One at a time

Was quickly in town this evening and of course popped into my place to say hello. Nearly turned in the door though, since this couple seemed to be a bit too close for my taste in public (they ever heard of getting a room?). Anyway, this new younger guy who works there said something about his girlfriend. This is a real challenge sometimes with people who do speak English, but not good enough to get the jokes. Anyway, said I had seen him with this girl, and was that his girlfriend? Yes. Which one? I asked. He looked disgustedly at me. Ah well, he's young and innocent. How sweet. "How many do you have?" he asked me. "Only one at a time", I answered. That finally made him laugh. Oh, the sweetness of youngsters in love. Bet they have never watched Dr House :)

Menu

And talking about food...here's the menu from last Friday.

Wienerschnitzel

Today I'm having a really nice dinner made. Ah well, not me cooking but an expert. In my kitchen. Just about to enjoy...

Happy days

I am so not going out tonight. Was out shopping and just popped into the dvd store for a browse. Am now the proud owner of taram-taram-ta-ta the whole first season of Dr House. AND the second. And not only that, also got the very first season of Sex and the city that I don't believe I've ever seen, as well as Hannibal rising, the early days of the non-vegetarian dr Lecter. I have hours and hours of viewing pleasure before me. Life is good.

I don't wanna end up on the blog...

Cats

And in case you doubted...these were the ones waiting for that box...

Present

Friendgirl got a present. I was hmmm how can I describe it? It looked like a cat-toilet. She was presented with a box of sand. And had to dig through it. See for yourself.

The bride

And I got permission to post this pic. Not entirely sure that she understood what a blog is, but nevermind. She looks gorgeous, so why not?

Balcony

So we were in this place which was like knight-theme. The building had a balcony. Watch this? Where is the friggin entrance?

A manly voice

But let's start at the beginning of the evening. Was picked up by friendgirl (who didn't recognize me due to hat...and had to call) in Kloten. Kloten is suburbia close to the airport. A place you don't really wanna be at, but ok, it's got a train station. So got into friendgirls car. She has a gizmo that tells you where to go. A male voice to say "in 700 meters you have to turn left". And then "in 300 meters you have to turn left". Very often I heard "you are driving too fast and need to slow down". This manly voice got a bit confused since she had programmed the way to where we were going, but not the de-tour to pick me up. But he straighted up. Eventually. And directed the way all the way to Germany. (Funny today when I spoke to a friend and said I'm off to Germany this evening. "Are you flying?". Hmm. Not exactly. It took us about 30 min to drive to the place). The customs was a joke. A little building with a man standing on the side. We didn't stop. But then again, what would we smuggle to Germany? Everything is cheaper there. Same thing going back though. We should've packed the car with cheapo things to buy in Germany, like gurkenhappen :)

HAHAHAHA

HIHIHIHI...HOHOHOHO. This is about the reaction I got when coming back from Germany tonight popping in to my usual place, wearing a skirt and a hat. They bent over laughing. Gee thanks for that. So I guess changing my winning concept of always wearing something not-exciting like pants and a top is the way to stay. Forever and ever. Change? Not always a good thing...

Cards organized

Ok, so this is how it'll be. A card in an envelope for friendgirl with good wishes and a little story (when I start writing it's hard to stop...you should know :). A second envelope containing the presents for friendgirl and her Mum, with only their names on. A bottle of wine for the groom, but no card. I shall also bring my camera, so if I get permission will post some pics later.

Skirt

Have just dressed up for the party tonight with the shirt shown previously on picture (with the tie). Was planning on wearing some pants, but found a skirt in my wardrobe. Figure again that personal shopper and I must've bought it together (this one for sure does not belong to previous flatmate...and if it did, I'd be very surprised :). I have never worn it before, but think it'll be nice for tonight. After all, birthday girl chose it. Thing was that my new boots didn't go to well with the outfit, so had to take my air hostess-shoes. Guess the style can be described as classic elegant now. And now, I must go and write those cards!

Stealing

When I got dressed this morning I do what I usually do. I grabbed something out of my closet and took it on. Felt a bit weird though and I couldn't remember when I bought the shirt. But since personal shopper makes me buy lotsa things, I figured it was one of those tops. All day it felt weird though. The shirt was a bit long, and it flattened my boobs. Very odd. Until it just now dawned on me. Could it perhaps have been former flatmates shirt? And when checking, sure it buttons on the other side. He was skinny and tall. Fucketyfuck. Can this be classified as stealing? I surely didn't mean to. Must've gotten mixed up in the wash. Guess I have to contact him and ask, don't I?

The good old days

I know I sound like an old person but sometimes I think it was actually better before. Like this with smoking for example. Had an interesting meeting today in a smoke-free building (well, which building isn't these days? Apart from my flat of course...and the bars. Still, even though some evil people want to change that too). Anyway. Halfway into the meeting the guy asked if it was all right if he smoked. What a question! Obviously we didn't know each other. So I lit up one myself, while remarking on how unusual it is to smoke in offices these days. "Nah", he said, "it's really smoke-free here, but I don't care. I smoke anyway". Really? What a very Swiss and endearing approach!

The canton of Zürich

The other piece of news I missed this morning was about Zürichs budget for 2008. It's 10,75 billion francs with a measly profit of 24 million francs. Think Zürich alone can finance the tax-break for the minimum wagers AND perhaps put a stop to all this digging up the streets every year. Or they can pay me to be their consultant and I promise you that I will find more ways to save money (not that they need it...but it would be nice with a tax break for me :).

Iran

Coming back on the bus tonight there was a copy left of 20 minuten, the free newspaper that I thought I read this morning. But I had apparently missed a small article, two in fact. First one talked about "critical" questions to Iranian students, asked by the Columbia university. One of these critical questions was about if the student was gay. The answers revealed none. So I guess the question was critical, but what about the answers? So much for freedom of speech...or any freedom for that matter.

Reference

Last week I got a call from the place I usually frequent. Said he had a question for me. He was very mysterious and asked if I was coming to see them that evening. The answer was of course yes. Turned out he wanted to know about which company I used for my boat classes (that so sadly had to be put on hold, because of other priorities). So I recommended the one I had, which I thought was really good. If you dig back far enough on the blog, you'll find it. Told me tonight he had his first lesson. And whoah, was it difficult he said. Yes I know. The thing is that this particular guy is a sailor, knows his way around a boat. And has passed the theory test. But has never been exposed to "real" boats, i.e. motor boats. It was really fun to discuss buoy overboard, front parking, side parking and the likes. Realize how much I miss having to stop these activities. Made me think I have to pick up on it again. I really do hate not finishing a project!

