Monday 28 March 2011
Ahrweiler
This past Saturday we decided to get out of the city and explore the region a bit. We hopped on a train and went to Ahrweiler. This is up in the mountains to the south-west of Bonn; about half an hour by train.
Ahrweiler and its sister-town (Bad Neuenahr) are spa towns, with natural springs forming the basis for a whole medical industry based around the magical curative powers of the bubbly water that bubbles out of the ground, bubbling. The Appolinaris mineral-water company is located there. There is a spa and a water-slide-park for the young'uns.
It is an old, medieval walled city and we wandered around a bit. There is the obligatory cobblestone town square with a pointy church providing a picturesque backdrop for our hedonistic lifestyle. We had a so-so lunch in the sun (accompanied by some of the worst plonk I have sipped in decades) then wandered around some more. Meandering down a narrow cobblestone pedestrian street lined with cutesy shops, Christine and I both had the same brainwave: This is really boring. Can we go watch TV or something?
I am sure that we could have a great time there if we stayed in a fancy hotel and spent all day in the whirlpool. But it's hard to have much of an adventure with the little one along. Arianne was very well-behaved all day and did not cry on the train. But next weekend we are going to do something crazy-extreme. Probably involving cake and cappuccino.
Sunday 27 March 2011
Health care - part 2
A few weeks ago I phoned a doctor's office to see about making an appointment. "How about today at 4?" was the answer. During the appointment I told the doctor that I have frozen shoulder, and she arranged for me to see a specialist two days hence. The specialist's office is a 2-minute bicycle ride from home. The young doctor was super-friendly, spoke great English, and gave me a cortisone shot right there and then. Also prescribed a half-dozen sessions with a physiotherapist, whose office is a 2-minute bicycle ride in another direction. The improvement in my shoulder over the past few weeks has been amazing. I still can`t raise my left arm sideways (at all), but there is no more pain, so I can sleep properly now. I saw the sports-medicine doctor again this past week, and although there's improvement, he is of the opinion that I won't ever get back to 100% functionality without an operation.
Contrast the speed at which this happened with my experience in Ottawa. Now, my doctor is good, and we had to determine if I did indeed have frozen shoulder, so that necessarily required an ultrasound and an x-ray. But the whole rigamarole in Canada is crazy: they can't do an ultrasound at my doctor's office, so I have to wait three weeks to go to a clinic on the other side of the city. Then another 3 weeks for the X-ray (which I should have booked at the same time). All this time the pain is getting worse and worse, and the disease is progressing. Finally I get to see my doctor, and the results are inconclusive. No cortisone, no pain medication. Just the possibility of seeing a specialist...in a few weeks. Way the heck out in Nepean. During rush-hour. Great, thanks.
Similarly, Christine had to have a minor operation 10 days ago. She was amazed at the continuity of care she encountered at the hospital. Three doctors were present for the initial exam, the pre-operative interview, and the post-operative debriefing. THE SAME THREE DOCTORS! In Canadian hospitals, doctors (actually, they are usually student interns) are part of "teams", and you never see the same face twice. This can't be good for the quality of care, as each one must ask you all over again whether you have any allergies, are on any medication, etc. You have to explain everything repeatedly and hope that some of that information is read by the next doctor whose shift you happen to fall into.
Christine also said that the food in the hospital was good (!). So although taxes are high, we are certainly benefitting from a first-rate medical system.
Okay, that's enough serious stuff. Back to pictures of castles and scenery.
Contrast the speed at which this happened with my experience in Ottawa. Now, my doctor is good, and we had to determine if I did indeed have frozen shoulder, so that necessarily required an ultrasound and an x-ray. But the whole rigamarole in Canada is crazy: they can't do an ultrasound at my doctor's office, so I have to wait three weeks to go to a clinic on the other side of the city. Then another 3 weeks for the X-ray (which I should have booked at the same time). All this time the pain is getting worse and worse, and the disease is progressing. Finally I get to see my doctor, and the results are inconclusive. No cortisone, no pain medication. Just the possibility of seeing a specialist...in a few weeks. Way the heck out in Nepean. During rush-hour. Great, thanks.
