I have been away this week in Germany on yet another training course. This one was on Interview techniques, but a specific method where we learned to ask specific questions to find out past behaviour in order to predict future behaviour. So no more just telling me your strengths and weaknesses. You might have to prove those strengths now.
It was a very interesting, if exhausting time. And I was there for the Germany / Turkey match, so i am glad they won
In Frankfurt we had hail storms, down here in Switzerland it is baking again. 31 degrees and too hot to do much outside. I stripped our bed last night, as it was too hot with the quilts to sleep, I changed all the bedding for a lighter airier effect. I could not find the alarm clock, but reckoned my husband must had put it somewhere, as he had it last.
Today it was so lovely, I did all the laundry including that bedding. I found the alarm clock - in the washing machine I should have checked that bedding a bit more closely I think.
So now it is in bits drying out in the sun. it might still work afterwards, but I am not holding out much hope. That poor alarm clock has been through a lot. More than once it has fallen out of the window when I was shaking the quilt. So looking at the past behaviour involved here, I think that we can safely say that I have not applied any learning from those incidents before

Today was the institution of our new Vicar, Rev Peter Potter. The sun was shining, as Summer has officially arrived and seems to be staying a while, we had a flock of clergy ( is that the collective noun? )
and a good turn out as they say up north.
Rev Potter has come from Scotland, and did joke he had bought some traditional Scottish weather with him - I am glad he hadn't
It was a really good service. Great hymns, and good liturgy. I was on reading, along with the British Ambassador, so felt pretty chuffed to be picked.
The Archdeacon gave an "interesting" sermon referring to the recent marriage of homosexual priests in the CofE which he obviously does not agree with. His point was that we are judged by what we do, and a lot of people can be offended by certain actions, so we should consider what we do carefully.
Rev Potter remained fairly quiet throughout, but I am sure he will be fine. Never judge a book by its cover as they say, and having had about 6 locums over the past few months, I can vouch for that one

my laptop has just died - in the middle of a scrabble game as well
So I lost the scrabble game by default, and seem to have lost my hard drive. We reckon the fan has not been working. It overheated once before but survived, but this time we may not be so lucky.
Ah well, maybe I spend too much time surfing as it is.

My eldest will be finishing school soon, forever and ever, unless we count hairdressing college once a week as school. Anyway, they have 10 days of tests coming up, so she went to School on Friday to pick up her revision folder, and promptly left it on the train coming home
She called me at work in a panic, so I looked up the train, and found it would return through our station 2.5 hours later. It is a train that stops everywhere, and goes a long way in the process.
So I advised her to get back on the train when it returned, search it through, and if the folder was not there, report it missing.
So she got on said train, and searched it for the 4 minutes to the terminus ( such a short time she had to remember that folder for in the first place), didn't find it, but then as she was getting off the train there was an old man with it in his arms, taking it to hand it in.
She was very relieved, even though he quizzed her as the contents before he would hand it over.
Saved her me Fr20 that she would have had to pay to the railway company to get it back as well.
Luck or providence
needless to say, the folder is home, but I don't think she has opened it, and the tests start tomorrow !!

remember when Rebekka did her Ötzi walk, and we spent 2 hours at the hospital afterwards getting crutches?
Well we received the bill for the crutches, which she eventuelly used for all of 2 days, so that was Fr10.
Today we received an accident form from the health insurance. They must have received the hospital bill.
Now, if we fill in this form saying that it was indeed an accident that caused the need for the crutches, then the health insurance pays the lot. If we ring them and tell them that it could just have been to walking way too far in flat leather shoes, they will charge the bill on.
Hmm, bit of a bugger this one.

I guess I will be honest though, as I need to set a good example to the kids.

I just caught our cat with her head in the bread bin. She had been miowing quite loudly. I think she was telling me she is hungry

I was talking to my youngest today about a schoolfriend of hers who is behaving strangely. She is taking offence at the slightest thing, hitting out, and not joining in. My youngest reckoned that it is because she wants everyone to feel sorry for her. So I was asking if maybe she was not getting enough attention at home or similar.
My daughter said that could be. " Her Parents are not good role models. Her mum swears in front of her, and she never gets told off for swearing, and they aren't very welcoming"

I was quite pleased in a way, if laura sees that as not a good role model, I must be doing something right after allD

MInd you, not so good for the girl in question. She might live in a big fancy house, but money can't buy you love.

The Euro08 is in full swing. Switzerland are now out of the running, which has made a few of my colleagues rather subdued. Bern is host to all the Holland games, and they of course are on a high. Doing well, and partying to celebrate. We have about 40000 fans visiting Bern alone, I think most are Dutch, camping in huge fields and joining together in the fan zone in the centre. Here is a picture emailed to me, of the orange masses, before their 3:0 victory over Italy on Monday.

A friend emailed this today saying it should be shown in all churches. I can see why
 

until I hit the beach, Now the training has to get serious. So today, I walked up the stairs at the station, then walked to the office ( okay, it ain't far, but still, it's a start). I should have then walked up the 4 flights of stairs too, but let us not overdo it.
No chocolate has passed my lips all day, and this evening I went for a 40 minute walk after tea.

Now if i could just keep this up

actually Trinny and Suzanne are on at present, with the Great British Body or something. Apparently the average woman is 5 ft 4 and 11 stone 3!
I think I have nothing to worry about it.

well it is all happening over here you know.
The Euro 08 kicks off this weekend and all is prepared. Signs and flags are everywhere, and even better the railway station is finished in Bern. We have had months of building work whilest they ripped up all the tram lines and renewed them, and demolished buildings, and put up an amazing glass roof over the front area. So, after so many months of disruption the town gave us a party on Saturday night.
There was a bit of a demo from the anti-fascists, but no real trouble.
Today the authorities have been practising what they need to do in the event of a chemical attack on supporters!
On Saturday we are having a party in the village and watching 2 of the opening matches on the big screen, accompanied by beer and grub no doubt.

In other news we had a vote on Sunday where the famous SVP (Swiss Volks Partei), they of the black sheep campaign, had been trying to get another law through to make it harder for us foreigners to become Swiss.
The vote failed to get through by a clear majority. The SVP is now the Swiss Verlieres Partei ( or Swiss Losers Party)
Part of the SVP had already been kicked out cos Mr Blocher was upset at losing his seat to a mere woman, and now others from the SVP are joining them to form a new party. Who said politics was boring?