Chapter 3

[dias]

Not exactly floating down Mississippi on a raft like Huckleberry Finn as I wanted but the Creole Queen steamboat was a good alternative!

[dias]

22 hours ago, Jibralta said:

I think the babies are so cute. They make little squeaking sounds. 

The guide brought one with him. It was so freakin cute. I loved it. I would take it with me. It would be an issue though in a few years having him in the living room as you can imagine hahaha. 

[dias]

I arrived back to Atlanta yesterday night. Such a shame, I am actually sad I left. I stayed 3 and a half days full of activities and I forgot my past lol I thought that was my reality. Also, I started approaching girls a lot more again. Most of them didn't respond but I had company all the days I was there. 

Plus, the dating apps went crazy. Usually I get a like every 3 weeks or so, apps never worked for me but in New Orleans I don't know what happened I started getting 3-4 likes per day which is truly crazy for me. I was thinking about postponing the flight for a day. A girl messaged me yesterday morning and she was very eager to meet but she had to work until the afternoon when my flight was. Damn, that would probably be a certainty lol. However, exactly the same time a Mexican girl sat close enough to me in the hostel (she could have sit anywhere else so I figured she might wanted to chat) and I started a conversation and stuff and we spent the whole day from 9am till 5 pm together. We went for a coffee, drinks and food in an amazing Jazz restaurant on the suburbs 1 hour walking distance from the French Quarter. I had an amazing time. I really really liked her, it’s the first time I liked someone so much since the British girl in Liverpool. Probably the fact this girl was the most beautiful girl I have gone on a “date” with helped. I went for a kiss in the afternoon but she didn’t want. Although I think it was the “too soon” response rather than I don’t like you response. I believe so at least.

Anyway, I had an amazing time. Hands down the best trip ever.

[dias]

On 5/13/2023 at 10:30 AM, dias said:

Although I think it was the “too soon” response rather than I don’t like you response. I believe so at least.

She lives in Florida. Yesterday I pinged her on fb whether she would go out with me if I visit Florida for a week. No response. Ah, never mutual with the girls I truly like which is once in a blue moon. That’s life I guess. 

Nashville it is then for my last week. 

[dias]

22 hours ago, dias said:

She lives in Florida. Yesterday I pinged her on fb whether she would go out with me if I visit Florida for a week. No response. Ah, never mutual with the girls I truly like which is once in a blue moon. That’s life I guess. 

Nashville it is then for my last week. 

She did reply in the end. She asked me when I was going. I told her there is a flight for today I could take. She said she is very busy this week as she is flying to Boston on the weekend so she won't have time.

I am a bit sad I have to admit. I really liked her.

I am frustrated with life in a way. All the girls I truly liked in my life none of them wanted something more*. I do meet other girls but I wouldn't want to be with them, I just want sex or company.

Why the f*ck it is never mutual with the ones I like??????

 

*now that I am thinking about it, regardless of the race all of them were similar in a way. I do have a very specific type. And this type doesn't want me and I don't want anything else which brings me to an impasse.

[dias]

I should have extended my stay in New Orleans. Nashville is not my cup of tea although I like country music. It has a street full of bars with the names of famous country singers and some nice bars but that's it pretty much. Sure many pretty girls but most of them don't seem very open and I get a pretentious vibe from people in general. 

Maybe I am wrong, maybe it's not the popular opinion, I do think it's indifferent as a city.

[dias]

Well that was a night. I thought I should make the best out of Nashville since I came. It's not that fun when you are alone in this kind of places, usually you need a girl to enjoy it fully. 

I bar hopped quite a lot yesterday. The first two girls I approached didn't even let me finish my first sentence. Not fun lol. I moved to another bar that I liked the most. At that point I was tipsy so I didn't care much hahaha. I saw a hot brunette dancing, when she sat down I asked her if she wanted to have a dance with me. She asked me "you know how to dance" in which I replied "no but we will figure it out " lol. I apparently didn't know the steps, she asked me "what are you doing". I said I am not an American how could I know the steps, I asked her to show me. If I understood correctly from what she was showing me it's two steps on the left one to the right. Not difficult of course but I would need a bit more time to get the rhythm. Not that I have the rhythm in any sort of dancing to be honest but hey I can run 30km and do 17 pull ups, if I was a good dancer I would be freaking superman lol. The song finishes, she taps on my shoulder saying keep practicing lol. She was not interested in me, I think she accepted more like a reward I asked her because no other guy was on the dance floor hahaha.

