Ik ben 24 en draag sinds mijn 11 voltijds een bril, aangezien ik zonder migraine kreeg. Ik heb niet echt last met een bril aan te doen, maar ik droom soms wel van het gemak zonder bril (sporten, een trui aandoen zonder de bril uit te doen, zonnebrillen zonder sterkte, ...)

Ik kwam uit op ooglaseren, wat volgens mij ook wel prijzig is, maar wat zijn jullie ervaringen hiermee? Ik zou namelijk ook niet blind willen worden door een "luxe" operatie :)

Dankjewel!

Anyone else notice the reddit ads getting worse and worse. Both been getting a lot and low quality ads since a few months.

Reddit going public has been awful imo.

/end rant

Posting this here because we’re the king of complaining

12 days ago we were talking here about alcohol behind the wheel and yet again it's proven that people, alcohol and driving don't go together. So I wanted to poll r/Belgium to see how many people are in favor of a zero-tolerance policy for drinking and driving. I myself would very much like to see this be written into law.

View Poll

Full Worker Rights for Sex Workers Under New Law! Let’s discuss…

So yesterday I was expecting a package to arrive in my local Bpost point, and the package being in the very capable hands of Bpost filled me with such tremendous joy and a soothing wellbeing because I knew nothing could go wrong.

To my utter shock and horror I then received this obviously perfectly crafted message of them having played a pick up game of kick the package resulting in some minor damage and it being sent back to the seller. oopsie.

perfect message. 10/10 would get package destroyed again.

So in a unfair fit of madness I vented about getting my precious cargo stomped in this place, to be rightfully corrected by all the preservers of Bposts immaculate delivery service that I should be happy to have received such a well crafted email instead of a package. What was I thinking. sorry guys. sorry. oh me of little faith.

So I did what I was told by the overlords of Packagestan and called the seller. They were flabbergasted, dumbfounded and outraged. The package was clearly labeled "delivered" in their system. No notification of damage at all. I mean.. honestly can you blame their shock, it's Bpost, they would never damage a package. How dare I make such libellous claims. They were going to get to the bottom of it!

So I checked my Trank and trace.. and weirdly it neither said thrown in the sun nor rammed in my mailbox... it said:

on it's way where? neither here nor there it seems

The plot thickens!

Called the postpoint. Once again I had to grovel because me being of little faith in the almighty Packmaster General.

But they did find the package in the system. neither here nor there. and then with some occular patdown of the stock they did find the package. There.

So I went and picked it up

Bpost 1 - Me 0

So guess what I have here..

box was open down below, contents unharmed, yet shaken

better trample on it to make sure I don't accuse Bpost of messing up that mail and upsetting all of you.

Merry Christmas, ya bunch of grinches.

Right now, South korea has declared martial law. It is all over the news. I checked dutch, german and french news sites. UK and some.

All of them headline it. Even more local orientated news pages

Exept belgium. Hln, nieuwsblad, GVA, vrt news? TOM WAES WAS DRUNK OMGGGGGG

only de morgen seems to headline the south Korean martial law declaration.

I have noticed this before. When major world events happen...belgian media goes FOOTBALL and Cycling! More important!

Is it me? Am i missing context or other sources?

Edit= forgot about standaard. They also headline the south korean martial law.

This post is just to rant ... not here to discuss the topic nor to argue with homophobes ...

It is so unjust to see how the asylum system works in Belgium (or probably everywhere). The more you actually need it, the less support you will get. The more decent you are, the less welcomed you will be. It actually shows you that being a decent human being means eternal suffering and nothing more.

As a gay man who did his best to come to EU (through scholarship in an eastern european country) yet wasn't lucky to settle down and ended up seeking asylum in Belgium, I get to see how life actually goes.

During my asylum procedure (which is still ongoing), I've been volunteering in a few associations but only one focusing on LGBT asylum seekers and it is crazy how different things go. I'll write how the asylum case goes for an LGBT person coming from a Muslim country/background.

An LGBT person running away from his homophobic community and religion, the moment you make it to EU you'd assume you could now breathe but sadly the nightmare literally begins at that moment. Imagine a sheep running away from a jungle and makes it to a farm. The sheep asks the farmer to accept it in his farm so it can be safe from the wolves it ran away from. The farmer says: Yeah sure but stay here in this camp until we decide if you are actually in danger. This camp is filled from the same exact wolves you are running away from so do not say "Baaaa" during your entire stay so you would not get attacked (or even killed) by the wolves. Your waiting time can be 1 year .. maybe 2 or 3 .. in some cases more so just hang on buddy.

This itself is mentally destructive! Total isolation .. insane fear .. off chart anxiety .. unbearable stress .. 1 mistake and you are out! You cannot (and do not) want to make friends with anyone in the camp whether they are homosexual or not ... why?

