20 cm

Am dead tired after this day, but have to blog about this. A new song, something I haven't heard before. My (male) friend sorta smiled. I couldn't stop laughing. Why? Well, you get the picture. If you're a woman i.e.

Got the question what the ideal size would be. Hell, heck if I know. I can only answer for myself. And that answer is 16-18. But then again, I'm a woman. Feelings count too.

Ah jeez it's late, and I'm off to bed. More tomorrow. Maybe.

Wheelchair

F...I need a wheelchair after walking around in new high heels all day! And as it turned out I did have to do some serious walking. First 10 min from tram station and 10 min back. Then another 10 min from train station and return. Aaaaouuuuhhh!

Pressure pain and blisters. Next time I won't be fooled to buy cheap again. Good thing I'm not so animal friendly, since it'll be 100% leather next! Perhaps I'll even be smart enough to walk them in before having to use them for a serious purpose :)

Article

Was just reading an article on heavy drinking. Scared the shit out of me so that's it! After tonight no more fuckin' reading for me :)

Language

Interesting. The other day I checked the languages that you visitors speak. Today I get a whole other pic. Hmmm. The thing is I just don't know which period the stat's are from, but being the bean-counter type I know by experience that stat's always lie :)...nevertheless interesting:

Dubbing

Have said it before, and say it again: George Clooney is not fluent in German! Flatmate had watched "Oceans eleven" the other night (when he couldn't sleep from jetlag) and tonight coming home he wanted to see "Oceans twelve". But since he was tired he insisted to watch it in dubbed German.

I tell ya. It is weird to hear a movie with Brad Pitt and George Clooney amongst others speaking German. And the Z-Jones woman for that matter. Pitt and Z-Jones having an intimate moment in the beginning of the film. In German. PULEEEEZE! There's a lot to be said about ze Germans, but I don't think romance is one of them :)

PS. Mind you, not sure my friend is appreciating it either, since I can hear snoring from the sofa :)

Shoes

As said, was shopping yesterday. Am having a meeting tomorrow, and thought that getting some new hot clothes would be a good idea. And shoes. Yesterday, everything was kinda easy. This evening though, I thought I’d try on which pair of shoes I’d wear tomorrow. Oh dear. Seems like feet have swollen since yesterday. But then again, feet always do get bigger in the evening so am sure tomorrow morning they’ll be nice and small again :)

Why worry beforehand? Because if you do, you tend to have to worry twice. Before it happens, and when it happens. If you don't worry, and it does happen, you only have to worry once. If you don’t worry, and it doesn’t happen...you get my drift.

PS. Don’t worry, be happy :)

Blogspot

The domain I blog on. Which as I understand it is owned by Google. Interesting. For the second day in a row blogspot is being "funny". When I try to post, it tells me it doesn’t and then it does. And vice versa. And everything takes forever.

Also, a couple of days ago I posted two questions to the blogspot people. None of them have been answered as of yet, despite the fact that both of them were very diverse and not related. Reminds me of Cablecom here in Switzerland. All mouth and no trousers as the British say. Meaning lotsa talk, but very little action (compare NATO blog item).

One last time

They just posted a message from space (live): http://spaceblog.xprize.org/

You just gotta see it. She speaks and her necklace keeps on floating...it's amazing!

Achilles

This poor guy was armored big time, possibly thinking he was invincible. And guess what? Well, you know what. He got killed. Shot with an arrow in his achilles heel. Therefore the expression in case you didn't know where it came from.

So, everybody has at least one weakness. News? Not really. And I have many :)...have just chosen not to share them. That's the privilege of my friends to discover :)

PS. Got to think about it since flatmate has injured his achilles.

Again, for the serious people:
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/achilles.html

Beautiful

"My trip is coming to an end but my dreams have just started." Pure poetry. Said it before, but have to say it again. She writes beautifully from space. If you haven't already, check out:

http://spaceblog.xprize.org/

Romeo and Juliet

Had reason to think about this story today. It is lovely, but sad. And a bit stupid I must say. Who in their right mind would like to kill themselves for a man? Or woman for that matter.

Nevertheless it is romantic and sweet. But somehow I doubt that my Zürich Romeo and Juliet friends will make it to the tomb (which is a good thing!). Only together for a short while and already having "problems". Mind you, I'm sure it has nothing to do with her being 19 and he 10 years older :).

For the serious people reading this blog I attach the link to the “real” R&J (if they ever existed!):
http://www.online-literature.com/shakespeare/romeo_and_juliet/

Course

Going back to this scheisse (shit) course tomorrow...well I guess today technically. But not in my new clothes. Couldn't be arsed to unpack them today. Promised flatmate to do a show tomorrow evening. Instead we both got home about the same time and opened a bottle of wine (gee, there's a surprise).

PS. Scheisse was the first Swiss word I learned. Mainly because it was so frequently used.

Things you didn't know...

about Switzerland:

"a major international financial center vulnerable to the layering and integration stages of money laundering; despite significant legislation and reporting requirements, secrecy rules persist and nonresidents are permitted to conduct business through offshore entities and various intermediaries; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin".

Source: https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/sz.html

PS. Money doesn't smell, but some sniff it.

Personal shopper

I can recommend it. Especially when it's a friend and it cost you no more than a drink or so :)

Did the shopping today that I mentioned earlier. Basically I sat down in the fitting room, waiting for clothes to appear and to try them on. Gosh, is it dirty in these booths! Got a sneezing fit from all the dust.

And I must admit that she did a good job. It cost me much less than expected, and was relatively painless, even though I'm friggin tired after the 3 hours we spent doing it.

Only two mistakes have been spotted so far. One of the three pair of shoes turned out to be brown instead of the black I thought I bought. I blame the light in the shop (or perhaps somebody didn't look in the box?...I'm sure it cannot have been me).

The other mistake is more questionable. My shopper got me one of these business-type-looking short jackets that she said would go nicely with a skirt or a pair of pants. Obviously with a top under. My gay friend told me later that it was too tight. "You want them to listen to you when you do a presentation, not for them to look at your boobs, don't you?". Hmmm. How's about both? Seriously, of course I want them to listen to me, but my boobs will be there anyway. Should I hide them?

Opinion, anyone?

Drink

Good thing I have more friends, because just after the dumping incident, I got a phone call inviting me for drinks this evening. Hurray!

Dumped

I'm tellin' ya. Was suggesting to meet up this afternoon for a drink with a guy I know. He turned me down, based on that he had a washing machine waiting for him at home. Oh gee, does wonders for my self-esteem :)))

Report from space

Anousheh writes beautifully from space:

"I always like to see the big picture before deciding or worrying about the pieces. I wish the leaders of different nations could do the same and have a world vision first, before a specific vision for their country."

and

"You cannot see any borders...you cannot tell where one country ends and another one starts...the only border you see is the border between land and water."

Newton?

Camera

When I posted the pie charts of visiting stats yesterday I thought they looked a bit funny. Like thin. And today I read about this thinning camera. They make photos you can adjust to make you look thinner, fatter, taller or whatever you like. I mean, the technology has surely been there for long. You just have to look at the famous people's pictures. They are all "adjusted" to look better.