Communication difficulties

This is nothing I normally have, but listen to this. I'm off to this party on Friday. It's a combo-celebration. My friendgirl is celebrating her birthday. Her Mum is getting married today I believe, and is celebrating on Friday too. The guy she's getting married to is friendgirls boss, and whaddayaknow, he's celebrating too on Friday. First I had trouble with presents, since I only met friendgirls Mum twice and her husband not at all. Finally I settled on the same for friendgirl and her Mum (will be revealed later, since I cannot be sure friendgirl peaks here), but what to buy for the guy? Think I will bring a good bottle of wine. That's impersonal and usually appreciated. Gosh, think if he's a non-drinker? Nah, cannot be. All good and fine so far. Now comes the cards. Do I write a personal card for all three? Or one to friendgirl and one to the supposedly happy couple? If so, what do I write? Happy marriage? First of all, is there such a thing? Good luck? Nah, that sounds like they need it. Gaaah! This is difficult. Besides the Mum doesn't speak English. Does that mean I have to write it in German? Njet. I'm gonna presume the guy speaks English. After all, he was the one who read my blog with friendgirl in the mornings, remember? Think what I'll do is to write one card for friendgirl with a greeting to her Mum and the guy on the same card. Then put friendgirls + Mums name on another envelope, containing the gifts + hand the bottle to the guy. Will that work? What is customary? HELP!

Hip

Ok, so I did attempt to go shopping today. Realized that it is indeed very silly to be invited to a party hosted by my personal shopper, because it means I cannot really ask her to come with me.

Forget the hot dresses, the only one I tried on looked like something one might wear when one is on the way to clean somebody's house. Not my own of course, since I don't do that :)

Hot top? Hmmm, most of the things I browsed looked a bit worse for wear to be honest. Eventually I found this. It doesn't show well on the pic but it has some glittery silver in the stripes, which I found cool. What about the tie though? I used to wear those in the 80's. Have they become hip again? I guess so, since they are sold. What do you think? Wear the blouse with or without the tie?

Personally I think with, since it is a little extra touch + that the tie might come in handy later...

Poor people

I had no idea there were so many poor people in Switzerland, but according to the news yesterday 500,000 out of the 7,500000 living here are classified as poor. That's almost 7%. That's a lot, isn't it? The article was about not having to pay taxes if you are on minimum pay, which is 2,200 to 2,500 CHF a month. I guess those tax francs we can live without, cannot be much. But jeez, living on 2,500 a month? Well, you do what you have to do I guess. Fortunately I can do more...

Organized

Well, at least I know M has safely arrived in another continent. How I know? Just because he had messed up when he tried to put on his mobile and needed me to give him his puk. Which I was instructed to get from his bag in his room. While rumbling about trying to find the thing I saw some plastic folders containing bus and tram timetables. How organized is that? Do you know anybody who has that? The only one I can think of is that guy in Chicago, but he would have them in an excel spreadsheet - possibly with some neat pivot tables...and how inconvenient that would be. To look up the time at a computer when running for the bus :)

All alone

M is on leave of absence for 2 weeks, which leaves me all alone. Boo-hoo. But on the other hand...when the cat is gone the mice dance on the table :) http://www.jibjab.com/view/126803

What not to wear

Am going to this party in Germany on Friday. Never gave it a second thought what to wear as usual, but when friendgirl showed me her dress yesterday it got me thinking. She told me to wear a cheapo purple top that I have, but perhaps I need to go shopping. Oh fucketyfuck. I hate that. On the other hand I do like to wear something new and cool on Friday. What a dilemma! Especially since I know a few other friendsgirls will all be wearing something hot. What to do?

From 100 to -273

...in about 2 hours. There was this guy who told me I look like an actress, he just couldn't remember the name. "Is she good-looking?" I asked. "Yes", he said, "gorgeous and famous". I liked this guy immediately. Such a nice bloke. Until 2 hours later when he came up to me, only to say "now I know who it is! You remind me of an old neighbour I used to have in the 70's". An old fucking neighbour! In the 70's! Jeez. Talk about going from top points to -273 on the Kalvin scale. Or possible Celsius. I don't think we'll be choosing curtains together in the near future...

The party goes on

Apparently yesterday was THE party. That's exactly when I decided to stay home. For once bad timing. Jägermeister was the name of the game. So perhaps it was a good thing I didn't go, since I hate this "medicine". Anyway, the party went on tonight and we joined after the boat thing.

Now documenting the cool guy in sun glasses...

Chips passing in the night

Was thinking of writing about this the other day, when I realized that M and I just pass each other. He's home, I'm not, I'm home, he's not. Just passing each other. Say hello and goodbye at best. And then on the boat today when Barbie brought some chips, and told me to take them home, I got this brilliant idea. Chips passing in the night. HAHAHA! Sometimes I'm very easily amused :)

Hauptbahnhof

The central station in Zürich, never empty.

What's not to love?

Simply the best

23rd of September, and we spent 5 hours on the lake. Can it be any better? Was there actually with Tina. Yeah ok not the Turner one that lives further down the lake, but a singer who is simply the best. I call her Barbie :). She looks like this.

And we had a good time. Me on the phone, and she feeding the fish...(ok, I realize not everybody gets this joke, but it had something to do with her and 15 Jägermeister yesterday and some food today...go figure :).

The love of my life

A beauty, isn't she? Never mind the birdshit, I have learned to ignore it. At least they don't come in to the boat anymore.

Always something going on

...in Zürich. Exactly what this was I am not sure, but something it was indeed.

Lingual

I know it's an old joke, but I cannot help laughing every time I hear it. You know what a trilingual person is? A person who can speak three languages. And a bilingual? Somebody who speaks two languages. A person who speaks only one language? An American. HAHAHA!

Packing up

So packing up to go on the boat. Friendgirl wants to join. She hasn't been on the boat before but somehow I think she's a water person. Unlike those Americans :) Might not be warm enough for a swim, but who knows? I am so amazed that it's 23rd Sep and weather still is sunny and 20+°. Zürichsee, here we come!

