Scottish cows (but not the famous Heeland Coos)
Nunraw (Sancta Maria Abbey)
This blog is meant to register my life while in Edinburgh..
Friday 30 November 2012
Monday 12 November 2012
Wine reception
Something I really love about Scotland: all academic events hosted by the different study groups in the University finish in a wine reception!
The main reason why I like it is that if there is an academic event, there should also be a moment to discuss ideas in a more informal setting. These ideas may or may not be related to the topic of the event. Sometimes it may merely be a time to relax and get together. All in all, these wine events make the academic community a real community, not just a theory...
Oh yes, and I also like the wine!
Friday 2 November 2012
Robbed in Edinburgh!
I've just been robbed in broad day light in Edinburgh! In a hairdresser...
So, story goes like this. I wake up in the morning, my hair is way too long so I decide to cut it. I look for a hairdresser in my area in my snap fax. Now, for those who don't know, snap fax is a discount card for a lot of different shops in Edinburgh. So, snap fax tells me that in a hairdresser very close to my place where I'll have a 50% discount, so I call, I book and I go.
Things started to go wrong as soon as I got in because the person cutting my hair was going to be a woman. Now, I'm not sexist, and believe in equal opportunities for all and all that, but I had never had a woman cutting my hair before. That's ok, I thought, it would be a nice morning adventure.
Second trouble, she insists in shampooing my hair. Now, I had had my hair shampooed this morning by the person who does it better: me. I said it but she insisted and I'm not the kind of person to create problems, right? So my hair got the second shampooing of the morning.
The third and real problem, however, came in the end. I went to pay and she told me it was £15.25. I think to myself "dear mother of God! thank God I have the snap fax!" So, I showed her the snap fax, smile and say: "but I have the snap fax with 50% discount, as I said on the phone..."
- Yes, yes... - the woman tells me - £15,25 is already with the discount!
I had heard this price on the phone but the guy I had talked to had a very strong Scottish accent so I assumed that was the price without the discount! Who on earth is the male idiot who pays £30.5 for a haircut!!! The idiotness of paying this price is that hairdressers start assuming that to cut the hair to a man is the same as to cut to a woman. And, once again, I'm all in favour of equal opportunities and all, but a man cuts the hair to have it shorter whereas a woman cuts it to have it pretty. It's the same reasoning of paying more for a painting than for a fixed pipe.
I'm going to be in a bad mood the rest of the day, being robbed like this in the morning!
So, story goes like this. I wake up in the morning, my hair is way too long so I decide to cut it. I look for a hairdresser in my area in my snap fax. Now, for those who don't know, snap fax is a discount card for a lot of different shops in Edinburgh. So, snap fax tells me that in a hairdresser very close to my place where I'll have a 50% discount, so I call, I book and I go.
Things started to go wrong as soon as I got in because the person cutting my hair was going to be a woman. Now, I'm not sexist, and believe in equal opportunities for all and all that, but I had never had a woman cutting my hair before. That's ok, I thought, it would be a nice morning adventure.
Second trouble, she insists in shampooing my hair. Now, I had had my hair shampooed this morning by the person who does it better: me. I said it but she insisted and I'm not the kind of person to create problems, right? So my hair got the second shampooing of the morning.
The third and real problem, however, came in the end. I went to pay and she told me it was £15.25. I think to myself "dear mother of God! thank God I have the snap fax!" So, I showed her the snap fax, smile and say: "but I have the snap fax with 50% discount, as I said on the phone..."
- Yes, yes... - the woman tells me - £15,25 is already with the discount!
I had heard this price on the phone but the guy I had talked to had a very strong Scottish accent so I assumed that was the price without the discount! Who on earth is the male idiot who pays £30.5 for a haircut!!! The idiotness of paying this price is that hairdressers start assuming that to cut the hair to a man is the same as to cut to a woman. And, once again, I'm all in favour of equal opportunities and all, but a man cuts the hair to have it shorter whereas a woman cuts it to have it pretty. It's the same reasoning of paying more for a painting than for a fixed pipe.
I'm going to be in a bad mood the rest of the day, being robbed like this in the morning!
Thursday 1 November 2012
The Brits and EU
I really admire the British attitude towards the EU! Now, mind you, that what I admire is not exactly the Euro-scepticism, is more that British think about European problems. And, even better, when trying to come up with answers they regard EU with an extremely pragmatic view: they see the EU as a mean to favour UK and not as an end in itself.
Today Nick Clegg is in the Parliament answering questions posed by some more Euro-sceptic members of the governmental coalition parties. It is true that some of the suggestions of the Euro-sceptics of these Islands are quite absurd. To start with they tend to want all the benefits of a single market without its obligations considering that us, the other Europeans, would be more than willing to concede that. Also, they don't realize that a single market needs single market rules, otherwise in matters of environment, labour or tax, there will be a race to the bottom by the member states to make their products and services competitive.
But if some of the suggestions are absurd, others are quite obvious. Why are EU organs increasing their expenditure when many member states are facing budget cuts? This is a specially relevant question for the Euro-zone, given proposals to give Brussels budget supervisory powers over member states. Are the extremely detailed regulations really necessary to achieve a single market? Is the principle of subsidiarity to be forgotten? This question is an obvious one in a country that prides itself of its Democratic institutions and regards the growing interference of Brussels as weakening the power of Westminster.
To sum this up, the British do what few people in the "Continent" do: they discuss the EU, its objectives, policies, strengths, weaknesses, etc.. As in most discussions, there are a few bad ideas... But at least there are ideas.
Today Nick Clegg is in the Parliament answering questions posed by some more Euro-sceptic members of the governmental coalition parties. It is true that some of the suggestions of the Euro-sceptics of these Islands are quite absurd. To start with they tend to want all the benefits of a single market without its obligations considering that us, the other Europeans, would be more than willing to concede that. Also, they don't realize that a single market needs single market rules, otherwise in matters of environment, labour or tax, there will be a race to the bottom by the member states to make their products and services competitive.
But if some of the suggestions are absurd, others are quite obvious. Why are EU organs increasing their expenditure when many member states are facing budget cuts? This is a specially relevant question for the Euro-zone, given proposals to give Brussels budget supervisory powers over member states. Are the extremely detailed regulations really necessary to achieve a single market? Is the principle of subsidiarity to be forgotten? This question is an obvious one in a country that prides itself of its Democratic institutions and regards the growing interference of Brussels as weakening the power of Westminster.
To sum this up, the British do what few people in the "Continent" do: they discuss the EU, its objectives, policies, strengths, weaknesses, etc.. As in most discussions, there are a few bad ideas... But at least there are ideas.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)