Here's one example:
http://news.com.com/Digital+cameras+focus+on+revised+reality/2100-1041_3-6110277.html

If I wasn't such an honest person, I would demand one immediately :)

I just don't think you understand

So, flatmate came back after flying a long time, and waiting for me to come back from an increasingly boring (if possible) course to open the door. He wisely enough didn't bring the key.

The thing I don't understand is if you spent a whole month or more playing in a band every day, why you don't want a break from that type of music. Or any music. One of the first things he did was to proudly present about 10 cd's and dvd's with recordings from the band's performance. Which he promptly wanted to show me.

So here I am, watching recordings from the US. Not watching as such, more like blogging and listening at the same time. Am woman, can do that. And it's the same type of music I'm listening to every week in Zürich :)

Guess I just don't have to go out anymore. Can stay and home, have a drink and listen to "live" music :)

PS. Put flatmate to bed. After the meal and two glasses of wine + jetlag he was falling asleep standing. A bit like a horse really, but since one of his feet is out of order I guess more like a flamingo...

Blogurl

Indeed an interesting new word. Was searching my own blog for an item and when I did this word was displayed. Since I couldn’t remember (if I ever knew it) I looked up url (you know link). It means "Uniform Resource Locator". Not to be confused with URI (Geller i.e. :).

If you’re interested in the extremely boring origin (with text I cannot understand) go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URL. But I would be grateful if you wouldn’t share whatever insight you have on the subject with me.

The wounded warrior

So the flatmate is back from the US of A. He arrived this afternoon. Wounded. Can hardly walk. Why you ask? I did.

Turns out he fell off the stage :)...at which point I of course thought he was drunk (who wouldn't?). He claims there was water and he slipped. Told him he should've asked the employer to pay for the doctor's bill and the operation the doctor suggested. He's not the type. So he's now been in pain for a week, and can hardly walk. Guess Europeans have more endurance (and less business/money sense) than the yankies.

PS. Made chili güggeli, and this time we shared the meal :)

Xenophobia

Xenophobia = extreme dislike or fear of foreigners, their customs, their religions, etc.

Interesting article about the Swiss and their xenophobia and hypocrisy apropos the vote against asylum-seekers and foreigners.

http://www.nzz.ch/2006/09/26/eng/article7100849.html

Space

This is soooo cool!

http://spaceblog.xprize.org/

More stats

And the languages you speak! Well, I guess most of you speak English...otherwise you wouldn't be on my blog :)

Stats

These stats show where you visitors come from. Interesting!

Unchain my heart

Again this evening, the band was in a very good mood. Mostly to do with them playing the last evening. But it was funny when they were joined by some other musicians. Normally bands are kinda weary about allowing other musicians on the stage. Something about pissing in territories, you know the drill (if you're a woman).

But tonight, this man entered the stage. He looked like a geek. You know, stripy shirt, bald-ish, old-ish, not very tall, in short not very attractive (at all). And sang rock'n'roll like nobody else. Wow! Seems like a lot of people surprise me lately!

Me being prejudice? Guess so.

Satisfaction

It was one of these evenings. One of the girls was out of lighters, so I found her one. She stuck it down her cleavage. And then it proceeded down her body. At which point she indicated that it was too small to give her pleasure anyway. Another girl picked up a pen at the table, at which we all laughed. Size matters, right? (Surely it was a man inventing the saying that it doesn't :). Another one picked up a bottle, which we all could kinda agree with. But when yet another one picked up the ice-cooler we cracked up. Enough is enough, right?

So later, when the band was playing "I caaaaan get noooo ssaaaaatisfaaaaction", we couldn't stop laughing. Sometimes life is easy.

Outing

So was out tonight. Met some people (well, what did you expect?). Asked one of them "so were you out last night?". The answer? "Only until seven". OK, so we're talking 7 am here. Right!

There is this place downtown Zürich which hardly ever closes. Well, according to their permit they have to close for one hour or so for cleaning. But if you know the staff, you're one of them if a check would take place. Which in practice means it's open all the time.

How very convenient for party animals. Not that I'm one of them :)

TI 200 000

Here in Switzerland they still have letters on the car number plates to indicate which canton they come from. In my country we abandoned that about 30 years ago, but I still think it's kinda cute. When you travel by car, it's nice to see where the drivers are from. And yes, I agree, you can spot the Italian and French drivers on km's distance without the number plates, but still.

So this one I saw today. TI stands for Ticino, the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. But the number must've been bought. Or was this person so lucky s/he just got it?

Where I come from it costs about CHF 900 for a designed number plate for 5 years. Somehow I doubt the Swiss has discovered this particular market...?

Yeah

This is a common greeting when you call a Swiss. These days you can see the caller on the phone, and therefore you respond accordingly. I don't know if it's only me but I often (ok 2 people but both Swiss) get the greeting "yeah". And not in a nice-to-hear-from-you-way but in a why-are-you-bothering-me-kinda way.

Not very nice. When you actually make the effort of calling somebody these days I expect it to be welcome.

How do I do it? I have several greeting responses. 1. Hello (but in a nice way). 2. Hello + caller's name (in the same cordial manner). 3. My name (when I cannot see the caller). 4. Why haven't you called before you bastard (reserved for certain people :)...and you guessed right...exclusively men :)

So, ring ring...what's your response?

Hunger strike

Got told off again today. I blog too much. Which means people cannot keep up. But decided to ignore. Yes, of course I can do the blog items in a Word document and post them later, but then what would be the point? A blog is instant. What I think right now. And if you cannot keep up. Well, too bad. So sorry, here we go:

This evening there was a protest march, a demonstration. Their posters (or whatever you call it) said "Hunger strike". Which I thought was a bit odd in one of the richest countries in the world. I was almost getting a bit angry. Until I got the explanation.

It was a hunger strike by the lefties in reaction to an election (that apparently has already taken place!...isn't that typical left?) where the majority wanted to make it more difficult for asylum-seekers to stay here.

This is one of the few times where I sympathize with the left-wing. Not enough to go on a hunger strike mind you, but I for once believe they're right.

Perhaps this is because I'm a foreigner myself, but what's wrong with open borders as long as you don't abuse the hospitality?

Famous

This site has become incredibly famous since one of the "big-brother"-cameras spotted a topless (?) woman. Oh dear. After growing up in Scandinavia with one sauna per family, this is not news. Could it perhaps be the puritan Americans, who is supposedly very family-oriented but screw around just like the rest of us, that think this is interesting?

Still, it's a kinda cool site. And as long as my street is not on it, I'm all for it :)

http://earth.google.com/

Pretty woman

Guess there is no stopping me today. Inspiration flows. But stay cool, I'm going out soon so to give you the time to read and comment. Anyway, listening to Pretty woman right now. It's such a fantastic song to get in the mood for going out. And yes, I know it's Sunday but when I know I have to go to this course tomorrow again, I need something to take my mind off it. Friday I had the mothers of all hangovers, which indeed was a good diversion, but one that I don't really want again so tonight won't be too late.

