RDP Wednesday: Scintilla

Posted in Ragtag Daily Prompt by

Robert Bosch Company, Zuchwil

The name Scintilla rang many bells in my head. Of course it is the Italian word for “spark” but for me it has another meaning. It was the place where I saw and met Mr. Swiss 50+ years ago, I was already in Switzerland, in Zürich, and decided to search for another job. I happened to be on the phone to my mum in London, England, and she said she saw a job advertised in the english newspaper for Switzerland in a place called Zuchwil, near the town of Solothurn. I think mum never forgave herself for telling me. It was for a Robert Bosh Company subsidiary, called Scintilla. They always had an english secretary there, and so I called them, paid them a visit and yes, I got the job. That was the main reason why I stayed in Switzerland and moved to Solothurn from Zürich.

I worked for the Scintilla for a few years, met Mr. Swiss, we got married and I left my job because I had a baby bump. It is now many years later, but the Scintilla still exists. They made a range of vacuum cleaners for a Swiss store but their main product was drills and jigsaws. They introduced a range of saws that would fit different types of drill products. It was my job to handle the english correspondence for the whole company. They were the days where stenography was still needed. As a sideline I proof read the english translations of the operation manuals.

However the company Scintilla had existed for many years, since 1917. It was when Charles Lindbergh did his famous flight across the Atlantic that their fame was established. Lindbergh needed a magneto for is aircraft, The spirit of St. Louis, but was having problems as they were exploding. It was then that the company Scintilla in the little village of Zuchwil produced the Vertex Magnetos which were found to be the ideal solution. And so the Scintilla became famous for it magnetos, thanks to Charles Lindbergh,  and you can still see an example of that magneto if you visit the company.

The building is still there but has now mainly been rented out to other companies, although a small part is still Scintilla.

RDP Wednesday: Scintilla

FOWC with Fandango: Plug

Posted in FOWC by

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There are plugs everywhere
One is for the router
Do not ask which one
It is all for the computer
One day I took the hoover
and decided to have a clean
We then became wireless
It was a very sad scene
I must have moved a wire
Or detached a good connection
The screens all went black
And lost the main direction
We really had a problem
And had a very  loose cable
Mr. Swiss got down on his knees
To try a make it stable
Suddenly I found the problem
When I lifted up the rug
The vacuum cleaner had done the job
and managed to pull the plug

FOWC with Fandango: Plug

RDP Tuesday: Agitate

Posted in Ragtag Daily Prompt by

Goose 27.05 (1)

I got real life agitation this morning, and I think the agitator must have been a lookalike of this silly goose. It all began some time last March, or was it April. Difficult to say, it was so long ago. I was at the dentist with Mr. Swiss and decided it was time for me for a check up. It had been a long while, I had no toothache, not even dental problems, but today we are guided by the golden rule to have your teeth checked at least once a year. My dentist even told me I should report every 9 months, being diabetic etc. I asked for an appointment at that time and was surprised that the earliest opportunity would be in August. In the meanwhile much water has flowed under the bridge, although I had not forgotten the appointment, but when the date was made for Mr. Swiss eye operation end of August I checked on my dental appointment and discovered it would be exactly on that day.

I called the dentist to change the appointment. Each time I call I have a different person on the phone. The practice was orginally run by the father and he treated both myself and Mr. Swiss. He is now retired and his son has taken over, a very capable dentist and Mr. Swiss is one of his patients, looks like the VIP treatment. I was redirected to one of the assistants, also a very capable dentist. But who sees a dentist today. If you are in pain and lose a tooth etc. then you are a case for the dentist, otherwise your checkups are done by a dental hygiene person, which is usually a lady. It seems that dentists can fit you in in a month or so, but not the hygienists, the are fully booked out for at least 3 months.

This morning when I called to say my appointment would not be possible, the lady said I would have to wait at least 3-4 months for a new appointment. I bit into the sour apple and told her to give me a new date. I got the first Monday in December. Mondays are not possible for me and after a discussion she said 12th December at 3.00 in the afternoon. I asked the lady what has happened to the regular important checkups at the dentist. They no longer exist and I am now waiting for a very long time. Her answer: Sorry,  I have no time to discuss I have other patients, goodbye.

I was not only agitated but very much annoyed to be brushed off in that way by someone I would be old enough to be her grandmother. Needless to say Mr. Swiss will have a few earnest words with his dentist on the next visit. We have paid many thousands of Swiss Francs to have our teeth dealt with but for the silly goose on the telephone, this is not important.

RDP Tuesday: Agitate

Good Morning

Posted in Good Morning by

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And it is a very wet morning and still raining. I even had to shelter my kalanchoe plant under the table as they do not like too much rain. It is a very quick hello this morning. My cleaning lady is here very busy and I have just finished freshening up my windows. They are not so dirty, just rain splashes everywhere.

