I always try to avoid writing about work. Even at times when work is all that there is in my life, and when work influences everything I do and anything I feel, I know it is bad to let the world know about it. I know that some of my colleagues browse here sometimes, and even some associates from around the world have found out about my life as Deviant Brainwave, so mixing my work and my blog are a bad idea. However, my feelings have now got to new heights that I just can’t keep bottled in anymore.

It has been affecting me so badly, that the thought is haunting me day and night. I keep trying to push it out of my head so I can relax for a little bit, when I am with E., or when I work out, or when I just want to sleep. I just want to let it out and for this nightmare to be over.

I can tolerate stupidity or ignorance, but I cannot stand cruelty. I have been a victim of a personal vendetta that has made me into a scapegoat. I had enough. I will make my feelings known, and make sure that either there are major changes or that I move on. Being realistic, I know it is most likely that I will have to move on. It is probably not a bad idea anyway. I don’t know how things will turn out, but there will be a change this week. I have already started to send out my CV, so if you know of a suitable job, let me know.

I am finally back and already stuck into the hard work. I got back to the office immediately after my arrival yesterday morning, still tired after my long flight, but feeling obliged. I probably shouldn’t have.

My visit to the US ended on a very positive note, with a wonderful weekend spent in Miami with my friends. It was great to see them after such a long time and hang out, even though it was only a very short visit. I would say this is definitely the highlight of the trip. Other highlights will be the LCD Soundsystem gig, and the Sunday spent wondering around Philadelphia.

Unfortunately, the disappointments were great too. Mostly on work related issues, as well as the general organization. As a result, I turned down an offer to go again next week. This time it was supposed to be both east and west coasts, but I am not ready to take on another long flight and jetlag just yet. This time my colleague will have to go.

Meanwhile, I am getting back to normal life. I am re-thinking my future.

I’m on my way home. Woohoo!

I had a wonderful weekend with friends in Florida. There was a lot of good food and good drink, and much more good company. I had a wonderful time. I think I’ll start working on those photos very soon. It was a good way to end a trip which was mostly a horrible mess and a waste of time and energy. It has certainly recharged my batteries in a way that will help me combat my jetlag when I get home.

Free WiFi is good when it works. At Fort Lauderdale airport it works at times, but keeps disconnecting. I hope it will last until boarding.

I can’t wait to be at home!

That’s it. The work part of my journey is finally over. I found myself a little corner at the Orlando International Airport which allows me to connect to some electricity and refuel the laptop, which is a good opportunity to sit back and think about it all.

As far as work is concerned, the trip was mostly a waste of time. With the exception of a couple of short installations, there weren’t many meetings or activities in which my technical knowledge and my presence were really necessary. It was good to meet some of my colleagues in the US, but as some of them were away in a conference during the week, there wasn’t much done on that side either.

The time I had to myself was passed mostly during a period of bad jet lag, so there isn’t really much I can say about it. There were some highlights and some bad moments, and I’m working on a list.

In just a couple of hours I will meet friends that I haven’t seen for ages. I am looking forward to that. The weekend will be fun, and a good winding down on the way home. Getting home to my E., and my cats will be even better.

From my experience so far, I can say that the US is still not one of my preferred holiday destinations.

When I found out that I’m going to Philadelphia, the obvious thing to do was to get online and check what’s on. It was a very good surprise to find LCD Soundsystem on the list of events. It was even better to have confirmation that my local colleague is going to the show, and I can come along.

The Troc is one of those places that look like it must have been a luxurious theatre or opera house back in the 19th century. The entrance, the decorations and the balcony, all suggest a grander past. Now, however, it is a nice and friendly small venue for DJ’s to show their ability and bands to be playing loud. It is so friendly, that it seemed only natural that members of the band would walk in through the front door, just like anyone else, and walk through to the stage door at the front of the hall.

The show was so good, it felt too short. It was over so quickly that it feels like I missed something. I hope I didn’t, but I think I would like to see them again, just to be sure. It didn’t really start until they played Beats on Repeat. My colleague mentioned that it was one of her favourite tracks, which was nice, because it is one of mine too. It proved to be a wonderful song to listen to in heavy traffic in the morning. When Retribution came on, the crowd just went crazy. Daft Punk Is Playing At My House was delivered faster than normal, in a way that almost made me want to jump.

I had a great time last night, enjoying the music, the atmosphere, and the very friendly company. Definitely a highlight of this trip.

