Monthly Archives: March 2013

Daily Prompt: Competition

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What activity, task, or game most brings out your competitive streak?

Ferdinand and Ronaldo with the cup

UEFA Cup final Manchester United v Chelsea 2008 – Photo taken on my television so poor quality.

The footballers in the photo were happy. They beat the opponents and won the cup. Their competitive spirit was necessary, after all they were fighting for their team, so good luck to them. And for the fans reading this, yes it is the wonderful good looking Rinaldo on the right in the picture, he did not really have to compete, he was just born with good looks and a nifty foot at soccer (although he is not my type).

Well this is probably going to be short and sweet, because I do not have a competitive streak or bone in my body. I can support other teams or sportsmen, they enjoy it and deserve to win after investing all they can in a sports occasion, but me, no. I am not very sporty (although I played a good game of land hockey in school – just because it was the nearest to football I could play), but I do not attempt to be the best in anything I do privately.

I like to enjoy my pasttimes an not try to beat everyone else in what I am doing. I used to play games in Facebook, but not as a competition, just to see how far I could go. Eventually I realised the stupidity of wasting my time on useless make believe games so I stopped. There is so much to discover and enjoy in the world.

I enjoy photography, writing, and like to read, but never wanting to be the best. I like Tai Chi, nice and slow, but not competing with anyone.

So competitors amonst us, I wish you the best of luck with your competitions and will clap my hands for you, but don’t bother to clap them for me, sorry – but no interest.

Daily Prompt: Competition

Daily Prompt: Local Flavour

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Write a piece about a typically “local” experience from where you come from as though it’s an entry in a travel guide.

Entrance opening day, Migros Langendorf

Ladedorf is the place to go if you are in need of food or other items of daily use. Situated in the tiny village of Langendorf, occuplying the site of a one-time watchmaking factory known as Lanco. Ladedorf serves the region surrounding the Kanton capital city of Solothurn. There is a large car park and local busses to and from the town of Solothurn have a regular service to the supermarket.

The company Migros bought and occupied the old watchmaking factory at the beginning of the 1970’s. At first the remaining buildings were taken over and realtered to accommodate a supermarket on a large scale. Later they were demolished to make room for more modern premises.

Crane in Langendorf

Migros are the largest supermarket chain store company in Switzerland. The “M” brand on foodstuffs is part of Swiss daily life. Fresh fruit and vegetable, cheeses, meat, they have all.

Vegetable in the supermarket

Clothing and household goods also form a large part of the assortment.

Migros Supermarket Langendorf

An afternon excursion to this supermarket is worthwhile to complete any requirements you may have in connection with excursions in the neighbouring areas. Their friendly and helpful staff are always ready to assist should you have a problem.

A self service restaurant with outside accomodation in Summer supplies a full lunch, or just stop by for a coffee. Pleasant surroundings and somewhere to take it easy after the shopping . Ladedorf is open from Monday to Saturday, closed on Sunday. A place worth paying a visit if you need daily items of use.

Migros, Langendorf

Daily Prompt: Local Flavour

Daily Prompt: Stranded

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You’re stranded in a foreign city for a day with no money and no friends. Where do you go; what do you do?

Market Place Jemaa-El-Fna

Market Place, Jemaa-El-Fna, Marrakesch, Morocco – Photo by me

I wrote this blog a few years ago for another challenge. It covers the Daily Prompt, so here it is again. Apologies to those that might have seen it, but it is a long while ago, an I do not even remember if it exists in my WordPress records. It was probably in Multiply.

Where is everyone? There I was looking at the carpets in the shop and trying to decide which one to buy when everyone moved on. This is now going to be difficult.

“Hello, Hello, Can you help me? No, I am not asking for this carpet. I want to know how much is the carpet over there. Look I am pointing, that one – price?”

He does not understand a word I am saying. I give up and try to find the others.

“I am going to find my friends. You don’t have to come with me, and please put the carpet down. I have lost interest. Please go away, don’t follow.”

I wonder if I give him a push he realizes he is not wanted.

“I go, you stay” he just does not want to understand. Let’s try a few hand signs.
“Where I am pointing I go. You stay here (pointing with my hand towards the ground).” The man is just nodding and still waving his carpet around. There is only one thing, run.

At last I got away, but this is getting ridiculous. Where is everyone and I don’t understand a word the people here are saying. Perhaps the children over there can help, they might learn English at school.

