When I see an ad for a one-day sale, I assume it’s little more than a scam to create false urgency.

Oh, there’s Black Friday, of course. (And Woot, I guess.) But even the post-holiday sales have been lackluster for years. The upcoming Labor Day sales seem more like an excuse for lazy advertising than a real chance to score a bargain.

“Not so, in Luxembourg,” I was told, by several Luxembourgers. “You must go to the Braderie on Monday. Stuff is really cheap. All the stores will have bargains.” All the stores? You mean that they cooperate and all have sales on the same day? “Yes,” they said, “It’s always the same. Go to the Ville-Haute.”

The Braderie isn’t such a bizarre idea. Say you’re a shopkeeper in the city center, selling nice women’s clothes and competing with the big box stores on the periphery. “I’ll have a sale,” you think. “I’ll put a bunch of my stock out on the sidewalk, at really good prices.”

But how to bring in the shoppers? In any given week, only a small proportion of Luxembourgers will walk past your shop. Advertising helps a little, but will people make a special trip just to see your overstock? Plus, this is Luxembourg — it will probably rain. Who would come then?

The answer: Everyone will come, if they know that every store in a walkable area will have a sale. Especially if the food shops serve inexpensive beer, champagne and sausages on the street. And if, on that day, you’re bound to encounter friends and family from all over the country, because they want high fashion and cheap food, too.

It’s just a matter of picking that day. And one day for that, in Luxembourg, is the second Monday of Schueberfouer. (It’s not the only one. There’s also New Coat Sunday.)

Fortunately, it wasn’t raining when I visited the shops of the city center this Monday. (If you’d like a multimedia experience, LesFrontaliers.lu has a video report in French.) There were thousands of people strolling among the tents on the streets. There were banks and charitable foundations and radio stations and newspaper publishers, giving away gewgaws and handing out brochures. There were lots of signs announcing markdowns of 60% and 80%. The big shops, like M&S, didn’t seem as committed to the idea, but hardly any stores appeared to be doing business as usual.

It’s a good thing, this Braderie. Sure, it’s materialistic and all that, but it’s the most civic-minded One-Day Sale I’ve ever seen.

I didn’t buy anything. I didn’t really need anything that was on sale, which was mostly women’s clothing and shoes anyway. I don’t think one goes to Braderie expecting to find something in particular, and I wasn’t in a browsing mood. But I don’t think the shopkeepers of the city center were depending on me, this Monday.

By the way, this tradition — which strongest in Lille, but also exists in Belgium and the Netherlands — is thought to originate centuries ago in the Middle Ages, naturellement.

Lots of news from the Luxembourgish Department of Obviousness

CEPS/Instead has been conducting a survey into attitudes to immigrants. For the first time they’ve looked to see if men and women have different feelings about migrants here, and also what immigrants themselves think of other immigrants. The survey found that both men and women are equally concerned over the impact of immigrants on Luxembourg society. Immigrant men and women worry that more immigration will mean more competition for jobs. Indigenous men and women seem more worried about their impact on social security and crime figures. But second generation immigrants seem to start sharing the concerns of the indigenous population the longer they live here.

And in another important piece of social research, National Statistics Bureau STATEC has discovered that wealthy people are generally happy. Researchers say people with high incomes feel better about life than those who struggle financially. 94% of people in the survey’s top income bracket said they satisfied with their life. Only 71% of the poorest surveyed said things were going their way. But its not just about money, the researchers say. They also found that the more educated a respondent was, the more likely they were to feel positive about life.

Unions and Employers: Fighting together against change

Unions and Employers have joined forces to condemn proposed legislation to prevent harassment at work. LSAP deputy Lucien Lux has been trying to get his legislation adopted for nearly 9 years. He says there must be a legal framework to prevent harassment in the workplace. But unions and employers say they have already implemented a voluntary code of practice concerning harassment, and legislation isn’t necessary. They want to see how well self-regulation works for 5 years before deciding on any other measures.

