Replacing some Hiking Gear...

Up till now I didn't have to replace some hiking gear that has either been worn out or that I never bothered to replace after moving back from the States. Daisy was just too old to take her for long hikes. And the stuff I had was doing just done for day hikes. But when Gina came into my life, everything just changed. I knew I had to replace the hiking stuff at some time. But at first Gina and I were still getting used to each other and than my schedule was busy with preparing for 2 exams. So to make a long story short. Replacing the hiking gear never happened. But with my cost calculation exam almost done it was definitely time to replace that hiking gear. And I was planning to take Gina for a well needed hike to let all the excess energy out. So I ordered some worn out stuff online. And today it arrived in the mail. Of course the Austrian Postal Service was suppose to deliver it. But they never even bothered to ring the door bell. Instead they just out a notice in my mail box, that I could pick up my package at the local post office the next day. And that just didn't make me a happy camper.

Especially since I was home all day long. But there is nothing you can do about it. So I got it today after work. Ss you can see I replaced my drinking system, my first aid kit and my head lamp. The first aid kit is pretty much straight forward and there's nothing special to it. With the drinking system I was going for a 3 liter water bladder. Just seems to be a good choice long hikes  and long distance hikes. And I do think this drinking system will come especially handy during hikes in Austria's Limestone Mountains. But of course it still has to pass it's first practical test. The same is true for my new headlamp. It's a Petzl headlamp in the middle price range. Guess using it the first time at night will tell if it was the right choice. But of course I will always have a regular water bottle with me, since I don't trust the water bladder by 100%.
And once the first long hike or multi-day hike is done I will post a review about the new gear.

Taking my Cost Analysis Exam...

Today was the day that I was going to take my cost analysis exam. Of course I didn't get the best sleep. Had some odd dreams of cost analysis. But of course I got up in time. Took Gina for her morning walk. After that I had breakfast. Then I got to get ready. But turns out that I was a little quicker than I expected to be,  because I still had about 15 minutes to kill. Spent them chilling with Gina on the couch. When she saw me leave she was not exactly a happy camper. Got to WIFI with about 20 minutes before the exam was going to start. I like to be early and have time to relax. Met up with a couple of students I was taking the class and the exam with and we killed the time just chatting. About 5 minutes before the exam started we walking in the classroom. Found my place and listened to the usual introduction. Then they gave us the exercises. I looked them through, and 3 of them were pretty much straight forward. 1 was a little more difficult and than there was the chapter with the theoretical questions. The first thing I did I went trough the theoretical questions, because these are some cheap points, that you definitely don't want to give away. I think I did fairly good on those. Although there were some questions that I just was guessing.
Then I started with the 3 practical exercises that were pretty much straight forward. And I went trough them in fairly decent amount of time. Good thing was all 3 of those exercises I had been practicing one last time on Monday. As it turns out that came in quite handy. I'm pretty confident that those 3 examples are correct. By that time a little less than about half the testing time had passed. I then went on to the example I wasn't sure about. I think I did get the first half of the question right. The second part of the question is wrong. At least I think so. At some point I think there is a failure in  my starting equation. But I still did write an result down. I gave myself another 15 minutes to come up with a better starting equation, but didn't get anywhere. So I decided to leave the results for that particular question as it was. Checked again the theoretical questions and the other 3 examples. But I was fine the way it was. So I handed my work over to the testing commission, and that with still 1/2 hour testing time left. Took my place in the lobby and waited for 2 of my class colleagues to finish. We talked for about 20 minutes about the test. And we're all confident that we should have at least a passing grade. When I calculated my points it was clear that even in the case I don't get any point for the example I was having issues with, I still should have a passing grade. After that we said our good beys and headed into work. Unfortunately I won't find out till July 7th if my feeling about my grade was right or not.

KORE in a Box...

