[Photos taken 24 – 30 September 2022, posted online 27 May 2023. We have clear skies for a bit for the first time in what feels like three weeks or more. May’s been weirdly wet and windy…]
When I resigned at the end of July, I fully expected to keep working there for three months (in Iceland you get three months of salary if you’re fired, and also can be asked to work three months after resigning) but as projects got finished it seemed silly to start doing new things.
So, we came to an agreement that my last day would be Friday 30 September, or about a week after the much-covid-delayed annual ball!
Saturday 24 September 2022
On our way to Marel’s annual ball!
The lady has makeup and jewelry!
Our photographer.
We began at an Innovation pre-party held in the same place we hosted Bjarki’s confirmation parties. Since then the room had changed owners and been modified.
Nibbles!
After mingling, buses were waiting to transport us to the ball.
The ball was held in our backyard (so to speak). This astro-turfed soccer hall is regularly made into a party-hall by putting in a hard floor, and lighting rigs.
An army of waiters delivered food to the tables.
I’ve waited for soccer practices to end in this usually rather drab area more times than I can count. Pretty cool what a little bit of decorating can do to a space.
They’d also brought in white inflatable couches!
Back in the hall itself the show was just getting started! GDRN came and sang while we ate.
The entertainers were the usual suspects, first up post-dinner were Páll Óskar and his glittery dancers. All the artists that night were super-seasoned pros!
Action! Everybody was very ready to party!
Yours truly.
Closer up.
Taking a quick ear-break in the white room.
Next up were more seasoned pros! I was fascinated by all the gear.
Individual mikes.
The written plan for the evening. This got removed when somebody noticed me taking a photo of it…
Happy times!
Very pretty helical antenna!
Happy dancing going on.
Happy I wasn’t on the cleaning crew.
Eyþór came and did some belting. I’m pretty sure some of the singing artists spend Saturday evenings getting taxied around the capital area, singing 2-3 songs per venue. The band was really the only constant.
Birgitta doing a turn, with sparkles!
Surprisingly, no guards around the fireworks! Very Icelandic.
Around 11:30 pm we called it a night, went outside and got a complimentary hot dog, before Anna came and drove us home.
Sunday 25 September 2022
The following morning I was back on my bench at the café (where I’m sitting as I’m writing this), but much to my dismay, my computer screen started glitching again after having magically gotten better a couple of months before.
The little shrubs seemed to survive me chopping them down from big shrubs earlier that spring.
Emma had a question about some yarn, which I used as a catapult to finally detangle this epic mess, from when Anna was Emma’s age.
Progress!
Emma with her headphones and phone.
Monday 26 September 2022
Fall colors outside Marel, as I was about to enter in through one of the side doors.
Gymtime! That’s 80 kg, raised.
The nights had gotten dark enough for the aurora to be visible.
Tuesday 27 September 2022
Anna’s twisted ankle kept bother her, so to the physio she went. For a while, Anna and myself went to the swimming pool 2-3 evenings per week to do exercises in water.
Driving past an ooops!
Pretty ok times for 5×150 m rowing machine sprints.
Wednesday 28 September 2022
The traffic around Marel had gotten so bad, that I began leaving at 3:30 pm just to avoid traffic. It didn’t help that the extra turn-lane that had been built a few weeks before remained closed for no apparent reason.
Emma in her art-corner under the stairs.
That day’s art.
Siblings on the sofa.
Friday 30 September 2022
Arriving on my last day.
Saying goodbye to the beautiful cafeteria.
My group went out for a good-bye lunch.
It’s hard to leave such excellent people! But, I’d gotten too comfortable after my 8 years at Marel, and it was time for a new challenge.
The view from the restaurant.
Apparently, the party budget was super-bloated after Covid, so I got a massive send-off!
The Marel kitchen did its thing.
So nice!
There were speeches, plural!! I was a bit weepy and speechless at the end.
Gifts!
By 6 pm I was all packed up, and it was almost time to go.
Ironically, Anna’s university student association was visiting Marel that afternoon, so I went to the cafeteria to say hi and bye to her.
Sigh. Leaving is hard.
And that was it. No more Marel. At least for a while.