Campaigners say self-regulation isn’t good enough to protect employees against harassment. Last week, a coalition of unions and employers were lobbying the government to scrap proposed legislation to outlaw harassment at work. They say an agreement they have come to should be given a chance to work. But a support group for victims of harassment says the agreement doesn’t afford enough protection for staff at small and medium enterprises. They also say the agreement between unions and management lacks clear definitions of what constitutes harassment.

All criminals are international criminals in Luxembourg

A jewellery dealer was robbed yesterday afternoon near Redange. He’d just finished an appointment at a shop there and was in his car when he noticed a dark Audi A4 with a flashing blue light on its roof behind him. The driver of the Audi indicated he should pull over and stop. Thinking it was the police, the man stopped, only for a masked man to jump out of the fake police car and demand he hand over all his jewellery at gunpoint. The fake police car then fled in the direction of Bastogne with a valuable haul of gold. Police are appealing for witnesses. The dealer had to be treated for shock.

…and you’d better make it across that border

A man was spotted pinching 6 bottles of Cognac from a delivery truck in the Grand Rue yesterday morning. When a witness approached the thief, he cursed her before fleeing. He didn’t get to enjoy his booty though, because he was picked up minutes later by a police patrol.

All politics is international in Luxembourg

The Saarland business confederation, the VSU, has bit back at Jean-Claude Juncker’s critique of German wage policy. Last week, Mr Juncker said low wages in Germany were causing problems for companies in other countries. VSU president Joachim Malter said German companies had won customers globally because of their excellent products and first class service. He added that Luxembourg, with a business model built on low taxes on savings accounts and banking secrecy was in no position to lecture other countries on how to run their economies. Mr Malter also said that Mr Juncker was being economical with the truth when he said millions of Germans take home less that 700 euros a month. This data relates to part-time workers, something the Luxembourg prime minister failed to mention.

Take care driving around Luxembourg

There was a slew of driving incidents at the week-end, even by local standards Two Belgian cars were stopped on the way to the Stausee on Saturday. Both had two more people than permitted on board. The police fined the drivers, but agreed to take the 4 extra people in their minibus to the lake. Another man from Belgium was booked twice for drunk driving on Saturday. He was picked up in Sanem on the A13 in the early hours of the morning. He failed a breath test and had his license taken away. His car was left in Rodange station car park. Ninety minutes later police found him back in his car in Rodange. He has lost his car as well as his license now. A driver rammed a police car while trying to evade a checkpoint in Leudelange on Saturday night. He continued on his way but was picked up at his home later and arrested. A man in Petange was spotted reversing around a roundabout before he tested positive. And in Ettelbrück a drunk driver was picked up parked in the middle of the road, fast asleep at his steering wheel on Sunday morning.

Good news for Oktoberfest

There will be an extra two flights a day to Munich from Luxembourg once the winter timetable comes into force. Lufthansa’s City Line subsidiary will operate the flights. Luxair already flies three times daily to the capital of Bavaria. Munich airport is an popular intercontinental gateway for passengers starting their journey in Luxembourg.

Tough old ladies: not just a comic sketch!

An elderly lady drove off a mugger on Monday by hitting him with her walking stick. The young man tried to grab her handbag in the Rue Dicks in the early evening. The feisty old woman however managed to land several hits on him with the stick before he abandoned his assault. Two passers-by also got involved and attacked the young man too. He eventually broke free and ran off down the Avenue de la Liberte. Police are appealing for witnesses.

As usual, we’ll release photosets on Flickr with extensive captions — one or two days at a time. We wouldn’t want to overwhelm you! To begin, you can enjoy our pictures of the first two days, as we travel to Venice, board the ship, and thrill to the sailaway down the Guidecca Canal. You’ll see parts of our Crown Princess cruise ship, the city of Venice from dozens of high angles, and a few other treats.

If that description isn’t enough to tempt you, here are a few samples from our massive photographic record:

Of course, there is a photoset of leftover photos, for those who just can’t get enough. Also, future photosets will be added to the Cruise 2010 collection page on flickr.

Try to wrap your mind around a tradition that old. More than 30 generations.

