Hell - Norway
Nov 19, 1999
I have been to Hell and lived to tell the tale. A small town just next to Trondhiem Airport in Norway. A few years ago when I visited it had a red neon sign above the shopping centre which said 'Hell Sentrum'. It is a pity it is not there any longer as it made a great picture at night.
I guess if you live there it is a bit like Hell, it has very little in the way of entertainment, the proverbial two horse town. Whenever you take people there they feel compelled to make all the jokes about visiting Hell and how they must tell all their friends they have been to Hell and back. It must be Hell for those that live there to hear them over and over again.
There is even a Hell train station which is bordering on the surreal, you imagine it will be filled with steam and smoke and lots of shady characters disembarking.
I have been there a few times now as I have friends who live nearby and it is a great place to visit but a devil of a journey !
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sofas of the world unite
Sep 26, 1999
so i spend the middle part of the day purchasing a sofa. It's about time ours were updated and some friends of ours need the same thing for a new house. So we poodle off to the Conran shop, mecca of design and all things cool and also check out Heals, another mecca of design and almost as cool.
Now the thing is, the four of us wander around the sofa departments, picking up little must have bits that caught our eye on the way, and after much sitting on and stroking (very important aspect of quality control) we find the sofa that will enhance our living space and we sit down to complete the sale.
after much signing of paper and swiping of credit cards and arranging of size, colour and assorted gubbins they start to discuss delivery dates that are at least 8 weeks away.
Why ? How can you drop a serious wodge of money in front of somebody and get the reply 'thanks but we will get back to you with the sofa'.
Furniture stores aren't really are they ? More your shop full of stuff you can have later.
There is an overwhelming sense of having been ripped off. I am still sitting on the old sofas, looking a little the worse for wear and age, (the sofas not me)(having said that it could also apply to me)and to be quite honest i have tried to imagine the new sofas in the same spot but having paid all that money i can't quite muster up the mental picture.
Bruised credit card i can do ... sofa in my lving room i can't.
How do they get away with it ... it's almost as bad as airlines charging a fortune to travel with them and then having the slowest most ancient form of processing known to man.
just how do they get away with that ... all those computers and you still have to turn up two hours early just to have a seat assigned.
If there was any justice, and the jury is still out that one as well, we would be able to just tell someone that it is so wrong what they do ... they would agree and change it the very next day.
... and you know stroking old sofa just ain't the same 
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Sep 26, 1999
so i spend the middle part of the day purchasing a sofa. It's about time ours were updated and some friends of ours need the same thing for a new house. So we poodle off to the Conran shop, mecca of design and all things cool and also check out Heals, another mecca of design and almost as cool.
Now the thing is, the four of us wander around the sofa departments, picking up little must have bits that caught our eye on the way, and after much sitting on and stroking (very important aspect of quality control) we find the sofa that will enhance our living space and we sit down to complete the sale.
after much signing of paper and swiping of credit cards and arranging of size, colour and assorted gubbins they start to discuss delivery dates that are at least 8 weeks away.
Why ? How can you drop a serious wodge of money in front of somebody and get the reply 'thanks but we will get back to you with the sofa'.
Furniture stores aren't really are they ? More your shop full of stuff you can have later.
There is an overwhelming sense of having been ripped off. I am still sitting on the old sofas, looking a little the worse for wear and age, (the sofas not me)(having said that it could also apply to me)and to be quite honest i have tried to imagine the new sofas in the same spot but having paid all that money i can't quite muster up the mental picture.
Bruised credit card i can do ... sofa in my lving room i can't.
How do they get away with it ... it's almost as bad as airlines charging a fortune to travel with them and then having the slowest most ancient form of processing known to man.
just how do they get away with that ... all those computers and you still have to turn up two hours early just to have a seat assigned.
If there was any justice, and the jury is still out that one as well, we would be able to just tell someone that it is so wrong what they do ... they would agree and change it the very next day.
... and you know stroking old sofa just ain't the same
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Sep 26, 1999
so i spend the middle part of the day purchasing a sofa. It's about time ours were updated and some friends of ours need the same thing for a new house. So we poodle off to the Conran shop, mecca of design and all things cool and also check out Heals, another mecca of design and almost as cool.
Now the thing is, the four of us wander around the sofa departments, picking up little must have bits that caught our eye on the way, and after much sitting on and stroking (very important aspect of quality control) we find the sofa that will enhance our living space and we sit down to complete the sale.
after much signing of paper and swiping of credit cards and arranging of size, colour and assorted gubbins they start to discuss delivery dates that are at least 8 weeks away.
Why ? How can you drop a serious wodge of money in front of somebody and get the reply 'thanks but we will get back to you with the sofa'.
Furniture stores aren't really are they ? More your shop full of stuff you can have later.
There is an overwhelming sense of having been ripped off. I am still sitting on the old sofas, looking a little the worse for wear and age, (the sofas not me)(having said that it could also apply to me)and to be quite honest i have tried to imagine the new sofas in the same spot but having paid all that money i can't quite muster up the mental picture.
Bruised credit card i can do ... sofa in my lving room i can't.
How do they get away with it ... it's almost as bad as airlines charging a fortune to travel with them and then having the slowest most ancient form of processing known to man.
just how do they get away with that ... all those computers and you still have to turn up two hours early just to have a seat assigned.
If there was any justice, and the jury is still out on that one as well, we would be able to just tell someone that it is so wrong what they do ... they would agree and change it the very next day.
... and you know stroking old sofa just ain't the same
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driving
Sep 11, 1999
where to begin
what to say
so many subject so little time
don't start me on levels of service in shops and restuarants ... the way that we pay more for less (except packaging) ... and if i ever get into the loop about buses in London and how actually it is them that slow down the traffic we will be here all night
while on the subject of driving ...
the first thing i looked at was the driving section of the guide ... i haven't read the conversation section yet but i was amazed to see that so much was left unsaid
in recent years it seems a law was passed that allows motorists to double park, or leave a car blocking something irrelevant like a road and as long as they turn on the hazard lights it is ok.
Two pale flashing lights do say 'oops sorry the wife is just paying the papers' or 'how was i to know my friend wouldn't be ready when I got here'.
This new law does not of course apply to black taxis, they are outside the law at all times. Black taxis will do what they want when they want and can usually rely on other black taxis to help them achieve what they want to do. Turning around in the middle of the road during rush hour being their favourite pass time.
enough ...breath ... make fresh coffee
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