Well, after having taken off an week from work to study for my exam in Cost Analysis I put in about 120 hours of studying time. It means that I was spending about 8 to 10 hours a day studying for my exam. Poor Gina. This didn't do anything for. But she was a good sport and chilled under my desk or on the couch for most of the time. For being such a young and energetic dog she was doing really awesome. During this week I went through the practical exercises twice. And there are 70 exercises. With some of them I was doing better. And others really were a challenge to me. Today I went on final time trough those exercises I was having problems with. And I think I'm somewhat prepared to take my exam tomorrow. But I'm still not as prepared as I would like to be. Therefore I would have needed one more week to do at least one additional pass through all the exercises. But of course there is such as thing as over preparing for an exam. After I was done today I really couldn't see anything that has even remotely to do with cost analysis.
The one thing I couldn't believe how tired you can get form working all day with your head. During that last week I was mentally exhausted in the evening. I really didn't want to watch TV. I couldn't decide what I wanted to eat. just grabbed the next best thing out of the fridge. After learning I just wanted to chill with Gina on the couch. So, yes Gina in I did get to spend some quality time together. The pic you see is the result of all the practical exercises I've been doing last week. I really hope tomorrows exam will be going fine.

I passed Economic Calculus...

Well, today was going to be the day, that I would find out the result of my Economic Calculus exam. Unfortunately, they don't release the results before 3 pm. So it really is a waiting game. Wasn't exactly helping me while preparing for my next exam. I knew one thing if I should have not a passing grade I would have to go to WIFI to look at my exam and figure out what went wrong. But that was something that really didn't fit into my learning schedule for my exam in Cost Analysis.
So finally 3 pm came around. I jumped online and logged into my WIFI students account and there was the result. I passed the exam with 75% and that makes it not only a passing grade but I passed it with a C. I was very, very happy about that.
Talked to my friend Dali who had been taking the exam together with me. Unfortunately he didn't pass. He told me that he looked at the exam sheet at WIFI and that quota of people not passing was 60%.
Passing that exam really made my day and gave me well needed boost while studying for my Cost Analysis exam.

A new iPod...

Well, today I decided it was time to treat myself to a new iPod. I had already decided that I was going to go for an iPod Nano. That was the model that would be fitting the current situation best. Not that I was getting tired of my old iPod Classic. the size of it never bothered me and I love the big hard drive. But the thing is I don't get to use it as often as I would like to. Since Gina came into my over the XMAS holidays it turns out that she is very reactive to outside noises. And having my big iPod playing the dock while I'm away keeps her much more relaxed. So effectively Gina has commandeered my iPod.
But with my Cost Analysis exam fast approaching I really needed a new iPod to listen to all the theory stuff. For me that's an easy way to learn theoretical stuff. And having a MacBook Pro it was pretty much a given that I was be getting a new iPod. Just love the integration between MacBook Pro, GarageBand, iTunes and iPod.
So today after work I headed over to Vienna's 6th district to McShark. Since we don't have Apple Stores we have to deal with Apple retailers. And best of all the subway stops just at the store. Got there and of course I knew exactly what I wanted. I had a little time to look around at the stuff and it's always fun. Some of the stuff would be fun to have, but is just way too expensive as an addition to my MacBook Pro. I grabbed on of the guys there told him what I wanted and with very little time I was out of the store and back on my way home. First thing I did was connecting the iPod to my MacBook and check if everything is in working order. Of course it worked without a hitch. But I still couldn't get over the fact how small the Nano is compared to my old iPod Classic. Next I started up my GarageBand and recorded the next installment of Cost Analysis and transferred all my professional stuff to the Nano. Now everything is ready to go. That's the way technology is supposed to work!

Catching a Scam Artist...