As an ex-pat, I’m interested in looking at it from the perspective of cultural integration — or how long it takes to be considered a native. Consider the Daughters of the American Revolution, who have surely been in North America long enough to be considered well-integrated. Yet each of the white DAR members today can only trace her family’s presence in North America back through about 10 generations. So let’s say that a family that stays in the same area for 10 generations is not exactly a far-flung gypsy clan. More like local nobility — or land-bound serfs — but surely local.

Consider what that means for the Schueberfouer. A merchant at the first Schueberfouer could have migrated to Eastern Europe, founded a village there, and his family could have stayed in that village for as long as the USA has existed. Then, one of his descendants could have married a traveler and moved to Ireland. Her family could have lived in a town in Ireland for 10 generations before the upheavals of the 18th Century drove one of her descendants to the American colonies. And then one of her descendants could be a DAR member today, visiting Luxembourg during a summer trip on the family money.

The entire time, the Schueberfouer has been an annual event in roughly the same spot. (But no roller-coasters until the 20th Century, or for about one-tenth of its history.)

Anticipation is growing among the residents of Luxembourg that we know, life-long and short-term alike. Some people are looking forward to the hubbub of the outdoor beer gardens. Others, the giant Ferris wheel that takes you high above the city.

To get you ready for the Schueberfouer, we’ve posted photos from our visit to the fair last year. Enjoy the photoset, but be warned that some photos may not be safe for work (i.e. NSFW). The phrase “family fun event” means something slightly different in Luxembourg than in the US.

Culture consists, in part, of the customs that you take for granted. So we know that we’re adapting to European culture (or Western European or French-inflected or whatever) when we’re surprised by how things are done in the good ole USA. Some more examples: You know you’ve settled into a European state of mind when…

• You find it unspeakably rude when, at a restaurant, your server brings you the check before you ask for it.
• “Of course it’s a topless beach. Why not?”
• You are uncomfortable when someone takes your credit card out of your sight.
• You get frustrated at having to sign a bill for small purchases with your credit card.
• You are excited to find a parking space within a quarter-mile of your destination.

We think of these little differences several times a week, and we’ll post more in the future. Guests of the B&B, what seemed alien to you about daily life in Ireland and Luxembourg?

Now that you’ve seen the photos from my first appearance at the Tour, take a look at how the media covered my presence.

Due to my local renown, all I must do to appear on the broadcast is stand near the course.

Proof? See the video evidence.

By the way, The Expatresse also appears, along with daughters Skittles and Baboo.

First up, the Bruxelles-Spa stage, which was the first day of a real bloodbath that set the tone of the Tour until it reached the Alps. Here’s the link to the slideshow, which includes thorough notes on the drama of the day. (If you don’t see the descriptions, click on “Show Info” in the top-right corner.)

A 90 minute drive brought my companions and me to a wet and windy spot in Basse-Bodeux, Belgium.

The spectators are part of the fun, of course — as are giveaways like polka-dot caps. But it was a miserable, rainy day.

It look a little while for the cyclists to arrive, but there was a race, too!

As usual, some photos didn’t make the cut — but you can still see them in the leftovers photoset.
Finally, a cheer for Andy Schleck, who lost the yellow jersey today under unfortunate circumstances.
Go, Schleck go!
Speakers of Luxembourgish, please correct me when I attempt to say:
Dajee Andy, weider sou!

The BBB&B favorite guide Rick had a walk through Baden-Baden that hit all the major (and some of the minor) sights. The photoset will take you through the details, but I thought I would give you a preview of some of the lovely things.

Blooming flower beds

Beautiful buildings

Snacks!

And, of course, sun and smiles

After we finished Rick’s walk, we decided we could use a short break and possibly a light refreshment. We found a lovely place near the river which seemed to be perfect – in the sun, with good beers and wines and a nice atmosphere.

