Who R U?

Congratulations David. A great thread, and I think my favorite-- hope it keeps going. Is 200 posts a record? Cheers. Craig

Gregm, speaking of Swiss efficiency. During our vacation in Geneva, my wife and I accidentally boarded a commercial ( freight ) elevator in a building.

The USA version of these elevators is usually padded with ugly covers hung from eyelets along the walls. There is graffiti, and one should NEVER look up, as there are nasty things hanging from the ceiling, provided the ceiling is still attached.

The Swiss elevator looked so good, that we thought we were on the passenger version. When it started it's ascent, the door did not close, it was substituted with a safety rail. Our view of the inside of the elevator is what amazed me. The entire internal structure was covered in fine ceramic tiles, and better workmanship than my kitchen. The motors and cables were spotless, and the walls were unmarked.

(Detlof), It is embarrassing for the inside of your elevators to be nicer than the front steps of many of the building in our city. Are you guys all so tidy?

Albert,
I am an ex Jekke naturalised Swiss, I'm not particularly tidy, don't have that in my genes, but often you tend to think that a certain amount of "compulsion neurosis" is part of the Swiss national characer, if a thing like that exists. And Yes Greg, the internet started de chez nous.
Cheers

Detlof, Albert P....when I was about 7 years old my father took me to Holland & Belgium for an Esperanto conference...and one morning I stood aghast at the sight of a shopkeeper SCRUBBING THE SIDEWALK on her hands and knees! My dad asked the lady about it and she told us that this was de rigeur practice EVERY morning before store opening! Try that in N.Y.C. or L.A. and they'll probably kick your bucket over and steal your brush...ah!...the good old days............

Well, we have machines for that now, but the custom of course continues. In spite of the machines, anybody who leaves his dog's droppings on the sidewalk, will be tarred and feathered by the enraged neighbourhood, if not lynched straight on the spot. The municipality supplies little plastic bags for that purpose. The dog tax is about $60 a year. You have to - no joke - train your dogs not to pick up food lying around or accept it from strangers, because it not infrequently happens, that those truly obsessed with cleanliness, will try to poison your pet......