“Hello, have you seen any English speaking people in a group. No, I do not want to give you money for dollars, I am looking for someone. Look English money – you speak English. No the money is not for you it is mine, but have you seen people using this money?”

This is getting ridiculous – they seem to be calling their colleagues and they are all looking at me with their large brown eyes and calling and touching me; nothing but away from this lot. Help they are following me.

“Can anyone here speak English, or even parlez-vous français?”

They only speak their own language. I am in trouble. Now run down this alley and hope they give up. Ow, now I have lost my shoe. No leave my shoe, it is mine. Or here take the other shoe and now a quick get away. Running without shoes is much quicker.

“Sorry” now I have run into one of the natives, but he is just laughing, not even annoyed and saying something. He is quite good looking, I think I will stay with him and see if he knows my language. Now he is pointing – I think he is leading me to my group. Oh no, he is inviting me for a drink in a roadside restaurant, but he has such a sweet laugh.

“Thank you, thank you, yes I am thirsty” He is still laughing, but he is saying something and all the people in the restaurant start laughing. I start laughing as well, perhaps it is a way of saying hello in this country. He says something and the waiter has come.

Now I will be clever. “Look” I say as I am pointing to a coca cola bottle on another table, I want a cola. There you see I put up one finger and point to the bottle and then to me. The waiter nods, he understands at last. I have found someone who knows what I want. The man that invited me is nodding, he has also understood; success, but on no. The waiter is bringing everyone in the restaurant a bottle of coca cola and I have the bill to pay.

Something must have gone wrong somewhere. Thank goodness I have money but after paying for the cola I won’t have very much more, so let’s drink it and go. My good looking partner is still laughing and nodding his head and clapping with his hands; must be the local custom when someone buys them a drink. The whole restaurant is now clapping and looking at me. I stand up, clap back, drink out my glass and go. I can still hear them clapping in the restaurant as I walk along the road, but at least I am on my own again.

And now to the local railway station, there must be someone there speaking English. I will ask the young lady with the baby in her arms.

“Excuse me, but can you tell me where the railway station is.” And she is laughing. So let’s try something else.

“You (pointing at the lady) show me (pointing to me and away from lady) choo choo (making noises like a train)” she is now laughing more but pointing to the other side of the road and signaling round the corner with her hand.

I bow my head (perhaps she understands a thank you gesture) and walk in that direction. Surprise, she actually understood my question, here is the station. We women always seem to find a way to understand each other, even if we do not speak the language.

“Excuse me sir” (talking to the man at the ticket office) “You speak English?”. He is speaking in his language as if I would understand every word, but it seems no English.

“Can I help you” said someone behind me. At last words that I understand, so I turn round. A teenager is asking me if he can help me.

“Yes, please” I say and he says “please, thank you, can I help you”

“No, please help me”

“Yes please, thank you, can I help you.”

My luck to find someone that has had two lessons in how to speak English. But I have an idea. I tell him “Hotel El Hammadi” and he laughs and he takes my arm and leads me still saying all the time “please, thank you, can I help you and throwing a “yes” in in between for good measure. I am so tired I just let myself be led and what do I see.

Now it is my turn to say “thank you, thank you” he has led me to my hotel and my friends are all waiting outside and are glad to see me. My odyssey is over I have been saved. We all greet each other, but my helper is still standing next to me.

“I think he wants something from you” said my colleague

“I don’t understand him and he does not understand me.” But my colleagues do. “Give him some money and he will definitely go away.”

I did as ordered and he said “please, thank you, can I help you” and smiling all over his face he went on his way.

The facet of the story is if you ever travel to a country for the first time, take an elementary course in the local language, otherwise you will have problems if left on your own and it could become quite expensive.

Daily Prompt: Stranded

Daily Prompt: Bedtime Stories

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What was your favorite book as a child? Did it influence the person you are now?

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Statue in the old town of Rheinfelden, Germany – perhaps mother goose.

My reading thirst was quenched by comics as I was growing up. Mum and dad would read the odd book from the library, but I was never influenced by their taste in literature. I remember the daily comics, the Dandy and Beano to name two, later there was the Topper. I think my favourite story in the comics was Denis the Menace in the Beano.

I never had actual Bedtime stories. My dad was a great story teller, and his stories were always amusing. His war experiences were quite lively. It was only when I grew older and understood more, that he told me how it really was.