It wasn’t long, though, before some deep, dark and menacing clouds floated above. The Ladies of Baden-Baden had a decision to make: stay at our table under the umbrella or make a run for it through the gentle rain. As we were debating the decision, large drops of rain started to fall – in earnest. It was an outrageous downpour. Under our umbrella we were safe and dry, but had we tried to leave we would have been soaked through instantly. Jaime took a long look at the rain and declared it a “tantrum.” She was confident that the weather, much like a difficult two-year-old, was simply throwing a fit. She predicted a quick end to such terrible weather. Sharon and I had faith in her declaration and we decided to wait out the rain – with a second drink and a delicious lunch!

Jaime was right. Within 20 minutes the rain had spent itself, much like an exhausted toddler. The clouds passed and we were again left with a sunny sky and a beautiful day. The only lingering down-side was our abuse of the word tantrum for the rest of the visit. But it wouldn’t be a road trip without a little tantrum, now would it?

After our long repast, we finally ventured to the car. We headed into the Black Forest for a while, before turning towards Luxembourg. Will was happy to see us arrive safely home, with a plan to stay local for a few days. Next up: exploring Luxembourg!

[Ed. note: As expected, we haven't even gotten the May photos and posts up before our 4 July deadline. The staff continues to be "under water" from dealing with necessary business travel, World Cup games and holiday parties. The remainder of July looks promising for the staff to get caught up on some of the outstanding items, unless the Netherlands wins the World Cup. If that occurs the staff makes no promises as to when you'll see a cruise photo. Hup Holland!]

Monster Ark is ridiculous, but not in a good way. It is shoddily made, terribly scripted, blindly dumb and tragically dull. Even for a straight-to-TV movie it lacks depth, intelligence and charm. … It basically becomes a vomiting cliché-ticking mixture of Tomb Raider and Indiana Jones, which it shamelessly and liberally plagiarizes from. The film manages to insult anyone religious, the entire U.S. Army, all archaeologists, every pioneer of CGI and its audience’s intelligence.

(By the way, the review is worth reading on its own. Take a look when you have a moment and keep it mind that it does not exaggerate, in any way, the awfulness of this program.)

As children of the USA, both of us understand how such a movie could be made and distributed on the Scyfy channel. The mystery is how it winds up in Europe. Who paid money for this? Mind you, they are showing it after they had an opportunity to see it.

Okay, maybe it’s a freebie that was thrown in with the syndication of Firefly or the very popular Battlestar Galactica. But then why run it as a feature movie on one of the few nights this month without World Cup matches?

What makes this a Mystery of Life in Europe is that the high-profile broadcast of Monster Ark is the rule rather than the exception. Stuff like this is easy to miss in the American entertainment landscape, but here it is as unavoidable as summertime roadwork. Furthermore, many other broadcasters go through the trouble and expense of overdubbing the dialogue, which was tedious and stupid to begin with. Why oh why?

By the way, watch for Sharktopus, also directed by Declan O’Brien, in production now. I’m not kidding. Who is this guy?

Sharktopus. It will undoubtedly be a feature presentation across Western Europe by 2011.

Luxembourg’s national holiday began, in the 19th Century, as a celebration of the Grand Duke of Luxembourg’s birthday. From the start, however, it was rarely celebrated on the reigning monarch’s actual birthday. The current date, June 23, was fixed in a national act of pragmatism. In 1961, both Grand Duchess Charlotte and Heir Apparent Jean had January birthdays. The weather in January was sure to put a damper on any celebrations. So it was decreed that June 23 (Grand Duchess Charlotte’s half-birthday) would be the National Holiday. And so it remained, although Grand Duke Henri’s birthday is in the relatively pleasant month of April.

The day of June 23 is reserved for formal, somber ceremonies. The Grand Ducal family, government ministers, and ambassadors celebrate a Te Deum at the national cathedral, followed by a military parade.

Tonight, the Grand Duke makes his way to Luxembourg City to attend the torchlit procession (and to ignore, benevolently, the antics of his subjects).