Nice Saturday

Had a nice and pretty quiet day, after that abrupt awakening in the morning (I should have told them to piss off, rather than just slamming the door in their faces...had regrets all day). First food-shopping with M. Then the ex came over for dinner. We had a delish chicken with mashed potatoes and peas. A friend called from Holland. Watched a couple of movies. Just a nice quiet day and am not going out this evening. Being a good girl for once. Look forward to a nights sleep, and then on the boat tomorrow. Weather is great!

Fucking Jehovas

Anybody who rings my doorbell at 10 in the morning on a Saturday ought to be shot. And as you guessed from the headline, the fucking witnesses did it today. I just cannot believe it. Disturb people early in the morning on a weekend in order to discuss religion. Get a life!

Kebab

Did something tonight that I haven't done in a long time, like a year or so. The kebab place downtown changed owners and went from providing fantastic food to mediocre. Well, tonight I didn't have dinner and suddenly thought it'd be a great idea to buy a kebab. Not sure actually whether I should actually try it now, or just go straight to bed...

The key thing

At my place there is only one thing you have to remember. Never leave the key in the lock on the inside of the door. That will prevent the person coming home trying to unlock the door from actually doing so. So came home this evening, putting my key in the lock and you guessed it. No go. Was contemplating that perhaps I was drunk and therefore it didn't work. But no. Not that drunk :) Since I'm a quiet person (yeah yeah HAHAHA) I quietly knocked on the door. And as you might have guessed already, nothing happened. So had to ring the bell. To my own flat. Eventually a very sleepy M opened. Nice. He said "I'm sorry". I said "no, I'm sorry for waking you up. Go back to sleep". Intelligent conversation at 2 in the morning :)

All the same

Still the same lunch. This woman told us she has been married for 21 years. Wow! That's a really long time. Personally I have an attention span of max 2 years...I get bored easily :) But she has a point I must admit. When I asked her "how could you possibly stand being with the same guy for 21 years?" she simply responded: "ah well, men are all the same anyway". Hmm, she has got a point there...

7 years marriage

Get this. Over lunch today somebody told me that a German politician has suggested that marriages would have an end date. After 7 years. Yes, you could extend it, but the actual wedding thing would include a statement saying it would be 7 years only. I thought they were joking of course. Turned out this particular politician was not. But I was also told that it wasn't the first time she provoked. Only in Germany??

Odour

Came home this evening and realized that M had been home and left again. How did I know? The smell opening the door kinda knocked me over. M has a really REALLY strong after shave or whatever it is. I mean, I smell it every morning but it's gotten to be a habit. I inhale oxygen before going to the toilet by default these days. Then I breathe out again when leaving. I just wasn't prepared coming home this evening. It's not that I mind, I'm sure I have some habits too. Just wasn't expecting it, that's all.

Don't drink and drive

...take a joint and fly. This surprising statement came from an Austrian guy this evening. We were having a drink at the lakeside here: http://www.zuerich.com/en/offer-endoxon_fooddrink_orange-International-122823.html I guess they think that spelling it Acqua makes it more interesting, but nevertheless they had a really decent Sancerre. And the setting was nice. To be able to sit outdoors an evening in September is a real treat!

Gizmo

Yesterday I was tapped on half a liter of blood again. Before you're allowed to donate they check your haemoglobin and blood pressure. And this time they had a new gizmo that they stuck in my ear to check body temperature. Really weird. A little thingie in my ear for 5 sec's told me I had 36,6°C temp. Had something to do with blood plasma, and producing medicine. Never mind. They can do what they want with my blood, I always assume it's for something good. And they are nice. Gave me 4 chocolate hearts.

Another ad

Was walking home from the bus and spotted this ad. Hey? This is Switzerland, right? And what exactly are they advertising? Aussie girl, you know?

Sponsor

Talking about sponsors. I have recently been told by several people that I should be employed by the Zürich tourist office. That's not a bad idea actually. I hate to venture out in the suburbs. In fact I hate even the thought of leaving my beloved Zürich. I mean really. Where else can you have the beauty, the action, the happenings, the quality of life? Ok I agree, not everything is perfect. Don't even get me started on the language...but the rest? Nothing compares to you...Zürich :)

Advertising

When I left my flat yesterday morning there was a little stand outside the building saying something like "here will be a free copy from Wednesday". Well, it was Wednesday today. And guess what? No free copy. Just came home, and still no paper. Isn't that the worst thing you can do in advertising? Or anywhere coming to think of it. Promise something and then not deliver? I think so.

Somehow doubt I will be their sponsor...

Two left feet

Had a really interesting discussion this evening. This guy I know was telling me about how he was skating the other evening, inlines you know. Or rollerblades. Whatever. The interesting thing was that he said he had troubles with braking. Apparently these gizmos have braking devices (yeah I guess that goes to show how much I know!) and since he's a left-footer he had troubles. "So", I asked, "you write with your left hand then?". And here's the interesting bit. He said no. How is it possible to be right-handed and left-footed? Personally I think he has a twist in his brain. But on the other hand I don't know which foot I am. I do know that I write with my right hand, but since I've never written with any of my feet, how would I know?

Up his ass

And oh, the same friend who went for the sonogram told me this lengthy story about when he had an abscess up his ass and how long he waited before he went to the doctor to have it removed. Eh? Don't you think there is a difference between a visible "disease" and something "that feels wrong"? But it was a bit funny because he told me this while we were out walking, and he got quite graphic describing in detail exactly where it had been located. He was almost pulling his pants down right there and then to show me. Jeez, sometimes there is just too much information!

Swiss doctors

Swiss doctors have one quality (or possibly several, I wouldn't know). They are blatantly honest. Friend went to see one today. He had a sonogram done because he was "I feel I have a sore throat, I'm sure it's cancer or similar". Think he's cured now, since the doctor told him "it's psychosomatic". "You are perfectly healthy." Bet friends insurance agent regrets signing him up...

Sihl city

Finally went to Sihl city. This new and supposedly hip mall that opened a couple of months ago here in Zürich.