HAHA! You believed that one? Actually I was kinda serious. Being 18.00 I still am. Let's keep this one open, shall we?

BITCH

Previous item made me think of the bitch model. In case some of you missed it.

Bitch really means Babe In Total Control of Herself.

So now you know :)

SMART

OK, just realized that perhaps not everybody are familiar with the smart model. This is what it stands for (there are a couple of alternatives but more or less this is what it means):

S - Specific

M - Measurable

A - Attractive (Attainable)

R - Realistic

T - Time-oriented (Timely)

It's a model used in most leadership-oriented courses or company internal training schemes. Mainly used for objective-settings.

Feminism?

When we were asked to present our goals in class last week, I presented two. It's a bit like when we were requested to show on a time/%-age scale when we're most active in the day. I was the only one drawing a curve outside the box. Hello Swiss? Wake up and smell the roses. You don't always have to live inside that box.

Anyway, back to the topic. My first goal is to win 1M euro. On the SMART-model it's not very realistic but I figured some sense of humour would fit in. Only the teacher didn't get it. She continued to "preach" that nothing is that unrealistic. "You could always marry a millionaire". X-cuse me? People like her really are a threat to society. And feminism. Don't think she knows what it means. Whatever happened to make a career yourself? Take responsibility. Mind you, since she's the teacher for this (xdfeasröeöhj) course, I suppose there's your answer.

Really sad!

Green

But honestly. Would you have believed that these goodies would've turned red? And since they still haven't, there is still hope I was right :)

Red

I hate to be wrong. When I had a conversation with a friend some weeks ago, I told him that my chili plants were all green. He then said that chilis are always green at first, and then turn red. Since I have seen both green and red chilis in the grocery store, I told him he was wrong.

As it turns out, I was. Judging by one of my five chili plants, where the things have started to turn red. Guess I have to distribute the blame to...eh...don't wanna say it...but...ME!

Blame

Another area where the Swiss and I have a difference of opinion. After working many years having difficulties with printers (yes, we're not exactly friends) I have learned not to print. At all. Well, ok, sometimes you really have to but more seldom than you think.

Guess it comes down to protecting your ass, being able to show that you really did something when questioned. Sometimes years later. But the thing is, if the goal/job/target hasn't been reached/done, what does it matter anyway who was at fault? The only thing that matters then is to do it. To get the job done.

Distributing blame is a waste of time. Still, it's difficult not to :)

Google

I am not a techie. Really not. But when I saw another blog commenting on the visitors, it made me realize that I need something better than sitemeter to measure my precious visitors. Only when I try to sign up I get a message to post this:

thisllnotworkgoogleisshite
scriptsomethingsomethingsomething
la-di-da-di-da-di-da
scriptagainetcetcetc
la-di-da-di-da-di-da

Where the f... am I supposed to copy-paste this? In order for it to work on blogspot (which incidentally is owned by google...as I understand it)?

Anybody? Somebody? Surely not everybody, but hopefully nobody...

PS. When I tried to publish this post, it gave me an error message: "Your HTML cannot be accepted: Tag is not allowed: etc etc", so will adapt the message above. It's just to give you an idea anyway.

Cats

Love'm. Cuddly creatures with an attitude. If I did believe in a previous or later life, I surely would've been a cat. You know soft on the outside, but with claws. Able to walk away with my tail held high when something doesn't suit me.

Sometimes purring, sometimes hissing. That's me people. And the thing is, you never know when I do what :)...typical woman? But of course.

Seriously, here's a website I support:
http://www.romancats.com/

Win

A friend of mine had played the Swisslotto. He then went to a kiosk to check whether he won or not (a strategy I myself apply when I play, since I cannot be bothered to check the numbers on the net or in a newspaper). He was told the winnings were too big to pay out then and there in cash. Imagine his joy!

Guess how much he won? 51 CHF. Apparently the limit for not paying taxes on the winnings is 50 CHF. So he ended up having to pay 30% in tax on his 51 CHF! F...ing Swiss. Sometimes they are just too much!

No shopping

As you know I was planning to do some clothes shopping yesterday. Didn't happen. Something to do with the closing of Autobahn, so that my friend couldn't come and get me. And too late to get on a train etc.

Guess it's just not meant to be. Besides, I hate it anyway but I really do have to have something for this meeting next week. Most of my "business" clothes are dated back to anno 1980-ish, or at best late 90's. HELP!

Menu

Having a party in October. This is the menu I have chosen. Thoughts? Still time to change.

Starter: Bread soup.

This I have never tried but I've been told it's delicious. And it's a local speciality so I figured it'd be nice to have the "go native"-approach included in the meal. Apparently the origin was when there were less excess of food and a soup was made of stale bread. These days it's fresh, and I hope tasty.

Main: Sliced veal "Zürich Style" with potato purée and vegetables.

Was originally served with rösti, which is another Swiss speciality but one that I happen not to like, so changed it to potato purée, one of my favourites. Heck, it's my party, ok?

Dessert: Oepfelchuechli. Which I believe to be some sort of apple cake. The speciality of this place.

In case there will be some funny person who is vegetarian there are alternatives.

Since I'll be having a reception at my place in the afternoon, where lotsa drinks will be served (and some nibbles too...don't want my guests to be plastered by dinner time...that will surely come later :) there will be no starter drink at the restaurant. But a delicious red Chianti with the food and a quite tasty dessert wine (not too sweet). Coffee etc for those who want after.

Mouth watering yet?

Hö

Last week in class there was a conversation in Swiss German. Not that unusual here in Switzerland. But this time somebody was kind enough to ask me if I understood. Not really, only a little. So they tried to explain "hö", which after a while we figured out was hay in English. Why they discussed it is beyond me, but it was funny when one of them added "not the type you smoke, but that horses eat". This coming from a 50+ grey-haired man :)...sometimes people surprise you!

Web

No, not the www but spider web. Seems like spiders are following me lately. Last time I took the boat out they seemed to have invaded. In order to prepare the boat you have to go inside and unhook the cover, meaning sticking your hand outside the boat and unhook little leathery strings that keeps the cover in place. And more than once I stuck my hand into spider web. Yuk!

And yesterday I had a big hairy thing crawling about on the balcony, busying himself doing another web. Good thing I had another big hairy "thing" with me to remove it :)

PS. What a tangled web we weed...

Thoughts

I have many of them. Sometimes when I'm out, I jot them down on a piece of paper and later when home I blog about it. Anyway, just rambling here. Slept a few hours this afternoon, and "had to" go out again. Well, not exactly a chore :)

And tomorrow (well, more like today timewise) I have to go shopping for clothes. This is a pastime I really do hate. Personal shopper? I always thought it was a waste of money. Hello? I could shop myself, right? And somehow it never seems to happen. So it's a good thing I have friends who volunteer. At three o'clock tomorrow we're off.