But not for long! We had one weekend to “turn” the guest room for Sharon and Jaime, our friends who were making a second trip to see us. In order to make the most of their visit, we decided on a three phase approach: I would pick them up in Frankfurt on Friday and the three ladies would enjoy a Germany weekend. We would return to Luxembourg on Sunday night and I would return to work on Monday, allowing three days of Luxembourg sight-seeing with Will. Since most of Europe had a holiday on the Thursday of their visit, I would faire le pont, which meant we could go to Bruges, Belgium. In their 10 day visit, we packed in five countries and a lot of sight-seeing.

My hope is to get caught up on photos from their visit — and our Greek Island adventure — before the 4th of July (which means we will clear the backlog by Labor Day). Wish us luck! Today, I will tell you about the first part of our Germany adventure: Munich and the castles.

Day 1 – The airport and Munich

After a short delay, both Sharon and Jaime had arrived and we were able to escape the airport. The drive from Frankfurt to Munich is about four hours, which was enough time for some short naps for the travelers. Since we were in Munich for a brief time, we did exactly what you must do when you only have one night in Munich: you drink!

We started our adventure at the Viktualienmarkt. We wandered a bit, taking pictures of the Maypole before settling in for a snack and a beer.

Even though they were jet lagged and groggy, the travelers did great. Beer count: 0.5L each for Jaime and Sharon

Next up was the Hofbräuhaus, a required stop for all tourists in Munich. We enjoyed the Bavarian meats and spätzle, plus the great beers. After dinner, the lack of sleep (or the amount of beer) was beginning to get to both travelers, so we called it a night. While we barely saw Munich, we enjoyed our time tremendously. Beer count: 0.5L for Sharon and 1L for Jaime.

Munich beer total: 1L for Sharon and 1.5L for Jaime. Well done!

Day 2 – The Castles and Austria

Saturday morning found all of us well-rested and bright-eyed. Our plan for the day: drive to the village of Hohenschwangau and attempt to visit both Hohenschwangau Castle and Newschwanstein Castle, time permitting.

We found Hohenschwangau without trouble. After a quick check of the time, we purchased tickets for both castles, with a visit first to the older, smaller castle of Hohenschwangau and then to the newer and larger Newschwanstein. We even had enough time for some photos between the two castles.

A taste of what we saw:




After our afternoon of castles, we had just enough time to “dip our toe” into Austria before turning north to our end of day destination: Baden-Baden. We were on a schedule, as we had to check into our hotel by 9pm. What we didn’t realize is that the GPS assumed we would drive the normal speed of 120-130 kpm. I’ve found I am comfortable on German roads at a much greater speed…. and we burned a full 30 minutes off our travel time over the original estimate. I’ll take your guesses in the comments at my average and maximum speeds during our time in Germany…..

For more photos, take a look at the photoset!

Coming soon: Baden-Baden and tantrums!

[Editor's Note: Sharon is a founding member of the Friends of the Bugle. Due to our recent crisis in content-generation, the Bugle's editors foresee an expanded role for Friends of the Bugle. To learn more about this exciting development, please contact us!]

I was a guest of the Bakker Bugle B&B just a few weeks ago. I could tell you how much fun we had traveling & enjoying time with our friends & their hospitality, as well as Belgium beers, wine, and food, but instead here is a snippet of what Will & I did one day……

We decided to walk around the city center in Luxembourg City, then the crazies came out… but this isn’t about them…it’s about us. We strolled through the park near the B&B and found a fading smiley face.

Minutes later, a strange girl handed us a free hat & pen without so much as a credit card application. As we walked farther, we saw a balloon plaza with the same emblazoned emblem of TANGO. Not only is it my favorite dance, but also a communications company in Europe. But this was no ordinary balloon….it was gigantic & Helium filled!!

Our two magnificent balloons were tied to my purse & I proceeded to carry them for at least the next hour. Wind, sharp street signs, tree branches, French tourists, crowds tried to deter me from goal, which was to arrive home safely with balloons intact — for my joy & the delight of others.

On our last stop before home…..I decided to sit for a minute on the new space-saucer-shaped bench. To my dismay Will continued to snap photos….which resulted in a stop-animation/ short-French inspired
film that I like to call Balloons Bleu.

