Up Front by Emma Hart

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Up Front: Day Five

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  • Danielle,

    you'd think they would have worked out the concept of time zones

    They have time zones *in their own country*, FFS! That's what gets me. (Plus - and you'll love this, Gio - they all have iPhones now and could use that multi-clock feature. :) )

    Charo World. Cuchi-cuchi!… • Since Nov 2006 • 3828 posts Report Reply

  • giovanni tiso,

    I picture them having lots of clocks on the wall like at the Washington post, except they always assume it's the "good time", like 4 pm instead of 4 am, or noon instead of midnight.

    Wellington • Since Jun 2007 • 7473 posts Report Reply

  • Amy Gale,

    (Related sub-peeve: the companies who will ship overseas, but charge mind-numbingly high prices for it. No, actually, I know how long it takes to fill out a customs label AND I know how much it costs to send something from there to here using normal post, so, in essence: bite me.)

    QFT.

    I think that customs labels must seem very, very arduous to some people. I observe, for example, that companies that refuse to ship internationally tend to also refuse to ship to AFO/FPO addresses (which only require domestic postage but do need customs declarations).

    I don't mind on-shipping stuff for the people in my life, but it's annoying that it's necessary.

    tha Ith • Since May 2007 • 471 posts Report Reply

  • Lucy Stewart,

    I have been told that NZ was 'near Norway', and 'in Europe'; asked what language we usually speak at home; and was irritatedly asked why I was 'putting on an accent'. My mother was asked if we wore grass skirts around the house; an English friend was asked if they had *electricity* in England and (by the same people) told that they would love to visit England but 'couldn't live without peanut butter'.

    So far I have been complimented on the quality of my English and asked what language I speak at home, but pinned as Australian only twice, English only once, and a really surprisingly high number of times correctly identified as a Kiwi. (Curse you, people who fail to conform to my bigoted expectations!)

    What drives me bonkers is 'will not ship overseas' US companies (and they are LEGION). What, filling out a customs label is too much for you? I'll even pay a bit extra for that! But no. I have a feeling they all think it's Far Too Terribly Complicated, when it obviously isn't.

    Oooh, it gets better; we have had to put off ordering a lot of terribly essential items (like turmeric and Netflix and a bed) because those same sites refuse to accept that someone could be living in the US and ordering items to be delivered to them in the US and not have a US credit card. The only people who didn't were the Economist (which, by the way, costs around $100NZ for a year's subscription, as opposed to closer to $400 in NZ - it does not cost that much extra to ship them to New Zealand, surely.)

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2105 posts Report Reply

  • Danielle,

    a really surprisingly high number of times correctly identified as a Kiwi

    Are we thanking Jemaine, Bret and Rhys for that? I feel like we should be.

    those same sites refuse to accept that someone could be living in the US and ordering items to be delivered to them in the US and not have a US credit card

    Oh yes! I forgot about that particularly little wrinkle of annoyance. (For a while when I got back to NZ I still had a US credit card, which came in handy occasionally. Pity I couldn't maintain it really.)

    Charo World. Cuchi-cuchi!… • Since Nov 2006 • 3828 posts Report Reply

  • Lucy Stewart,

    Are we thanking Jemaine, Bret and Rhys for that? I feel like we should be

    At least one person referenced them as the source of their understanding, so thanks are being mentally sent.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2105 posts Report Reply

  • Danielle,

    Ack. 'Particular little', not 'particularly little'. It's not little at all. Especially when you need turmeric, Netflix, or a bed. Proofreading brain, why hast thou forsaken me?

    Charo World. Cuchi-cuchi!… • Since Nov 2006 • 3828 posts Report Reply

  • Ross Mason,

    I think the untilmate in arrogance was/is:

    usa.com
    usa.org
    usa.net


    If the educators in that country had used their brain they could have introduced the "Rest of the World" concept to their fellow citizens the day the URL was invented.

    What annoyed me even more was NZ companies desperate to get a .com address so that customers would THINK they were from the US.

    Upper Hutt • Since Jun 2007 • 1590 posts Report Reply

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