As soon as I was old enough to join, mum took me to the local lending library once a week. It was an old building in a park in Bethnal Green, an area in East London where we lived at the time. I was allowed to borrow two books each time we went. I was an early reader, one of those kids that could already read when I started school at the age of five, my first official story at school being “The Cat sat on the Mat”. That cat had all sorts of adventures in the first book, but the idea was to learn what the letters were and to write.

Anyhow back to the library: by the time I was eight years old I had read through the Grimm Fairy tales more than once. I have since learnt that the original stories would not really have been for children, far too brutal. I then progressed to Hans Christian Anderson and I think they were my favourites. I read them all and often came home with the same book from the library. Funny I cannot remember reading any stories from english writers. The Grimm brothers were German, Andersen a Dane and I also read Charles Perrault stories who was French. I believe he was the inventer of Little Red Hiding Hood and Cinderella amongst other stories. Anyhow that was my beginnings into the world of stories. At that time in the 1950’s there was not much else around.

I also liked to read encyclopedias. There were a few versions available for children and I suppose I had a sort of thirst for information at the time. My favourites were the stories about the dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals. As a kid I was fascinated by them.

Time went on, my brain sort of developped I suppose and I believe my first “serious” books were the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I just loved them. I think I was then around 11 years old. I sort of grew up with books and remember I was then even able to borrow four books at a time from the library. I was even allowed into the grow-up section of the library.

I often wondered where this thirst for reading came from. Mum and dad were happy with the local newspaper. Dad loved to read spy stories, murder and whatever and mum very rarely actually had a book in her hands. So I did it all by myself I suppose, although I do remember my dad having a few very old classic books that he and his sister had collected at school as school prizes. I was thrilled when he gave me Dracula by Bram Stoker to read. I was then about 11. I still have the book. Perhaps not a bedtime story, but it impressed me.

I don’t think books influenced me in any way. I have not become a brilliant detective, nor do I have a longing to visit the local blood bank and try a few samples, although I must admit I was a blood donar for many years until I became diabetic. I love reading today, and prefer to spend an evening with a book instead of glaring into the TV, although I do like to see a few good films, and am an ardent fan of the East Enders soap.

Daily Prompt: Bedtime Stories

Blogger Creative Challenge: Let’s take a walk

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Along the River Aare, Solothurn

“Bye Mum, be back in a couple of hours” and Jeremy opened the front door.

“Where are you going son?” asked his mother

“Just for a walk mum, along the River.”

What a good idea thought his mother, at last he is not sitting in front of that computer. I am sure it is not healthy for him playing those aggressive games. all you hear are gun shots and screams and there are dead bodies laying around. She was sure this was a bad influence on his teenage life.

“Jeremy what have you got in your ears?”

“They are my earphones mum, so that I can listen to some music from my iTunes on my iPhone on the way.”

“Oh, I see, but isn’t that music a bit loud? I can hear it from the kitchen.” Jeremy’s mother was worried that her son’s hearing would suffer.

“No problem mum, I can turn it down” so Jeremy turned the music down, with the intention of increasing the volume as soon as he was out on the road.

“Although I must say Jeremy” said his mother “that I think it is very good that you are going out for some fresh air and exercise.”

“Yes mum, that is the idea. And I might do some jogging on my way, the music helps with the rhythm when I am running.”

So Jeremy left his home, his mother waved from the window, thinking how sensible her son was at last. Jeremy waved back and increased his pace. The gang was waiting further down the river. Jack had just returned from his holiday in Holland and had brought a fresh supply of weed from the coffee shops.

“Yes” thought Jeremy “there is nothing like a healthy jog along the river, meet up with some good friends and share a joint with them.”

Mum was right, it was about time he stopped playing those stupid computer games. There was a whole new world out there, just by taking a walk.

Daily Prompt: INTJ

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Do parties and crowds fill you with energy, or send you scurrying for peace and quiet? – By the way I have no idea what INTJ is

Garden Spider babies

Baby spiders seem to grow up in a crowd from the day they are born. I have now become the scurrying type. When I was younger it was not really a thing that bothered me, but now I like a bit of quiet in my life. I can manage to enjoy a family get together, but thank goodness they are few and far between. That has now been reduced to cooking a meal for everyone concerned.

