What do you hate about where you live?

[DanieMarie]

Somewhat of a venting thread maybe.

I know most of us love where we live overall...otherwise we wouldn't live there! But sometimes you can love a place and totally hate some things about it. I have a love/hate relationship with Berlin, for example.

I'll get into mine later, but it's going to be LONG.

[Ophidia]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

There are two things that cheese me off about Nevada, Las Vegas in particular.

We have no culture, no cultural identity. We have a block of more-vacant-than-not 'galleries' that host First Fridays sometimes. We have a few underfunded, aging museums. We have a community theater... but... no one's interested in any of it except for the people who are directly involved. And if you go to an event, unless you're a direct relative or 'friend of' someone directly involved, they don't act very welcoming. They act like, instead of a welcome paying audience, you're an intruder into their private little world. I've never walked into an art gallery in another major city and felt like I should have made an appointment or I was busting in on a drug deal or something. Not even in Beverly Hills or West Hollywood. Art people normally love to talk about their art. Not here. At least the actual museums act appreciative of visitors, even if most curators/greeters seem surprised to see someone come in the door.

My husband & I spent an entire afternoon in the museum district of Los Angeles a few years back. One lone guy, working in the gift shop of a tiny little museum that shows off fossils & artifacts dug up from a local group of tar pits (the George C. Page museum at the La Brea Tar Pits) knew everything there was to know about the museum, the active dig site, and even the concessioned art for sale in the gift shop. He was amazing, and me & my normally antisocial husband brought him lunch. If you ask someone in a gallery here about anything on display, you get rolling eyes and sighs. If our community artists acted like the gift shop cashier, I'd pimp them all over the place, and I'd also be more likely to get involved with stuff.

The other thing... it's complex. Prior to September 11, 2001, Las Vegas was run primarily by several corporations. Even with the corporate dollars at work, there was still an old-fashioned attitude. You took care of your guests and you took care of your employees. A lot of casino owners & operators knew their people by name, without having to squint at their name tags. Now we have Boards of Directors and stockholders running the casinos. And Boards of Directors, stockholders, CEOs and COOs don't look at the bigger picture, they look at the bottom line. And so they dream up new ways to bring business in and maintain the business they have. What they never seem to realize is that when you suddenly change a simple procedure that's been in effect for a long time, you make your employees terribly inefficient. And as soon as we adapt to the new procedures, they change them.

I can't answer the phone for Guest Services anymore. Last week, if I came in a little early & saw there were calls holding for Guest Services, I could pick up the phone & solve problems, answer questions, perform monetary transactions or transfer them elsewhere. Last night? I answered the phone like normal & then realized, "Oh, crap, I know nothing about the new guest services logbook/recovery thingy!" I had to pass the buck along. No one bothers with training me because I normally just answer the phone because I'm a warm body that can pick up a phone and perform basic, routine tasks. They forget that I might need to do the task the same way everyone else does it, because otherwise there will be utter chaos. It's like them moving the cheese & one of the mice blowing up the maze to get to it. So now, instead of just solving the guest's problem, I had to waste more time waiting for someone else to solve it. Not only that, but they now want us to say the guest's name a minimum of twice per conversation. It's awkward. Especially when your phone display reads something like 'Nguyen'. So you spend 5 minutes of a guest's time just trying to say their name once. And you don't know who you're talking to. Your phone display could say Mike Smith, but it might be Ana Gangaikondakanchipuram, his girlfriend, calling the front desk.

They don't just do it to us - a guest who stayed with us 6 months ago had one rate for the room, a resort fee, and maybe bought a buffet package. In those 6 months, they've changed the pricing on the rooms, the resort fee's gone up twice (and there's no real explanation of why they charge it), and the buffet package is almost exactly, but not quite, the same. Last stay, the room might have had a comforter on the bed, this time it's double sheets. Pool hours change, restaurant hours change, room service is getting shorter & shorter hours... sometimes our food court has wi-fi, now it doesn't (even though it does, we're just not supposed to tell the guests about it)... I know other companies in other places do this, too, but Vegas is very random. You cannot expect the same thing twice, which is why so much of our steady 'repeat' business has been in steady decline. People are going to go where they are treated the best they can be for the money they have to spend, and where they receive that level of service consistently, and Vegas just isn't 'it' anymore.

[Caelia]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Perz, Vegas sounds like my experience with Virginia.

