There is a thread on the English Forum (for English-speaking expats living in Switzerland) titled "Ikea - more trusted than the church". The post mentions a survey done in Sweden on how much people trust various institutions. Ikea, surprisingly ... or not, some might say, emerged head, shoulders, and then some, ahead of the church. A whole 14 notches, it is claimed.

That has spawned a growing list of responses - hilarious on one hand, if you're a not-even-Sunday (or feast day) Catholic like me, and perhaps a slightly (but only ever-so-) disturbing snapshot of the evolution of paradigms on the other. Borrowing from one of the Team Ikea entries, 8 weeks isn't too long to wait for a delivery ... versus pretty much eternity for deliverance.

Being rather clueless first-time furniture buyers, the first Ikea sofa Ste and I set our hearts on at Spreitenbach had a 6 week wait for home delivery. I was in Dar when the sofa was due and was devasted when Ste called to say that it couldn't fit through the front door. It wasn't so much the doorway but the dastardly narrow entry corridor which stood between us and the desired Kramfors.

So wait we did, another 6 weeks, for The Second Coming of the Smaller Settee.

And I am pleased to announce that it arrived this afternoon, in all its glory and split leather radiance, ascending to our fourth floor abode in the safe carriage of two deliverymen.