There are three reasons a guy would be on the dance floor most of the time: 1) he wants to get laid 2) his girlfriend dragged him willy-nilly 3) he is drunk. Usually the third is prerequisite hahaha.

Then I offered another brunette* to buy her a drink. She accepted, we chatted a bit and danced a bit. She was from Boston so she didn't know how to dance country either lol. At some point she asked where I live permanently and when I told her in Greece she was surprised. She thought I live in states apparently. She then left. 

After that I decided to enjoy the music. Couldn't leave without listening to the band play sweet home alabama haha. I came from the other side of the planet, I had to listen to this song. Although as you can imagine it's a frequent request from the patrons of the bar. Some bands were average but there were 3 or 4 that were pretty good.

It was a good night. I did drink a lot though. Might have been 12 bottles of beer. God knows how much I spent yesterday. I couldn't sleep at all, feeling dizzy and tired right now. I still have one day left here. I don't think I could drink anymore.

*I mention brunettes because 9 out of 10 girls that check me out are brunettes. Don't know why.

[Jibralta]

Where to next?

[dias]

3 hours ago, Jibralta said:

Where to next?

Well just came back to the hotel. Would I visit Nashville again? Certainly but only with a girl, even a female friend would be fine. It's always better with good company but for Nashville to really enjoy it I believe you need a girl to tag along.

In the end, I am glad I visited Nashville. 

Tomorrow morning I am heading back to Atlanta, I will spend a couple of days with bro, then back to Athens on Saturday unfortunately 😕 😑 😢. Again behind a computer all day long😢 😑 😞 😐 😕 😒 😢 It would be hard.

[dias]

My last morning in Nashville. It started growing on me. Or it is I know I am returning back to my tedious work/life which makes me want to cry. Yeah I know it's this job that allowed me to have this trip, I think I forgot it since those 3 weeks were so different and fun. 

[mylolita]

8 hours ago, dias said:

My last morning in Nashville. It started growing on me. Or it is I know I am returning back to my tedious work/life which makes me want to cry. Yeah I know it's this job that allowed me to have this trip, I think I forgot it since those 3 weeks were so different and fun. 

The Holiday Blues Dias!

I haven't travelled much, but when I did, even if it was only for a week or two, I was always blue after. 

I think it's more the forgetting your cares and responsibilities and mundane daily things like having to be somewhere at a set place 5 days a week and, the break from that is pretty intoxicating - left me deflated and sad whenever I was going back, especially on the flight home!

I getcha!

Someone once told me, planning your next trip is the cure! HA! You'll be back in the swing after a day or two anyway!

x

[dias]

18 hours ago, mylolita said:

Someone once told me, planning your next trip is the cure! HA! You'll be back in the swing after a day or two anyway!

Hahahaha I wish. I spent all my holidays for the year. Ahhh, why good things have to end???? Back to depression from Monday hahaha 

It was quite a day yesterday coming back from Nashville, there was no lack of adventure in this journey lol. I need to write about it when I get back. I took a bus to return to Atlanta, yes I used a bus in the US, which only very very poor people use unlike Europe. That was an experience in and of itself. It becomes more interesting because when I arrived my brother had already scheduled us to go with some of his colleagues into a private club that most members are millionaires (packed with hot barbies looking for a rich husband apparently lol). It's interesting to experience the polar opposites on the same day. 

I managed to take some proper photos of Nashville with the camera in the morning before I left. 

 

 

[dias]

I went to the shooting range yesterday with bro. I retract my comment about guns. There were many people there who were clearly habitual drug users. Most of them placed the target two meters away and just fired hundreds of bullets. Certainly one those would be the next mass shooter. 

