Episode 298 : A start, a resume, and a stop

'Alright Edward, tell me the different verb forms of these words' she said to me.

I stared at the board, gulped and mumbled 'Je ne peux pas'. With that reply, I partly answered her question and still conveyed my inability to answer.

Returning to a language class after 3 months is never as easy as it looks. Especially when grammar is involved.

***

'What kind of music do you listen to these days?', I was asked.

'Carla Bruni'.

'Eh? Why?'

'To understand spoken French' I grinned wryly.

Continuing with the language class should help me take my mind off work 3 hours every week day. After all, nothing else can explain how I was so productive in the middle of the year when workload was at its highest.

***

'Shall I add you to the team's alias, or is it too early?' she asked me.

I smiled wanly to myself as I thought how this is the last day I will be "working" on the current project. And then change to a "consultant", advising and suggesting how things could be done till the other teams are able to manage on their own. The e-mails over the weekend discussed work that had to be done for the next release. I felt like a parent giving up his child for adoption and watching it grow from afar. Regardless of how tough I appear on the outside, I am still remain a fool of the sentimental kind.

***

The manager and I discussed my present and future in three sessions over two days. Which led to the super boss asking me whether my pre-appraisal discussions were finally over! Contrary to my expectations, the manager agreed to everything I said, completely taking the wind out of my sails, and promised to set them right in the next few months.

What now remains to be seen is what he actually does, and how quickly I increase my employability out of the new project.