A few years ago, a year before I retired, I had one of these so-called “burn-outs”. Everything got on top of me. Your work was no longer something to be proud of, but more conveyer belt actions. The more you did, the more you had to do. Stress was the daily routine and so eventually one evening I came home and had got to the point where I said to Mr. Swiss “tomorrow I am not going to work. I cannot take it any more”.

The result being that the next day I paid a visit to the doctor, with Mr. Swiss, I was written off work and rest was prescribed, together with some happy tablets. Not really happy tablets, but they were to help and support the problems. Sounds good I suppose. Just lay around at home and do nothing and let the others carry on with the stress, but it is not like that at all. You have to get to grips again with your life. You cannot just switch off and give up. I am not the type to give up or lay around, but I soon noticed what “burn out” really meant.

After a week of being home bound (luckily Mr. Swiss was already retired at the time and took a lot off my hands in the daily routine), I decided it was time to show myself again in the big wide world. First mistake: I went shopping in the local supermarket with Mr. Swiss. I felt like I was sitting in the subway in the rush hour, people everywhere, walking around picking stuff off the shelves and packing them in the basket. What used to be normal every day actions were a burden. I was glad to get home again.

After a few weeks the first telephone call came from the personnel chief in the office. How things were going and whether they could speak to my doctor. I smelt the roast, but no problem. I told them to call her, it was OK I really did not have anything to hide. They phoned the doctor and I spent the next six months at home and had no further calls from the office. Eventually, after a discussion with the doctor and with her support and advice, I decided to go back to work, starting with just half a day. Gradually I increased to a full day again. In the meanwhile the system at work had become more human, but at the same time recession was showing its ugly head on the horizon.

Our company had to save and as usual it was the workers where the first saving is done. I was then approaching retirement age, had another two years to go, but eventually I was called into the office to talk about an early retirement. Perhaps it was because of my burn-out, perhaps it would have happened one way or the other. I was one of the first to go, but I had thirty years of service behind me in the company and to be correct, this was honoured by the company. I cannot complain, the company handled me very fair and I had time to plan my eternal days as a pensioner.

Looking back I am glad, although I did not really want to stop working before official retirement. You can look at it how you want to. I escaped under very good treatment, but not all did. I was a little astonished to see my desk occupied  two weeks after my retirement, but that was not my problem any more.

So please, do not give me crowds, parties every week, and get togethers that start in the evening and carry on until midnight. I am not ready for that any more. I just curl up with a compouter, iPad, good book and am surrounded by three felines and Mr. Swiss. Even the crowds at the supermarket seem to have got smaller and a weekly dose of Tai Chi and daily practice is now my idea of life.

This all happened about four years ago, and it is the first time that I have written down for the public what happened at the time.

Daily Prompt: INTJ

Daily Prompt: Menagerie

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Do you have animals in your life? If yes, what do “they mean to you? If no, why have you opted not to?

(Bonus points for adorable animal photos, and double bonus if they’re taken with your phone!) –I have a Nikon camera, as well as a Lumix so definitely do not need to use my phone

“Look Tabby, Fluffy, the daily prompt, it is just for us.”

“Yessss Nera, we have our chance at last to get a blogger award for our writing talents.”

“We will start with our portraits, before talking about the animals in our life.”

“Agreed” said Tabby and Fluffy in unison. The felines were quite excited, at last a prompt they could do on their own.

“To start with I will show one of my portrait studies, I even signed it with a paw print and sent the original to Garfield. Am still waiting for an answer.” said Nera the chief cat.

Nera studio photo
“Note my voluptuous curves, my silky fur and my shining eyes, I am sure Garfield fell in love with my portrait. I wonder why he has not yet answered my letter with the photo?”
”
“Perhaps he wasn’t interested Nera, you know he might have had the same operation as we three cats, then the opposite sex just seems to lose its attrativity.” spoke Tabby and continued “But now it is my turn to show my photo. I am more the intellectual type, not so much fat, sorry fluff, but I invest more into my feline brain.”

Tabby
“I was really concentrating in this photo, thinking about the meaning of life in connection with mice and birds and why the ideal tin opener for cat paws has not yet been developed.”

“Yes Tabby, dream on, as long as we have our slaves, aka humans, there is not need for a feline friendly tin opener.” answered Nera.

“Now it’s my turn, my turn, let me put a photo on the prompt.”

“Ok, Fluffy, stay cool, you will get your photo, Which one do you want?”