One thing I really hate about Kansas are the politics. It used to be a lot more rational than what it is now (regardless of your stance you always came together to compromise and solve a problem. Now they're too busy trying to distract us with esoteric crap like banning Shariah Law, because, you know, there isn't an amendment in the state and US constitution that bans international laws from applying in everyday circumstances), but lots of corruption is bubbling to the surface. One that irked me was the cutting of the arts funding. Even those who were originally for it changed their minds when they realized it would kill Kansas' culture. Our stupid governor (if he doesn't get recalled I hope he's a one-term governor. We're not even on year two and this is outrageous) decided they needed to be cut because "it should be funded privately" yet expected the National Endowment for the Arts to somehow keep matching funds which don't exist, not to mention the erroneous belief that most of the arts out here are funded by some patronage system. It seems the funding is back on with the latest politicking, but we'll see. Yeah, Brownback's my Dinkleberg.

I also hate how much of Kansas requires driving. If you live in a town it's much less severe (I lived in Lawrence and rarely drove thanks to public transportation and walking), and the towns with money create public transportation systems that will take you to other major towns. If you live in a small town it doesn't always help. It's part of the reason why rural flight is a huge problem in Kansas. As I mentioned in another thread the other problems are the dissonance in the culture changes in small towns since most are farming towns.

That brings me to another issue: the mass destruction lately. It seems like folks aren't happy until we've cleared all the farmland and what few forests we have for some subdivision or highway. Luckily that's slowing down due to the economy and the state environmental regulators are cracking down on developers who needlessly tear down woodlands (the expansion of US 59 has led to huge fines for such violations).

[Jembru]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

There is sooo much. Part of me enjoys that we Geordies have such a rich history and an interesting dialect (although it is becoming so watered down now, that kids often don't understand more traditional Geordie words unfortunately), but I have seen 'the other side' too much, not to realise what a sh*t hole I live in.

I guess one big one, is public transport. This is a nationwide issue, although some cities are MUCH better than others.

Take our buses for example:

Besides not running on time, they are almost impossible to negotiate if you do not know the area, and even worse if you're visiting from overseas. There is no way of knowing where you are. The bus stops are not signed, there is no announcement to tell you where you are and although many of our buses are fitted with displays that could display where you are, they are never turned on, or if they are, just advertise the very expensive bus passes.

That's if you even get the bus to stop in the first place. Unlike other countries I could mention, buses only stop at bus stops if you tell them to. You tell them, by holding out your arm. However, visitors don't know this and of course, there are no signs explaining it. So if you are from a country where public transport doesn't suck, good luck getting ours to let you on!

Assuming you managed to get onto the bus and you DO know where you are and that your stop is coming up. You're gonna need to ring the bell. Okay, straight forward enough. But be warned. There are signs EVERYWHERE, reminding you not to get out of your seat until the bus comes to a complete stop. However, unless you stand up and walk to the front of the bus after ringing the bell, the driver will assume you rang it in error and won't stop. Yup, even the elderly or infirm, will be stuck, no, trapped, on the buses (and many are scared to travel alone because of this), because the driver, despite the posters (which are there simply to cover their asses legally), wants you out your seat and waiting at the door before he even considers pulling into a stop.

Used to the handy ticket machines in bus stops in your home country? HAHAHA forget THAT!! You need to have your money ready (and don't dare use a note for a 2 pound fare) and the driver, who often has no sense of humour and will speak to you like you are a moron, will give you your ticket when you get on (one of the reasons why buses run so late during busy times). Oh and don't forget to let the other passangers off first: our buses only have one door you know!

If that wasn't bad enough, our metro system isn't much better. They at least DO announce SOME stations (The main interchanges anyway), but they are also a bit of a nightmare to negotiate. The worst thing, is that you must buy a ticket before you ride, but the machines don't take notes. There aren't even change machines anywhere and all local shops have signs in the windows saying they will not give change for metro machines (and why should they?). So unless you have coins, you aren't getting on. The amount of packets of gum I have bought without need, must be enormous!

There is simply no excuse. I've spent time in countries where the transport system works so much better. In Tokyo, you can buy the cheapest ticket to get through the gates, then top it up when you reach your destination. This saves much time reading the prices on the maps, which often display only kanji so can take a while to pick out if you're not familiar with reading Japanese. You also get a choice of buying/topping up, your ticket from a machine or a human being, and of course, machines take notes (although in some stations, only certain machines take the larger notes). Startions are always announced, you're told which doors will open (in the case of lines like the Yamanote, which frequently change sides) and often, you get English as well as Japanese. If one of the largest, most complex rail networks in the world is THAT simple to use, why can't our tiny local metro system bloody well work? Oh and although last time I was there (four years ago), it had increased A LOT, the ticket prices are still cheaper in Tokyo than our crappy local trains.

