If there's a job in the world that consists of traveling to different cities in Europe and figuring how to get around on their public transportation systems, that's the job I want. I've said this before, but I just love being dropped in the middle of a city somewhere and trying to figure out how to get from one place to another. It's the same feeling of satisfaction that we all get when we work through a complex tax return: you know it makes sense, and you know that the right answer is out there somewhere, but you have to navigate through a maze of complexity to get there. What could be more rewarding than that? So, to chart the course of my life, after I'm done doing this law thing I've been stuck on for the past fifteen years, I want to work in hospice care. When that's over, I want to get back into astrophysics and do some research in that field. Then I'd like to hold some sort of political office for a while. And then, to wrap it up, I guess I need to be a transportation engineer. That's going to be challenging.
Anyway, back to London. I survived flying coach. That which doesn't kill me makes me stronger, right? I have to say, the whole left-side thing is unsettling me a bit. As we were descending into London, I saw a roundabout. I watched cars approach it, enter on the left, and drive clockwise. That's just wrong. But it sure is nice to end up in a place where I can understand the signs and understand most of the language, although it's a bit tricky if they're speaking softly.
And another complaint about electrical outlets: I outsmarted myself this time. Like I've said before, the Swiss, being the Swiss, have electrical outlets that are unique to Switzerland. If you want to go anywhere else in Europe, you need an adapter because the Swiss outlets aren't the same. Well, I planned ahead and brought the Swiss-to-Europe adapter for my laptop. But it turns out that not only are the Swiss the Swiss, but the British are the British. Their outlets are also different from continental Europe. Sigh. So I now plug my Swiss cord into a European adapter, which plugs into a British adapter, which plugs into the wall. Sheesh. I could have just brought the U.S. plug for my laptop because I'm at a hotel that has U.S. plugs as well as British plugs. I should have thought of that. Anyway, that's part of the fun of being an American living in Switzerland on a trip to Britain. And of course, no euros here. I had to get a pile of British pounds. I'm sure we'll be doing a family visit here sometime, though, so they won't go to waste.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Really? They speak English?
I'm off to London on Monday, assuming the volcano in Iceland behaves itself, which is not a sure thing. This is my first visit to the motherland. It's weird to contemplate going to a foreign country (other than Canada) and speaking English when I get there.
It's going to be strange walking on the left side of the road or the left side of the hall, shaking hands with the left hand, and doing all of that other left-handed stuff they do there. Also, I'm going be careful not to bring up the whole issue of the Revolutionary War in case some of them are still sore about the outcome.
Here's the really bad news: It's a short flight, so my company won't spring for first class, and I'm flying on Swiss Air. I'm not an elite passenger on Swiss. I get no special treatment. I don't get to skip the lines. I don't get the best food. I don't get to go to the lounge. That means I'm, well, just like most everyone else. It's an icky feeling. It's going to stay with me until I take another business class trip to Minnesota. Fortunately, I'm heading back in four weeks. Thank heaven!
It's going to be strange walking on the left side of the road or the left side of the hall, shaking hands with the left hand, and doing all of that other left-handed stuff they do there. Also, I'm going be careful not to bring up the whole issue of the Revolutionary War in case some of them are still sore about the outcome.
Here's the really bad news: It's a short flight, so my company won't spring for first class, and I'm flying on Swiss Air. I'm not an elite passenger on Swiss. I get no special treatment. I don't get to skip the lines. I don't get the best food. I don't get to go to the lounge. That means I'm, well, just like most everyone else. It's an icky feeling. It's going to stay with me until I take another business class trip to Minnesota. Fortunately, I'm heading back in four weeks. Thank heaven!
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Close encounters of the repeated kind
Back in my youth (which wasn't that long ago, I'll have you know), I saw a bit on Saturday Night Live or some other comedy show about what to do when you keep encountering the same person over and over again during the course of a day or several days, like a co-worker you always see in the hall. It starts to become awkward. Do you keep saying "hi"? Do you try to come up with something new to say each time? Do you start making observational comments about how funny it is that you keep seeing each other? Do you just stare straight ahead and ignore the person? In the bit I saw, one of the characters started trying to avoid those encounters by taking alternate routes, altering his timing, and so forth. He finally ended up crawling along the wall on the outside of the building in an attempt to avoid yet another encounter in the hall, and he fell to his death. (It was funnier than I'm making it sound.)
