a lot.

Once again though, I am writing this for others who are thinking of coming over. So if you have any questions, or need help with anything.  Let me know.

Thanks for reading.

Rick