Land of Folders and Magazines

I had a conversation with some workmates a while back that made me realize that I have become more Dutch than the Dutch. One of my colleagues revealed that she had committed the heresy of pasting a Nee - Nee sticker on her post flap. These are stickers that the inhabitants of this fine country can put on their doorways to fight off the pest of unwanted supermarket folders and local newspapers.

A long time ago in Bethlehem I too had one of these things on my door warding off those enemies of the forest but something seems to have changed along the way. When I first started living in this country I was astounded by the fact that every company seemed to issue its own magazine. From Nuon (energy) to the NS (railways) through to Ohra (my main insurer) every one of them seemed to have a glossy to back up their false promises of efficiency and customer service. Moreover, I was abhorred by the positive avalanche of folders and local newspapers spewing through my post flap. Was it something that I had said or done?
When I was a singleton I too had the Nee - Nee banner proudly on display but my girlfriend kept bringing back the folders from the Aldi or the Albert Heijn and I started shopping based on the bargains. Before long I had moved to a Ja - Nee sticker allowing the folders in (but not the local rags). I got married and a sport of ours was eagerly picking through the folders in search of bargains like wolverines with a sniff of prey.
I made the final move back to a stickerless existence when we moved to our current house. I now read the local papers and their tales of arrests of drunken cyclists, arson attacks and sales of work at local schools. I cannot kick the habit of reading the supermarket folders and nothing would sicken me more now than knowing that I bought something in the C1000 supermarket that was on special in the Albert Heijn.
I have basically become a type of Dutch person that even my Dutch colleagues take the piss out of. My Dutch colleague guffawed when I reacted with such shock that she had gone down the Nee - Nee way. It's gone too far but maybe the Ireland of the 1980s has just stayed inside me. Neither a lender nor a borrower be. Live within your means. Keep driving that Daewoo Nexia even if you can afford a BMW.