I'm starting to feel that way with my daily commute. Being me, I have a pretty regular routine for getting to and from work each day. I usually take the same train, the same bus, etc. Unfortunately, I have co-workers who have some of the same routines, so I'm always bumping into them and trying to come up with new topics of conversation. This is a real struggle for someone like me. Other than immediate and extended family, there are only eight people in the whole world who don't make me at least a little bit nervous in a one-on-one conversation that doesn't have a preassigned topic. (I counted.) I like my co-workers, but I'm running out of things to say to them.
What's an introvert to do? There's always the weather, but I mentally kick myself whenever I find myself lapsing into that easy and trite fallback topic. There's the "what are you doing for the weekend" question, but I usually don't have an very interesting answer. ("Going to church for three hours" doesn't quite cut it.) One thing that works around here is to ask about where they're next planning to travel in Europe or elsewhere. That's good for a little while, but then I start to run the risk of asking the same question I asked someone a couple of weeks earlier, only to have them remind me that we already discussed that. You can sometimes talk about kids, but your kids are never as interesting to other people as they are to you, and again, there's the risk that you start telling the same stories over and over.
You know, for all the talk in Europe of banning or not banning burqas, maybe there's something to be said for having something that allows one to escape into a little cocoon during the morning commute. In the United States, we call those "cars." Maybe it's time for me to move back . . . .
I'm starting to feel that way with my daily commute. Being me, I have a pretty regular routine for getting to and from work each day. I usually take the same train, the same bus, etc. Unfortunately, I have co-workers who have some of the same routines, so I'm always bumping into them and trying to come up with new topics of conversation. This is a real struggle for someone like me. Other than immediate and extended family, there are only eight people in the whole world who don't make me at least a little bit nervous in a one-on-one conversation that doesn't have a preassigned topic. (I counted.) I like my co-workers, but I'm running out of things to say to them.
What's an introvert to do? There's always the weather, but I mentally kick myself whenever I find myself lapsing into that easy and trite fallback topic. There's the "what are you doing for the weekend" question, but I usually don't have an very interesting answer. ("Going to church for three hours" doesn't quite cut it.) One thing that works around here is to ask about where they're next planning to travel in Europe or elsewhere. That's good for a little while, but then I start to run the risk of asking the same question I asked someone a couple of weeks earlier, only to have them remind me that we already discussed that. You can sometimes talk about kids, but your kids are never as interesting to other people as they are to you, and again, there's the risk that you start telling the same stories over and over.
You know, for all the talk in Europe of banning or not banning burqas, maybe there's something to be said for having something that allows one to escape into a little cocoon during the morning commute. In the United States, we call those "cars." Maybe it's time for me to move back . . . .
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Europe and euros
I have no profound conclusions, just some observations about Europe's recent struggles in two areas: volcanoes and a common currency.
First, volcanoes: It's been interesting to see the aftereffects of the shutdown of European airspace last month. There's been a lot of finger-pointing and unhappiness with the ability of the various European governments to coordinate their responses. The European Union is a long way from being everything that its proponents hope it can become, and the trouble with the volcano really demonstrated how difficult it can be to get several countries to act quickly and effectively in the face of a crisis. Getting Germany, France, Britain, and Portugal (just to pick a few EU countries at random) to agree on something is a lot tougher than getting Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota to agree. Just think of all the historical baggage, cultural differences, and conflicting economic interests between those four countries. It will be interesting to see if anything comes out of the volcano crisis.
(Side note: Irish airspace is being affected again by volcanic ash. I'm hoping that none of this gets in the way of my London trip next week.)
Now, the euro: I love the euro for its convenience as we travel around to different countries in Europe, but as the trouble with Greece is demonstrating, the countries that have adopted the euro have given up a measure of control over their own economies. Greece's troubles are dragging down every other country that uses the euro. There are some signs of an agreement among the other countries to bail out Greece, but it's shaky, and what country wants to spend money to bail out another country that didn't have its act together? I think the Swiss at this point are quite happy that they haven't joined the EU and that they haven't adopted the euro.
