When I left Belgium in July, they were undergoing coalition talks to create a government after the election results. Well, 6 months later the situation is still the same, with certain sectors of society calling for the partition of the country. I met some Belgian Flemish friends I have some time ago and they mentioned that, as Flemish as they are, they don't want Belgium to be divided. I don't think it will, just yet, but they do need a solution.
Category Archives: in english
Return culture shock
I was chatting with an Irish friend who has been living in Japan for over 15 years, and is now moving to the UK. I asked him about whether he was experiencing any return culture shock after adapting so well to Japanese culture, and of course he had certain horror stories about the inefficiency of bureaucrats and bank employees.
One usually thinks about the culture shock one will experience when moving to a new environment, but what happens to us when we return to the old ones is something we tend to dismiss.
Now, how will I see Mexico when I go back next week after two years?
Mexico and Mexicans in the news
- An article that quite surprised me in Wired about the Bali summit mentions that Mexico is actually doing quite a bit to tackle climate change and is leading the efforts to cap emmissions, having started at home.
- The Missioners of Guadalupe won the Ohtli award, given to those who raise the profile of the country abroad, for their charity activities in Kenya. I met one of them in Brussels half a year ago, and he told me the challenges they had working there.
Proper winter weather
Sunny and -10°C means it’s finally frosty and the bay is frozen. Nice!
How long before I can start skating again?
Mexican football roundup
My beloved Chivas lost in the Mexican Clausura 2007 championship semifinals against eventual champions Atlante. Their history has taken a remarkable turn for the better this season. Founded in 1916 in Mexico City, the "Team of the People" had fallen on hard times, as followers became few and far between. An attempted move to Ciudad Neza to get new supporters didn't work, and they had to return to ever more empty seats at the Aztec Stadium. This year, to improve their luck, they decided to move to Cancún. Their results improved considerably, their local stadium is continuously full and the team played very well both in the regular season and in the playoffs. Congratulations!
América, on the other hand, lost the final of the Copa Sudamericana against Arsenal de Sarandí. They were completely schooled during the second leg at home in the Azteca, and even though they won away it was not enough.
Furthermore, Pachuca lost their first and only match in the Club World Cup. After having a wonderful few years, winning the Mexican championship multiple times, the Copa Sudamericana and the CONCACAF championship to qualify to Japan, they underlined their terrible second half of 2007 with a disastrous performance against Étoile Sportive du Sahel, the African champions.
There is rumours that more Mexican players will move to Europe in the winter, with Héctor Moreno from Pumas UNAM going to AZ Almaar, therefore joining Carlos Salcido in the Dutch Eredivisie.
Let's see what new surprises there are in the new year.
Vox Hunt: What Winter Means To Me
Show us what winter means to you.
Now, that depends where. If it's Finland we're talking about this:
If we're talking about Mexico, then it's something like this:
Pearls from YouTube
Comparing this with, say, Big Brother, it’s no wonder that people are starting to spend more time online than watching TV. Even when the original content comes from TV.
E-Marketing
My still not that long career has taken me from very different roles. As an engineer, started in a technical area around content management, then moved to product/project management, followed by sales support for different (but related) businesses and now, starting on the 1st of January, will be doing e-marketing for specific services.
Since the area itself is so new, there is a lot to learn, but the reason that drove me to take this position is simply that this is where marketing is moving.
Any hints?
Climate change
This autumn has been unseasonably warm and rainy here in Southern Finland (we're still above freezing point). According to this story published in Helsingin Sanomat, it's only going to get worse in the coming years.
I want some snow!
The convergence space
"Convergence" is a word I've heard plenty of times in the last 10 years, when mobile phones still had monochromatic screens and Minidisc players were all the rage. Now, with Google and Apple entering the mobile market, it's definitely getting interesting. The IHT has a run on the situation here, and a couple of posts from Mobile Opportunity giving a digest of the most recent moves here and here.
Disclaimer: Yes, I work for one of these companies, but even if it weren't related to my job I find this interesting.