We are not Here to Debate the Existence of Monsters

By the time anyone gets to see this I should be well into my second week of my new job. The initial panic and the crisis of ability have, for the most part, disappeared and I am beginning to settle in. I'm enjoying it so far, but then nobody's shouted at me, I've not had to do anything too taxing and I haven't inadvertently killed anybody yet.

I have joined the company in the middle of a desk shortage, and as yet they haven't actually found somewhere permanent for me to sit. I'm playing musical chairs, only it's not quite as fun as it could be as they neglected to bring any music. I discussed the seating plan with one of the secretaries yesterday and it looks like during my first eleven days I will sit at no less than four different desks.

My coworkers seem to be a good enough bunch, but then I should re-stress the fact that 'nobody's shouted at me'. When this happens I'll probably think them all bastards, but for now I like them. Bumped into the girlfriend of one my old coursemates last week, which was a bit of a shock as I'd forgotten she worked for the company. I think she had the worst of it however, as she hadn't been told I had started working there and she was forced to spend the rest of the lunch hour with me.

What else has happened in the week or two since I last blogged? Well, I moved house. I'm now living in a tiny little bedsit just shy of the town centre. To say that this place is basic, is to suggest levels of complexity that just do not exist: it is a bedroom with a sink, an oven and a fridge in one corner and a basin in the other. That's it. The furniture that came with the room is old and brown, and I've not been here long enough to make it look like anything over than a small room in which someone stores old furniture.

The new town is a mystery. As far as I can tell there isn't really any reason for its existence. It's a large town, yet there is an ever-present feeling that nothing ever happens here. The student population is small, which I guess I could be feeling, but I'm not actually part of that population anymore. I'm part of the bus-catching, laundrette-using, tie-wearing population that, on the whole, seems friendly and relaxed. That said, I want to avoid becoming part of that work-eat-sleep-work-eat-sleep-work mentality if I can. Shit, I'm rambling again.

What else? The town seems to have its share of attractive women, yet it also seems to have a large mutant population as well. Walking through the shopping centre on the weekend is like walking the streets of Old New York (or so I'd imagine). The few pubs I've been in have been nice, but I was happy to find there are a couple of Wetherspoons should I ever feel the need for a cheap pint and a meal.

That seems to be about it . . . although I'll add more random stuff when I get the chance.

Later . . .

Curiosity

Oh, yeah. Almost forgot. Curiosity was runner-up for Editor's Choice (September Submissions) at the Zoo. Even though I didn't get the EC, I'm still pretty stoked: there was a nice, encouraging review from the editor and even a couple of suggestions on where to send it out when I get around to rewriting.

Doing minimalist happy dancing as I type this :)

In other writing related news: whilst I was without my computer last week I wrote the first draft of a short story currently called He Missed the Sea and worked a little more on Pound Store.

Later . . .