And since my personal shopper seems to have gone walk-about, I did the next best thing. Brought a gay guy with me to shop. Ok, so a bit of a disappointment since I am a really REALLY bad shopper, always looking for the nearest cafe or bar. He took a glance, then went on "I'm gonna look for sneakers". Me: "I don't need sneakers". "No", he said, "for me". Hmmm.

Well, I did buy one pair of boots. Pretty cool, huh?

A smiley apple

Look what I got yesterday!

Ok, so this raised a few questions. I prefer to think that somebody took the time and effort to place a little etiquette on the apple while it was growing, while the more suspicious types were thinking of pesticides.

Well, I am blond and blue-eyed...

Fuck Luther

Ok, so Luther was the man I grew up with. Being a person that some people refer to as "god". I have come to hate him, as much as one can hate a person who is dead since like 500 years. In my view Luther stands for everything that is bad. Everything I like, that is good, that is what people enjoy, is bad in Luthers eyes. So today I fucked him. So to speak :)...went out. On a Monday. That is certainly nothing you should do according to Luther. A bit like the pope actually. He was a real humanist. HAHA. This is what he thought. 'On 25 August 1538 there was much discussion about witches and sorceresses who steal chicken eggs out of nests, or steal milk and butter. Doctor Martin said: "One should show no mercy to these [women]; I would burn them myself, for we read in the Law that the priests were the ones to begin the stoning of criminals.' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther Bet he would have hated how much I enjoyed this evening. HA!

Whiny Germans

A German friend was visiting the doctor today, and when it was time to take a blood test he asked if it was like in Germany, i.e. if it hurts. Answer? "Yes, especially on whiny Germans". HAHAHA!

Nice flat

So it turns out the flat was really nice! At first when we passed the area with lots and lots of traffic I could see on M's face that this wasn't his thing. Possibly also because he said so. But then we walked a narrow street a bit uphill and up there it was really nice and quiet, with lots of greenery and even apple trees. The flat was pretty standard in itself with a kitchen, living room, one bedroom and a bathroom but nicely laid out. With a balcony that you could access both from the kitchen and the living room. Just the right size for one person. Ah ok, not for me but for other people :). Mixed feelings but of course I will keep my fingers crossed that he gets it!

Anxiety

All these decisions to be taken all the time. Like today. Quite a boring day (which Monday isn't?). And then the alternatives this evening. Go out? Or stay home and watch Dr House and Lost? Or as I just learned now when M came home. I have promised to go with him to look at a new flat. This will be interesting. So off I go. And then I decide.

A perfect Sunday

This has been a really good day. First a long sleep-in. Then Starbucks-coffee in town with a couple of friends I ran into yesterday. Then a lazy walk to the boat. An afternoon cruise on the lake in the sunshine. After that a homemade dinner and a small nap. And now...nothing less than Dr House and half a box of Häagen-Dazs chocolate chip. Life is good.

Plan B

So it was a good thing that I decided to go to my place after this disaster. There I met up with a friendgirl. A singing one. And some other people I know. Friendgirl has a new hairdo...very cool. And here you will see exactly how bad the quality of the photos from the mobile are...

On thin ice

Last time I was in Hallenstadion it was Art on Ice. It was good. Tonight wasn't. If I wanna be nice I could say it has room for improvement. But since I'm not I'm just gonna say like it was. CRAP! I cannot believe I paid 137 CHF for this shit. Honestly. I thought it was impossible to fuck it up with such good music to work with. But apparently not. They had a really weak story about a woman who was desperate to marry. The whole set-up was cheap. The same background (yeah they turned it around a couple of times but still). If I look at their website (http://www.hallenstadion.ch/) they say that 11,000 people can have a congress. Well if there were 11,000 there tonight, and we all paid around 130 CHF it amounts to something like 1,5M CHF. That's a whole lotta money for a crap show. Next time I'm certainly gonna be a bit more diligent in choosing my entertainment!

Phone photos

Ok, so took another shot at loading pics from the mobile phone. And it worked. Only, seems like quality is a bit hmmm questionable. Well, at least I know it works now. So watch out, there may be something later...

Toothbrush

Today M was asking me if I have an old tooth-brush. ?? I just had to ask why...while thinking does he have an unhealthy interest in sampling other peoples bacterias, or does he collect them? Just turned out he needed it for cleaning the sink :)...what else?

Tasteless?

Me: "think I'm gonna have my party-pants tonight".

Gay-friend: "yikes! You gonna wear THAT?"

I must be the only one in the whole wide world with a gay-friend having no taste :)

Dancing queen

Tonight that'll be me. First the musical Mamma Mia at Hallenstadion, and then...of course I have to go out and practise :). I will glide, possibly also slide. I have paid money, money, money, that's the name of the game. I thank you for the music, Mamma Mia, does your mother know? The winner takes it all! Welcome back 70's!!

Nightly visit

Yesterday M asked me what I was doing in his room the night before. Ehh? And then I remembered. I think I was going to the bathroom, but I wasn't entirely awake. This is not the first time this has happened. I remember trying to walk into closets, and all sorts of places being only half-awake and looking for the bathroom. Worst places are hotel rooms, where you do not know where the bathroom is at all. But to get lost in ones own flat is a bit more embarrassing. He should just be glad that I didn't do what I did in Holland :)...HAHAHA! I cannot stop laughing, but it's almost too embarrassing to tell here.

Sun

Not sure if I trust the weather prognosis for tomorrow, but IF it is true I can tomorrow be found on the lake. They say it's gonna be sun, no clouds and 23°C. I keep my fingers crossed!

Tsetse fly

Some party animal I am. Felt a need for a nap yesterday evening. Woke up three hours later. Was contemplating going out, but couldn't find the energy. And guess what? Two hours later I was asleep again, and just woke up now. Nine hours later. I must have been bitten by a tsetse fly and developed the sleeping disease. This is soooo not me.

Gardening and shiatsu

Met a guy I know yesterday. He's gonna be in Zürich for a couple of weeks, and I asked what he was planning to do. "Oh", he said, "I brought some books. On gardening and shiatsu." I tell you. I don't think we have a lot in common...