Oh yeah, and you can't buy metro passes from the stations either. You need to visit a Nexus Travel Shop. These are located in or near selected stations: so you have to RIDE the metro, before you can buy the pass!.

Seriously, it is messed up crap!

[Ophidia]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

^^^ After reading that, Jembru, I'm done w/complaining about the bus service in Vegas. Seriously - compared to what you go through, we virtually live in the Minority Report-era. That's just ridiculous.

[volcaniclastic]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

There is sooo much. Part of me enjoys that we Geordies have such a rich history and an interesting dialect (although it is becoming so watered down now, that kids often don't understand more traditional Geordie words unfortunately), but I have seen 'the other side' too much, not to realise what a sh*t hole I live in.

I guess one big one, is public transport. This is a nationwide issue, although some cities are MUCH better than others.

Take our buses for example:

Besides not running on time, they are almost impossible to negotiate if you do not know the area, and even worse if you're visiting from overseas. There is no way of knowing where you are. The bus stops are not signed, there is no announcement to tell you where you are and although many of our buses are fitted with displays that could display where you are, they are never turned on, or if they are, just advertise the very expensive bus passes.

That's if you even get the bus to stop in the first place. Unlike other countries I could mention, buses only stop at bus stops if you tell them to. You tell them, by holding out your arm. However, visitors don't know this and of course, there are no signs explaining it. So if you are from a country where public transport doesn't suck, good luck getting ours to let you on!

Assuming you managed to get onto the bus and you DO know where you are and that your stop is coming up. You're gonna need to ring the bell. Okay, straight forward enough. But be warned. There are signs EVERYWHERE, reminding you not to get out of your seat until the bus comes to a complete stop. However, unless you stand up and walk to the front of the bus after ringing the bell, the driver will assume you rang it in error and won't stop. Yup, even the elderly or infirm, will be stuck, no, trapped, on the buses (and many are scared to travel alone because of this), because the driver, despite the posters (which are there simply to cover their asses legally), wants you out your seat and waiting at the door before he even considers pulling into a stop.

Used to the handy ticket machines in bus stops in your home country? HAHAHA forget THAT!! You need to have your money ready (and don't dare use a note for a 2 pound fare) and the driver, who often has no sense of humour and will speak to you like you are a moron, will give you your ticket when you get on (one of the reasons why buses run so late during busy times). Oh and don't forget to let the other passangers off first: our buses only have one door you know!

If that wasn't bad enough, our metro system isn't much better. They at least DO announce SOME stations (The main interchanges anyway), but they are also a bit of a nightmare to negotiate. The worst thing, is that you must buy a ticket before you ride, but the machines don't take notes. There aren't even change machines anywhere and all local shops have signs in the windows saying they will not give change for metro machines (and why should they?). So unless you have coins, you aren't getting on. The amount of packets of gum I have bought without need, must be enormous!

There is simply no excuse. I've spent time in countries where the transport system works so much better. In Tokyo, you can buy the cheapest ticket to get through the gates, then top it up when you reach your destination. This saves much time reading the prices on the maps, which often display only kanji so can take a while to pick out if you're not familiar with reading Japanese. You also get a choice of buying/topping up, your ticket from a machine or a human being, and of course, machines take notes (although in some stations, only certain machines take the larger notes). Startions are always announced, you're told which doors will open (in the case of lines like the Yamanote, which frequently change sides) and often, you get English as well as Japanese. If one of the largest, most complex rail networks in the world is THAT simple to use, why can't our tiny local metro system bloody well work? Oh and although last time I was there (four years ago), it had increased A LOT, the ticket prices are still cheaper in Tokyo than our crappy local trains.

Oh yeah, and you can't buy metro passes from the stations either. You need to visit a Nexus Travel Shop. These are located in or near selected stations: so you have to RIDE the metro, before you can buy the pass!.

Seriously, it is messed up crap!

Huh. You know, in the 3 times I've visited England, I've never once had any of those problems? I thought your guys' transit was great, lol.

[Jembru]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Huh. You know, in the 3 times I've visited England, I've never once had any of those problems? I thought your guys' transit was great, lol.

