Off the map

I reallllly want to get a pair of these for Lucy, maybe several pairs, but do you think I can find anyone to ship to little old NZ? No. At least not yet. That's the one thing about living where I do; a lot of places don't ship here, but really what's the excuse? If I can ship anywhere in the world, surely big companies can. And when companies do ship often they charge a small fortune, sometimes exceeding the cost of the goods themselves. I remember when I sold first my ever garment, and it cost a paltry US$7 to send it over the other side of the world (specifically Belgium). If someone sent me something from Belgium for even twice that price I would be elated, so I don't think I'm expecting too much.

Things are much better than they used to be though. In the mid 80's my father used to travel to the States regularly, and after six or so weeks away we were fair bursting to see him again. I admit part of the appeal was the fact that he would bring home US toys and sweets, things we definitely couldn't get here. I still remember watching excitedly as my father opened his suitcase to reveal giant-size bags of Jelly Belly jelly beans. "Let's make a Lemon meringue pie!" we would cry. "Here, have some candy floss!". Ah, such good memories.

Now days, if Lucy were to hanker after her own packet of Jelly Belly beans all it would require would be a short stroll to the corner shops. No airplanes, no duty. Now that's progress.