Half a t-shirt

I know that most of my friends do not like my place but I'm still amused by it. Like tonight. There was this guy who wore half a t-shirt. Ripped off t-shirt showing half his naked chest. It is really funny to think about why somebody would go out, showing a tit. A male one at that. Why? I have no clue. A wild guess would be that alcohol was involved but who knows? A fetish thing? A need to be different? In the end, who cares? I just find it really funny that every time I go there, I have something to blog about :)

Dreaded lurgy

Learned a new expression today which I think is really cool. Dreaded lurgy. Say it again. Taste it. Dreaded lurgy. Cool, isn't it? What it means? Well I had to look it up in the dictionary: "a humorous way of speaking of any illness which is not very serious but is easily caught" How do you speak humorously about a cold?

Ze Germans

For once I'm gonna put a positive spin on ze Germans. Was talking to banana guy about the Oktoberfest held here in Zürich. Apparently it is really going to be in Oktober this year. This is due to the fact that the band and the staff are busy with Oktoberfest in Germany all of September. And when they finish up there, they come here to Zürich. He told me that both the band and the staff prefer Germany, because ze Germans are better in partying than ze Swiss. Ze Swiss just get drunk, abusive and aggressive. Whereas (seemingly) ze Germans just have fun. I find this hard to believe. But they should know, shouldn't they?

Ode to R

Sorry I forgot. Again. IOU. Dinner on me next time? Ok, so not really an ode. But I forgot a friends birthday. Again. We have known each other for 19 years and this is the second time I forget. Remembered today though, only one day late. I am a bad person!! Shame on me!! But in case you read this R. Remember Croatia? Remember the lottery money? Remember the MDD award? Just a little defense :)...and happy belated birthday!

Told off

Was told off today. By a friend I was supposed to meet for dinner. He told me in an sms that he was tired of hearing me asking how many applications he has written this week, and therefore could not meet me this evening. Fair enough. But I gotta say one thing. I am also pretty tired of hearing him complaining about his work every time we meet. So much for trying to help a friend. It's the push and pull thing. It's hard to know when to push and to stop pushing. Guess I pushed too hard. Wouldn't be the first time...and possibly not the last.

G does her magic

G is my hairdresser. It took some years before I discovered her, even though she has her salon near my place. Now I wouldn't dream of going to somebody else. She is as close to a perfect hairdresser as somebody can be. She is not the fastest person, but the result is always as good as can be (I know, I had the same hairdo since I was like 3...but it's because of the quality of my hair ok?). She is good at smalltalk but also to leave me alone when I want to, you know when she does something that takes a bit longer. Not a hair transplant but maybe some "enhancement" :). She is young and entrepreneurial. She is simply a good person that I like. I used to have the same uneasy feeling about going to the gynaecologist, the dentist and the hairdresser. Two of out three I now have almost warm feelings about. You guess which the one out is...

I wish you

I have a friend who always says when we part "I wish you". I think that is so clever. You don't have to be specific, and everybody knows you always come up with something anyway. Like a good day, a nice weekend or whatever. I shall start using this line. So dear blog readers: I wish you.

Scare

Gosh, did I have a scare today! Was told this guy had birthday, and that I was to wish him a happy one. Hardly know him, but since I am a very compliant person :) thought it could do no harm. But before I did, I asked (not him!) how old he is. Ah jeezus! I thought he was at least 10 years older than I! Turns out he is only 2 years older than me. Makes one think I tell ya. Is this what I will look like in 2 years time?

Once again

...men and their humour:

California

Was just leaving my place tonight when this guy approached me. Asking what 2 is in German. So transparent. He didn't for one second want to know what 2 is in German...he wanted to make contact. Why did I know this? 1. He was a man. and 2. He was an American man. So I asked where he came from. California. "No", I said, "everybody who comes from California is skinny". How's that for a brush-off? Yes, and then I left. And he was fat.

Feromones?

Not sure about spelling of this particular hormone, since Cambridge dictionary doesn't support it. Fairly sure it exists though. Tonight in bar: Girl 1: I have been to this shop and they sell a sort of perfume that attracts men. Bloody expensive. 100 francs. Guy 1: Oh please, let me smell. Guy 2: Me too. Guy 3: Yes, I want to try too. Me: (stretching my arm out) here is soap and water. And on it goes. Guys making fun of it. Eventually I lean over to the girls and say: "how come you're standing there with two girls? and I'm here with three guys?". Curtain down.

Walk of life

Funny that. Music makes you remember. When I was out tonight and heard 'Walk of life'...Dire Straits for you younger audience. I was right back there 1984. That was the summer I was dancing and dancing and dancing. And when I was together with this guy who was a really good...yes you guessed it...dancer. Until I met this other guy and fell in love. Ok, so we had a really nice week. Four of us rented an apartment for a week. Me and my boyfriend, and another couple. Then I got home and dumped him, for this even better dancer. Hmmm. Wonder what that says about me? Moral of the story: if a guy can dance I fall in love :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrjBddCTCmk

Found new hardware

Yes!! Excellent. Was going home on the bus and saw this funny ad. Took a pic and one of the options on my new mobile the was 'blog this?'. Absolutely. So I sent the pic to my blog address. Guess what? I hasn't materialized. Got home. Plugged the cable in that I got. Inserted the cd that was also in the package. Installed the bloody thing 3 times, and you guessed it. Nothing happened. So much for technology...and btw, I love it when it bloody well works!

Alco and sex

Ok, time to beef up the visit numbers a bit. Nothing attracts people like a bit of alcohol and sex. Especially sex. Conversation I had today. Him: "I didn't sleep at all last night". Then rambling on about how bad a cold he has. Me: "You know, that is normally not what you connect a sleepless night with". Him: "HAHAHA! I am not much for alcohol." Me: "Who said something about alcohol?" Him: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Moral of the story: He either got very embarrassed or I need to get laid...

Feelings

Not sure how I should feel but this is the situation. A friendgirl of mine has her birthday. I wanted to celebrate her, and since we've got a ticket leftover for Mamma Mia on Saturday I decided to splash out and invite her as a birthday gift. She told me she didn't know if she could join, but that she would get back to me. She didn't. Think I feel disappointed. A gift worth of CHF 137 at least I would be thrilled to have. Wouldn't you?

What's in a name?