Where were you? I live in the North East and this is pretty standard here. I've been to a few cities that had better systems and London is worlds ahead of the rest of us, but there are plenty places where it's the same as it is up here. If you had a good experience of cross country travel on our intercity rail network, then WOW, you really were treated to a rare experience! ^^

[Caelia]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Jembru, that was pretty much my experience in Ireland with the transit only with nicer folk and they announced stops. Also, no one told us there were two bus systems and one didn't exist outside of Dublin.

[DanieMarie]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Berlin is one of the more "International" cities in Germany (still has nothing on London or Paris though), and there are a lot of people from other countries living here. People also tend to be more liberal and open-minded. Still, there's a certain amount of xenophobia here that really bothers me. I read a report a while back that said that 1 out of every 4 Berliners still harbours negative feelings towards foreigners. That bothers me, and freaks me out. It's not always conscious either...some people don't have any direct negative feelings about foreigners, but still wouldn't hire them. As a foreigner, you're less likely to get a job, even if you know German. It's not all racism either....as a native English speaker, I also find this is the case, and so have friends. You could speak fluent German, and be very qualified and experienced, and they'll still hire a German over you. Even if said job requests that you do large parts of it in English and it's an important part of the job. A lot of it is that they'll assume that the German can or has learned enough English to do the English parts of the job, but they don't feel foreigners can learn German enough to do German parts of the job (which is unfair and untrue). This can even be true with marketing, and COPYWRITING of all things, which is why you get so much bad, fake English in marketing here. Good job guys. Really. It's not even a visa issue, because British people don't need a visa to live or work here. There's also a factor that they don't like bothering with foreign qualifications. If you went to high school or university in a different country, they won't see it as being on par with German high school or university (forget the fact that Germany's public school system is rated pretty low compared to other developed countries, and university is average at best). There are a lot of really cool people who lived or studied abroad and don't feel that way, but it's still really common.

In a similar vein, there's a stereotype that English-speakers don't learn German. It bothers me that people will lump you all together, and it bothers me that there are a few people who perpetuate this stereotype (you are NOT helping us!) It's one thing to be here for a year or two and trying, and still struggling with a lot of things. I was the same way, and it's not easy. First off it's not the easiest language, and second off, everyone will speak English to you, even when you're trying to speak German. But if someone has been here for 4+ years and still can barely do the basics, it's usually because of lack of effort and I don't respect that. I have close friends who are in this category, and it kind of bothers me about them. Some people are even PROUD of how they don't speak German, which makes me want to smack them. Still, I hate it even more when Germans assume that English speakers NEVER learn German, because LOTS do. And we had to make a lot of effort to do it. It's much harder to learn German as an English speaker than a speaker of a different language, because you're always hearing English, people are always wanting to "practice their English" on you and every time you try, someone just answers you in English. So those who know German were really pushy about learning, often MAJORED in the language in university (though this isn't me), and/or have been living here a really long time. But you still encounter so much rudeness. As an English-speaker in Berlin, you will always have other English-speaking friends. Even if you avoid the "expat" scene, it's bound to happen. And if you go out with those friends and speak English with them, someone will be rude to you about it at some point...might not be today, might not be tomorrow, but it will happen. It's amazingly NOT happened to me in years, but it will again eventually. A friend was at a popular restaurant here with an English friend, and they were speaking English. Some German guy behind them said to his friend "these English speakers never learn German". My friend told him in German that he shouldn't stereotype people. Another British friend was walking down the street with her boyfriend, who is also British (they met at uni and moved here together). They both majored in German, work in German and are fluent in German. But obviously, they speak English together. Some guy behind them said "you should be speaking German." Um, excuse me....but if YOU were in the UK with your girlfriend, and the two of you were talking, you'd still be speaking German, buddy. Stuff like that pisses me off a lot. These friends I've mentioned are all more than happy to speak German, as am I. We all go about our daily lives speaking German, do out-of-work activities in German, watch TV in German, read in German, speak German when we're with German friends...but if English is spoken amongst English people, some Germans are unreasonably hostile about it. Most people let it slide with tourists, but a select few even criticize them, which I think is totally unreasonable. Even if you DID make the effort to learn basic German, no one would ever let you speak it because they'd either a) think their English is better and be smug about it, or b) want to practice their English. I think some of this relates to the xenophobia thing I mentioned above. People who lived, worked, and/or studied abroad don't tend to take this kind of attitude, even with people who -don't- speak German.
The way people always speak English to you bugs me too, because it's a lot of the same types of people who complain that English speaking people "never learn German." It hasn't happened to me in a long time, because once your accent smoothes out, everyone continues to speak German to you, but it was hard to get going when I first moved here and I had to be really pushy about it. A lot of people used to assume you were a tourist, though this has luckily changed. Or they think that their English was better and it wasn't worth being patient over your attempts at German. Many want to "practice their English" which is fair enough, but they never assume that an English-speaker will want to "practice their German." It bothers me that so many people take such a snooty attitude to English speakers, but don't even let the English speakers try. Even now, though I mostly get just German, if it's loud somewhere and I don't hear someone and I ask them to repeat something, they'll repeat it in English. I'll frankly tell them that I can understand them but I couldn't hear them over the espresso machine. I don't like to be rude, but I think they need to know this and stop stereotyping. Overall, for people living here, though lots never learn German, MOST people do.