Similarly, Christine had to have a minor operation 10 days ago. She was amazed at the continuity of care she encountered at the hospital. Three doctors were present for the initial exam, the pre-operative interview, and the post-operative debriefing. THE SAME THREE DOCTORS! In Canadian hospitals, doctors (actually, they are usually student interns) are part of "teams", and you never see the same face twice. This can't be good for the quality of care, as each one must ask you all over again whether you have any allergies, are on any medication, etc. You have to explain everything repeatedly and hope that some of that information is read by the next doctor whose shift you happen to fall into.
Christine also said that the food in the hospital was good (!). So although taxes are high, we are certainly benefitting from a first-rate medical system.
Okay, that's enough serious stuff. Back to pictures of castles and scenery.
Thursday 17 March 2011
Health care - part 1
I am going to do a couple of posts about health care in Germany, comparing the situation here to how things work in Canada. Today, a look at the distinction between die apoteke and die pharmazie.
Back in Canada, a pharmacy (especially in recent years) has become a one-stop shop for all your vaguely personal needs. Shoppers Drug Mart now sells everything from cough drops to cameras. The big one near my house in Ottawa even has a post office, a photo-development lab, and a cell-phone shop under its roof. You can also get your prescription filled there.
On the other hand, here in Germany there are two types of what we would call "pharmacies", and their roles are quite distinct. At the pharmazie you can find shampoo and kleenex and that sort of bathroomy stuff (they even sell wine). But the apoteke only sells prescription drugs.
I went to the Burg Apoteke last Wednesday evening to get some pain killers for my shoulder. The place was empty except for two pharmacists. I didn't have to stand in line behind a bunch of old folks, and my prescription was filled in less than a minute. None of this "it'll be ready in half an hour" they give you back in Canada. The pharmacist explained (in English) how often I should take the pills, I paid a token 5-euro service fee (the pills themselves being covered by my health insurance). I didn`t even have to show my health-insurance card, as the bar-code on the doctor's prescription linked everything back to a central computer that magically keeps track of who pays what.
Interestingly, there are apoteke everywhere. Apparently Germans take a lot of pills, and the pharmacists here have a lot more leeway than those in Canada. I think you can just walk in to an apoteke, explain your condition, and the pharmacist will prescribe (and sell) something on the spot (although I am not sure if this is actually the case, so don't take my word for it).
And Christine noted that - oddly - for a country where people are so concerned with their health, there sure are a lot of smokers.
Back in Canada, a pharmacy (especially in recent years) has become a one-stop shop for all your vaguely personal needs. Shoppers Drug Mart now sells everything from cough drops to cameras. The big one near my house in Ottawa even has a post office, a photo-development lab, and a cell-phone shop under its roof. You can also get your prescription filled there.
On the other hand, here in Germany there are two types of what we would call "pharmacies", and their roles are quite distinct. At the pharmazie you can find shampoo and kleenex and that sort of bathroomy stuff (they even sell wine). But the apoteke only sells prescription drugs.
Interestingly, there are apoteke everywhere. Apparently Germans take a lot of pills, and the pharmacists here have a lot more leeway than those in Canada. I think you can just walk in to an apoteke, explain your condition, and the pharmacist will prescribe (and sell) something on the spot (although I am not sure if this is actually the case, so don't take my word for it).
And Christine noted that - oddly - for a country where people are so concerned with their health, there sure are a lot of smokers.
Tuesday 15 March 2011
Somebody ought to do something!
Remember how just a couple of weeks ago all eyes were on North Africa, and concern about the price of oil was again the subject of news items?
