A Couple of Observations
Good afternoon, evening, night and morning
The reason why I haven't written a post recently is honestly because I didn't think I had anything interesting to write about. A couple of wise people told me that this didn't matter and that I should just write about whatever is on my mind. So here goes nothing.
Since arriving in the land of the Americas I have seen some very weird, interesting and delightful things. I will present these things to you in a list format:
1) Self-checkout stations at grocery stores. Why. All you do is cause tension in the hearts of your customers. Stop telling me to put my item in the bag. MY ITEM IS IN THE BAG. TRUST ME. IT IS A SMALL ITEM. ACCEPT THAT IT IS IN THE BAG. Excuse me while I go and deal with a real life human being.
2) Already-grated-cheese. (Aunty Margs, this one's for you) "What?" I hear you ask, "you can buy cheese already grated???!!" Yes, my dear friends. Gone are the days when we have to assign grating cheese to one unlucky and grumbling member of the family. Gone are the days of accidentally grating our fingers and having to hold the grater at an uncomfortable angle. Gone are the days of having to unnecessarily dirty a plate because you have to grate cheese on it. This cheese comes neatly grated in its ziplock bag ready to be used. Which brings me to my next point.
3) PACKAGING. One thing that Americans can pride themselves on is packaging. I'm talking EVERYTHING coming in ziplock bags. Milk cartons that simply transform themselves into jugs, thereby terminating any opportunity to spill milk everywhere except into your mug of tea. Easy-to-squeeze jars of tomato sauce (Dad, if you're reading this, why do we still buy the bottles, they are a disaster). Anything that you're wildly swearing about while attempting to open is sure to come beautifully packaged here. I don't know why this isn't a universal thing. Come on guys.
4) Customer Service. This is something rather new to me. My bar for customer service is pretty low. A simple greeting is enough to achieve good customer service in my books. For a smile, I am simply blown away by your manners. Here, these two things are child's play. You can't walk into a shop and stand there alone for two minutes before an enthusiastic assistant is sprinting to your side, excitedly spewing information about latest deals, sales, new stock, or maybe just general facts about their lives. I hardly know how to conduct myself in these situations, I just haven't had the training.
The reason why I haven't written a post recently is honestly because I didn't think I had anything interesting to write about. A couple of wise people told me that this didn't matter and that I should just write about whatever is on my mind. So here goes nothing.
Since arriving in the land of the Americas I have seen some very weird, interesting and delightful things. I will present these things to you in a list format:
1) Self-checkout stations at grocery stores. Why. All you do is cause tension in the hearts of your customers. Stop telling me to put my item in the bag. MY ITEM IS IN THE BAG. TRUST ME. IT IS A SMALL ITEM. ACCEPT THAT IT IS IN THE BAG. Excuse me while I go and deal with a real life human being.
2) Already-grated-cheese. (Aunty Margs, this one's for you) "What?" I hear you ask, "you can buy cheese already grated???!!" Yes, my dear friends. Gone are the days when we have to assign grating cheese to one unlucky and grumbling member of the family. Gone are the days of accidentally grating our fingers and having to hold the grater at an uncomfortable angle. Gone are the days of having to unnecessarily dirty a plate because you have to grate cheese on it. This cheese comes neatly grated in its ziplock bag ready to be used. Which brings me to my next point.
3) PACKAGING. One thing that Americans can pride themselves on is packaging. I'm talking EVERYTHING coming in ziplock bags. Milk cartons that simply transform themselves into jugs, thereby terminating any opportunity to spill milk everywhere except into your mug of tea. Easy-to-squeeze jars of tomato sauce (Dad, if you're reading this, why do we still buy the bottles, they are a disaster). Anything that you're wildly swearing about while attempting to open is sure to come beautifully packaged here. I don't know why this isn't a universal thing. Come on guys.
4) Customer Service. This is something rather new to me. My bar for customer service is pretty low. A simple greeting is enough to achieve good customer service in my books. For a smile, I am simply blown away by your manners. Here, these two things are child's play. You can't walk into a shop and stand there alone for two minutes before an enthusiastic assistant is sprinting to your side, excitedly spewing information about latest deals, sales, new stock, or maybe just general facts about their lives. I hardly know how to conduct myself in these situations, I just haven't had the training.
5) Gluten-free flesh of Christ. I can see
your confused expressions even as I write this. What I mean is that when going
up for communion, one has the option to take bread (which is a broken up
tortilla) or the gluten-free bread. Jesus thought of everyone when he gave up
his flesh and blood to save us. Even the gluten-intolerent. What a considerate
guy. I just don't know how his gluten-free flesh hasn't made it to South Africa
yet.
That's all the observations that I can think of
now. I love and miss you all.
Until next time,
Jen x
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