In Berlin, pay is stupidly low. Unreasonably low. It's cheap to live here, but costs have gone up and pay has not kept up. Like, I struggle to find work that can pay my bills, and my living expenses aren't high. I don't even pay rent; I just pay fees on my apartment (which works out to about the same as shared rent in this neighbourhood, or a very cheap apartment in a cheap neighbourhood). I saw a job the other day that paid 4 Euros an hour. Then there was an office job listed for about 8 Euros an hour (1400 per month for full time work), where they wanted you to have all sorts of special skills, foreign-language knowledge and well-educated. I'm like "really? you're only willing to pay 1400 Euros a month BEFORE taxes for that??" You'd NEVER get paid that in other German cities for that job. And it is cheaper to live here, but not -that- much cheaper. I made more than that working retail.

This is Germany-specific and not just Berlin, but I also think that the tax code is horribly outdated. First off, you have all these tax classes, and they're horribly unfair. Like, if you are a stay-at-home mom and your husband works, you as a couple get to be in a special tax class....so rather than getting a tax credit, you just pay wayyyy less tax. That's not really the worst though. If you have 2 jobs and they both pay over 400 Euros a month, you get put in tax class 6, which means you pay almost 50% tax on your second job. Are you kidding me? They assume that people working 2 jobs are doing consultancy or something on the side, but if you're working 2 jobs, you're flat broke most of the time. Their thresholds for non-taxable earnings are also REALLY low. Like, they haven't updated it since at least the 80s, despite inflation. Good job, Germany. I dont' hate taxes and I respect the need to have higher taxes to pay for social services, but a single German person gets to keep less of their paycheck than someone from almost every other European country, including Sweden. Yes, Sweden, a country known for its high taxes, lets people keep more of their paycheck after tax, health care and social security.
Health care is also a sore point. It's a really horribly disorganized system. And it's EXPENSIVE. If we had a single-payer public provider that was efficient and centrally run, it would be cheaper, but instead we pay more to have a variety of 'krankenkasses' (providers), which is more an illusion of choice than an actual choice, because they're all the same, because as public providers have to offer the same coverage for regular medical services. The difference lays in the fact that some pay more for yoga classes. Whoop-dee-doo. For the difference in the amount I paid for public health care in Canada vs. what I pay here, I could pay for my own bloody yoga classes.

[LirvA]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Pretty much everything. Oklahoma FTL. Center of the fucking bible belt, retarded mouth breathing politicans and citizens, everyone's dumb as an ox, unhealthy, it's a really shitty state. And the music scene sucks ass, unless you play "red dirt".

Want to move back to Colorado.

[DanieMarie]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Berlin drivers are AWFUL. It's the biggest city in Germany, but there are so many people NOT driving that traffic isn't that heavy. Still, people think they're in the "big city" and they drive as if they'll never get anywhere if they don't drive like morons. This is not New York or even London. Traffic is heavier in my home town of 30,000 people.

The weather can be terrible. From spring onward, you have to treat every sunny day like it might be the last, because it just may be. Sometimes we have amazing summers; sometimes we don't have summer at all. Winter is overall horrible. It's either rainy and grey, or freezing cold and grey (like summer, it's totally unpredictable).


