18 weeks to go

So. One week has passed since I returned from my winter jolly around The UK and Finland. Determined to hit the ground running, and pursued by a healthy fear of failure, I've already tallied up the amount of money I'll be earning (at the moment I'm looking at it as a starting block).

I've also discovered that the Chilean state will probably be relieving me of most of my tax return this year. Their new policy means that now previously optional payments to a pension fund will be automatically stolen from your pocket. To be fair this is the first long-term planning I've seen from any government in Chile; I think they saw a future of shit and fans as most people were choosing to rely on dying young/stuffing cash in the mattress/winning the lottery rather than paying into unreliable private pension companies run by crooks.

Finally I asked for some quotes re. Sending dog to Finland. I felt like I had wandered into a designer clothes store as the snooty reply came back warning me that,“Please also note that transport to Finland is expensive, at least 2000 euro.” Wha! Emotional blackmail. Most airlines have quoted around $200. Well, the ball is rolling.

Off to work now. Saturday morning. Come on Finland!