I still feel wary about the shopping thing, but think we'll have a good time. There was talk about a bar somewhere...;)

Friendgirl

OK, so got told off today. The pic I posted some days ago about the typical girl. She's actually a friendgirl of mine. I didn't want to expose her, so kept it non-personal. Apparently this was not good.

So yes, this is a friendgirl of mine. For the record :)

Question

If I were to start blogging about something else than my life, a specific topic, would you prefer to have it incorporated in this blog or read about it in a separate blog?

Motivation!

http://www.eightprinciples.com/

Proof

I'm up. Awake? Not sure. Feeling great? Absolutely not. Oh f...

Oh dear

Well, since I kinda promised I would come back I don't wanna disappoint you. But to be perfectly honest with ya, I'm kinda drunk. It is 4 in the morning, and at 9 I have to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Ish. So 3 hours of sleep, yey!

Guess tonight went a bit out of hand. After the boat thingie I went home for a shower, and it was kinda meant to be a short evening. Guess u figured out by now it kinda escalated. Anyway, it was fun! Details to be revealed later...

Highway

In an attempt to teach my ex "proper" English I was trying to tell him about 'it's my way or the highway'. He just didn't get it. 'It's my way and the highway' or 'it's my way on the highway'. Well, nobody has ever accused the Swiss of being clever :) (oh dear, may have a few comments on this one...coming to think of it, most of'em don't know what a blog is :)...phew!

Anyway, off now. More later.

Between

So in between all my activities I'm checking my blog. No comments :(...but a few visitors. So just wanted to tell you that I once again went out with the boat on my own. Gosh, I'm good. Navigating, management, social skills (yes, on the lake everybody is friendly and wave), music, and yes some wine. Due to the interference of duty (this f...ing course) I was only able to go out late afternoon. And even later a friend of mine (who worked until six) wanted to join, so I got back and got him. Then we cruised again on the lake.

Only he didn't bring his swim shorts. Hello? Think it was maybe deliberate :)...anyway, since I'm not the prying type I turned around when he was swimming so I didn't see much. Nothing really. Pity.

But it was a nice few hours. Better take the opportunity of every day that is still warm and sunny. And gotta say, it's 21 Sep so not too bad for Zürich this time of the year.

And now, off to Oktoberfest! (I'm telling ya, there is no free time for this busybody :)

Smile

So now I have a shining white smile (well, as good as it's gonna be). Sun is also shining, so after this crap course I'll be out "surfing" (as much as you can with a small engine) the waves on Zürichsee.

And then of course, later, the Oktoberfest again, part II. So beware, this may cause my blog inspiration to flood (haha!).

Dentist

So off to the dentist soon. This afternoon I'll have a nice and white smile again. Only, with my habits of coffee, cigs etc it won't last very long...

Ah well, nothing is forever. Better just enjoy while it lasts.

Morning

I am certainly not a morning person. When I have a day off, like today, I do not appreciate the telephone ringing before noon!

But today when it happened I wasn't angry at all. Friends in other time-zones can call me anytime. Had a 1,5 hour chat with a friend down under, who I haven't talked to in a long time. Waaaah, I miss you girl! What are you doing so far away?

But I understand her. A good job, sunshine all the time, relaxed attitude, close to the ocean. What's not to like?

However, I do prefer Zürich. I really do like it here. Especially today when the sun is shining and I have a day off :)

Kiss-kiss-kiss

This is a habit of the Swiss. When you meet you have to kiss-kiss-kiss, three times (as the clever ones have figured out by now). Every time. Cheek-cheek-cheek. Where I come from we hug (ok, not everybody, but when we know each other). In every country I lived in there are different greeting-habits. Some countries shake hands, others kiss-kiss, yet others kiss-kiss-kiss, and some just hug.

Not sure about my feelings about this. On one hand it's kinda nice to kiss-kiss-kiss, the rest of me says it's a f...ing waste of time. Like tonight when I met 5 guys that I know. I had to do the greeting thing with all of them. Felt kinda weird. What's wrong with just a hug?

This is probably where my prejudice comes in. Spoken like a true foreigner :)...

1,001

I cannot believe this. I have posted 1,001 blog items. Wow! First of all, how did I miss the 1,000 mark? That’s what happen when you (I) don’t pay attention. That’s a milestone, right?

And more readers than I would’ve dreamed of. Yes, I do realize a lot of them are the same. Every log-on counts, but still. I am proud. Of writing, so that people (thanks friends!) come back. Even though I know I have the occasional visitor who is not in my friend-sphere, I know that most of you know me. If I would’ve been the sentimental and emotional type I would’ve said “I love you all”, but since I’m not, I’m just saying THANK YOU!

And please come back :)

Oktoberfest - still

Just a typical girl in Dirndl serving large beers during the Oktoberfest in Zürich :)

08:15

Today I again heard the expression 08:15 (guess these things happen to you when you mix with German-speaking people all day long) and I knew I heard it before and even blogged about it. Only, for my life I couldn't remember what it meant. So did the obvious, searched my own blog. Never would I have expected to learn from myself! OK, so not from myself but from a comment.

This is what it said:

"Herewith the explanation of 08/15 (english version further down):

08/15 lautete die Zusatz-Bezeichnung eines 1915 bei den dt. Truppen eingeführten leichten Maschinen-Gewehrs (LMG 08/15). Dieses MG war aus dem schweren Maschinen-Gewehr (MG 08) von 1908 entwickelt worden. Die Soldaten bezeichneten danach allgemein etwas, das sich als neu ausgab, aber im Grunde schon alt war, als '08/15'.


Annika, this means:

In 1915 a machine-gun was released to the German military. This gun tecnically was based on a gun named MG08 which was developed in 1908. The diffence between both is that the 1915 gun was lighter than the 1908 one. Since the 1915 one was not really a new development the soldiers started to call things which seems to be new but aren't "08/15".

Ze German"

So see, blogging is educating, but since "everybody" does it nowadays it's starting to be 08:15 :)

Hurray

No class tomorrow! This calls for a celebration, right? These days I take any chance (like I haven't before :)?). And on Thursday I fortunately (thought I'd never say this) have a dentist appointment. At 11 am. Which means I can have a sleep-in and only have to show up in class in the afternoon.

Sometimes you have to learn to "always look on the bright side of life", da-da, da-da-da-da-da-da...

Pic

Got such a lovely pic of the Oktoberfest, but due to size (?) I cannot post it. Bugger. Will have to work on my computer skills. It seems like when it's sent to me it's like 2MB, but it cannot be saved like that. It opens in an internet window, and when I save it from there it becomes like 8MB.

I'm sure it's a perfectly easy solution to this, well maybe not easy to me but to a techie?

My Switzerland

For anybody visiting Switzerland here's a link to check out:

http://www.myswitzerland.com/en/welcome.cfm/host/int

Talent

Of course I have one or two. Or so I'd like to think :)...but if there was one talent I could have it would be singing. Being musical, have a singing voice. Wouldn't it be great?

Especially since I love music. Ok so not techno, rap, jazz and probably a few others but most music I like. Classic, pop, rock'n'roll...love it! And if it's live, even better.

