Things I have learned this week

When working at a large bank, "the dog ate it" is not an acceptable reason why your project is late. Neither is "global warming" I knew the dog ate it was pushing it but I was sure it could be blamed on global warming, everything else is.

I also learned I have very cool friends, I got an email from Lindz when I was at work "did you get a parcel from me?" then followed a sequence of emails along the lines of "tell me, tell me tell me" "no, it's for Gillian" "TELL MEEEEE" so busting a gut I got home after being out late (which was torture) to find this:


Happy sigh, I was telling her I wanted my ears pierced so now I have to do it, and I can't wait, I know I crack on about acceptance and stuff, but it really is an enormous deal to me.

I learned I have a new blog reader, hello Cat, totally forgot you would have access to this.

I learned that second life is addictive, I spent hours and hours sitting by a camp fire just chewing the fat.

I learned the guy behind me at work can average one sniff every 7 seconds for at least two minutes.

I learned that two minutes is as long as I can put up with someone sniffing on average every seven seconds before screaming 'USE A HANKY!!!' or going to the coffee machine.

I re-learned that records should not be left in direct sunlight


I learned that I can go skiing this weekend if I want, the local resort is opening a few lifts -it's the end of May!!

and lastly I learned that I am inordinately excited about going to see Motorhead Saxon and Black Sabbath at the weekend, I'm going to spend a day getting hammered, sweaty, deafened and end up black and blue and I can't wait.

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Tu stupidus es
You are dumb.

Coincidence

Shortly after the ex left me I happened to hear U2 - One on the radio, do you ever hear a track while you are doing something else and it catches your attention immediately? The lyric that caught me was

"It's too late, tonight
To drag the past out
Into the light"

You probably see the connection, the ex after she left me embarked on what seemed a frenzy of outing, this lyric summed it up for me.

I listened to the track a lot after that, at the time it really spoke to me and seemed a perfect commentary on the events of the time.

"Is it getting better?
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame"

She could never accept responsibility, it always had to be someone elses fault, me being a transvestite was a perfect reason to leave me.

"Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste In your mouth?"

Her comment when I eventually managed to tell her before we got married - "Thats disgusting" - I was still me Julia.

"one love, we get to share it
Leaves you baby if you don't care for it"

Well thats true, I took her too much for granted at times, well a lot.

"Did I ask too much?
More than a lot?"

Was it such a hard thing to accept this side of me?

"one life, you got to do what you should"

Like just be me?

So what prompted this? well I was just about to go to bed and for no adequately explained reason I realised I'd never seen the video and searched for it on YouTube. I can enjoy it now with a wry smile on my face rather than the racking sobs of yesteryear but I was completely unprepared for what is on screen during the lyric that first brought the song to my attention, it's at 1min 32 secs if you are interested. Or 3m 05 if the counters counting backwards, or just watch the whole vid, it's worth it.

Ich bin ein Transvestit

What a cool couple of days I've just had, look back about bemoaning about not having a scene to go to, fast forward to now. The lovely Becky Richards was in the country and came up to visit. Minor chaos when Becky lost her phone which was our means of meeting up, thank goodness for mobile email.

We were either going to go eat at a veggie restaurant or find the tranny Stammtisch(regular table). Stammtisch won and whata giggle that was, leaving the flat dressed, public transport in a foreign country, in an area of the city I didn't know. We got to the bar/cafe and yayyyy swiss trannies!!! They were lovely, in no time the tables were re-organised and we were slotted in, they all spoke English and assured us they didn't mind (very embarassing to be the only mono-linguals there). A small group, ~ about 8 girls, one boy and the delightfully camp owner. They were staggered by our descriptions of the UK scene and the size of the UK Angels and Roses. One of the girls estimated the active scene in switzerland at about 100.


So we drank, we ate, we chatted, some of the girls were heading off to a club afterwards but Becky and I called it a day to be 'fresh' (we left at 2am) enough to shop in Zurich.