What I find really stupid is that every time the price of gasoline jumps, we get the same shortsighted "man on the street" interview on the 6 o'clock news. The last time was in 2008. Some young reporter would be sent to a gas station to stick a microphone in the yap of some random lumpenprole who was filling up his Canyonero ("It's a squirrel-squishing, deer-crushing driving machine."). Invariably, the interviewee would bemoan the price of gasoline, claiming that s/he could no longer feed his/her children: "Somebody ought to do something about the high price of gasoline!" they say. But not they themselves, of course. Take the bus? Are you kidding? I'm important!
The uprisings a few weeks ago in North Africa spooked the commodities markets, and soon enough the same reporters were going back to the same gas stations to get a sense of what the average person thinks about the run-up in prices now. Why they don't just use the tape from a few years ago is beyond me. Predictably, the same short-sighted whining is the common theme. "At the end of the month, once I have paid for the Blackberry, the cell phone, and the specialty High-Def cable channels, why...there's almost nothing let to feed the children!" And nobody does anything.
Actually, I am wrong: one time the debate did go further than simple belly-aching and "somebody" DID do something about it. In the summer of 2005 there were populist protests against the high price of gasoline in New Brunswick. Mostly it was truckers who were complaining that they could no longer make a decent living and that the government ought to do something (sick of hearing that yet?). They blocked a highway with their rigs. In response, the government of New Brunswick began regulating the price of gasoline to prevent wild fluctuations. In a sense it was a tax that moderated the ups and downs. Thus gas was cheaper in N.B. when it was more expensive in Nova Scotia, and conversely more expensive when prices fell.
The people went ballistic. How dare they pay more for gasoline when prices were low just so that they could pay less for gasoline when prices were high? Apparently what they really wanted but were unable to express coherently was for gasoline to cost less when prices were high...and also (get this!) to cost less when prices were low. They wanted water to run downhill AND ALSO uphill.
Why am I writing about this now? Well, the earthquake in Japan will put a crimp in their economic growth for a while. As a result, their demand for oil will be reduced (because oil is synonymous with economic growth: they are really the same thing. There is as yet no way to run an economy on pixie dust). This will in turn lower the cost of dinosaur-juice at your local Stop & Go. And suddenly everyone is happy. Yesterday's "pain at the pump" news item is forgotten. Nobody needs to do something about the high price of gas after all.
Until the next time there's a crisis in a goat-infested part of the world and the lazy house of Saud finds itself hanging onto their repressive dictatorship by a skillful use of repression. THEN somebody is going to have to do something. But not the person at the pump, and not now.
What I find really stupid is that every time the price of gasoline jumps, we get the same shortsighted "man on the street" interview on the 6 o'clock news. The last time was in 2008. Some young reporter would be sent to a gas station to stick a microphone in the yap of some random lumpenprole who was filling up his Canyonero ("It's a squirrel-squishing, deer-crushing driving machine."). Invariably, the interviewee would bemoan the price of gasoline, claiming that s/he could no longer feed his/her children: "Somebody ought to do something about the high price of gasoline!" they say. But not they themselves, of course. Take the bus? Are you kidding? I'm important!
The uprisings a few weeks ago in North Africa spooked the commodities markets, and soon enough the same reporters were going back to the same gas stations to get a sense of what the average person thinks about the run-up in prices now. Why they don't just use the tape from a few years ago is beyond me. Predictably, the same short-sighted whining is the common theme. "At the end of the month, once I have paid for the Blackberry, the cell phone, and the specialty High-Def cable channels, why...there's almost nothing let to feed the children!" And nobody does anything.
Actually, I am wrong: one time the debate did go further than simple belly-aching and "somebody" DID do something about it. In the summer of 2005 there were populist protests against the high price of gasoline in New Brunswick. Mostly it was truckers who were complaining that they could no longer make a decent living and that the government ought to do something (sick of hearing that yet?). They blocked a highway with their rigs. In response, the government of New Brunswick began regulating the price of gasoline to prevent wild fluctuations. In a sense it was a tax that moderated the ups and downs. Thus gas was cheaper in N.B. when it was more expensive in Nova Scotia, and conversely more expensive when prices fell.
