Did I Speak Too Soon?

You know how I went on about the end of the Sky era yesterday? Well, yesterday, just on a whim, I put in our new Sky card, and...

It's TOTALLY working.

That's right, ALL our channels as if nothing had ever been wrong.

Sky requires a 31-day notice when you cancel, so that means we'll still get all our channels until the beginning of March. That also means, I presume, that we could call them back and rescind our cancellation now that the card is working just fine.

Should we, or shouldn't we?

THAT is the question.

1 A.K.

King went to Kitty Heaven one year ago today. Can you believe it? It's been ONLY one year.

Man.... this last year has reeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaallllly dragged!!!

I thought it was just me, but Mrs. TBF feels the same way. It seems to me like King has been gone for three years. Really!

We were in San Sebastian only eleven months ago???

Amsterdam was just this past April???

My parents came for a visit in June/July, and we were in Ireland and Finland in July??? That was only about six months ago?? Are you kiddin' me????

Then, there were the trips to Amalfi and Copenhagen in September, and Scotland in November... plus, a smattering of trips to the U.S. sprinkled in for flavor. All that... and the year still dragged on... and on... and on?

What's going on here? I thought time flies when you're having fun.

No Offense!

And speaking of Sky...

Yesterday evening, I was about to watch The Simpsons on one of the free (YES!!!) Sky channels. I looked at the show description to see which episode it was, and I noticed that it was the one where Bart starts working for the local Mafia guys: Cool! I hadn't seen that one in a long time.

Seconds before the show was about to start, a voice came on a said:

Warning. This show contains strong Italian stereotypes that some of our viewers [the Italian ones, I'm assuming] might find offensive.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT???

They actually gave a warning before A CARTOON to avoid offending some viewers.

I COULDN'T BELIVE IT!

I called out to my dago wife and told her to get her goombah ass out to TV room so she could hear it for herself, but she was in the tub stomping on some grapes, or in the shower scrubbing off the garlic smell, or something...

Who knows? Fuggedabouit!

The End Of An Era...

Remember a couple of years ago when I said that there was a chance that we might lose our Sky satellite subscription in the "near" future. Well, horror of horrors, it's finally happened!!!

This past October, a box began popping up on our screen telling us to insert our new satellite card and we'd have to press a button on our remote every 60 seconds(!!!) in order to get the message to go away - ANNOYING!!! Our card was supposed to have been sent to the U.K. home of one of Mrs. TBF's colleagues, but it never arrived in the mail. Mrs. TBF's colleague had to call Sky from her home in the U.K. (because Sky now blocks calls from outside the U.K.), pretend she was Mrs. TBF (after we coached her on what to say), and ask for a new card to be sent. Sky said they would do so.

They didn't.

After calling Sky a couple of times, and Sky saying they would send a new card but not doing so, we just asked our friend to call them and cancel the subscription. When, our friend called to cancel, Sky practically begged her to give them one more chance. About a week later, much to our surprise, the card came.

This past Friday, we received our new card from our friend, and...

IT DIDN'T WORK!!!

Our friend called Sky from her home in the U.K. this past weekend, and they told her it would be working within 24 hours (after we had to provide the old card number, the new card number, AND the serial number of our Sky box). After THIRTY hours, it still wasn't working, so our friend called Sky last night and canceled.

In the end it was kind of strange: WE wanted to keep our subscription, SKY wanted us to keep the subscription, but it just didn't work out. Shame!

But I'm happy to report that it's not a total loss.

Even without any card, the box still picks up quite a few free channels. Fortunately, one of the free channels, amazingly, is the U.S. Food Network. That means that we'll still be able to get our nightly dose of Iron Chef America every night at 10 p.m. - which is one of the few shows we watch with any regularity anyway. Plus, we'll still get the BBC channels, ITV channels, and quite a few others. Yes, no more NFL on Sunday nights, but... the season's almost over anyway, right? Plus, when the new season begins next September, we'll be getting close to moving back to the U.S. anyway.

Right, Mrs. TBF???

Way Too Early!

Mrs. TBF is on her way to Miami right now. As usual, I rode in the taxi with her to the airport at 5:45 a.m., we said our goodbyes, and then I took the bus/tram back home.