My insurance man will be calling in half an hour as by law I have to make an insurance for my cleaning lady in case she has an accident whilst in my employment. I also just called my dentist. I made an appointment for a check in March and they could only give me an appointment for this month. In the meanwhile it is the day when Mr. Swiss will have his eye operation, so no chance that I have time for have my teeth cleaned and I called to postpone and she tells me I will have to wait another three months. I reminded her that this was slowly becoming a joke, as we are always told it is important to see the dentist at least once a year and I never get an appointment in time.

She became quite unfriendly to say the least and told me she must go as she has other patients to deal with and I got a new appointment for December. This is ridiculous and I was very annoyed at her attitude. Luckily my teeth seem to be OK, and all I need is good clean up and check.

And now I must begin to cook and am really pressed for time. See you later if things get a little less stressful.

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In the meanwhile I will also bury my head to avoid things that are determined to bother me this morning.

FOWC with Fandango: Advocate

Posted in FOWC by

Poster Cow Horns 08.11.2018

Bessie and Greta wanted to keep their horns. They were only calves, but when they saw the vet approaching with the burning irons to remove them, they kicked out with their hind legs and ran for it. It was then that farmer Jones began to think. “My cows want to keep their horns”. It was quite obvious after he got the doctor’s bill from the vet for injuries inflicted by a calf. And so he decided that not only Bessie and Greta should keep their horns, but all the other cows in the country.

He began to collect signatures and got the allowed amount to bring it to the vote. At last it would be official if accepted. The cows in his country would be able to walk around with their horned heads held hight. There were protests that horns were dangerous and that more room would be needed in the cow sheds, but farmer Jones continued and there was a vote. He had dreams of happy cows with horns on the pastures.

It happened something like this, I remember it well. The poster was shown everywhere and on 25th November 2018 the Swiss people could vote “Ja” to let the cows keep their horns. I was one of the voters that said Yes, I wanted my cows to let their horns grow. However, money speaks all languages and the building of larger barns would be more expensive and the danger of accidents with the horns was a middle point and the result was “Nein”. And so the Swiss cows are still hornless: not all of them, but most of them. I did find a few cows in our village whose farmer allowed them to keep their horns.

Cows 17.10 (7)

FOWC with Fandango: Advocate

RDP Monday: Serene

Posted in Ragtag Daily Prompt by

River Aar 30.10 (1)

Sitting at the screen
I was searching for serene
There were places where I’d been
On my journey all between
Some photos were in green
And others had a sheen
I then began to sleep, feeling like a queen
Time to wake up and then I had a clean
But here is one more photo to put you in the scene
Just close your eyes and dream and drift into serene

View of River Aar towards Solothurn

RDP Monday: Serene

Good Morning

Posted in Good Morning by

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After a thunderous night things have calmed down and there are just a few clouds hovering above. It rained most of the night and  I heard the storm in the background, but nothing serious. I had already put my plants in shelter, so no damage done. As usual it was not half as bad as the weather gods prophesied.

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Of course the wet weather was again an attraction for our garden livestock, but I now leave them to it.

It was a quiet Sunday yesterday. I decided to relax and stay at home. It was a pleasant afternoon and I was outside on the porch. Funny, even if you are retired, Sundays are still Sundays. I am not a church goer and religion is definitely not my thing, but to the background of church bells and more peace and quiet, you realise that there is no stress anywhere.

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I noticed the horses in the field next door are also outside again. We see few animals during the hot days of summer as the farmers tend to keep them inside during the day and let them out at night when it is cooler. I have not seen a cow for a few months, they are doing the night shift when it is cooler.

This week is going to be a bit of a stress week and I am not sure how and when I will be here. Just to let you know, Mr. Swiss has his first eye operation on Wednesday for his cataract. These ops have become quite routine over the years, just a “simple” procedure to replace the lens, that takes about half an hour. The preparations before and after take more time. I will have to bring him to the clinic, about 10 minutes away by car, and pick him up after the operation. In between I will have to fit in a bit of housework and cooking for lunch at home and I am not sure if I will be here for a good morning hello. I might programme it the evening before.  Wednesday afternoon I will be shopping and I have a similar procedure on Thursday when the bandage is removed from the eye. We will have a repeat performance in two weeks for the second eye, so it looks like a bit of stress. However, everything passes, and we hope for the best. The operation has become quite a routine over the years and we know many people that have had it. I might be having the same in a year or two according to how my eyes develop, but at the moment they are OK, although the left eye has its beginnings it seems, according to the eye doctor.

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So let’s have something to brighten up the day. My carnations have not quite given up and still throw up a flower now and again. This one with a background of my savoury herb flowers.

And now I must go, there are things to do and places to visit, such as the shower and apartment cleaning. Let us hope we all have a good beginning to the week with no complications.

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