OK, so have to think about which talents I do have...will get back on the subject...which may take a while :)

Bare bellies

As you probably have noticed it is very popular these days (since quite some time really, isn't it time to change fashion?) to show your belly. Meaning you have low-cut pants, and a top that not quite meets the lining of the pants.

I have no problem with this, so long as you are kinda thin. I really do not appreciate looking at a "beer-belly", lotsa fat rolling over the lining. And yes, of course I'm jealous of the girls who can do this, without looking kinda disgusting. Which is why cover-up is not a bad idea. Can't somebody tell'm it's not sexy?

Spider

One of the (few?) disadvantages of not having a man permanently with you is obviously insect-related. Walked into my bathroom today, and guess what? The biggest (well, ok not exactly a Huntsman aussie spider, but big for CH) spider was crawling about in my bathtub. Yuk!

So turned on the shower with extremely hot water and flushed it down the drain, then plugged it. HA! Die you bastard.

Guess everybody has a murderous streak in them. Seems like I do.

Awkward

Well not much but a bit. Since I was a good girl yesterday (alco-free and not going out) thought I'd go out this evening. Just for a little while you know. Turns out a friendgirl was out too. And she brought another friendgirl. And then of course I knew some others, so it was fun. Figured a few drinks and some music would make me forget this course I have to attend tomorrow again.

Only, lover boy showed up again. And this time it was more difficult to ignore him, since there were less people. But must say I'm getting good at this. Was able not to look at him once (at least not when he was looking, so eyes never met). Honestly wish he would go away. This is "my" place, not his.

Anyway, had some good chats with the people I knew, and then left. And like Scarlett said: Tomorrow is another day. Only bet she didn't have to attend this course :)

German

Think I posted this one before, but it's hilarious so worth posting again. Check it out!

http://www.rentagerman.de/

Teamwork

Going back to this course tomorrow. Can't say I'm excited about it. Have no clue what's on the agenda tomorrow (there is no real program), but sure it'll be something like teamwork or similar. Where we in groups have to work out what teamwork is, and then present it. Sigh.

Actually, think we are a pretty good team already. It's us against the annoying student and the teacher :)

Global warming

Under the influence

Words that are difficult to say when you had too much wine:

Inevitable
Preliminary
Orthopaedist
Prononciation

Words that are very difficult to say when you had too much wine:

Substantiated
Versatility
Institutionalized
Chuchichästli (Swiss German for kitchen cupboard)

Words that are more or less impossible to say when you had too much wine:

I don't want sex, thanks.
No more booze for me.
Sorry but you're not my type.

Heaven and hell

Lotsa people are religious, and I think I understand why. Think it's the feeling that something is greater than ourselves, since we often feel so small, and "something" would be there to protect us when things go shite.

Sometimes I'd like to be religious, wouldn't it be nice to think that you one day would be able to meet the loved ones who's gone there before you? Only, I'm sure there are one or two I wouldn't meet then, since I have a fair idea where I would end up :)

Actually, think I'd much prefer hell. I think of it as a hot place (think of the barbecues!), with lotsa partying, less boundaries than "upstairs", certainly a hell of (pun intended) a lotta more people and a greater diversity. Quite fun as a matter of fact.

Suppose I could be wrong, it has been known to happen before :)...

Flowers

I got flowers today! Three white roses, they are beautiful. Somebody had been stupid and wanted to apologize. Isn't it great? No way I can stay mad with such a gesture. Am I a sucker or what?

Situation

There was kinda a situation tonight. I was there with the new acquaintance, we talked, laughed, had lotsa fun. And eventually the inevitable happened. I had to go and powder my nose (or have a slash if you prefer).

Walking to the toilet I had to walk through a crowd. And one of them turned out to be lover boy. Remember him? I looked at him, he smiled, I said nothing and just passed him. How cool is that?

Seriously, I just don't wanna mix with people who you are nice to, and then they fuck you around. He's one of them. And guess what? He was alone...oh gee, wonder why?

Pics

Couple of more pics from tonight:

Converted

Funny tonight. One of the guys from the course (who I known all since yesterday!) showed up tonight at my usual place. He's into techno. Wow and hello? But I kinda think he's converted...see for yourself :)

Picture posted with his consent (mind you, he wasn't exactly sober :)

It is time

...to check out the Oktoberfest in town. Actually started yesterday, but as you know I was not in the mood (read too tired from partying :). So off now.

Will be lotsa 1-liter beers, dirndl's and singing I'm sure. Hurray!

Discussion II

And for all of you out there who seemed to be serious about my rambling on in the Discussion item last Wednesday, this is just my thoughts on the subject, ok?

Read in the newspaper yesterday that sex with animals is allowed in Denmark. Provided the animal isn't hurt (hello, how would you know?) Apparently this pony is very popular. Has had 200 customers this year. Assume it was a she :)

Don't know why, but this topic was brought up today in the beer-after-class gathering. Strange really, since we've known each other only since yesterday. Which led to all sorts of "experiences", you know, I've heard this, I was told that type of thing. And when one of the women happened to say: "I was brought up on a farm" we collapsed with laughter. It was just that type of atmosphere.

I don't have any hopes that this class will improve, but my fellow students may make up for it :)

Feedback

I mentioned this class I'm attending, which turned out to be a real bummer. Sounded kinda interesting to start with, but alas, no. Or to emphasize, NO!! NEVER! Rather have a root canal, or chew on my own feet (if only I could) or similar.

So yesterday we learned about feedback. Hello? In groups we had to list what feedback was, why, how and so forth. Yawn.

But having a beer this afternoon with the group some jokes at least came out of it. Put your feedback on the ground...hahaha! Know the tune?

The cool ones

Don't know if you go to courses on a regular basis, but as it turned out, I have. And it's the same in every one of them. You always have an annoying person! One that cannot shut up, and never has anything interesting to say, but cannot wait to share it with everybody else.

Gotta admit though, that it does wonders for the team-building (for the rest). When I half-heartedly this afternoon suggested that we go for a beer after class, there were a lot of takers.

Guess the article in http://www.20min.ch/ (free newspaper) was right. The people who drink alcohol earns 14% more than the non-drinkers. Social skills, ever heard of it?

Urgences

Thought I'd watch some telly, one of the channels that actually broadcasts in English as well as local language (after fiddling about with the telly you can actually choose languages on some channels). Urgences is shown on the French tv and is E.R. Realize that I'm not a tv person anymore, since I do not recognize more than one or two of the characters. And that tasty George Clooney is gone...pity.

Good thing I've got around 300 movies!

Home

For the first evening in a long time I am actually home. Am exhausted from social life (oh poor me!) but what worse is, I started a new course today. Not German class, which would be much needed, but a class in German! No wonder I'm tired. Listening to a mixture of high German and Switzedütch all day. And all of a sudden I feel inferior. The other foreigners in class were MUCH better than me (in German ok?)! Mind you, some of them have been growing up here, but still.

I really do hope that the contents of this class will be worth it, but gotta say, am doubtful after first day. Especially since the teacher did not smile all day long, and without a sense of humour? This can get real ugly...

