karaoke misgivings

This is gonna be a short one since I have to go meet me droogs for a ride back to the ‘burbs in 20 minutes. I’m in my favorite place for Internet – Café Culture, downstairs from the International House – it’s got free WiFi for the price of an espresso. And there are a lot of internationals coming through here. It’s big on the expat scene. All 500 of us.

Last night I went to the company meeting. They spent 2 hours or so going through PowerPoint – they’re reorganizing the firm. Then they made a big announcement – they have a new client, an Icelandic pension fund. They busted open some (rather bad) strawberry champagne and everyone toasted. It was fun, although I felt lost and alone during the 2 hours of Icelandic talk. After that they had a BBQ and beers, and then at 10 or so they broke out the karaoke. I felt obligated to do it since I felt like I needed to prove myself, so I sang “Interstate Love Song” by Stone Temple Pilots, and then later I did “Let Her Cry” by Hootie.

Anyway people were very nice to me, and I think I made some new friends, although it’s very hard to remember people’s names that you’ve never heard before. I need a cheat sheet.

Today has been a slow day. The weather is still gorgeous, I know it’s not going to last. I went down to the bar with Thorgeir, he’s Heida’s dad. He’s a tough guy – electrician, beer drinker, soccer watcher, and one of the top 4 Icelanders in darts. He’s a badass dude… he bought me a couple of beers and explained to me how the Icelandic Darts Committee has changed the selection rules for competing internationally. So he’s boycotting this year, along with the other 3 top players. Usually he goes to England to compete in the international championship.