Seeing that my gym now opens at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays, my original plan was to take the bus back into town from the airport, walk to gym, and then have an early workout. However, when I woke up this morning, I decided against it. I mean, I don't have to go to work, so WHY IN THE WORLD would I want to torture myself with an early-morning workout when I don't have to? Instead, I took the bus back into town, got myself a venti Americano at Starbucks, and then took the tram home.

And speaking about my gym...

They used to open at 8:00 a.m. on weekdays. One day, I mentioned to one of the trainers that they would probably increase their membership significantly if they opened earlier because people could workout before going to work.

Here was the first objection:

Swiss Trainer: But who vood vant to come to verk so early in zee morning?

TBF: Ummm... Probably any number of people who are out of work and need a job.

Swiss Trainer: But... vee vood haff to find a zertified trainer.

TBF: To unlock the front door so that people could come exercise? Anybody can do that! Just hire somebody part-time to come in and work for a couple of hours until the regular staff shows up at 8:00 a.m.

Swiss Trainer: But who vood vant to verk for only two hours per day?

TBF: Ummm... Somebody who needs the money and figures that two hours of pay per day is better than ZERO hours per day of pay. A stay-at-home mom or dad, a university student, somebody who wants to take on a second job.

Swiss Trainer: A second job????

Then, the next objection:

Swiss Trainer: Anusser seeng ees zat vee surveyed our members to see if zey vanted to come verkout earlier in zee morning, and almost everybody said no.

TBF: Yes, but did you survey people who are not members?

Swiss Trainer: No, vhy vood vee do zat?

TBF: Because THOSE are the people who are not joining the gym because it's not open before they go to work. I mean, I don't work, so I can come here any time I want. And since I can come at any time, why would I want to wake up at 6 a.m. and come workout when I don't have to. However, a person who gets to work at 8:30 a.m. might not join this gym because he can't workout before he goes to work. Maybe if you opened up at 6 or 6:30 a.m., you might increase your membership... significantly!

I sensed the gears grinding in his brain, but it really was a lot for him to take in. The concept of doing something that might benefit the customer and actually increase business was just such a foreign concept that he really needed to take some time to think about.

Now, I'm not saying I had anything to do with it, but imagine my surprise when I heard a few weeks ago that my gym would now begin opening at 6:30 a.m. from Monday to Friday.

I wonder how crowded it is? I guess I'll have to ask because... there's NO WAY I'm getting up that early in order to find out!

Not A Total Waste

Suuuure I've had a mild cold for the past week, and Mrs. TBF had a stomach virus for a couple of days, but...

... at least we accomplished something!

This one was a little tough!

Almost Forgot...

With all the sickness in the apartment over this past week, I almost forgot that this past weekend marked the 5-year anniversary of us moving into our apartment.

I'm tellin' ya, I never thought we'd live in this apartment for five years. In fact, when we moved in, we signed a two-year lease and I had doubts about making it through two years.

I guess I was wrong about that one.

Will we make it to six? Maybe... but let me qualify that.

If we're still here next January, we'll definitely be on our way out. We've decided, and Mrs. TBF has already told her bosses at work that this will be our last year in Switzerland. One way or another - either moving back with the company, or giving notice and moving back at our own expense - we'll be moving back to the U.S. in the not-too-distant future.

Here's to hoping it's sooner rather than later.

EXTREMELY Rare!

Not only did Mrs. TBF stay home from work on Tuesday, but she also stayed home from work yesterday too. That's right... TWO SICK DAYS IN A ROW!!!

Mrs. TBF went back to the office this morning which means she's all better now. I'm definitely happy that she's 100% healthy again, but I did enjoy having her home for a couple of weekdays.

That was, when I could find her.

Jinxed!

Everything was going along smoothly. Then, last weekend, I uttered those dreaded words:

"You know what? I may be jinxing us here, but... this is the first year in as long as I can remember that I haven't had a cold or the flu by this time of the year!"

A few days later?

You guessed it. I woke up last Monday with the sniffles. It wasn't too bad: just a really runny nose that has lasted about a week. I haven't even had that bad of a cough, and no sore throat at all. In fact, I can't even claim it as a proper man-cold!