31

Hey, somebody is reading my blog! Yeah :)

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Discussion

Another interesting discussion today (I'm very happy I got that boat). I really would like to be a gay guy. Think of the possibilities! Many gays I know have been sorta straight to start with. Meaning they could still go for a woman if they were stranded on a deserted island (ok, probability not that big, unless your name is Tom Hanks I guess). I on the other hand, being a too-hetero woman have to take what’s still out there. So let’s look at it in more detail.

There are roughly 6 billion people in the world (give or take:). 3 of them are men. First of all about 10% of them are gay, making 2,7 billion left. Then take away the Africans and the Asians (cultural differences too big) and you end up with...hmm what? Maybe 1 billion left? There are lotsa people in Africa and Asia.

Then you have to subtract the kids and the oldies. Which is another what? Half billion surely.

Then take away the whackos, the ugly ones (ok, I’m stretching it here but bare (bear?) with me), the idiots and so forth. Doesn’t give me a whole lotta field to work, right?

Still, you hear no complaints from me. When I put my mind to it, the guy doesn't have a chance :)...or so I would like to think...

Clarinet

So was out with the boat today with two gay friends. Was kinda hoping to get a glimpse of the goodies, but alas, was not to be today. Why is it that most gay men seem to be hung like a horse?

Anyway, went to my usual place for half an hour on the way home. You know, just to say hello and yeah ok, have a glass of wine :)

When I was there the band was playing, in more sense than one. One guy was playing the clarinet, and the other band member was feeling his balls, at which point the clarinet went into soprano :)...guess you had to be there. But trust me, it was funny. As supposed to the stand-up comedian yesterday. Who (apparently) was funny too, only he spoke Switschedutch only. Which I refuse to understand :)

Letter

Got a letter today. And thought oh yes, this'll solve all my problems. Winning 615K euro, wow! Yeah right. Good thing I've been around the block once or twice (first time I saw this type of letter was the late 80's but back then it came from Nigeria). Another fraud letter. But I guess Switzerland would be a good country to send it to. Once they get their hands on bank acocunt details...see for yourself!

Americans

OK, so not totally true since it was sent to me from a Welsh person, but nevertheless funny. Guess you have to be good in English to appreciate the joke (hey, good thing I am :)


Dear Abby, I am a twenty-three year old liberated woman who has been on the pill for two years. It's getting expensive and I think my boyfriend should share half the cost, but I don't know him well enough to discuss money with him.

Dear Abby, I've suspected that my husband has been fooling around, and when confronted with the evidence, he denied everything and said it would never happen again.

Dear Abby, Our son writes that he is taking Judo. Why would a boy who was raised in a good Christian home turn against his own?

Dear Abby, I joined the Navy to see the world. I've seen it. Now how do I get out?

Dear Abby, My forty year old son has been paying a psychiatrist $50.00 an hour every week for two and a half years. He must be crazy.

Dear Abby, I was married to Bill for three months and I didn't know he drank until one night he came home sober.

Dear Abby, My mother is mean and short tempered. I think she is going through mental pause.

Dear Abby, You told some woman whose husband had lost all interest in sex to send him to a doctor. Well, my husband lost all interest in sex and he is a doctor. Now what do I do?

Sunshine

Today sunny and warm here in Zürich. Excellent day for a boat ride. Perhaps one of the last few summer days, so off on Zürichsee later in the afternoon.

A few friends will come along...so look forward to some music, a good chat, some naked flesh :)...and perhaps a glass of wine?

Naked

Remember the movie about the English guys who got unemployed and started a strip thing? Something like this happened to me today.

Was invited to this television recording session in my usual place. You know, they invite different bands and performers, place a few cameras and about 2,000 spotlights there (hey, I'm still sweating). The audience is instructed when to scream and applaud, that type of thing. Seen this now a couple of times, and it's not really my cuppa tea but hey, anything with friends is good.

However, one of the performing bands had this thing going. They entered the stage clad in long black jackets and hats. Then played a song, and how can I explain this, had a thingie hanging between their legs (I guess two really) which they played with like drums. See the pic and perhaps you'll understand. Semi-funny, but would have been so much better with some good bod's to look at!

Young

Since I had a few requests about what I actually look like, here's a pic of me :)

9/11

Yes, so I did all of this on 9/11. Which is not exactly a party day as such. But guess what? Not everybody was directly affected. But I guess it's one of these happenings in the world where you remember where you were, when it happened. Like people say about the shooting of JFK for example. Like I said an example, since I personally do not remember this particular event.

I do remember 9/11 though (and exactly where I was when I heard about it) and I do have a lot of empathy for what they went through and still go through. But guess what? I have bigger disasters in my life to deal with. Personal things. People close to me.

A bit like when you read in newspapers about disasters (like every day). You have to filter out a bit, otherwise it wouldn't be healthy.

And it's not birthday girls fault that she was born on this date. Besides, here in Europe it's 11/9. Day first, month after. As I understand it everything is bigger in America, but perhaps not always better :) ?

PS. Maybe the analogy wasn't the best, but if you know me...read between the lines :)

Scary

Just realized how much Switzedutch (Swiss German) I have picked up. I can read this "newspaper". Somebody help me! This cannot be good...

Geburtstag-Zitig

For normal (i.e. non-Swiss) people this means Birthday-Newspaper, and for you (ze) Germans out there it means Geburtstag-Zeitung :)

A great idea! Went to a birthday party this evening, and the birthday girls father had created a newspaper for her. Brought tears to some eyes I tell you. One sorta "extra-Mum" couldn't stop crying. I would hope from joy.

Actually it was cool. About his daughter and her life. I learned new things about this friend. That she was "difficult" in school. That she lost a lot of weight (well I knew that since I've seen her), that she has a preference for Austria when she goes on holiday (why, oh why?), that she couldn't sit still long enough for the painter to do her portrait (ok, she was three but still), that she always leave empty cig packs around...etc etc. It was very sweet.

But a bit of a horror when I appeared on a pic in this "newspaper". What exactly did I do to deserve this :) ?

Knabenschiessen

Never mind the spelling here, but this is the afternoon/evening where youngsters shoot each other, or perhaps just shoot. Knaben as I understand it means youngster and schiessen is either shooting or shitting...Nobody has ever been able to explain exactly why this tradition came about. And it's only in Zürich, not the other cantons. I'd like to think it's like Christmas. Nobody remembers why anymore (and please refrain from commenting on that Jesus bloke!), as long as you get presents.

In Zürich reality terms this means party. Again. There is always a reason, isn't it? So this afternoon (after getting rid of 1/2 liter of blood mind you) we went to this amusement field for lack of a better word. A temporary set-up for this weekend. Lotsa rollercoaster stuff, food, candy, you know the drill.

And surprisingly enough it was pleasant. Some spareribs (delish!), a few beers, a stroll around the field, lotsa people. Ran into some friends (one of his, one of mine). Another beer, and then off. It started to be too crowded.