Well, I've been talking with this guy online. Not sure how he found me to begin with. But being a "partially" good guy I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Of course in the back in my head there was always the feeling that this might be an scam attempt. Not that this would have been a new territory for me. So you basically lean back and watch where the journey is going. At first there was not much to raise my suspicion. It's the usual chit chat when you try to get to know each other. There were a couple of instances that did raise my suspicion. If you try to scam someone you usually do that from a position on an equal. But putting yourself in a very vulnerable position was a new way to do things.
This chit chatting went on for days. Nothing particular odd about that. But during that time I realized a certain change. The chit chat became less of a conversation and more of a question and answer game. This was for me the first red flag. But of course it could have been that the person in question just isn't good in keeping a conversation going. A couple of days later I realized a few other odd things. I f I ask any gay man I know the question "when did you come out of the closet", I get a clear answer. Either the time or they say they are still in the closet. But having to ask the question twice and not getting an answer, was quite suspicious. I had to rephrase the question in order to get an answer. That was the second red flag. At this point I really was interested to see where that was going and how the scam was supposed to work.
It didn't take long for the next red flag to occur. Suddenly the gay persona changed completely. There was this sudden change for a proud and self-sufficient gay man to basically a good christian wife, who just wants to please his man. This is a really step change to be taken seriously. And actually very unattractive. When I asked the guy what he was working, I was being told he worked part-time in construction. I found that somewhat hard to believe. Especially with having a certain disability. This just didn't go together for me. And his working schedule didn't quite match either, at least not considering the time zone he was supposedly living in.
I still wasn't quite sure how the scam should be working. I had an idea, but thought this would be really a bold move. So having become a little too suspicious I did a little checking. The first thing that didn't match the story was the phone area code. The code provided was a code from upstate NY and by his own account he had never ever been there. So I asked him about how he met his last boyfriend. Well lets just say the story I was being told was just odd. I've dated many guys and I have dated guys with disabilities in the past. But the way this guy allegedly met his Ex...well it just doesn't happen that way.
With that many red flags I did what an accountant does best. I applied basic accounting techniques to the situation at hand. I didn't let myself get emotionally involved. I just asked the question what can be substantiated. So I did a little checking. Regardless who you are, as soon as you use social media, you're leaving an electronic footprint. And the footprint that could be substantiated was very slim. To put it another way it was barely existent. The FB feed was very short, and of all gay man I know on FB nobody uses his FB in that odd of a manner. So, I was pretty much convinced that he was a scam artist.
The next thing I was told was of a personal nature. And that story was so ludicrous it was beyond anything I had ever heard. And of course it was something you can very easily find proof of. And no there wasn't any mention of that incident.
So finally came that day with the scam attempt. It was after my cost analysis class and the guy pro probably thought it would be a good idea to start the scam attempt. He was getting bad news on the phone. And just said to Gina now someone had a bad accident or needs to have emergency surgery and he needs money. Apparently I've become such a powerful Gay that I can read minds. :)
Of course his mom had to have an emergency operation and she was the only member of his family left and he needed to come up with 2 Grand. I just asked him where his mom was supposed to have that surgery. And she was supposedly having it in a country where I know for a fact that they do have a public health service. And all operations, meds and hospital stays are being paid for by the government. I told him flat out that he was a liar. Since this story doesn't make sense to begin with. Then he tried to play the same game with the meds and again it was an easy task to tell him that this pure nonsense. After that, and I really was waiting  for that, he tried to play the religious card. That was even more funny, since playing the religious card on an Atheist will never ever work. Then he got mad and told me he had nothing to say to me anymore. And I told him not to get mad at the guy who caught him in an scam attempt.
I really thought that would have been the end of it. The very next day told me that he sold all his jewelry, routed the money abroad and his mom did have emergency surgery in time. I just had to call him out on it and tell him that this is very unlikely in the time frame he had provided. After that I never heard a word again.
What lesson can be learned from that never ever try to scam an accountant. And this story will surely make a great anecdote when hanging with friends.

Economic Calculus Exam...