I have to say I was really impressed with the outcome…. it was way more entertaining than my accidental digital shorts which were odd but funny. [Ed. - Thanks to FotoosVanRobin and Atelier Vanessa Maurer for the CC-licensed photos.] Click on the image below to see the award-winning compilation.

So what were the balloons for? Pure enjoyment and the promotion of the advertisers for the night marathon… but more about that later.

Here are some additional topics for further blog posts on my trip to Luxembourg. I’ll write more based on popular demand….

1. Homonyms and other problems when trying to speak English
2. Can cheese really be too stinky?
3. What’s wrong with day old croissants?
4. Hoegaarden is not what it sounds like
5. How much wine is too much?
6. What’s wrong with a nightmare-athon?
7. I never knew that Anita was a cat person!
8. Tantrum! Tripoint! Tantrum!
9. 1 flush 2 flush, red flush, blue flush
10. Land pirates!
11. Ducks are great but swans are evil spawns of satan.

The Bugle Corporate Suite attempted to avoid discord arising from the exclusive nature of the award by not revealing the identities of the recipients. A lack of internal security just days before the cruise led, sadly, to the intrusion of union representatives into the issue.

During the absence of the two gifted and valued employees, union leaders unilaterally commanded Bugle staff to engage in workplace retribution. The legality of those tactics is under review by corporate counsel. It is lamentable that the direct effect of those tactics was that no posts were published to the Bakker Bugle Blog during the past several days.

The Bugle does not anticipate any long-term interruptions in our quality of service. Indeed, we are delighted to begin to share with you the content voluntarily produced by our two outstanding Shooting Star award winners: Will and Anita Bakker.

Through their extraordinary commitment to the Bugle 24/7 Workplace Vision, they experienced magnificent sailways, like this one through the Giudecca Canal of Venice.

As a direct result of a cooperative approach to the Bugle’s In Step with Your Superiors program, they walked the same ground as the Ancient Olympians of Sparta.

Due to their completion of the Six Tasks to Save Your Job, they ate with the most elegant of dinner companions in the exotic town of Rhodes.

And, of course, they recharged their batteries — preparing for June’s Unpaid-Overtime Challenge — on the spectacular black sand beaches of Santorini.

You can look forward to more posts based on the genuinely enterprise-sustaining work done by our finest and most agreeable employees, as they work to regain the Bugle quality standards that have been regrettably relaxed during their well-deserved (but non-precedent-setting) reward.

As you might expect, we have some photos on Flickr to share with you.

There are close-up shots of springtime foilage.

Chickens!

And much more. As usual, we created a primary photoset with descriptions, and then dumped some of the extras into a leftovers photoset.

• Alsace in April (Don’t forget to click “Show Info”!)
• Alsace leftovers

• Anita’s photoset of the Keukenhof Gardens (Don’t forget to click “Show Info”!)

As some of you know, the B&B staff insist that guests who arrive in the morning spend much of the day away from the seductive comforts of their rooms. Still, we didn’t want to take our jet-lagged guest too far. So we made the natural choice for an urban destination: Trier. A lovely city, but most of all, a lovely place to sample the local white wines.

Sunday, we drove just a little farther, to the Mosel (or Moselle) valley. The valley is renowned to be as beautiful as the celebrated Rhine valley, and more devoted to wine. Ideal!

The weather was not ideal, but we were fortunate to arrive at the most attractive towns during the sunny periods. For example, Zell, the home of the Black Cat wines.

We got to the larger town of Cochem before the sun set and our bellies started rumbling. Take a look at our photoset for much more, and descriptions, too! (These links lead to slideshows. To see the descriptions, click “Show Info” in the top-right corner.)

• Trier and the Mosel Valley, April 2010
• Leftover photos from Trier and the Mosel Valley

Only one guest has been affected by the air travel restrictions across northern Europe. The BBB&B has made all our facilities available to her, in order to make her prolonged stay as serene as possible. Our laundry facilities and our kitchen will help her cope. Remember as you plan your summer holidays that our laundry and kitchen are available to all guests at all times!

