WTF???

I hereby withdraw any ambition I may have at any stage held to be a dedicated follower of fashion:

Crap picture I know, but see here, the white splotches of paint on these (new for sale) pants? Apparently, they're MEANT to be there! (Also on display for sale were denim jeans similarly adorned.) I repeat ... WTF?

?

I'm sooooooo over the current trend of dressing like hobbos. Never, in humankind's entire history, have people ASPIRED to dress so shabbily. I'm also angry that it's sooooooo very very hard to find un-"distressed" clothing for the Caspi-Man. Quite frankly, he's more than capable of distressing his own clothing, thank you very much. I don't need (or want) to buy it that way.

Clearly, I have some issues...

Day 1 of week 2 of Kindergarten summer holidays...

And may we present the flower, the laid tree, the green rabbit (with carrot), the blue whale, the yellow giraffe-necked creature, red rat and hybrid snake.

Works in Plasticine.

We have also baked, swam, painted, playgrounded (yes, that is too a verb), and thrown more tantrums than all the world's red-headed sportsmen and diva popstars combined. I think we might need an organised summer program... or, perhaps, a responsible adult to look after us...

SCANDALOUS!

Usually, I try to maintain a live and let live approach to life - but I've just discovered something that threatens to turn me into an angry fundamentalist...

IS NOTHING SACRED???

They've made a movie of "Where the wild things are".

I repeat, IS NOTHING SACRED?

(Am a tad curious though how they've managed to stretch a feature length film out of a 20 page book, while in any way maintaining the integrity of the story... UUGGH... how could they? IS NOTHING SACRED? And, what's worse, the Caspi-Man will probably want to see it.)

Feeling masochistic...

After years of procrastination, waiting for a rumoured (but not yet materialized) reciprocal agreement policy, I have finally embarked on what is sure to be the unmitigated torture of legitimately acquiring my German drivers license (gasp for breath).

Yep, I am about to 'swap' my Aussie one for a Deutsch one.

I must point out that the term 'swap' is a tad misleading as, while in essence, the process has me handing in my Australian one and receiving a bona-fide German one, the steps in between involve (but are not necessarily limited to):

-getting an official translation on the original license (35 euro -thanks very much - for a mere 6 lines and 2 official looking stamps),
-an eye test,
-a local first aid qualification,
-studying 1500 road rules,
-being tested on the road rules,
-having at least one practical driving lesson, and
-taking a practical driving exam,
-enduring German bureaucracy (can you imagine????) at each step.


Remarkably similar to acquiring a driver's license from scratch, I'd say.



I have heard many horror stories about this process and I am not looking forward to it. And I'm more than a tad annoyed at the discrimination involved. After all, AUSTRALIA SWAPS GERMAN ONES!!! If I held a license from, say, the UK or Canada (which could be simply acquired by swapping- as in 'no tests' -just SWAPPING my Aussie one) then I'd have no problem swapping THAT ONE for a German one. There is no logic. Unfortunately, despite many years exploring slightly fraudulent options this route seems closed to me.

A jaded friend who has recently gone through the whole confluted process sent me the following message:

"So you're entering the nether world of the great 'Fueherschein fuer Aussie Auslander' rip-off, ey? I wish you luck, inner calm, and the ability to suspend all notions of fairness and common sense."

As I am not naturally blessed with any of those attributes, I fear the coming weeks might be challenging.

Evidence of cultural differences No.354

WHY OH WHY can't super market cashiers here PACK your purchases like they do elsewhere???????

And WHY, Oh WHY do they feel the need to speed race your purchases over the scanner? IT'S NOT A RACE PEOPLE! Meanwhile, I'm stuggling to ensure the potatoes aren't squashed on top of the eggs, the Caspi-Man's not shoplifting Kindersurprises, and scrambling to find my wallet.

I'm happy the cashiers get to sit, but I do miss the packing part of the service.

Feeling wretched...

as I've lost the most sentimental and valuable items I own, in the most ludicrus of circumstances.

Diamonds ARE NOT for ever. They are until they get lost.

And despite registering them with the lost and found office, putting up posters offering rewards, and employing the most dedicated of search teams, they've not turned up... :-(