The one thing that I am really sorry that I did not bring with me, is my comfortable Earth shoes. I packed for almost any weather and any business situation, except the ones that will require me to walk a few blocks in business-wear shoes.

I blame men! Fashion and men! Who was it that defined women’s formal clothing to include high heels? Who was it that made it so difficult to find comfortable dress shoes? (Don’t even get me started about vegan styles!). How come men et to wear such comfi-looking shoes all the time?

I would like to protest by switching over to footwear that would be friendly to my feet, but unfortunately I have not been able to find any. I went to a couple of shops that sell Earth, but they either did not have vegan or didn’t have my size. As shops here close very early in the evening, it seems less likely that I will find some in the near future. Meanwhile, I’m sticking to my trainers whenever possible.

The only thing worse than being sick while away on business is to be sick while a way on holiday. Good thing I’m not on holiday.

I know this is supposed to be a very busy working week, but as today is a Sunday, and I needed to work on my jet lag recovery, and as the sun was shining and it wasn’t too cold, I decided to see a bit of Philadelphia. There wasn’t much time, so I chose to take one of the tourist busses that give a guided tour showing all the important places around town in an hour and a half. I always thought these tours are a waste of money for tourists, but I realize that when the time is short, these tours go a long way.

I actually enjoyed it. There are a lot of nice spots in Philadelphia, thought it was still not enough to get me going around town confidently at night. I took a lot of pictures too, so they will be uploaded soon enough.

Hard work starts tomorrow.

It’s 6:30 in the morning in Philadelphia. I have been up for an hour or so now, and I can’t get back to sleep. The sun is coming up now, and I can see some tall buildings out of the window that I recognize from the Google Earth satellite photos. I think my office is in one of those buildings.

I got here yesterday evening after a very long and tiring journey, trying to keep myself awake as late as I could.

The flight itself was long. Too long. Very very long. I was sitting in an uncomfortable isle location, next to a chatty American who didn’t shut up for the duration of the flight. At some point I just took out my MP3 player, and told him that I will listen to music and read my book, so I would not disturb his nap.

The landing process was something I initially was quite intimidated by. I had a mental picture of a nasty incident involving myself, the immigration officials, rubber gloves and a back room. Surprisingly, this passed without a hitch. The immigration officer was even very nice and joked with me. I didn’t know American officials had a sense of humour.

The train ride from Newark airport to Philadelphia was also quite good, once I found the train station. The signposting at Newark was so bad that I had to queue for information just to know the direction for the station, but when I finally got there it all went smoothly and there was even a direct train which I didn’t have to wait long for.

By the time I got to the hotel room, I was just happy to take off my shoes and finally relax. I didn’t even mind that the “Parlour Suite” is actually a small, smelly smokers room with a fold-out bed. I was also very hungry, as the food on the flight was hardly edible, but I didn’t want to brave a walk alone in the night in a city I don’t know. During my taxi ride from the train station I was looking out for food shops or cafés that I can venture to safely, but everything was shut. By the time I got myself comfortable enough in my room, I decided to try it out anyway and found a Starbucks a short walk away. I have five days to learn more about Philadelphia’s night life, so I probably by the time I feel confident enough, it will be time to leave.

I finally broke down at 21:30 (4:30AM in Israel), when I could no longer keep my eyes open. This is probably the reason I am up so early in the morning, taking advantage of the hotel’s coffee making facilities and drinking what the East Coast Americans call “coffee” and the rest of the world calls “tasteless brown water”. Soon it will be time to venture out to the street and see Philadelphia. I was told they have a copy of that bell from Gan Ha-Pa’amon in Jerusalem.

This week was full of uncertainties. The early days, continuing from the week before, were constant attempts of contacting people from various offices around the world in order to finalize schedules and confirm whether I will or will not be flying away by the end of the week. The latter part of the week was full of last minute efforts to organize my travel requirements and finish off my tasks in the office.

So now I?m enjoying the WiFi connection at gate C6 in Ben Gurion Airport, waiting to board Continental flight number 86 to Newark, New Jersey, USA. I will be spending most of my week in Philadelphia, with some additional destinations later in the week. I am expecting mostly a lot of hard work and not much pleasure, though there is a good chance that I will catch an LCD Soundsystem gig and I plan to spend the weekend with friends in Florida.

To be honest, I?m not overly excited about this trip. The USA if far from being my dream destination. I will try to make the best out of it, and maybe I?ll even enjoy it. The only certain thing is that I will have a lot to tell you about.