In the local community, the Bakker Bugle has organized relief efforts for families with members stranded far away from Luxembourg. We’ve provided pet-oriented nutritional aid and home security operations for those who have opted to travel across the continent to retrieve their loved ones.

At the time of publication, it looks like nobody is flying into or out of northern Europe until late this week. But somebody is enjoying some extra time in Luxembourg! (And it is unusually quiet without Cargolux 747s landing every hour.)

We’re also coming to understand how important air travel is to Europe. (And how easily Nature can upend our daily expectations.) Consider:

• Business and political deals relying on express document services (FedEx, DHL), some of which may be renegotiated or abandoned, if delayed
• Organ transplants, both scheduled operations and those waiting for opportune donors far away
• Perishable goods, stranded at their points of production — flowers in Holland; food all over Europe, especially seafood.
• Travel insurance, personal and derivative
• No contrails, leaving skies as blue as that dreadful week in September 2001
• Unusual professions that require tight schedules: musicians, performers, lecturers; military, both the soldiers deployed and the army of civilians who manage deployments; emergency services and NGO personnel, such as election supervisors and Red Cross volunteers
• The inevitable call-up and vacation cancellations for those who will make up for the lack of air transport: truck drivers, sailors on rivers and seas, travel agents and administrative assistants (of course), and more

Have you heard any surprising stories in the past few days?

]]> http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/04/18/bbbb-guests-relax-during-travel-turmoil/feed/ 1 http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/04/02/census-sadness/ http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/04/02/census-sadness/#comments Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:50:40 +0000 Anita http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/?p=1272 Both of us read a lot of US news, even while following the local Luxembourg headlines. So I am well aware of the upcoming US census (http://www.census.gov/), from the anger over the Super Bowl commercial , to the return rates, to the questions on the form and whether they are reasonable.

But what I didn’t realize until about a week ago: we will not be counted in the census. Intellectually, I understand the reasoning. We don’t live in the US. Why should we be counted in the US numbers? But emotionally – I don’t want to be left out!

The fact that we will miss being in a census count could be important – not today or tomorrow, but 50 or 100 years from now. Recently, we have been working on a genealogy project for both sides of the family. (Mostly Will’s work.) The census data from the early 1900s was a treasure trove of information. My heart is a little sad to know that, for 2010, I will not exist from a US perspective.

Perhaps I’m being over maudlin from the long winter and I just need spring to come. For all our friends and family in the US, please remember that the census is important. Take it seriously and return those forms — the due date is this week!

]]> http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/04/02/census-sadness/feed/ 3 http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/03/31/this-week-a-dogs-life/ http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/03/31/this-week-a-dogs-life/#comments Wed, 31 Mar 2010 14:43:47 +0000 Anita http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/?p=1265 The excitement this week? Taking care of a friend’s dog, who we’ll call Sylvester (to protect the innocent).

The dog in question is an adult labradoodle, and he is a very well-behaved and friendly companion for walks and playing catch.



There are dog parks all over Luxembourg City, but they are the kind of muddy, befouled mess you’d expect for early spring. Still, it was great fun to play catch without a leash.

Our friend lives atop a hill in Belair, so we’ve seen two beautiful sunsets as we walked Sylvester between the rain-showers. Someone else has Sylvester until Friday, but then we’ll have three days with him.

Any ideas on how to amuse ourselves with our new friend?

]]> http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/03/31/this-week-a-dogs-life/feed/ 2 http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/03/26/the-ducks-are-back-around/ http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/2010/03/26/the-ducks-are-back-around/#comments Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:57:04 +0000 Anita http://bakkerbugle.com/blog/?p=1253 After a long winter of sticking to their pond, the ducks of Parc de Merl have spring fever!

They’re flying all over our part of town, taking long walks around the park, and even naps on the grass. They always travel in twos and threes, unlike their stay-at-home nature the rest of the year.

Compare with their coping behaviors as the winter dragged through February.

The most interesting thing so far is the island-based resort that our neighbors just floated to the middle of their pond.

I think that we’re witnessing an anatine version of speed-dating. Will just wants them to keep still, so he can take the photos that I requested this morning.
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