And just to show you what I mean about the previous item, the "gentleman" who sent it and his taste: I attended a party this past weekend. After checking out all the well-dressed guests at the party, I spotted an attractive woman (standing alone) across the room. When I approached and asked her name, She coyly replied..."Carmen." Trying to maintain some sort of conversation with her, I responded with "That's a beautiful name, is it a family name?" "No," she replied. "I gave it to myself, because it reflects the things I like most in the world - cars and men." Then she asked, "What's your name?" "Golftits," I replied...

The Texas gentleman

A friend of mine sent this. And have a wild guess where he comes from...?? A Texas gentleman asked a waiter to take a bottle of Merlot to an attractive woman. The waiter took the Merlot to the woman and said, "This is from the gentleman seated over there," indicating the sender. She regarded the wine coolly for a second, not looking at the man, and decided to send a reply note to the man. The waiter, who was lingering for a response, took the note from her and conveyed it to the gentleman. The note read:"For me to accept this bottle, you need to have a Mercedes in your garage, a million dollars in the bank, and 7 inches in your pants." After reading the note, the Texan decided to compose one of his own in return. He folded the note, handed it to the waiter and instructed him to return this to the woman. It read:"For your information, I have a Ferrari Maranello, a BMW Z8, a Mercedes CL600, a Porsche Turbo, Toyota Prius and Matrix, in my garage. Beautiful homes in Aspen, Colorado and Miami and a 10,000 acre ranch in Texas. There is over twenty million dollars in my bank account. But, NOT even for a woman as beautiful as you, would I cut three inches off. Just send the bottle back!!!"

Pissoir

I don't know whether I should cry or laugh at M. He only moved in here, and then promptly started to look for a flat of his own. I don't take it personal, since I can surely understand a man wanting his own flat. Or a woman for that matter. But it is quite funny to follow his pursuit in finding the perfect flat. For very modest money. And he has this bizarre wish: he wants his own pissoir! In the flat! It'll be very interesting to see where he ends up :)

New mobile

I am quite happy with my new mobile phone. Especially the battery. My old one I had to charge every day. This one I charged Tuesday last week overnight for 10 hours. It's now down to a little bit less than half the battery left. This is great! It did say 400 hours in small print on the description, but no one ever believes that, do they? Perhaps I should... The model is Sony Ericsson Z610i blue in case you're interested.

LTF's

You know what is nice with LTF's? They know how you are. The things you like, the things you do not like. Like tonight. We were watching Dr House...ok, this is a must when you visit me and it happens to be a Sunday evening. And sometimes this includes watching gory stuff like blood and the likes. Friend: "you are a bit squeamish, are you not?. You don't really like this stuff?" Me: "No". It is soooo comfortable with people who knows you. We like the same things like the sarcasm of dr House but not the gory details. We laugh at the same things. I know for example that she always has pepper on her food before even tasting it. That's her thing. I even learned a new word for it: idiosyncrasy. It's not quite like idiot, but close :) Nothing is like LTF's. You don't have to pretend. You don't have to do or be anything but yourself. It's extremely comfortable. I just wish I'd see this particular one more often then every 6 years! PS. LTF = Long-Term Friend.

Anthill

...or how great minds think alike. M: "I don't wanna scare you but I have seen ants in my room". Me: "Yikes!". So I went to have a look for insect spray. When he showed me the ant I could hardly see it. It was indeed the smallest ant I've seen in my life. Little, tiny, microscopic. But he'd seen two of them. And where there is one, there is two, and you get the drift. There might be all their relatives too. So instead of putting a glass with sugar in their pathway we decided to go for the deadly poison. Insect spray with the biggest insect I've ever seen (apart from a live in Australia of course) on the spray can. Now die you bastards! Indeed M and I have the same approach. At least to insects...

2009

Been invited to South Africa. Ok, so not exactly the first time but you know how it is. You get invited left, right and center and at the same time you have a life to lead. And time marches on. But now I have decided. There is no way around it. This is where I'm going in spring 2009.

And oh, btw my friendgirl lives on the upper left on this pic. Can you blame me for wanting to visit?

The only thing is that the water is the Atlantic...friggin cold!

Rituals

You know with old friends you have certain rituals to go through. A certain something to say, a joke to share, that type of thing. Before that is over and done with, you cannot go on. Mine with my friend from South Africa who is visiting this weekend is when I meet her to say "have you shrunk?". She is extremely short, 154 cm. That's not much. But once over with that remark, we can go on and start the conversation. Then once in a while this comes back, like just now. My friendgirl comes up with the IKEA-catalogue, showing me an elk-rocking-thingie for kids, and I just cannot help myself. I ask: "is it for you or for some kid you know?". I am a bad person!...HAHAHA!

New album

Cool new album...by Swiss people! http://www.division-kent.com/ Their view of life: "Gravity cannot be held responsible for people falling in love" - Albert Einstein.

Men are like flats

We had really interesting discussions this weekend. Like men are like flats. Like this apartment has an open fire-place, but no balcony. This other flat has a really great open-space kitchen with a cooking-island, but unfortunely no extra bedroom. There is a third flat with a fantastic terrace and view of the city, but alas no bathtub. Exactly like men! Moral? You cannot get it all...or can you? Like a famous person said: "somebody who thinks you cannot buy happiness, doesn't know where to shop"...

Banana plantation and dancing Swedes

This weekend I met a lot of "odd" people. Not entirely sure my friendgirl and I would fit into that category, but then again, maybe we would... Like today, we met this guy who works in Zurich 6 months every year. Then he goes back home to Aussie-land to mind his banana plantation for the other 6 months of the year. Not a bad deal actually. Spending the winter months away from here when it's summer there. Clever boy. On Friday we ran into a group of Swedes. Funny bunch they are. When they sat down at our table I said "Swedes. Construction business". And guess what? That's exactly what they were. But they were funny. And not bad dancers. But ok, when they phoned yesterday midnight to ask if we were up for another dance we didn't go. Perhaps because I didn't get the voice mail until this morning :)

Tissues?

So much talk, so much to catch up on after all these years. We had a good night out. Coming home, she asked: "tissues?". I said, "yes I have tissues". No she said "tissues!". And I thought is she drunk or something? Turns out she asked for a t-shirt. To sleep in. Here I am being proud about my English being really good. Just didn't count all the dialects :) It's a bit like Switzedutch compared to high German I guess...

She's arrived

Yes, we managed to hook up despite having no mobile phone numbers. Funny that. We have known each other for 19 years, and yet we have not aged one day...

