The Cycle Continues

I’m going back out to Arm.enia and I’m not happy about it at ALL. Not that I was excited about my other 5011 trips out there last summer and fall but at least the weather was reasonable and I was able to spend a weekend in London with the C’s after every trip.

I knew it was coming but I’d pushed it out of my mind because really who wants to travel to Arm.enia in freaking January/February! Well my dear blog friends I get to go on a shopping expedition this weekend for water proof boots and thermal underwear. While some of my other colleagues are headed to Laos, Cambodia, and Indonesia for month long assignments I’m a little peeved that I have to trek out to cold as hell Arm.enia.

Silver lining? I’m only gone for about 3 weeks and if I can successfully solve some of the problems with our personnel and get this project back on track then I will be able to make some demands regarding future assignments. Like no more freaking Eastern Europe. Who am I kidding this is a 5 year project and we’re only 8 months in. I’ll be going back there, just hopefully not as often as I have been over the last 8 months.

There goes my personal life for the next month, I don’t know how people in this life* continue to do it. I’ve been in it for 7 years and I’m still trying to figure it out. It’s hard as hell either way you look at it, but I’m trying to work it out. Career wise this is great but would I be willing to give up the work travel for some kids and a husband. Hell yeah. In my dating career I’ve only dated two other guys who were also in this life and one dude only traveled once in while and his assignments were usually only a week long. The other dude spent almost 5 months of our year long relationship overseas. Not good. One of my colleagues lives apart from her husband which wouldn’t be so bad if he wasn’t in freaking Afghanistan. I’m going to ask her how she does it.

I see the light at the end of the tunnel and will fight for what I feel is justified work recognition.

BTW straight from the headlines:

SNOW TO CONTINUE FALLING NEXT FIVE DAYS A spokeswoman for Arme.nian-Russian joint venture HayRusGazArd, Arme.nia's sole natural gas operator, said cutting off gas supplies to several rural areas was not prompted by a wreckage on a gas pipeline in southern Russia shipping gas to Georgia and Arm.enia.Record Snowfall Adds To Arm.enia’s Energy Woes Unusually heavy snowfalls coupled with freezing weather have blocked highways across Ar.menia and disrupted traffic in Ye.revan, complicating government efforts to prevent a serious energy crisis following a cut-off in Russian gas supplies.

*The life is really international development work where the pay is lousy but the work is oh so amazingly interesting.