So Sat, up v early - Zzzzzzz to get ready and go to town, more public transport then wandering around the shops (didn't buy much, some new sunnies and a bangle, saw a gorg red skirt in Zara that I should have got tho). Shopped back in H&M where they seemed a bit rude in boy mode, they couldn't have been nicer this time. I am told the rule is that if you want to shop for girls clothes for yourself then bloody look like a girl!! ok cool rule, I can do that :).

Only a couple of hours shopping then we had to get Beckys evil twin out the box to fly home. So Becky de-princessed and err, I didn't, I changed from a skirt and top into jeans and blouse and off we went to Basel look thats me on the train.



It was quite a buzz really, knowing that it's just me on the way back. What a lovely couple of days and no-one batted an eye, it was like its just the most normal thing in the world.

Welcome Lindsey

A muggle friend just found this blog and called me up today to tell me, so big hello to Lindsey. How fab is this girl? she found the blog by trying to find me a scene in Switzerland, a few searches of transvestite, Zurich and up I popped. Hmm quandry time, now faced with the dilema I see other bloggers have had, it's easier to be honest when you know it's being bounced of the blogosphere, it's a bit different when theres flesh and blood real world friends reading it. The girl is incredibly nosey and I'm sure she'll read all of it, she's also a fantastic person that I'm proud to call a friend (does that make up for the nosey comment???)

Heres a measure of the girl; once I was staying at her house, downstairs in the basement office just killing time on the PC feeling utterly awful about the ex and Lindsay came down with some blouses 'I was going to throw these out but I wondered if you might want any of them' pretty damn perfect timing that was.

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Tua toga suspina est
Your toga is backwards

I Predict a Riot

and I was right!


The inherited wisdom for Zurich Mayday is not to go into town, there are regular demonstrations, that often become violent riots. Red flag, bull. So off I pedalled, camera in hand looking for trouble. It wasn't hard to find, I had two possible locations where I'd heard it was going to kick off and a sea of black clad anarchists greeted me at location #2. At this point I realised I was dressed like a preppy, I could not have stood out more had I went en-femme, however I ingratiated myself by asking if I could take piccies and not trying to take any if the answer was no.


The demo went smoothly enough, just one run in with the forces of law and order at which point the throng diverted as they were meant to and we ended up at the start point again without incident, well almost, as we got back to the square it all started at a government building had it's door kicked in and fireworks thrown in. Then a re-grouping and those looking for a fight kicked of with shocking speed, I ended up running like crazy ducking down streets to try to keep ahead while not getting in the throng, the violence started slowly, a couple of bus shelters getting smashed, then it was shop windows, then cars, then setting fire to cars,


all the while avoiding the police. I ended up back and forth across the police lines, it was actually more dodgy behind the lines because you had to dodge rocks. At one point I was snapping away when I realized I was standing right in front of their next target, a big rock hit the wall behind me and I was on my toes cracking paving slabs as I went to get to safety,


Every one arrived back at the main square again and the police started to move in. I'd never seen rubber bullets fired before and it's a scary sight, the police weren't shy about using them either, they fire in salvoes of about 8, a guy in front of me caught almost a full load in the chest,



Shortly after I saw some heading for me, you can see them coming at you from head on, I ducked one but another got me in the ribs, sore but no worse than a well hit squash ball. Tear gas was next which wasn't as terrible as I expected, like really bad hayfever with added chlorine smell. The protestors were busy pouring water in each others eyes, some were carrying gas masks.

It was a very exciting afternoon and the anarchist in me loved watching the 'kids' rebel but to what end? I wish I could hold a conversation in German I really wanted to sit down and have a chat with them, I bet their aims are laudible but the wonton vandalism was just sad, on the way home I diverted down where the BMW was burned and among the smashed up shops was a Thai takeaway - hey I bet big business really felt that blow.

Also the beemer was being towed away, the glass swept up, one bank was having the glass replaced already, tomorrow I'll cycle past and it will be like it never happend, whats the point?