Saturday, October 20, 2012

Minor annoyances...

I've been living in ZH since July and have compiled a wee list of things that bug me.

They are, in no particular order of importance, as follows:

*kitchen rubbish bins are tiny and lid free, so they both fill up and stink quickly.

Image borrowed from a Japanese blogger, I wonder if she is also annoyed by the rubbish situation here?

*recycling is off-site like back in the 70s in California, so you must schlep your stuff up the street/down the street and/or to the store where they accept plastic bottles, but only TWO types of plastic bottles.  The rest of the plastic is thrown out.  A couple of giant yogurt containers from the Turkish market in a half full 35 liter bag and it's all over.


*no screens on any windows.  There are roaches living in the bush outside the kitchen window that then come in and crawl around every time I leave the window open.

*puffy pretzels (yes, I know this isn't Germany, but I just wish that one could also find a pretzel here with 'skinny arms', if you know what I mean)

Fun photo, but no seeds on my pretzel, thanks!

*pedestrians in the bike lanes/not looking where they are walking.  I've already run into one man who seemingly popped out of a hedge and into the road in front of me and was nearly felled by tram tracks as I tried to avoid riding into the slew of folk crossing at all points over the road and through the bike lane.

The brash response to this short list could be: if you don't like it here, then go home!

I do like it here very much save for a few little 'bumps in the road'.  I've actually had chats with natives who also are neither keen on the lid-less rubbish bins nor the lack of window screens (I think the one guy has allergies, or something, and wound up ordering screens off the internet), so I feel a bit less like an a-hole about making a fuss.

PS: you should see my 'list of annoyances' regarding my home country! :D

6 comments:

  1. I'm with you on all of these save for the pretzels :D Their puffy arms don't bother me. I guess I should try a German one for comparison!

    We bought our window screens -- stuck very amateurishly on our windows throughout Spring and Autumn. They cost way too much for a simple mesh *grumble*.

    And hey, you know, even though my very old-fashioned rubbish bin is lidded, the humidity under the sink if off the charts. Imagine the stench!!!

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    Replies
    1. How are the screens holding up? Would you recommend the ones you purchased? I'm over roaches crawling on things...

      Yeah, the space under the sink is small and warm over here as well. :S

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    2. The screens... They served their purpose. They have gone through 2 cycles of being put up and taken down. They are attached to the pane with velcro-like tapes, in which the cloth mesh just sink into the velcro-teeth with a smooth rub over the surface. Hmm. Wonder if I'm conveying it correctly. Anyway, they are found in a Coop or Migros Bau+Hobby stores.

      P.S. / Question: I wonder if there's a quicker way for me to get notified of your comment replies... If you receive comments in the email, my comments are linked to my address :)

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    3. I don't know about a quicker notification system. I receive comment notification via email, so it feels pretty immediate.
      Cheers,
      bea

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  2. I just want to say that I love the fact that someone thinks this post is 'tote Hose'! :D It's also a tedious rant.x

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