When I made the comment about the freedom to carry guns I subliminally had the European folks in mind. 

Nonetheless we had a lot of fun. I am waiting for the plane now. I think I will tear up, I don't want to leave. 

I used my UK bank account for the expenses. In total I would say I spent approximately 4.5K pounds which is about 5.6K USD. Add another 1K USD my brother treated me when I followed his fancy lifestyle, that would be 6.6K more or less tickets included.

Overall, the best trip I have ever had by miles. Worth every penny. 10 out of 10. If I had company in Nashville or the Mexican girl reciprocated the feelings I would give it 15 out of 10. 10/10 is still plenty haha

Bro suggested we go camping in the grand canyon the next time, I want Yellowstone, in the end I will do both hahaha 

[mylolita]

On 5/20/2023 at 8:20 PM, dias said:

I went to the shooting range yesterday with bro. I retract my comment about guns. There were many people there who were clearly habitual drug users. Most of them placed the target two meters away and just fired hundreds of bullets. Certainly one those would be the next mass shooter. 

When I made the comment about the freedom to carry guns I subliminally had the European folks in mind. 

Nonetheless we had a lot of fun. I am waiting for the plane now. I think I will tear up, I don't want to leave. 

I used my UK bank account for the expenses. In total I would say I spent approximately 4.5K pounds which is about 5.6K USD. Add another 1K USD my brother treated me when I followed his fancy lifestyle, that would be 6.6K more or less tickets included.

Overall, the best trip I have ever had by miles. Worth every penny. 10 out of 10. If I had company in Nashville or the Mexican girl reciprocated the feelings I would give it 15 out of 10. 10/10 is still plenty haha

Bro suggested we go camping in the grand canyon the next time, I want Yellowstone, in the end I will do both hahaha 

AWESOME!

Dias!!!

When ya touch down, don't worry! The weathers been really great! Summer is coming!

x

[dias]

Ahhh, back to work. It not that bad, it's mostly I am sad I left. I had such an awesome time. Even my parents and friends mentioned that they had never seen me happier before. 

It was a trip so full of adventure...................................

Just one last photo of New Orleans.

Between Nashville, Atlanta and New Orleans, I liked New Orleans the most. I liked the swamps a lot too. I will return to explore more of Louisiana for sure. 

Well, now I have visited the east coast, the west coast and the south. The south suits me better with big difference. 

 

[dias]

On 4/22/2023 at 8:59 PM, dias said:

I spoke with an ex-colleague from my last job in the UK. She said she liked my Youtube channel. I asked her how did she know about it since I hadn't told her. She told me my erstwhile manager promoted my channel during the morning meetings and encouraged people to subscribe. She said he is still talking about me and he is very proud of me starting a youtube channel???????????????????? I am like I left the company almost a year ago and the atmosphere wasn't the best anyway. It was pretty bad actually. 

Why would he speak highly of me a year later and after what happened??? I can't fathom his intentions???? I doubt we will meet or work together in the future....although you never know, life is unpredictable. 

People are strange, go figure. 

We spoke again and she told me all the gossips lol. As always, life is full of surprises. My ex-manager and Jake and probably a few others got into an argument resulting in my ex-manager leaving the company. She didn't know if he was booted or he left on his own volition. Well, he was a character and I was the only he got along well and supported him, he didn't have anyone now. I made a mistake, he made a mistake, the HR screwed me big time, he also suffered the repercussions. 

To be honest, I have to thank him, I got some very valuable life lessons from that experience. Certainly not pleasant lessons, however, I definitely needed them. 

Actually, what happened was like the butterfly effect of the chaos theory. Everything was just bad timing. Funny thing, it started because a Microsoft certificate happened to expire at that very day and when the IT updated it my location got flagged. Then the chaos ensued. Damn, this is so the butterfly effect hahahaha

 

[dias]

 

[dias]

Some of my colleagues and a project manager congratulated me for a project that went live. I didn't do it all alone of course but I did the difficult coding part. The client (which is the European Chemical Agency) was satisfied which seems it is not usually the case hahaha. 