Living with a German

I tell ya. Sometimes it's not easy. Not only is he crappy in communicating, he's also not very mobile (like in actually reading messages). I came home. Me: "I sent you an sms". He: "Ah I didn't notice". Him reading it. "Well, ok". Me: "It was a joke". He: "Ah ok, it wasn't very funny". No it wasn't. But it was communication! Besides, to get a German to appreciate a joke is a real challenge :)

Happy with my age

Oh, how happy I am being my age. Why? One of the reasons is that it is so easy to tell a man to take a hike when he's acting like an idiot. Nothing to lose. Plenty of more fish etc. Which is indeed something I know about. Now. Didn't when I was 25 I admit. Following the love life of some of my younger friendgirls. Their ups and downs. Their quarrels. Their wish to make amends (why girls? just tell them to go away, that you're busy, that you have better offers, basically to fuck off). Men cannot be changed. The most important lesson to learn in life. You either live with them as they are, or you don't. They are NOT GONNA CHANGE! Simple. Now listen to an old(er) and wiser woman :)

Money money money

For some reason or another I want to download Abbas "Money, money, money" but I cannot find a site to do that. It either costs money or is not the original. Any wizard out there who can help?

Never argue with a woman

One morning the husband returns after several hours of fishing and decides to take a nap. Although not familiar with the lake, the wife decides to take the boat out. She motors out a short distance, anchors, and reads her book. Along comes a game warden in his boat. He pulls up alongside the woman and says,"Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?" "Reading a book," she replies, (thinking, "Isn't that obvious?") "You're in a restricted fishing area," he informs her. "I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading." "Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up." "If you do that, I'll have to charge you with sexual assault," says the woman. "But I haven't even touched you," says the game warden. "That's true, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start at any moment." "Have a nice day ma'am," and he left. MORAL: Never argue with a woman who reads. It's likely she can also think.

Prominent visitor

Over the weekend I'm gonna have a really prominent visitor. A friendgirl I haven't seen in 6 years. It's the type of friend who I don't talk to for maybe years, and then all of a sudden we pick up where we left off. I have known her for 20 years (gosh, time flies!). Nowadays she lives in South Africa, and I'm so happy she has taken a weekend while in Europe to visit ME! Just need to check with her that it's ok to blog about her, since I haven't even told her yet that I do blog :)

New toy

Gotta admit that I spent a rather large portion of today playing around with my new mobile. Checking the menus. Fixing the settings. Number one priority is always to change language to English. For some reason it is always set to default German. Discovered I have a lot of unnecessary features like "video-call", which is a screen where you can phone people and they will see you (you can see yourself in a small frame...which I rather like, who would like to see a close-up? Especially in the morning). Anyway, it's not a feature I plan to use, was just playing around. I'm happy to use stuff like actually phoning with the mobile, sms'ing, taking the odd picture (actually they gave me a usb-cable so that I can now take pics while out...and share them here with you later...good idea? Hmmm, not sure :), storing phone numbers and use T9 for English. That's about it. All the other extras I really don't use. The only feature I would like to have, and that phones yet not have (unless you pay extra and send the physical phone in for service) is the ability to choose any language you want when texting. Here in Germany it is only English, German, Italian or French. Not of any use to me (apart from English of course). In an international world Orange and other providers should pick up on this. If it takes up too much memory, they should just tailor it for the customer. How difficult could it be?

Lederhosen

Every time I see those guys in lederhosen playing in the Oktoberfest-kinda-bands I always think how difficult it must be for them to look sexy.

It is an art appearing on a stage in shorts, showing hairy legs and usually quite ugly shoes, playing that type of music and still attract the girls.

But somehow they seem to pull it off. Impressive!

Ok, so maybe not these guys :)

Oktoberfest

Quite soon it is time for Oktoberfest again. Like I explained before it is held in September. Just another of the little quirks that you discover living in a German-speaking area.

Ze Germans claims the real one takes place in Munich, but we have our own little "fäscht" right here in Zürich. In Booooschänzli and a couple of other places.


Time to get the dirndl's out girls!

PS. If you wanna see me in a dirndl, you have to shoot me first...

Troubleshooter

Around the central train station here in Zürich, there are usually a couple of vans around with the word "Troubleshooter" painted on the side. I have always wondered what kind of trouble they are shooting. People trouble? Drug trouble? Traffic trouble? Any sort of trouble? What amazes me is that the word troubleshooter is in English. Otherwise ze Swiss take a pretty vehement position on translating everything into German. One day I'll ask them what type of trouble they shoot...unless one of my readers know??

The most expensive olive oil

...in the world is sold in Zürich! But now the young entrepreneur is going to America. Good for him! Bet ya the yanks will love it, thinking cost equals quality. Also interesting to read the iht article on the view of Americans. http://www.dibennardo.ch/en/welcome.htm http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/09/04/news/letter.php

Women leaders

Ok, so I guess there are a few German leaders that are fairly known: http://www.forbes.com/2007/08/30/most-powerful-women-biz-07women-cz_em_cs_0830power_land.html Also, check out the quiz below. Quite funny I think, especially parole officer...

German leaders

Another oxymoron? An article in 20 minutes today revealed that Switzerland has to import leaders since the country doesn't have enough of them. And guess what? They import them from Germany. I rest my case. They couldn't have found talent elsewhere???

Bless the ketchup

It was indeed a weird moment this evening when I had dinner with my friend and M. In my friends flat (condominium for the yanks, or no, condomiunium is when you buy, flat is always rental...side discussion which is not relevant here) you are not allowed to smoke. For some reason or another. So I had to venture out in the hallway. As I always do. Respect! Yeah, right. When I got back M said fuck. M doesn't say fuck often, so this got my attention. Read my ears pricked. Turned out he sat down in some gooey. Which we to this day don't know exactly what it was (I place a bet on ketchup personally, but who knows...and who cares?). The point is that I got to wipe it off. His ass. This is as close as we have gotten after living together for 3 months. It was a delicate task...

Oh captain, my captain

Met a soulmate this evening. We had a very intimate discussion about how mussels can damage a boat. As indeed we knew. As well as how difficult it is with non-boat people.

