Observations of a personal nature..

Due to fairly recent events I figured it was time about some very personal observations. It's not that I couldn't live without writing that down or that it would change something of the matter at hand. I don't know if it has anything to do with final closure of a certain chapter of my life. That's a question you have to ask an psychologist. I'm certainly not qualified to answer that. I am fully aware that there is a good possibility that I end up being the bad guy in the end, but since that's not the first time I've heard that it really doesn't matter. So here it goes.
Recently I've heard a lot of bitching and complaining how terrible the life of certain people is. They hate being alone, but aren't really doing anything to change that. I at least go regularly on dates. Well, it usually doesn't go anywhere since we're not really that compatible on a personal level. If that's the case there is no point in bitchting and complaining that you want to have a partner, if the guys you go out on dates with aren't compatible. There are 2 options to change that, as far as I'm concerned. You can either make compromises when it comes to personal compatibility or you can continue to look and broaden your "dating pool"and see where things are going.
This got me thinking about the end of my last relationship in 2011. I can put everyone at ease these is not going to be a blame game. Why I didn't work out in the end and why this particular relationship had reached a point, where a relationship is probably irreconcilable is not really the point here.
Pretty much everbody knows that I had decided in 2011 that it would in best interest to move back to Austria and start from scratch to rebuild my life. There was never a doubt in my mind that I would take my dog Daisy with me. The almost 4 grand relocation costs for her wasn't even something to think about. After all dogs are family as far as I'm concerned. I was the one who picked her out at the shelter...probably the craziest dog in the entire facility. I was the one who worked and trained her and very slowly got rid of her most severe issues. So leaving her behind with my ex wasn't even an consideration. The fact that me taking the dog with me might have emotionally hurt him, didn't even cross my mind.
So when I got back to Austria I really started from ground zero. Having been away for 10+ years you're actually not what employers look for. They love your "having lived abroad experience" but they won't hire you, since your knowledge of tax laws is completely out of date. So I went back to school and retook to complete Basic Accounting Certification. And having to go back to school after 20 years is anything but easy. Regular of this blog know that I did pass my Certification and in a matter of weeks I got a job as accountant.
It took me almost 1 1/2 years to come to a point where I can say that my life is once again what you call financially stable. And it took me almost 2 years afte having moved back to rebuild my personal life in a way where I can say, that besides being single, my life is actually satisfactory. Of course I still have to take classes on a regular basis since my knowlege of  Austrian Tax Law is far from complete, but actually I don't mind that. Has of course to do with the fact that I really do enjoy my job. Is everything in my apartment the way I would love to have it. Of course not. That will take some time. But the most important thing is my apartment doesn't feel like an apartment, but it feels like a home.
So yes, a break up is hard but rebuilding your life entirely from scratch is possible.
Once again I'm not judging here. But when I look at the life of my ex since 2011 and the way he chooses to live it...it's like I don't know that guy. I do know that we've been together for a decade, but watching him these days is painful and like you're watching a complete stranger. I feel really fortunate that I got out of that relationship at the time I did, because I wouldn't want to live my life that way. That's just a personal choice. I do wish him well and hope that he will get a handle on his life to stop his free fall. Otherwise hitting rock bottom at that speed ain't gonna be pretty.
As I said at the beginning, it's time to close that chapter of my life and start with a new one. Yes, I am ready for another relationship. I took enough time to heal and figure out what are the things that I don't want to compromise on. So far I haven't found the one special guy yet, but I'm certain he is out there.

The VAT exam that never happened

Having finished my VAT class in June I had originally planned to take the exam by the end of August. But sometimes things don't quite work out as planned. Not that it wouldn't have been enough time to get trough the entire matter, but this being a particularly humid summer and not having had an vacation in 1 year wasn't particularly helpful with the task. On top of that Daisy wasn't doing so hot and her being 17+ years old I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. Needless to say that I just couldn't motivate myself to study. So to make a long story short. The exam never happened. But I can take that exam in the fall semester or together with the Income Tax exam at the beginning of 2015.
I will keep you guys posted on the progress.

News from my Pension Fund...

Today I got an official statement from my Pension Fund. I knew that this coudln't be good news. While I cherrish the 10 years I lived in the States and would never ever want to miss this amazing experience, well it hurts my pension fund. Since I'm now missing those 10 years.
So I opened that letter...and fell almost from the couch, because I had to laugh so hard. In case I shouldn't add any further payments to my pension fund I will get paid monthly 420,- bucks from the time I'm legally entitled to retire. And that's currently at the age of 68.
I then went to a pension calculator I checked and If I calculate all the pension payments tha will be added till the time that I turn 62 I should be getting a pension of 1600 bucks. It's not the world, but much better. And of course there are options that you can choose from to increase your pension level by the time you plan to retire. I haven't looked into them in full detail. And I will have to figure out what is the best mix here. Higer pension payments into the state owned pension fund or if supplementing your pension through a private fund is the better option. But it could very well be, that even a mix of both options does the trick.
One thing is pretty much certain...I don't have any intention of working full time till the time I turn 68.