A last thing. It's called Albisgüetli, the place where this is. Imagine hearing this word in Swiss German...not sexy, I tell you :)

Cholesterol

Was donating blood again today. As a special offer (gee, thanks) they invited me to do a cholesterol-test. And I thought, indeed why not.

Turns out to be normal! Excellent since the risk factors are among others smoking (oh dear) and being overweight. Not saying I am per se, but maybe just a tad :)

So fit as a fiddle, that's me!

Tigers of Tamil

These are the guys (paramilitary and quite violent) in Sri Lanka. Meaning they think that shooting people is better than talking and using diplomacy. I do not.

Met one today. Thought he was an innocent, young guy trying to make a living in Switzerland. And of course he is.

Only, when we established the fact that he is indeed in favour of the Tamil Tigers I started to argue with him. He said that he would die for his country. I asked why. He didn't have a good reason, but I pushed it. Said "why are you here then"? "Why aren't you back home fighting"?. He said he wanted to make a good life for himself and that he can earn more money here. Hello? My point exactly.

Asked him what exactly he would fight for. It's not the land. It's the culture, beliefs, people and so forth. But here in Switzerland money talks. And after speaking to people from former Yugoslavia (since I do not have any personal experience of war) I really do believe that all that people wanna do is to have a good life, enough money to survive, to have family and friends.

Politicians have a tendency (ok, not many, only wanna mention G Bush as an example...since he's the most known) to take decisions and start wars. Think I can speak for most people when saying, war is not the solution. Never was, never will be.

And if you disagree, honestly, would you like to be North Korean?

It's a matter of supreme indifference to me

One of the best expressions I've heard. It is soooo arrogant, so "I couldn't give a flying fuck", so...eh....cool!

Where I heard it? In a movie of course.

And I really would use it if I thought anybody in this country would understand :)

15

Had an encounter with a man (boy?) tonight. We spoke. He kinda talked to me more than what would be "normal". Didn't really hit on me, but still. And I'd like to point out that I'm not a pedophile. He is young.

After a while he gave me a note, asking me to pass it on to one of my friendgirls. OK, so then I got why he was hanging about. Gave him a piece of advice "why don't you just talk to her?". And he was acting all shy and "no, I cannot, she's with other people". Hello?

Felt like I was 15 again, you know when you passed messages around for other people and them for you. Asking "do this person have a chance with you?". Pathetic.

Who in their right (grown-up) mind would like a guy who doesn't have the guts to speak directly to you?

20 years

Came across somebody today who had a relationship with a guy 20 years ago. She even moved to another country because of love. Unfortunately the relationship didn't last, but I guess she never forgot him.

She told me she was going to visit his home city, and thought of him. This after 20 years. She looked up the name in the phone book. Turned out to be five of them. She phoned them all. The fifth one was the one.

This happened a couple of years ago. They are now great friends. Families have met, that kinda thing. Isn't it a great story? Wish I was as bold and forward. There are lotsa ex's to contact :)

Sudoku

Congratulations! You solved the Sudoku in 4 minutes, 35 seconds!

Hard puzzles solved: 65
Your average time: 6:38
Your fastest time: 4:35

All time high! Can you tell I'm addicted?

Blond

OK, so this blog is for the benefit of a (possible) new reader. Funny tonight. Went out to see a friendgirl of mine. Remember the one who likes music guys? This one.

So walked into the place (yes, the regular one) and kinda jumped. Both the guys (friendgirl brought them) had blond hair. All of a sudden. Last time I saw them, like half a year ago, they didn't. The question that sprang to mind was "did you get a group discount?"...(like in Ocean's 11) Turns out they did. Haha.

Anyway, was fun tonight. And when this girl grabbed the microphone (with the consent of the band) and turned out to be a whitney-houston-sound-alike, it was even better.

Don't know if one of the guys were interested in her voice...or...;)

Entrance

Where I live we have an entrance door downstairs (yeah ok, nothing unusual there). Whenever you want to enter, you need to ring a bell of somebody who resides in the building.

Recently, and often when I leave the building (ok, not Elvis but me) the door has been open. I always close it. Thinking for safety it's better closed. Only today I didn't. Figured the company on the entrance floor was there, and they would look after whatever.

Wrong. When I got home early this evening the whole entrance door was crashed! I have lived here for 4 years, and nothing like this has ever happened before. Rang the landlord immediately, and he had heard about it half an hour before I phoned. He had already fixed somebody to come and mend it tomorrow.

Why do people do this? The friggin door was open. You have a rage problem? Kick something that won't crash. Join a boxing club. Do something that won't hurt others. Guess it's too easy a solution...

Meeting

After the early wake-up this morning (why, oh why?) decided to take a cruise. Went out on the lake. Brilliant. Cruising, people-watching (there are some odd ones out there I tell you), but eventually got around to reading a book etc.

Late afternoon I had a meeting. And since I've learned not to ever take ice-tea (this is funny since it says no sugar on the package...yeah right) on the boat, I brought some wine. As you do. So had a drink. Had two. And you know. But I have actually learned (empirically, meaning by practice) to park the boat under the influence. Not UNDER under you understand, but after a few. I glide into my anchor place. Effortlessly...it's beautiful :)

So funny thing was, had this meeting with a suit-guy. Small office, kinda apartment-like. He said "would you like something to drink?". I said "yes, a glass of wine please"...he was kinda walking away like he had that on offer. Then I said "I have the wine if you have the glasses". I tell you, took him about 2 sec's to deliver. Two wine glasses. Perhaps i misjudged the situation. Perhaps this office is a drink-until-you-fall-down type of office. On Fridays. I refuse to think he's like that. Remember, it takes one to know one :)

Sometimes people surprise you. Didn't take him for a party animal. So guess learned something new today. Again :)...

PS. And when I said, I don't see any smoke alarms around, he brought an ashtray. Good guy :)

A glorious day

Yesterday turned out to be cloudy so no outing on the lake. Today however holds great promise. Only 8 o'clock in the morning (WHAT am I doing up this early?) and already 18°, sun and blue sky.

And it's Thursday...sorta the early start to the weekend...

Rudolf

Or Rudolph...or Rudolfia...or whatever. Getting a bit paranoid with this language thing. Point is, I just went to the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. Wish I hadn't. It is so strange that after a summer on the lake, being really tanned, I still get red in the face from sun (yes, I know what you think, but it really isn't).

Good thing is, tomorrow I'll look "gargeous" (Scottish pronunciation). Small things to be grateful for.

Like the sexist joke: the husband says "you are ugly" to his wife. His wife responds "you are drunk". To which the husband responds "yes, but in the morning I'll be sober".

Tuesday night

...in Zürich turned out to be great. As you know I was out with the boat. Twice actually. Because one of the friendgirls turned a bit green in the face after a while on the lake ("didn't realize it was going to be so "wavy" "...hello? There was no wind). So had to take her back to shore. Was just too nice weather though not to go back out again. So did.

Came back. Closed up the boat, and was walking to the next bar to use the bathroom and clean my hands (yes, it's kinda dirty business with the boat). Ran into a friend of a friend. And guess what? We went out. As you do.