Now that I'm getting over my cold, Mrs. TBF has come down with some horrific stomach ailment. Last night, she had to get up every couple of hours to visit the "library".

Maybe I'll change my tactics:

"You know what? I may be jinxing us here, but... we have yet to win the Euro Millions Lotto!"

Hungry?

I sure was at about 1 p.m. just after I had finished working out. Seeing how I was completely out of cash and all, I walked over to a bank machine not too far from my gym so that I could fill up the money clip. It just so happened, the machine was right next to THE Burger King.

I call it "THE" Burger King because it's the ONLY Burger King in Basel.

Since I normally try to watch what I eat during the week, I figured it was best to skip the fries and I only went for a Whopper. No fries, no drink, no cheese, no bacon. Nope... just a Whopper.

I'll tell ya, it's a good thing I had just stopped at the cash machine because...

A Whopper in Switzerland costs CHF 7.50. That comes out to $7.17 in American money!!!!

For "A" Whopper.

1!

ONE!!!!!!!!!

Last month, while in Chicago, I seem to recall seeing promotions for 2 Whoppers for $4!

It's unbelievable to me that a Whopper costs nearly four times as much in Basel as it does in Chicago. What's the minimum wage here right now? Actually, what is it in America these days? $8/hour???

Are the Basel Burger King employees actually making $30/hour?

Come on!! They're unskilled workers for chrissake! OK, they can speak multiple languages, but I'm sure their English is pretty much limited to "Would you like cheese or bacon?" or "Would you like ketchup or mayonnaise?" ... for which they charge extra, by the way. That's right, they charge you for each individual packet of ketchup or mayo... something like 30 cents per pack!! My friend, Dr. Andy, always orders something like four packets of ketchup with his fries. I wonder if he realizes that he's paying over a buck for ketchup.

And... as if it couldn't get any worse, my Whopper wasn't even hot - even though it was made to order. It was barely lukewarm!

But...

I'll be back.

TBF just needs to eat a Whopper every now and then.

She Brings Home The Bacon...

This morning at about 8:00...

TBF: I need to go to the cash machine. I have absolutely ZERO cash on me.

Mrs. TBF: Do you need some cash? I have cash.

TBF: Nah... that's ok. I need to get some cash.

Mrs. TBF: You know what? I can't remember the last time I actually used cash. In fact, I can't remember the last time I actually paid for anything!

We're Alive!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I've been hibernating since we returned from Chicago. I really don't have any reasons for the lack of posts other than that I just haven't felt like blogging.

Have I been busy with other things? Nope!

Have I been sick? Nope!

I just... haven't felt like it.

Quite honestly, I still don't really fell like it, so let's just link up to some photos from our Christmas in the Windy City.

Maybe I'll have more to say in the next few days.

That is... if I feel like it.

To Shave, Or Not To Shave?

That is the question.

I haven't shaved since October 31st. Ok... I've shaved my neck and my head, but I haven't shaved my face since Halloween.

Hey, what can I say? Every now and then, a guy needs to give his face a rest. Plus, I like to check on the progress of the gray whiskers every now and then. Verdict: a little more gray than the last time I had a beard (January 2007), but not too much more.

Not only have I not shaved, but I haven't even trimmed the beard. It's beginning to get a bit unruly, so if I do decide to keep it I'll have to give a bit of a once over with the scissors. Another thing for me to consider is that shaving my face reminds me to trim the ear and nose hairs, so those may be getting a bit on the wrong side of acceptable.

Ummmm... ok. I think I've answered my own question.

The beard goes before I go to Chicago.

We'll Be Home For Christmas...

One week from now we'll be well into North American airspace on our way to Chicago for our Christmas vacation. It'll be our first time in Chicago for Christmas since 1999.

Ten years! TEN YEARS!!!

Ten. Years...

Can you believe it???

We were actually talking back in January about going to Tokyo this Christmas, but Mrs. TBF mentioned Chicago as a possibility, and Tokyo pretty much never came up as an option again.

Maybe next year.