Ok, so perhaps he was a bit more advanced than I with his FUCKIN 80 ps, but still. On the lake, we're all friends :)

Here is where he works.

http://www.rhinefalls.com/

Orange cont'd

So went to the shop. Arrived about 17.45 (5.45 pm for the Am's :). Got my ticket. Approx 50 customers before me. Arrrggh! Spent half an hour going through all the phones. 1 CHF is a good deal after all. Sms'd with bro to check on functionality. Went outside for a fag. Went inside again. And so forth. It was a long wait. After about an hour it was finally my turn. And I had decided. This is where I have to insert the fact that men haven't understood anything about women (yeah yeah I know, what else is new?). Did I choose the telephone with the best functionality? Did I look at pixels? Did I care about video/jpg/mms/whatever? Of course not! I chose the one with the coolest colour. It was a close call between the Sony-Ericsson blue that I finally chose, and the Nokia pink (in the end, the pink was just too weeny-pink, too young-girl-pink). So the blue it was. But the battle had just started. As it turned out, the ad's for 1 CHF for a phone (that I was promised 2 years ago when I signed up for Orange..."yes, every year you can get a new phone for just 1 CHF!") is just bullshit. It just applies to new customers. And as everybody in some sort of business knows, it is 80% easier to keep a customer than to get a new one. A new concept to Orange (who I'm sure has mostly young and inexperienced customers). In the end, after the 20-something year-old woman who served me (who couldn't even remember the Sony-Ericsson model I had 3 years ago..."I only worked here for 2 years") managed to find out how much I had to pay. 21 francs. Provided I signed up for another 24 months with Orange. Gee, I wonder how they get their profit :)?? But in the end all is well. I got my phone. Which I sent home with M, who (bless him) has charged it. It apparently needs 10 hours the first time. Oh how happy I am it's not a man...

Orange

Funny how things coincide sometimes. Yesterday I got one of these telemarketing phone calls. Strangely enough from Orange, asking me how I like the services. Obviously knowing I was a customer. V. strange. And I pulled my usual gig, "I only speak English". Seriously think that put a bit of a damper on ze conversation. Anyway, told him that I think Orange is kinda good, except for in the places I spend most of my time (think the joke got kinda lost there...guess he was Swiss). And seriously my phone has been playing up lately and I was just going to get a new one anyway. Which I told him. "Oh", he said, "just go to one of our shops, we'll be more than happy to help you out". HAHAHAHA! Too bad I didn't ask when.

Jamie O

A couple of weeks ago Jamie Oliver was in Zürich, to cook for the Swiss. He was greeted like the biggest star with screaming crowds of mainly girls and gays :). I saw the show on telly over the weekend. I mean, the guy is just cooking right? But I gotta admit he does it with a presence, and a sense of humour. He's really not complicated. And it's fun to watch. But the day when I stand there screaming of joy just by seeing him, will never come :) And on the question which food he likes a tad too much he answered "beer". Good guy.

Sleeping with the - mama

A friend who's naMe I am forbidden to tell, told me about his weekend. He went to see his Mum. What he didn't know was that mama had a new boyfriend. But I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the pear-tree, and that prudeness runs in the family. Therefore boyfriend had to sleep on the sofa, while my friend was on a spare bed in his Mums bedroom. HAHAHAHA!

Mixed feelings

I really have mixed feelings about it going towards autumn. Mostly I want summer all around the year, but I gotta admit once home on a rainy Monday evening it kinda feels good. I mean, House on tv followed by Lost. Leftover dinner just to be microwaved from the weekend. A little leftover icecream if I'm not mistaken. A blanket and some candlelights. It could be worse...on a Monday :)

Siren

Again, I was lucky enough to see the seepolizei (lake police) racing with lights and sirens towards a boat. I really don't know why, since they didn't seem to be speeding. Police was racing across the water, hi-ya-hi-ya with the sirens and then skidding to an elegant stop along the boat in question (creating unnecessary waves for the boats just lying there enjoying the sun like myself). I think they only wanna show their muscles...and guess what? I yet have to see a female lake police officer...

Clean water

Another thing I was thinking about, lying in the boat on my stomach staring into the water. Everybody says that Zurichsee is one of the cleanest lakes in Switzerland. How come then you cannot see the bottom of the lake? When I was snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef I could easily see the bottom of the ocean...like 12 meters down. How come I cannot do that here if it's so clean?

The pope

Went on the lake today, probably one of the last days this year. It was gorgeous. Nice temperature, also in the water, not too many boats and all nice and friendly. Was listening to the radio as usual, and heard the pope having an opinion or so. About how family life is so important. Got me thinking. What does he fucking know about family life? Or any of the guys in the Vatican for that matter? It's not like any of them tried it. Not even a relationship without the paper marriage thing. Oh, how easy it is to have an opinion that you know absolutely nothing about! And even worse. How many millions of people believe him?

Good cop, bad cop

Was thinking about why tv series always have a super cop. Somebody who always wins, and has almost unnatural powers. Why is it that they never show mediocre cops, normal cops, people who are like others, like us? Like somebody who sometimes win, sometimes lose. And more importantly, why do we watch this crap?

Cheapo and cold

Ok, so guess landlord did his cheapo version of maintenance, trying to fix it himself. Still cold water. He's still sweet, just not very handy. Left another message with him. And I'm still walking around in pyjamas. Guess I have to bite the bullet soon and shower COLD. Grrrr!

Sweet but cold

Landlord is a real sweetheart. Think it's because he knows I never complain unless there really is something to complain about. Like the water. He called back quickly, excusing himself that it was half a hour later, saying that he would "sofort organisieren", meaning he'd get to it right away. Called back half an hour ago to say that it was now fixed, and that I could shower in 15 min. Hmmm. Just checked, still cold. But what the heck. I'm usually walking around in my pyjama until late afternoon anyway :)

Aaaarrrrgghhh!

What the fuck! No warm water. What is this? Middleages? And cannot get hold of the landlord, so sent an sms. Haven't showered yet, so really really hope they'll fix it soon. Clever M, he's away for the weekend.

Recovery

What a week it's been. Busy bee. So yesterday I had to cancel my usual outgoing. Was just toooo tired. Stayed home, watched some tv and had these, that kind friendgirl brought on Thursday.

They are called Luxemburgerli's for some reason, even though I think they should be called Hamburgerli's. But I guess burgers as burgers.

They are delish!