“Choose one of my dreamy photos where I am sort of swaying between Nirvana and corn chambers in Egypt. I do not see the photos so I will let you choose Nera. Mr. and Mrs. Human say I am blind, but I still don’t know what that is.”

So here is the photo Nera and Tabby chose for Fluffy.

Fluffy

“I think you have done a good job Nera” said Tabby and Fluffy. Mrs. Human will be proud of us and she does not have to bother about writing anything today on her daily prompt.”

“What did I hear felines about my daily prompt. What are you doing on my computer.”

“We saved you some problems with the daily prompt. They asked if we have animals in our life and what they mean to us, so we just have to write that and then we are finished.”

“But felines the prompt is for me to write about the animals in my life.”

“Forget it, Mrs. Human. Humans are also animals, homo sapiens, but do not expect us to use that phrase. To continue, you and Mr. Human are the animals in our life and mean a lot to us. Without you our cat tray would smell and never be emptied. Our twice a weekly ration of tuna fish would not be prepared, due to the fact that our paws cannot use the tin opener. We also need you both for your credit cards, so that we can order online on our pawpads various feline essentials, such as catnip filled toys, a new designer cat play center and of course the diamond studied collars, although they have delivery problems at the moment. Not to mention that when we have a hairball moment, you are both ready to clear it away. Yes I would say you both mean quite a lot to us felines, so now I think it is time for a plate of tuna fish, laced with liquid and Tabby said she would like some yogurt as a desert today. It helps with the digestion.

And to finish this epic blog, we also have our own site on WordPress. I am sure you would all love to read it, so here is the link The Cat Chronicles

Mrs. Human, Mrs. Human – where has she gone?”

“I think she is having one of those hissy fits in her sleeping cushion, talking about ungrateful felines and all that rubbish. Just leave her, she will soon recover. Fluffy is going to have a hairball moment, he is already preparing for it, and then she will come running to clear the mess away like all well trained humans.” So Tabby had the last word.

Daily prompt: Menagerie

Daily Prompt: Impossibility

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“Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.” – the White Queen, Alice in Wonderland.

What are the six impossible things you believe in? (If you can only manage one or two, that’s also okay.)

Sunset in Feldbrunnen, Switzerland

A red sky at night is a shepherd’s delight
This is what they say
I have never seen a shepherd that rejoiced about this
And the sheep still went astray

They say in my country that when the sky glows
Santa is baking his bread
Of course I believe it, like everyone else
At Christmas we have to be fed

The Martian children jump with glee
A sky to match their earth
You think that planet is empty and dry?
They are red and that since their birth

Nothings impossible, just take the moon
We all know it is made of green cheese
That us why the sun only shines during day
Otherwise it melts, or eaten by bees

The world is flat, how could it be round?
We are certain it is not a ball
Christopher Columbus, a publicity trick
Give him a push, off the edge he will fall

My felines talk to me
They taught me to speak meow
You don’t believe me, but this is the truth
Nothing’s impossible, just have to know how.

Believe in the impossible, such a good thing
Life can be so much fun
This rubbish I write is for a good cause
And now this blog has been done

Daily Prompt: Impossibility

Daily Prompt: Bone of Contention

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Pick a contentious issue about which you care deeply — it could be the same-sex marriage debate, or just a disagreement you’re having with a friend. Write a post defending the opposite position, and then reflect on what it was like to do that.

Chaffinch

Now what does this chaffinch (or is it a robin?) have in common with these prompt. Nothing really except that he is contended to find a laid table in my garden amongst the snow. He does not have any problems, or wants to discuss for and against, he does not want to solve the world’s troubles and I feel the same at the moment. Lucky to live in a country where everything seems to be ok. I am retired, know where my next meal is coming from and today it is Sunday, you know like lazy Sunday afternoon. No household chores on the list, family all healthy, not really wealthy but we get by. We have a pension system that works. Could work better, but who cares, it could be a lot worse. So I really have nothing to write on this prompt.

My main care is that life continues as it is. That our country does not get any despots as leaders as some countries have. That we can live side by side with different religions, different opinions and no threat of a civil war. That we have enough to eat, that everything functions as it should. So what do I have to write about under these circumstances.

Perhaps some of you are not in this fortunate position. Illness in the family, financial worries, or the local government no doing what it should.

Please accept my hopes that things get better.

Daily Prompt: Bone of Contention