Today was the day that I had to take my Economic Calculus Exam. I really wasn't nervous about it. As I was convinced that I was prepared properly. And best of all The last day I looked at the subject at hand was on Sunday. That rarely ever happens. Got to WIFI with about 20 minutes to spare. Really like not having to stress myself before taking an exam. I met a guy there that I had been taking tax law together with and we passed the time just be chatting with each other. Didn't take long for us to be let into classroom. After a couple minutes of explanations how the test data file was setup it was time to start with the test. There were 7 exercises to complete 5 of them were easy and pretty much straight forward and I had no difficulties with them. Exercise number 6 gave me a little difficulty. I think that a part of exercise 6 was right with the second answer I'm not so sure. The calculation of amortization I was having issues with. This was the case in class and it turned out I was having those issues again during taking the test. And finally Exercise number 7 with the linear function. I was having some issues with that. Those functions are just not my thing. They're just absolutely illogical. I was having issues with it while learning and I think that I messed this exercise up. I was done with the test 15 minutes before the testing time was over. And I left my answers the way I put them first. I walked out of the classroom and waited for my former class colleague to finish. While waiting for him I chatted with 2 guys I had taken economic calculus together and they were having issues with the amortization and linear functions as well. On the way to the subway my class colleague and I chatted a little about each others work before having to head in opposite directions to get to work. If my feelings are an indicator, I should have at least a passing grade. But unfortunately I will have to wait to find out the result till June 25th.

Hike and a Date...

Well, today I was having a Date. Have been chatting with this guy on and off for a over a week. Today we decide to meet for a date. It's not like we were living close to each other. He's from Carinthia and that's about 250 miles form Vienna. And this guy doesn't exactly fit my usual dating age bracket. But we seemed to get along in the chat just fine. He was visiting Vienna anyways so we decided to meet for a date. Of course it had to the hottest day of the weekend with temps in the low 90's. So meeting in the inner city for coffee wasn't the best option. After all we wanted to see how well we would be getting along and I was definitely going to bring Gina. After all if Gina doesn't like a guy a data and anything beyond that is not going to happen.
The best idea I could come up with is to meet at Danube Island and take a stroll along the river Danube to get to knew each other in person. This would give Gina the opportunity to cool off in the Danube. We decided to meet around 4 pm at the subway station. In retrospect I should have gone with my instincts and moved the timetable to 6 pm as temps were more comfy at that time. But I went along with the timetable and boy was it hot. Good thing there was a little breeze going, that made it easier to deal with the heat. Temps were still in the 90's and with a fairly amount of humidity. And that's a bad mixture. I don't mind dry heat, that's why SoCal heat never bothered me that much, but humidity is an entirely different story. So my date, Gina and I went for a stroll along the river Danube. Gina was quite hot. So I let her fairly early cool down in the water. It's just fun to watch. This dog is really kind of a "water dog". She is so different from Daisy, who used to be water shy. Gina goes into the water up till her belly is in the water and of course she had to drink out of the river and after that she got busy with cashing waves made by boats passing by. It's definitely fun to watch. After Gina had her fun time we continued our hike. After about an hour we decided to stop at one of the Cafe's and decided to sit down and have a drink. We were both sweaty Gina was quite hot. She found herself a place under the table and was very thankful that I brought her transportable water bowl and she really took advantage of that. That's what good doggie daddies do. We ordered two Radler. And they really hit the spot. The waiter brought Gina a big bowl with water. Very nice of them to do that. And boy was this waiter some tasty dish. All things considered it definitely would have been fun to take that dish home with me.
We continued out chat, but I got the feeling that we just weren't a good match. It's not that we didn't like each other, but we're just a little too different and like to do different things. And neither of us is really willing to make big compromises. We both knew it but we didn't exactly speak it out loud. It's kind like an unspoken code between gay men. We said our good bey's at the subway station and we did say to keep in touch and see where things would be going. But we both knew that's just a "social" convention and has very little to do with the actual truth.
Although this date went basically nowhere, it was still fun and Gina did have a good time in the Danube.