Turns out Rosenhof (mid of Zürich Niederdorf) had live music, lotsa people, everybody outside...what can I say? I wasn't exactly gonna say "xcuse me people, I gotta leave, I have a washing machine to run" or similar so stayed. As you do :)

Good times. Sure not there'll be many more days this year with this weather so will treasure every one of them. And according to nzz (local newspaper) it'll be 29°C tomorrow. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out where I'll be...

Schön wetter pilot

Or perhaps schönes wetter pilot, or schöner wetter pilot...f if I know the grammatics. The point is that this is an expression I learned today. In English it means "nice-weather-pilot". And I believe it means something like a person who is good in good times, but not in bad. Or when he/she feels good, everything is great. When he/she doesn't everybody else has to go with it.

I just happen to know a few people like that...

Rats

Talking about rats. I saw the strangest thing coming back on the bus this evening. A couple came in. Had a big cage. My friend remarked, "your favourite animal". I leaned forward thinking it was a cat. It wasn't. A f...in rat! And they took it out and cuddled it!

What is wrong with people? You wanna cuddle a rat? My thoughts? Get a life...or at least wait until you get home!

Mit Käse spart man Mäuse

This is a slogan by McDonald's here in Switzerland. Translated straight it means with cheese you save mice. ??? Am told it's a word joke. But I think it's so "clever" that most Swiss I have asked do not understand the funny bit. Guess it's meant to mean how cheap they are. Since "Mäuse" could mean money.

All I can think of is if I'm eating rat meat when dining in McDonald's? Not quite sure that was the meaning of the ad...

It's raining men

Was on the lake today with two friendgirls. Somehow they ended up thinking that my favourite song is "It's raining men". So wonder why :)...but actually it is a fantastic song. Not only the lyrics, but the beat as well. Yeah ok, the lyrics are why I like it so much.

They said they could just see me with an umbrella (why an umbrella?) and the raining men. I would settle for the men...

What a loss

Steve Irwin, the Aussie crocodile dundee in real life, is dead. There are lots of opinions on this man, "he loved the attention more than the animals" that type of thing, but I think that everybody will agree that his passion for animals was real.

I believe he has done more to animal protection, especially of endangered species, than anybody else. What a loss!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin

26°-30°

Weather forecast shows hot and sunny this afternoon. Have a wild guess where I'll be :)...ship ohoy!

Hot

Since I was accused of being over the top on alco tonight I thought I'd have a bite to eat. A sure cure. Only, there was not much in my fridge (apart from half the chocolate cake from yesterday). So got something out of the freezer. Something that's been hiding there for "ages". Heated it up in the microwave, got a movie going and sat down to eat.

Ouch, hot-hot-hot. Didn't actually watch what I was putting in my mouth. A chili! A whole one. Mouth still burning.

Goes to show that I probably would've been better off going to bed...

Quick

Decisions being quick. Love it. Remember my Danish friend. She has already sent me her itinerary. Just love friends who you can pick up where you left off (however long) and then just make a snap decision. Brilliant!

Look forward to see her in October.

PS. I have friends here in Zürich who are slower in responding. The world really is small these days...DS.

Sunday

Went out tonight. I know, but my thinking is that going out on a Saturday is amateur night :). So I went out tonight. Instead.

Had planned to go all the way (ok, not ALL the way, but drinking, partying that type-of-thing). Got kinda told off though. My friend told me I couldn't walk straight when walking to the bathroom. Oh dear. Not good. So decided to go home.

Now, you tell me whether I can still blog? Spelling mistakes? But I will probably thank her tomorrow...

Sofitel

If possible, avoid! This is a hotel chain managed out of France. Yeah you heard right, an oxymoron it itself. The French are not known for managing anything.

I happened to be unfortunate enough having to spend months and months at one of their hotels in Budapest quite some time ago. Mind you, the hotel was ok, but the managing of their bonus point system is not. Had an argument already back then about them charging my credit card for the stay, and not crediting my bonus account. "We ask you to provide us with the original receipt of your stay". Excuse me, you charge my credit card, you have the bloody original receipt already.

So, anyway now I was planning on using it (since it expires next year). Turns out they only pay out for every 20,000 bonus points. I have 33,000 (5,000 have already expired, gee thanks for telling me!). And they pay out in vouchers that then can be used in a Sofitel hotel. And to deliver the vouchers take 20 days. This to me implies that they do not really want you to use the points. At all. Perhaps they do not want customers to come back either. Trust me. I won't.

Early

Weekends are the time to catch up with friends. Called my friend in Dallas today. We had agreed that Sunday is good. She said to call early. So did. And can never figure out how many hours difference it is. It was six. Meaning 6.30 her time. That's friggin early. I thought it was (at least) 7.30. She's an early riser.

Anyway, we had an hour of pleasant talk (as always) catching up. And good thing with wireless. You can pee, go and have a coffee, do everything at the same time speaking to a friend from the other side of the world. Womens prerogative I suppose. Being able to do more than one thing at a time :)

Top Gear

This is a program that runs on BBC Prime here in Switzerland. It's about cars. Have to admit there are few things in life that interests me less than these vehicles. I admit they are good in getting you from A to B, but I mainly get exposed to cars in form of taxis. Guess it's an oxymoron that I live next to a garage.

But this program is interesting, mainly because the presenters are so passionate about what they do. Like testing cars. Speed, form, competitions, design, performance. You know, guy things. But presented in a funny way.

Even got some of my Swiss friends hooked on this program. Obviously nothing to do with me trying to get them to speak better English :)

Contact

And here was I thinking that I'm pretty good in keeping in touch with people. Hmmm. Got a phone call today from a friend in Denmark. Last time we met was in April last year when I had a nostalgy weekend in Copenhagen (another friend and I met up there to re-live the nice years we spent there as neighbours).

Turns out that my friend had a baby in the meantime. Goes to show that you really should speak to your friends more often than once a year!

Anyway, good to hear from her. And she might even be coming to my party in October. Great!

Chocolate cake

Must've gotten a blow to my head or something, because got all domestic today. Made a chocolate cake! And if I may say so myself, it is delish.

What's happening here? At home on a Saturday evening, and baking a cake? This surely cannot be good, hope it's just a temporary blip :)

Langstrasse

This is an area in Zürich that I avoid as much as possible. Drugs, prostitution, violence etc. This weekend however there is a party there. Got a couple of sms's asking whether I would join. Didn't.

Only, perhaps I should've. The "normal" part of town where I usually hang out was kinda empty. Ah well, whaddayknow. Maybe I should be more daring...

Duck

Planned to take the boat out today. Great weather, around 25°C and sunshine. Only, discovered that the current in the river was too much for my little engine. Pity.

So decided to just stay on the boat and work on my tan. Which was also very nice indeed.

Had company. A little duck was swimming about, looking at me when I talked to her (me warning her off the boat, saying that nesting here is not a good idea type of conversation). Think I was also influenced by my ex who has a strong interest in food. Kept on thinking how good that duck would look on a plate. Guess I was hungry :)