First, volcanoes: It's been interesting to see the aftereffects of the shutdown of European airspace last month. There's been a lot of finger-pointing and unhappiness with the ability of the various European governments to coordinate their responses. The European Union is a long way from being everything that its proponents hope it can become, and the trouble with the volcano really demonstrated how difficult it can be to get several countries to act quickly and effectively in the face of a crisis. Getting Germany, France, Britain, and Portugal (just to pick a few EU countries at random) to agree on something is a lot tougher than getting Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota to agree. Just think of all the historical baggage, cultural differences, and conflicting economic interests between those four countries. It will be interesting to see if anything comes out of the volcano crisis.
(Side note: Irish airspace is being affected again by volcanic ash. I'm hoping that none of this gets in the way of my London trip next week.)
Now, the euro: I love the euro for its convenience as we travel around to different countries in Europe, but as the trouble with Greece is demonstrating, the countries that have adopted the euro have given up a measure of control over their own economies. Greece's troubles are dragging down every other country that uses the euro. There are some signs of an agreement among the other countries to bail out Greece, but it's shaky, and what country wants to spend money to bail out another country that didn't have its act together? I think the Swiss at this point are quite happy that they haven't joined the EU and that they haven't adopted the euro.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Up in the air
Okay, second post today. This is on my mind because I've spent a good chunk of this week arranging travel for myself. After a few months of mostly staying on the ground with just those quick flights to Paris and Prague, I'm going to need to refamiliarize myself with the Zurich Airport. In addition to the trip I just took to the Twin Cities, here's the rest of the year's itinerary so far:
May 11-14: London for corporate training to make me the World's Best Manager (even though I don't currently manage anyone)
June 9-16: Twin Cities for business
Late June or early July: Oslo and northern Norway
July 23-August 4: Twin Cities to work while the family catches up with everyone (and, gasp of horror, I have to fly coach on this trip because it's technically home leave rather than a business trip)
August 4-18: Utah
October/November sometime: Twin Cities for business
December/January: Twin Cities and Utah for home leave (again, flying coach, ugh)
May 11-14: London for corporate training to make me the World's Best Manager (even though I don't currently manage anyone)
June 9-16: Twin Cities for business
Late June or early July: Oslo and northern Norway
July 23-August 4: Twin Cities to work while the family catches up with everyone (and, gasp of horror, I have to fly coach on this trip because it's technically home leave rather than a business trip)
August 4-18: Utah
October/November sometime: Twin Cities for business
December/January: Twin Cities and Utah for home leave (again, flying coach, ugh)
The ethics of soda
You wouldn't think that a little bottle of Pepsi would lead to an ethical dilemma, would you? But here it is.
Once or twice a week, I have a 16-ounce (actually 50 cL) bottle of soda with my lunch. I usually buy it in the morning on the way to work and then put it in the fridge so it's cold by lunchtime. I think I've been pretty good about keeping track of when I do and don't have a soda in the fridge, but I may have missed one.
You see, for weeks now, I've seen a bottle of the type of soda I drink perched on the top shelf of the fridge. It doesn't seem to have gone anywhere. No one seems to be claiming it. I've started to wonder if it's one of mine. I see four possibilities:
1. It's my soda and I forgot about it.
2. It's someone else's soda and they forgot about it.
3. It's someone else's soda and they're perfectly aware of its existence, but they're saving it for a special occasion, and they'll be horribly crushed if anything happens to it.
4. Someone drinks a bottle of this soda every day and then replaces it with a new bottle in the same place for the next day, and now they don't have a soda to drink with their lunch.
After staring at this bottle of soda for literally weeks (or, in light of #4 above, maybe it's a different bottle every day), I decided to drink it with lunch today. I'm enjoying it at this very moment. One of four things is now going to happen:
1. If it was my forgotten soda, then no big deal. I owned it, I drank it, and the universe remains in perfect balance.
2. If it was someone else's forgotten soda, then no big deal, and I'm ahead of the game by one Swiss franc.
3. If it was someone else's and they were looking forward to it, then I've ruined someone's day, and I may have to face severe negative consequences from a colleague (assuming I ever 'fess up).
4. Ditto if it's a new bottle every day for someone.
So I'll put the matter up for a popular vote: Did I do the right thing by drinking it?