There is one guy on the testing team in his fifties, he is the typical person who is doing the same job 30+ years, part of the system, who was "disappointed" when we first met. He straight up told me "I heard that a big consultant with international experience joined us and I imagined someone...." he didn't finish his sentence. It was kind of offensive but I laughed. I know he imagined someone 190cm with a fancy expensive suit and an intense and imposing personality. Kind of an imaginary leader I guess hahaha. And he saw me hahaha a laid-back 174cm guy wearing T-shirts hahaha. He was not impressed. 

This is the guy who congratulated me multiple times for this project. For one, that means no work for him as there are no bugs (which to be honest I didn't believe it myself lol). Second, he couldn't understand how I knew a programming language the rest of the coders didn't. I was like umm, I study after work, it's called working on the weekends hahaha. 

There is no actual value in receiving recognition as it does not translate in any promotion or pay rise. However, I do appreciate it, something is better than nothing. 

[mylolita]

1 hour ago, dias said:

Some of my colleagues and a project manager congratulated me for a project that went live. I didn't do it all alone of course but I did the difficult coding part. The client (which is the European Chemical Agency) was satisfied which seems it is not usually the case hahaha. 

There is one guy on the testing team in his fifties, he is the typical person who is doing the same job 30+ years, part of the system, who was "disappointed" when we first met. He straight up told me "I heard that a big consultant with international experience joined us and I imagined someone...." he didn't finish his sentence. It was kind of offensive but I laughed. I know he imagined someone 190cm with a fancy expensive suit and an intensive and imposing personality. Kind of an imaginary leader I guess hahaha. And he saw me hahaha a laid-back 174cm guy wearing T-shirts hahaha. He was not impressed. 

This is the guy who congratulated me multiple times for this project. For one, that means no work for him as there are no bugs (which to be honest I didn't believe it myself lol). Second, he couldn't understand how I knew a programming language the rest of the coders didn't. I was like umm, I study after work, it's called working on the weekends hahaha. 

There is no actual value in receiving recognition as it does not translate in any promotion or pay rise. However, I do appreciate it, something is better than nothing. 

Hey! Dias! You don't need to impress anyone or prove nothin' my friend! So t-shirt is just fine!

My husband is 5'8! Never stopped him closing a deal... or... not that I know of - HA!

x

[dias]

I am struggling with boredom....Daily life is so freakin tedious....I know I shouldn't complain, everything is going great, work is going pretty well, it's summer, even the YouTube channel is starting to pick up. But it's not enough, there is no thrill, no excitement....Now what? do I wait for my next holidays the next year??? This is so demoralizing.

I would like to visit New Orleans again. There was something about this place that I never felt for any other place. It keeps popping on my mind all the time. It's the only place I felt I would like to grow roots there. Not only the city of New Orleans but also the country side and the swamps. I would like to explore the south part of Louisiana more. I have visited countless cities in the US and Europe, I have never said I would like to stay in one place forever.

Love at first sight lol. Sure, I had a good time, this plays a role. In an imaginary world, I would marry the Mexican girl and live happily ever after in New Orleans. Ahhh, always in an imaginary world.....

Such a pretty cute girl, certainly better looking than most Victoria's secret angels. When God decides to give a gift, damn, it is a pretty good one. And pretty normal, no snobbish whatsoever, 25 years old flower, (very)lucky the guy who would get her.

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Back to reality...........................................

 

[dias]

This is ludicrous, the UK is being hit by a heatwave and here it's rainy almost everyday. Grrr. Climate change is for real. The climate in Greece is becoming sub-tropical. 300 years from now it might look like an African desert or jungle while the UK might get a Mediterranean climate. 

Anywayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, when I was in the US I contacted an immigration attorney and asked him if he could build a case given my background, degrees, work experience etc etc. Unfortunately without an offer from a company there was nothing he could do. 

