It has been a whole year ever since i moved from Scotland to this small town. Many things have changed. I always like to review my life after a certain period of time and now it seems to be the time to do that again.

work has been going well, not perfectly tho. The project was going on the right track but the progress was a lot slower then i expected. I don't seem to care about it as much as i did when i first started. This is probably because my oponions about job, career and life have changed quite a little bit. Generally British people are very laidback at work and the the boundary between work and personal life is very clear.No matter how busy they might be, there's nothing stopping them from going for a lazy and enjoyable holiday. This is a culture thing and it really affected me. I used to put career development ahead of many other things in my life. Now having seen so many people regret that they sacrificed too much fun and happiness in pursuit of their career success, i gradually realised that enjoying my life is just as important as developing my career.

Later this week i will do a presentation to some university kids about my project and face their challenges. The feeling about this is complicated because just a few years ago i was myself a university kid. Sometimes i get a little confused about my future career choice, academic or commercial.  Since i still have a year to go before i need to make that choice i decided to do some preparation for both ways. This event could be a good chance for me to be better known to the professors and researchers from the university. Who knows what might happen afterwards. I wonder what my KTP friends' choices are. Are they going academic or industrial when their contracts finish?

The fact that i cant drive and dont have a car puts quite some limits on my out-of-work life. I can only rely on my feet and public transpotation which is really not convenient for living in a town far away from the big cities. Fortunately i find myself coping well with the life here so far. Going to work on foot takes half a hour in the morning and i am constantly late for work for a few minutes. In the afternoon i go to the gym straight after work. Luckily the gym is close to my company and is right on my way home. I have really felt in love with the gym. I go there almost five days a week. Surprisingly i seem to be wellknown in the gym. From time to time strangers started talking to me while i was in the locker room or in the sauna. I guess that's because there are not too many oriental faces in the gym so it's relatively easier for them to recognise me. Even though I work out really hard the result is a litte depressing. It still seems to be impossible for me to put on weight. People who know me well are all aware of how much i can eat. So now i have changed my mind and just take it easy. Not too eager to put on weight, just keep excersing and enjoy eating as much as i want without worrying about getting fat. Eventually will come the day when i need to pay attention to how many calories there are in my food.

In my new year's resolution i planned to take driving lessons and get a full driving license by the end of the year but now it's seems to be a little difficult to achieve that. The main reason is that i have been so 'busy' on weekends. Since the end of last year i have been going out almost every weekend. I have met some new friends in and around London area and i really like hanging out with them. It always costs a lot to go out because of the transportation, food, drinks but i just can't stop jumping onto the train to london on a Saturday morning. Despite the overpriced drinks and food, this city attracts me more and more each time i go there. I can't wait to finish my current job and move into London next year. Deep in my heart I believe that is the place where my dream comes true. There are so many amazing places in London that i haven't been to. Last week i went into a small book store in london. I could find some really old books, published in the 19th century that cost only a few pounds. You can see the marks made by the original book owner that are handreds of years old. It is not only the skycrapers and the museums but aslo small places and little things like this that made London so special and attractive to me.  
I have got so many things to do on weekends now that i even need to plan them in advance. Playing tennis, playing golf, driving lessions, visiting friends, going to the gym, all these things are more than enough to fill up my weekends for the rest of the year. It even makes me miss the old times when i was a 'Home Boy'. Now i know that's gone and i am happily making my British Dream come true.