HI There. I've had quite a busy few weeks, and since you haven't been around for it (Where have you BEEN?), I thought I'd update you here.

Last time we spoke, i think I was looking at completing a major client software upgrade, and so I will start of from there. The awesome thing about this particular client is that their offices are back in my home region, which means I get to see my family. The terrible thing about this client is.... well, everything else.

Everything that could have gone wrong with this software upgrade, DID and quite frankly, 90% of the issues were on the client's side. But after a very stressful 2 days working 18 hours each day, I managed to calm things to the point that I could spend the weekend with my family. Paya arrived up on the train on the Friday, and we spent the Saturday getting drunk with my Dad and his fiancée, and then spent Sunday with Mum and my Grandma, before visiting my Brother and his kids.

I love my nephew and nieces to bits, but I sure am glad that I live 200 miles away. I can handle an hour or two, but then the noise starts to get to me. Not so much from the kids, but from the adults. I can;t stand the "baby talk" some adults do with children. Especially when it starts getting loud, high pitched and squealy.

We got the train down to London that evening, because the next day I was flying out to Belgrade. Regular readers will know that I go to Belgrade quite often, and I dislike the trip with a passion. That said, the food is AWESOME and I get to drink on the company dime, so it's not too bad. This time, was even better, because the Serbian National Carrier - JAT Airways - has been rebranded as AirSerbia and has a partnership with Ethiad. JAT was the last bastion of communism. The stewardesses looked like matrons in a 1950's hospital and they cared about your comfort and convenience about the same as the commandant of a military prison cares about the comfort and convenience of his inmates.

Now though, airSerbia has lovely, attractive stewardesses and some young stewards that, while not hunky, would only take a couple of beers to look great, and in the meantime, it's better than a 60 year old matron with a moustache.

Serbia was bitterly cold, with freezing rain and a particularly bad landing at Belgrade airport, so I was very glad later in the week when I got back. I managed to have a nice relaxing weekend with Paya, which was good because the event of the YEAR for my industry was to take place the following week (which brings us up to the week just gone)

To anyone who has never been to a software trade fair, it can be a little bit daunting. The industry parlance though is "junket", because there isn't much work involved and lots of freebies. Firstly, vendors are attaching you with free gifts on their stands (pens, notebooks, letter openers, chocolates etc). If they think they have the prospect of a "sale" the gifts get bigger. If you actually ahve the ability to cut them a cheque right there, they will bribe incentive-ise this with iPad's, iPhones, Laptops, trips to Vegas etc etc.

In the evenings there are parties, but being a male dominated industry, the biggest party of the year this time flew in 400 models from Israel and Eastern Europe. I say "models", but it's the job of these vendors to keep people happy, and so, I'm sure much more went on. Luckily, I escaped that party this year.

Which brings us to this weekend. Paya and I enjoyed a trip to the Tower of London yesterday. We also splurged and booked a 5* hotel in Paris for my Birthday at the start of March. And today is a cooking day, and I'm experimenting by making Poached Partridge and Pears. I'm very much looking forward to two relaxing week's of relative calm before I'm next shoved, kicking and screaming, to Belgrade for yet another company junket.

West