I discussed this with bro a lot. We concluded there are 3 ways to move to the US. I mean legally, not selling hot-dogs in a truck because that would be easy to do. If I were 18 again without any prospects in life I would do it but not now. So we have:

1)Do a PhD. This would be the most secure and "easiest" solution. Finding a PhD program wouldn't be difficult, given that bro is already a professor in the uni I already got an unofficial offer from the professor in the AI department. That being said, I am not interested in AI or Computer Science. If I were to do a PhD it would be something I find interesting. The only one I found was a PhD in Supply Chain Engineering. Problem is, I looked at the salaries in the supply chain industry and it's significantly less than the typical data engineer salary. Ain't going to study 6 years to make less money, it does not make sense. So option 1 is out.

2)Marry an American woman. Well, under these circumstances the only women who would marry you would be some emmm let's say not exactly a prize. Plus, the max period I can pretend I like a girl is a few dates, a few months tops, so it's not going to work.

3)Find an American company and after a couple of years apply for a position in the US. It's relatively easy for big companies to bring employees from overseas when they are already working in the company. It's not that easy to find a company like this unfortunately, some companies would do it but you need a bit of luck to find employment at the right company. I am trying but luck is involved so it's not a very promising option. 

Hmmmm, there are plenty of obstacles. I need to find a way. It's not urgent though. Sooner or later an opportunity will come up. 

 

[Jibralta]

4 hours ago, dias said:

That being said, I am not interested in AI or Computer Science. If I were to do a PhD it would be something I find interesting.

Seems to me that pretending to like AI would be a lot easier than pretending to like your reverse-mail-order bride.... How much do the AI/ Computer Science gigs pay as compared to supply chain?

[boltnrun]

It's no longer automatic citizenship for marrying an American.  They have put into place a lot of regulations and things you need to do before citizenship is available.

My son married a non-American in 2019.  His spouse still is not a citizen.  I think it's another four years?  Not sure exactly.  But it isn't automatic like it used to be.

Here's a link:  https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/us-citizenship-through-marriage-how-does-it-work

With your skills I would think finding employment with a company that has a location in the US would be a very strong possibility.  The company I work for has its headquarters in the UK but has several corporate offices and locations in the US.  

[dias]

9 hours ago, Jibralta said:

Seems to me that pretending to like AI would be a lot easier than pretending to like your reverse-mail-order bride....

Hahahahaha yeah I know 🙂I think I would prefer selling hot-dogs than having to pretend for years I love a person I don't actually like. 

9 hours ago, Jibralta said:

How much do the AI/ Computer Science gigs pay as compared to supply chain?

It's very difficult to know the exact numbers as I don't know much about the supply chain industry but from what I could glean from online sources I would say on average a supply chain/logistics engineer makes 40K-60K less than a data engineer. AI developers make more than data engineers. 

The PhD in AI requires only math, heavy mathematics. It's been a decade since the last time I studied real math. Because I can do it, it does not mean I would enjoy doing it for 5-6 years. Now, there is a PhD in Data Analytics which is the field I did my Master's degree on. I could do that. It won't benefit me much afterwards though, I wouldn't make more money with a PhD than what I am making now. It would be like trading 5-6 years with minimum US salary for a green card. Yeahhhhhhh, I guess everything needs a sacrifice.

I think I prefer option 3.

[dias]

5 hours ago, boltnrun said:

It's no longer automatic citizenship for marrying an American.  They have put into place a lot of regulations and things you need to do before citizenship is available.

My son married a non-American in 2019.  His spouse still is not a citizen.  I think it's another four years?  Not sure exactly.  But it isn't automatic like it used to be.

Here's a link:  https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/us-citizenship-through-marriage-how-does-it-work

With your skills I would think finding employment with a company that has a location in the US would be a very strong possibility.  The company I work for has its headquarters in the UK but has several corporate offices and locations in the US.  

Yeah I know it's a long process. Gone are the good old days hahaha. 

It's very difficult to get an offer straight from a company based only in the US. Most of them do not provide sponsorship. It's quite easy when you are already an employee at an American company that has offices overseas because it's considered internal transfer.