Musings...

I've come to a rather disillusioning conclusion - people are people, bosses are bosses and office politics is office politics... the same seething mix of bitching, back-stabbing, buck-passing and insincere glad-handing, no matter in which part of the world you are. I'm sad to report that the company I'm working for is no different, although I had hoped for better.

I have no complaints about my immediate colleagues - they're a great bunch of girls. It's the powers-that-be who, although seemingly cooperative and helpful, are actively spinning in circles trying to stab others in the back while trying not to get stabbed themselves.

And while the dance of the Janus-faced carries on in its deceptive fashion, those not in the know, who are trying to mind their own business, suddenly find their backs bristling with daggers.

Phew. That got rid of some steam in the form of some really bad writing :) But honestly, isnt it frustrating sometimes, how red-tapism and one-upmanship by other people can bog you down no matter how good or efficient you are? Sometimes I feel like screaming "AARGH, JUST LET ME GET ON WITH MY BLOODY JOB AND PLAY YOUR GAMES SOMEWHERE ELSE WITH SOMEONE ELSE".

I really wonder how social workers and other civic-minded folk manage to keep going despite the constant obstructions they face from the establishment. More power to them!

***

Now on a completely unrelated topic - the next time someone here says that they're moving to a Mediterranean country for a total change in lifestyle, I will take them with a bucketful of salt. I've just (give or take a day or four) returned from a 10-day trip to the Costa Blanca part of Spain, which is seeing a huge property boom as thousands of Brits move there.

I might as well have stayed at home, for all that I saw of "Spain". Yes, the weather was lovely - sunny and warm in the daytime, pleasantly cool in the evenings. Yes, the scenery was different - a scrubby, dry landscape instead of the lush green of Britain. But that was as Spanish as it got. The restaurants were all catered for British tastes, with the ubiquitous fish-n-chips, burgers, kebabs, Chinese takeaways and - of course - chicken tikka predominating. All run by expatriate Brits for British tourists. Irish-style pubs and British pubs sold Guinness and imported beers. Thank GOODNESS there wasnt a Tesco or Sainsbury's, or I'd have felt I hadnt moved from the UK at all!

Seems to me that if people move to another country, they should try and assimilate into that culture - at least make friends with (cant think of a more "grown-up" phrase here) the local people instead of alienating them by creating "expat" colonies, mini versions of their hometowns. It just doesnt seem right.