Since we're actually going to be in Chicagoland for a full two weeks, we thought it would be nice to get out of the suburbs and head into the city for a couple of nights. We'll be doing our little part to help the U.S. economy by spending money on a hotel, Christmas shopping and eating at nice restaurants. Vienna, Rome, Paris, and London have been the recipients of our Christmas spending over the last four years. This year, we're bringing the money back home and spending it in Chi-town!!!

It still floors me that the last time we were in Chicago for Christmas, everybody was talking about Y2K. Remember that? What a bust! Just another thing - along with backyard bomb shelters, the oncoming ice age, and acid rain - collecting dust in the over-hype warehouse. I heard something about the warehouse men getting a spot ready for man made global warming. I'd ask them, but they're taking a break right now (damn Teamsters!). We'll just have to wait and see, won't we?

Anyway...

At this time way back in '99, we had neighbors who had bought a whole-house backup generator, people were stocking up on food and water, the end of the world was nigh, and we didn't even have an inkling of an idea that we'd be living in Switzerland less than a year later.

Here we are ten years later, and Y2K is a distant memory. Instead, I'm focused on B2A: BACK TO AMERICA!!!

How much time is left on the countdown clock???

The Final Word On Dieting And Hooter's Wings!

People find my blog every single day by doing a search for "hooters wings weight watchers points" or some version of those words. Why? Because I've blogged about Hooters Wings and Weight Watchers... DUH!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...

If you're on any kind of weight loss diet - Weight Watchers or ANY other diet - you WILL NOT lose weight if you eat Hooters Wings. If you convince yourself that you will, you're just lying to yourself, and... that's not good.

Here's the proof:

This past Saturday evening, we had a long-overdue birthday dinner for the Switzerland-base, British Dr. John. Since we were the ones who introduced the Dr. John family to Hooters Wings at the Hooters in Norfolk, VA last summer - where Dr. John labeled them at the restaurant (in an embarrassingly loud voice) as being "Maaaaahhhvelous!" - we thought we would surprise him, along with Dr. Rammy, by making them some homemade Hooters wings for his belated birthday dinner.

I did a quick internet search for Hooters wings recipes, found a few suitable recipes, and picked out the one that I thought was the best.

If you look at the recipe, you'll find that not only are the wings breaded and deep fried, but...

AFTER REMOVING THE WINGS FROM THE FRYER, THEY ARE TOSSED IN A COMBINATION OF A 1/2 CUP OF BUTTER AND A 1/2 CUP OF HOT SAUCE!!!!

Let's see now: deep fried wings tossed in butter before serving? Ummmm... you're not going to lose weight eating those. Nope... you're just not! But... just in case you do. You'd better head to the doctor to have your thyroid checked!

Anyway... they ARE evil! But... they sure are good!!!

There's Nothing Like A Hot Bath...

ESPECIALLY after you've been without hot water for 24 hours!!

That's right, HEAD FOR THE BOMB SHELTER!! We were without hot water for 24 hours last week from Thursday to Friday!

Is it the beginning of the complete breakdown of Swiss society as we know it??? Probably not, but THIS may have been!

Other than the fact that Mrs. TBF had to take an ice-cold shower on Friday morning before going to work (I just showered at the gym), in hindsight, being without hot running water in Switzerland proved not to be too big of an inconvenience. You see, both the washing machine and dishwasher have their own built-in heating elements, and therefore only have cold water feeds. Of course, I didn't think about this until about 20 hours into the 24 hours, so I guess... YES! It was rather inconvenient being without hot water. But next time - IF there ever is a next time - I'll be ready.

It's when things like this happen that I realize one of the major things I like about owning a home as opposed to renting: having complete control over a situation.

As a homeowner: I would have called a repairman, he/she would have shown up, and the problem would have been solved.

As a renter: I called the absolutely-no-sense-of-urgency rental office, the person told me that they would relay the message to their colleague, and then I proceeded to sit around with my thumb up my ass. Every fifteen minutes or so, I would remove said thumb from ass to walk over to the faucet to see if any hot water was coming out.

