You gotta love 'em

Clients, that is. After adding more than two weeks leeway at the tail end of a project I'm working on, I booked a short holiday in Tenerife so that Bea could see her family and we could unwind a bit. Safe enough? I thought so too, but now it seems that - because my client has failed to meet all his deadlines (his deadlines) for document approval and sign-off Bea will probably have to go on her own.

I know I've been moaning about work a lot recently, but this kind of thing fucks me right off. I could remain resolute in my determination to go, but if I do it will probably cost me about £2000 in respect of missed days when I'm needed over here. I'm tempted to cut off my nose to spite my face, but the truth is I doubt that I will. I can't write off that kind of money - I wish! - and I'll probably have to end up biting the bullet and smiling politely! (Update: he's been a star, and has insisted in reworking the programme around my holiday! There is a god)

To make myself feel better I went for a walk on my way back from a meeting yesterday, and took a photo of "The Gherkin", one of my favourite buildings in London . It's actually in the City - that's the financial district that originally encompassed precisely one square mile (although the boundaries long ago extended and have since become slightly blurred). Anyway, Wikipedia's take on the building itself...

30 St Mary Axe is a building in London's main financial district, the City of London. It is widely known by the nickname "The Gherkin", and occasionally as The Swiss Re Tower, Swiss Re Building, or just Swiss Re, after its previous owner but principal occupier. It is 180 m (590 ft) tall, making it the second-tallest building in the City of London after Tower 42, and the sixth-tallest in London as a whole. The design is by Pritzker Prize-winner Lord Foster and ex-partner Ken Shuttleworth and Arup engineers. It was constructed by Skanska of Sweden between 2001 and 2004.

It looks a lot more impressive when you click on the image and see it in it's true size. Actually, here's a much better one, although I didn't take it. It's the view from Bishopsgate, in case you're interested :-)