Once or twice a week, I have a 16-ounce (actually 50 cL) bottle of soda with my lunch. I usually buy it in the morning on the way to work and then put it in the fridge so it's cold by lunchtime. I think I've been pretty good about keeping track of when I do and don't have a soda in the fridge, but I may have missed one.
You see, for weeks now, I've seen a bottle of the type of soda I drink perched on the top shelf of the fridge. It doesn't seem to have gone anywhere. No one seems to be claiming it. I've started to wonder if it's one of mine. I see four possibilities:
1. It's my soda and I forgot about it.
2. It's someone else's soda and they forgot about it.
3. It's someone else's soda and they're perfectly aware of its existence, but they're saving it for a special occasion, and they'll be horribly crushed if anything happens to it.
4. Someone drinks a bottle of this soda every day and then replaces it with a new bottle in the same place for the next day, and now they don't have a soda to drink with their lunch.
After staring at this bottle of soda for literally weeks (or, in light of #4 above, maybe it's a different bottle every day), I decided to drink it with lunch today. I'm enjoying it at this very moment. One of four things is now going to happen:
1. If it was my forgotten soda, then no big deal. I owned it, I drank it, and the universe remains in perfect balance.
2. If it was someone else's forgotten soda, then no big deal, and I'm ahead of the game by one Swiss franc.
3. If it was someone else's and they were looking forward to it, then I've ruined someone's day, and I may have to face severe negative consequences from a colleague (assuming I ever 'fess up).
4. Ditto if it's a new bottle every day for someone.
So I'll put the matter up for a popular vote: Did I do the right thing by drinking it?
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Sometimes, the Swiss are too much
For all the nice things about living here, you just have to shake your head at the Swiss sometimes. I have a colleague here at work who received a fine of almost $500 in the mail. His offense? Driving with too much snow on the top of his car. I can't remember everything that went into the fine, but it was something like $50 for the cost of taking the picture of the car driving with snow on the roof, $200 for the fine itself, $200 for court costs even though no one ever appeared in court, and a couple of other things. What this means is that someone, either a contractor or an employee of the canton (the equivalent of a state here in Switzerland), is driving around specifically looking for cars driving with too much snow on top. Give me a break! I believe I've complained in the past about the Swiss requirement that drivers who wear glasses or contacts must carry a spare pair of glasses in the car just in case they're needed. (We tend to ignore that law, but I'm sure it's going to bite us sometime before we move back.)
If you step back from the ridiculousness of some of the requirements here, though, it's interesting to think about how each society balances freedom and safety. In the past week or two, Minnesota has had a rash of car accidents involving young drivers (16 or 17 years old). Those accidents have resulted in eleven deaths. Many of the victims were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. If you were to raise the driving age to 18, which is the case in most European countries, you'd have fewer deaths but less freedom to get around. It's the same with drunk driving laws. In Switzerland, the limit is 0.04; in most states, I believe it's 0.08.
You can take this even further. We could save thousands of lives each year in the United States if we lowered the speed limit on the freeway to 30 miles per hour, but most of us wouldn't be willing to make that tradeoff. On the other hand, we could all get around much faster if we raised the speed limit to 120 miles per hour, but most of us wouldn't be willing to make that deal, either.
Each society has to decide these issues for itself, but of the extremes on both sides of those decisions, you can bet that the Swiss are on the side that wants to fine you for something. It's not really their fault. They just can't help it; they're Swiss.
If you step back from the ridiculousness of some of the requirements here, though, it's interesting to think about how each society balances freedom and safety. In the past week or two, Minnesota has had a rash of car accidents involving young drivers (16 or 17 years old). Those accidents have resulted in eleven deaths. Many of the victims were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. If you were to raise the driving age to 18, which is the case in most European countries, you'd have fewer deaths but less freedom to get around. It's the same with drunk driving laws. In Switzerland, the limit is 0.04; in most states, I believe it's 0.08.
You can take this even further. We could save thousands of lives each year in the United States if we lowered the speed limit on the freeway to 30 miles per hour, but most of us wouldn't be willing to make that tradeoff. On the other hand, we could all get around much faster if we raised the speed limit to 120 miles per hour, but most of us wouldn't be willing to make that deal, either.
Each society has to decide these issues for itself, but of the extremes on both sides of those decisions, you can bet that the Swiss are on the side that wants to fine you for something. It's not really their fault. They just can't help it; they're Swiss.
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