Life In The Slow Lane

It's still winter. Just in case you were curious and wanted to know if Belgium was somehow in the midst of a great thaw. You would be mistaken. In fact, it is ever so lightly...snowing.

In true Belgian spirit, life continues on as usual. In the early morning, when it's still dark outside and the snow is softly falling, you will find the kids riding their bikes to school. Locals walk and ride their bikes to the market for fresh veggies for their dinner. Ladies are out polishing their windows until they sparkle in the early morning light. Everyone manages to have a minute to spare to wave as you pass by. I get the feeling that nothing can hold these people down. Not even Mother Nature. They, too, must live by the motto that was inscribed on the James Farley Post Office..."Neither rain, nor snow, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds". (Did I mention that our mail person delivers the post by bicycle, regardless of the weather? The bigger towns use scooters. Wimps.) This is a very social country. I think that may be part of the reason they have such little refrigerators and no freezers. I know...they like fresh food, but they also thrive on social interaction. They turn everything into a social occasion. I went to watch my son's swimming class, and found that the observation area is a very lovely coffee house. Two walls are made completely of glass, and you can have a cappuccino and snack with friends, while you watch the kids splash about in the water. How fantastic is this? And it's not just swimming. I'm told that during the kid's soccer matches, they take an hour break for half time and head over to an adjacent coffee house to warm up with soup and coffee. Then they head back to the field for the rest of the game. In the US, we are all about speed. How fast can I get through this event and on to the next? Not so in Belgium. It would explain why people are healthier here and there is a lot less stress. Ironically, this slower pace tends to cause some stress in us misplaced Americans. More than a few times, I've tried to do business somewhere only to find that they are either closed for a two hour lunch break, or was offered coffee because I will have to wait for a while before what I need can be taken care of. It takes some adjusting. We are trying to live the European way. It's a learning experience. For instance, I checked the gauge on our mazout tank (heating oil that heats our home as well as our water), and noticed that we were running a tad low. I called the local company to arrange for delivery. "Are you out?" he asked. "Not yet, but I'm running pretty low," I replied. "We will deliver to you this next week," he stated. When I asked what day to expect them, I was told "I can not tell you the day. Just next week." Um, what? Apparently, delivery just depends on what day the driver tends to be in our neck of the woods and wants to stop by. Like a good little camper, I stayed close to home and waited. And waited. Several days went by, so I called again to see if they could just give me a little hint. "He will be at your house tomorrow", I was told. I think that this was a test to see just how long I would wait before calling back. This might be one of the local stress relievers. Let's mess with the Americans. It's always good for a few giggles. And for a bonus laugh, let's ask her to pronounce the name of her street again. She never can seem to get that one right.