h1n1 and the postal service

piggy flu hit home. one of our students was diagnosed with h1n1 today. naturally, my colleagues and i immediately had hypochondriac symptoms of anything flu-like. that was right after we doused in disinfectant lotion.

let’s see how the next days play out. we had plenty of chuckles about the whole place shutting down because of this. i think now we all hope that will happen. we could use a few days off

the german postal service contacted me. i complained on their website via a contact form made especially for complaints (how convenient!). they said that i would get a reply within 24 hours. i did not but refrained from complaining about that also. today i had a letter in my mailbox giving me the usual blabla sorry shit (like i really think that my complaint will lead to a better and more thorough training for their staff) and…drumroll…double the amount of stamps that i had put on that initial envelop. now THAT’S what i call service. i really thought they would make me send in copies of the receipt from when i paid for the stamps or something. nope, all not necessary.

that reminded me of the complaint stories my mom always tells me. you know, from back in the days when the communists ruled this country. a complaint had to be filed in the most official way and in a language that borders to ridiculous. and nothing ever changed. go figure. so in a way, the fall of the iron curtain brought me the freedom to complain. complain a lot

franzi

20 years after

where would i be without the fall of the berlin wall? what state would germany be in? how would europe and the world be organized?

twenty years ago, the world as my mom knew it came down. the events in berlin were probably the best birthday gift she could ever receive. she received the right to move and live wherever she wanted. she suddenly was allowed to travel, to raise her children with a political and ethical view that she believed in.

she suddenly was free, and i as her child was free also. i received the chance to grow up in a free country where i was lucky enough to face opportunities my mom never had.

let’s celebrate today! let’s celebrate the fall of a wall that separated a city, a country, the world. but most of all, let’s celebrate the people who made this happen. like wolfgang thierse said: “the fall of the wall 20 years ago is not the result of genius politics or genius politicians but the result of the bravery of many nameless people and this is what we have to defend!”

franzi

quick update – my mom is in tha house

my mom is in lz for the weekend so i don’t really have time to blog or do anything online.

more tomorrow

franzi