The people went ballistic. How dare they pay more for gasoline when prices were low just so that they could pay less for gasoline when prices were high? Apparently what they really wanted but were unable to express coherently was for gasoline to cost less when prices were high...and also (get this!) to cost less when prices were low. They wanted water to run downhill AND ALSO uphill.
Why am I writing about this now? Well, the earthquake in Japan will put a crimp in their economic growth for a while. As a result, their demand for oil will be reduced (because oil is synonymous with economic growth: they are really the same thing. There is as yet no way to run an economy on pixie dust). This will in turn lower the cost of dinosaur-juice at your local Stop & Go. And suddenly everyone is happy. Yesterday's "pain at the pump" news item is forgotten. Nobody needs to do something about the high price of gas after all.
Until the next time there's a crisis in a goat-infested part of the world and the lazy house of Saud finds itself hanging onto their repressive dictatorship by a skillful use of repression. THEN somebody is going to have to do something. But not the person at the pump, and not now.
Thursday 10 March 2011
Monorail! Monorail! Monorail!
Remember the future? We were going to have flying cars and robot servants and...MONORAILS! The following edumecational presentation from The Simpsons will explain it all:
Well it turns out that the future didn't turn out quite like that. Most people have trouble parking regular cars, so Fords in the sky are just going to kill everyone on their morning commute. But at least some of the wonderful technologies we were promised came true. Behold the monorail that sits behind the research centre down the street (where the big, bland cafeteria is).
Just think: if Ottawa bought one, there would be no need to dig a tunnel under downtown. But knowing how poorly things turn out when a spineless city hall lets design-by-committee pander to NIMBYism, Ottawa would probably end up with the world's first elevated-yet-underground public transportation system.
All together now: "Monorail! Monorail! Monorail!"
Well it turns out that the future didn't turn out quite like that. Most people have trouble parking regular cars, so Fords in the sky are just going to kill everyone on their morning commute. But at least some of the wonderful technologies we were promised came true. Behold the monorail that sits behind the research centre down the street (where the big, bland cafeteria is).
It's a real, live monorail in the sky. It doesn't actually go anywhere mind you (that's the whole track you see right there). But it is really cool. Which is why Springfield bought one:
All together now: "Monorail! Monorail! Monorail!"
Tuesday 8 March 2011
Karneval!
This past "weekend" (starting last Thursday and continuing into Monday) was Karneval here in North-Rhine-Westphalia. Although there were big parties and parades in Köln, we stayed close to home. There was a parade (umzug) in our little borough of Rungsdorff.
The overall theme is clown-military and this spoofing of army uniforms apparently goes back to the 19th century. There are floats pulled by tractors. People on the floats (dressed as clowns or princesses or whatever) toss candy to the spectators. This float is in the shape of the Bad Godesberg castle and is manned by the folks who work in the bakery around the corner.
One of the good costumes we saw was a "Canadian". Note the black eye, which makes it complete:
And finally, the piece de resistance and the cutest lil' monster...
That's all for now folks!
Tuesday 1 March 2011
Word of the day
I was listening to the news in German and was so proud of myself that I understood a bit of it. Then they used a phrase that contains 57 letters in only two words(!):
Which simply means "social insurance contributions conditions". Who makes these words up? These are such precise terms that you would never use them more than once in a lifetime. How would you get either word to fit into a single column in the dictionary?
Sometimes I despair of ever learning this language.
sozialversicherungspflichtigen Beschäftigungsverhältnissen
Which simply means "social insurance contributions conditions". Who makes these words up? These are such precise terms that you would never use them more than once in a lifetime. How would you get either word to fit into a single column in the dictionary?
Sometimes I despair of ever learning this language.
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