sos-the-rope

So here goes another red tape marathon.   anyone got a clear answer for the following questions?   - What’s the difference between personal name (Eigenname) and forename(s) - “Vorname”?

  Who said anything about it being the same job every decade / year / week / day?!

  Yes, this was pretty hilarious. I don't really expect get squat for any of my pathetic pensions. I'm still working (from home!) and paying in but I don't figure they'll really be worth anything. That's been my expectation since I started working back in the "good old days" financial crash, anyone remember that? Not much has really improved.   My retirement plan is not to retire and just keep on working til I die, has been all along really. I just didn't expect to be potentially killed by public health policy in a country I thought had a grip on things like this, I need to work on my novel double quick now.

  For all the blah blah everywhere at the moment, spread and containment are mainly a very simple numbers game. Basic statistical models, I guess.

  So my significant other is constantly on seminars with a bunch of economist researcher who are basically 100% agreed that gradual "opening" is the worst possible strategy.   There *will* be a second wave this way, and potentially worse, that's the gist I'm getting.   As someone who's vulnerable due to pre-existing conditions I'm pretty darned upset about this

The wonderful Beeb is blocking access to their educational games and videos for everyone on a non-UK IP, yay "public service"!   I would never have considered asking this before (I don't miss the TV stuff one bit), but given my kids need to learn to read and write, you know, their native language, is there a Toytown Approved solution for getting access to this for a couple of months?

  And “My Stupidness In Germany” is the Toytown motto so it totally fits

  Could we start a dedicated Toilet Paper Talk thread please?!   🚽 🧻🚿🗞

Might work better as a podcast, make sure you post a link if you go down that route.

  Yeah but no but.   You can still compare the hits the UK takes with the damage to EU27 countries.   And the obvious benefits of being in the EU for getting through a worldwide Public Health crisis will be pretty obvious to see in comparison in hindsight.

Is it Peru or the Philippines, Dom?     OK, again could be a crossover with Brexit but this is specifically about repatriation of Brits so we can all share that proper English virus instead of the foreign stuff.   Apparently you can say “Peru” to our foreign secretary for 10 minutes and he still hears “the Philippines”.

“Hamstering” would be a totally acceptable way of saying “building a nest and staying it for weeks doing nothing but eat, sleep and ...”

  Thanks for spreading word!   And thanks for the common sense. Anyone who knows how retail works knows it’s not possible to just randomly sell off your entire stock online overnight.

The T3 Terminal Entertainment Games and Comics store is asking for support keeping their heads above the water as the store is currently closed (no opening = no sales = no money to pay the bills, presumably).   Here is their request. DISCLAIMER: I do not work for this store, I don’t and couldn’t guarantee their offer of a 100 euro voucher per 75 euro contribution. I’m only passing this along.   https://t3ffm.com/2020/03/17/support-us/

  I’m sure they have thought of everything mate.

  I mean there’s a direct connection between intense physical connectedness and the chance of virus epidemics. If I can go on a plane today and be in Australia tomorrow obviously I’ll be a risk to myself and others. We made these things “normal” instead of thinking about what’s actually healthy, safe, and conducive to our happiness- including the fact that if I destroy society for my selfish whims today I’ll be lonely tomorrow, which is not a good survival strategy 

Went shopping for actual essentials and a few treats for sanity earlier this week   no TP but plenty of water soluable toilet wipes! People left them because you have to actually read the pack I guess.   grabbed 2 as a backup (!) and left plenty for others!

And seen on fb, bogota shut down streets for bikes to allow better traffic for key workers... soooo why didn’t they do it before?!   https://www.zukunft-mobilitaet.net/171177/urbane-mobilitaet/covid-19-coronavirus-bogota-temporaere-radwege/   we need to set up a record of of the objective improvements from the measures taken so we can keep doing them after this epidemic passes. No one can claim they’re “impractical” or uneconomical if we did them and made it though OK

  Saw two little glider planes, or drones, or the same on fly over twice yesterday here in Frankfurt.   Never seen them before, although maybe they are around and they have the same office hours as me or they’re so quiet they don’t stand out over the plane noise.  

  The interest is there. A lot of people prefer to have a local shop with events, personal touches and tbh stuff that you simply can’t get online. And the amount of work that goes into an online store would be more than it would cost tbh.   this is a community business that does well when the people can visit in person, hence why they took the responsible step of shutting the doors! Normally they get a lot of footfall.

  This is literally like a gift certificate. Except that you get 100 bucks worth of goods for 75 bucks.

  🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣   mate, it’s comic books and collectibles, there’s next to no profit margin.   check out those Big Bang theory episodes with Stuart. It’s exaggerated but not toooooo far from the truth!!!!!

  I mean, if I was getting married I’d just bring it forward and get it done ASAP. Keep it minimalist, do the legal stuff and let all the big things wait til it’s all blown over.   everything else I’d just cancel and chill.   why replan  when you’re absolutely in the dark? No point setting yourself up for more drama later on.

  I had to transfer some money at the bank machine today, I chickened out of spraying it and wiping it down. Settled for doing my own hands, before and after...!

  No, I thought this was the only store in Frankfurt.   its a small business, not a huge chain with cash, insurance, other branches to work in, etc. it’s basically a couple of dedicated people working hard to feed their families and provide much needed escape (offline!) in an overstressed world.