Customer service is horrible. Some differences I don't mind, like how retail employees and servers aren't fawning all over you (you're free to shop and eat in peace and you just get their attention if you need something)...it's great, and when foreigners complain about it, I usually tell them it's a cultural difference and they could learn to appreciate it. But some stuff is unacceptable. Like, businesses treat you like they're doing you a favour by providing their service, rather than you doing them a favour by choosing their business. Like with phone companies....they're all pretty much unhelpful and jerky, and even though you can quit your phone company and choose another, they still mostly act like they're doing you a huge favour by giving you a phone.

[Ula]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Limited employment opportunities and poor autism services after the age of eight. My son is going to age out of he current program which is fantastic. My choices then are public school which is horrible or Catholic school which are understanding but lack services.

[Jembru]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Berlin drivers are AWFUL. It's the biggest city in Germany, but there are so many people NOT driving that traffic isn't that heavy. Still, people think they're in the "big city" and they drive as if they'll never get anywhere if they don't drive like morons. This is not New York or even London. Traffic is heavier in my home town of 30,000 people.

The weather can be terrible. From spring onward, you have to treat every sunny day like it might be the last, because it just may be. Sometimes we have amazing summers; sometimes we don't have summer at all. Winter is overall horrible. It's either rainy and grey, or freezing cold and grey (like summer, it's totally unpredictable).


Customer service is horrible. Some differences I don't mind, like how retail employees and servers aren't fawning all over you (you're free to shop and eat in peace and you just get their attention if you need something)...it's great, and when foreigners complain about it, I usually tell them it's a cultural difference and they could learn to appreciate it. But some stuff is unacceptable. Like, businesses treat you like they're doing you a favour by providing their service, rather than you doing them a favour by choosing their business. Like with phone companies....they're all pretty much unhelpful and jerky, and even though you can quit your phone company and choose another, they still mostly act like they're doing you a huge favour by giving you a phone.

Is it free to end a phone contract in Berlin? We have to pay the contract off if we wish to end it, which I find shite. I think you should be able to get out of it more easily. My contract is fine, but too advanced for my needs. However, although we can upgrade at any time, we can only downgrade after 12 months! I hate how companies force unfair rules like this and get away with it. they should be pleased to get my money at all!

I dunno about driving in Berlin, but I saw some scary shit in Augsburg. My ex would overtake cars on quiet residential streets, by crossing into the other lane. That is sooo unacceptable in England and something you'd expect joy riders in stollen cars to do.

My landlord used to take me to his lab to help him out and getting in the car with this crazy 78 year old doctor was also a terrifying experience. He would climb onto the pavement as a short cut, drive through red lights and refused to wear his seatbelt.

I concluded the Germans are crazy behind the wheel!

[DanieMarie]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Is it free to end a phone contract in Berlin? We have to pay the contract off if we wish to end it, which I find shite. I think you should be able to get out of it more easily. My contract is fine, but too advanced for my needs. However, although we can upgrade at any time, we can only downgrade after 12 months! I hate how companies force unfair rules like this and get away with it. they should be pleased to get my money at all!

I dunno about driving in Berlin, but I saw some scary shit in Augsburg. My ex would overtake cars on quiet residential streets, by crossing into the other lane. That is sooo unacceptable in England and something you'd expect joy riders in stollen cars to do.

My landlord used to take me to his lab to help him out and getting in the car with this crazy 78 year old doctor was also a terrifying experience. He would climb onto the pavement as a short cut, drive through red lights and refused to wear his seatbelt.

I concluded the Germans are crazy behind the wheel!

Oh no! I wanted to assume that it's just because I was in the "big city" and that it made them crazy drivers, but maybe it's a German thing. Bad Germans....you're a country that loves order and rules! Maybe it's the same thing as when you're biking and everyone crowds at the intersection at a red light, or how they can't form a queue to save their lives....in Germany everyone always has to be at the front for some reason. If you're not German, it can be infuriating!

It's not free to end a phone contract, and the contracts are 2 years. Sometimes in very specific circumstances, they'll let you out of it, but usually not. It's just assumed that if you can't commit to that, you get a prepaid phone.

On top of that, the notice period to quit most services is 3 months. So if you give notice that you're cutting off your phone later than that, you'll have to pay for 3 months from when you give notice anyway.

[ConnollyCelt]

Re: What do you hate about where you live?

Pretty much everything that's wrong with every other city in the world. Racism, sexism, homophobia, arrogant cops, ignorance being taught in schools, binge drinking, bigotry, bullying, businessmen struting about in their suits and rollexes, etc etc etc.

As a socialist I hate how most of the world is set up, because I know it could be so much better. I guess it just makes you cynical after a while...