Finally, I got tired of waiting, so I went to talk to my downstairs Swiss neighbor who speaks absolutely ZERO English. Somehow, through a complicated system of semi-German words, grunts, and charades, I managed to ask her to call the management office to see if she could make any headway with them. I headed off to the next-door grocery store to buy a couple of things, and when I returned a few minutes later there was already a note from my neighbor stating that the repairmen were now working on the problem, had not yet determined what the problem was, but assured her that the hot water would be working by the end of the day.

By 3:30 on Friday afternoon, there was still no hot water, and I was getting nervous. Was there a chance that we'd have no hot water for the entire weekend??? I decided to head of to the gym for a workout, shower, and a good thumb scrubbing. When I returned home, the hot water was back on.

All was well with the world again.

Waste Not Want Not

I've read a couple of articles this past week about how much food the average American wastes. Alarmingly, the figure is something like 40%!! You can read a short article about it right here if you wish. The amount of fresh water and oil needed to produce the food that is just thrown out is staggering.

Why do Americans waste so much food? In my opinion, there are three major reasons:

1. Food is too cheap.
2. Refrigerators are too big.
3. Food being sold in too large containers (i.e. "extra-value-economy sizes").

Here in Switzerland: our food is expensive, refrigerators are small, and food is sold in small quantities. Guess what?

We rarely waste any food.

In fact, I would say I'd be overestimating if I said we throw out food more than once or twice per year. The last time? Last week: I threw out a tiny jar of cloves that had an expiration date of 2002! Other than that, I can't remember the last time.

So, here are some tips:

Buy only the food you intend on eating. If you have have leftovers - EAT THEM the next day, or stick them in the freezer! Don't buy massive containers of food. I mean, do you really need that gallon jar of pimento olives from Costco?

Oh, and here's another tip that I practiced this past Sunday night. Rather than leaving leftovers, just eat until you're ready to burst, fall into a deep coma, and become as one with the sofa in front of the TV until it's time to go to bed.

A Thanksgiving Controversy???

One of the comments from yesterday's post seems to question whether or not Brussels sprouts are traditional Thanksgiving fare. I have to say that I don't really remember ever eating them at Thanksgiving when I was growing up. But then again, we often ate a lot of of Finnish side dishes along with our turkey. I know Brussels sprouts are a traditional Christmas side dish in the U.K., and I think a lot of Americans/Canadians eat them with their Thanksgiving/Christmas meals. Oh... who knows?

How about if we just let Herman Munster settle it for us? And pay attention to what he says at the 14 second mark.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Even though it's just an ordinary Thursday in Switzerland, I'm still trying to create a little Thanksgiving spirit around here.

I know it's not quite the same as an American Thanksgiving dinner, but we ARE going to have some turkey, sweet potatoes, and Brussels sprouts.

I'd have no problem grilling a whole turkey, IF I COULD FIND ONE!!! Sure, I could have ordered a fresh one at the butcher a couple of weeks ago, but why bother just for the two of us. In a couple of weeks they'll start appearing in the grocery stores, and I'll buy a couple to stick in the freezer for later use.

In the meantime, turkey Schnitzel, sweet potatoes, and frozen Brussels sprouts will have to do. But I sure will miss eating the Pope's nose.

Can I buy a bag full of frozen ones somewhere?

Double Shot

Mrs. TBF and I had our H1N1 and seasonal flu shots yesterday evening.

As some of you already know, Mrs. TBF works for one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, and apparently they want to take care of their own: FREE H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccinations (both manufactured by the previously mentioned company for whom Mrs. TBF works) for all employees and their spouses/significant others/children. Figuring that I'm not as young as I used to be, and considering the fact that I would never turn down something FREE in Switzerland (free Basler Leckerli being one of the few exceptions), I decided to go for both.

Seeing how I have had two rather unpleasant bouts with flu over the past two winters, I figured it was time to start getting a seasonal flu shot. Hell, I might have already had the swine flu last December, but since I'd be getting one, why not get two for the price of one? Oh... did I mention that they were FREE? Oh... I did? Sorry about that.

Not only were the shots FREE, but we also got some FREE water (a choice of still or sparkling!) after the shots while we were sitting for ten minutes to see "if you have any kind of reaction"! We didn't.

So far so good!