- If you make friends with heteros, who are 99.987% homophobic, you would NEVER be able to live your life as an LGBT person. Even after 10 years of granting asylum and becoming Belgian, you would still live in the closet (even some Belgians who were born and raised here from a Muslim background are in the closet). So avoid avoid.

- If you make friends with homos, if one of them is outed, every single friend he has will be considered homo and yes it is not safe and you would get attacked.

So the best solution is for you to isolate yourself for 2-3 years until a decision is made OR you can avoid the camp (which I did since I'm from a safe, war-free country and being in a camp shouts my gayness) however Belgium is not cheap and finding a job without knowing one of the languages is pretty hard and lastly I don't think anyone like me can afford to rent in a big city. I may have my freedom however I have to worry about paying rent and ofc everything I need should be covered by myself. Once again, I cannot live in a camp and it is not safe for someone like me and no I'm not rich. I live with the support of my friends who didn't want me to go back home. Yes I do have my freedom but I do lose many many things + I have the fear of ending up being homeless for whatever reason.

Before anyone says something like "learn the language" .. have you ever experienced life traumas and PTSDs? Have you ever lived such stressful and anxious life? If you thought of saying such thing then congrats, your life is absolutely amazing. I personally have tried to go to French language school however getting myself out of bed or even making myself a sandwich is an accomplishment. And yes I do have a psychologist and psychiatrist so I'm trying to work on my past, present and future all together but once again I'm not expecting many people to understand.

Now, once again, Belgium is doing its best and for such cases, a person would think "but hey .. there are LGBT associations which could help and support". I thought that too but here is the surprise: LGBT associations do not give a tiny rat a$$ about us. emailing, calling, visiting them are just a waste of time. They truly do not give a darn. The associations I contacted focus only on partying and gatherings for LGBT people with no struggles. I have chatted with some closeted Belgians and was shocked to know that they did try to contact these associations for help/advice and got completely ignored. This is the most disgusting thing I have ever experienced!!! Call yourself LGBT party club but not an association. There is nothing worse than reaching out to your "community" and get ignored like a piece of trash.

A new year is about to start and day by day things get darker and darker. I truly think living is not a right or an option for everyone but only for the lucky ones or the "smart" ones. and by smart, I mean the ones who know how to play the laws and get what they want in unethical ways.

I just hope that the world one day will understand how hard it is to be an LGBT asylum seeker. You live in a country where you have no friends or family. Uncertain future. Constant fear, anxiety and stress at their max levels. I could have had an amazing life and career back "home" however I don't belong there and death was following me everywhere .. just waiting for me to make a tiny mistake so it can just behead me. I did not choose Belgium for any financial reasons but only for the rights I may/may not get. Also, literally no country in the entire middle east, Africa and most of Asia would welcome people like me so Western Europe, North America and Australia.

Lastly, I know that in the beginning I was talking about the differences between hetero and homo asylum seekers but tbh I think its better not to go there but still it is quite insane how different things are especially when it comes to the rights you have and the rights you will have after getting granted asylum.

Thank you for reading this looooong post ... ranting to stranger is my way not to go nuts.

Edit: Here is a link for a German documentary (its in English) about LGBT asylum seekers life in Germany so that might actually give you a better idea:

Hello everyone, After a few years, soon to be an international student in Belgium.

Pardon my english for it is not my 1st language. Is it okay for me to learn the Parisian French and Netherlands Dutch 1st (The standard french and dutch, If I am right) before moving to learning flemish and belgian french? Would be easier or gonna cause disadvantages to my learning journey? What are the pros and cons?

Thanks to those who respond!

So the title is quite self-explanitory, but I want to know how the process goes before buying a used car. Which documents are obligatory, which document(s) should I sign? After signing said document, should I pay full in cash and just leave with the car? Do I immediatly have to start working on all the documents or can the car wait a little? If a car doesn't have CT (controle technique), does it mean that it didn't pass it or they didn't do it but can still pass it?

I already contacted my insurance, just want second opinion(s):

Our car was totaled by someone crashing into it while it was parked. To make things simple, let's say that happened halfway through our insured period (you "renew" this every year). We paid 1000€ for one year. Can we reclaim 500 euro for the period the car is no longer usable (on top of other insurance claims)? Are there rules/laws on this?

Linked to this, anyone know how long it takes to get a refund from road taxes paid if you returned your licence plate so the car is no longer registered?

Hallo,

Wij zijn een van de de ongelukkige die bij deze installateur zonnepanelen heeft besteld.

Een heeeeel lang verhaal kort, wij hebben ze wel nog geinstalleerd gekregen na bloed, zweet en tranen. Alles wat er kon mis gaan bij de installatie is mis gegaan maar met trekken en sleuren is het gelukt.

Gaat om desbetreffende bedrijf: https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2024/09/19/klanten-die-al-voorschot-betaalden-aan-failliete-eltex-uit-kortr/#:~:text=In%20de%20lente%20van%202024,dak%20zouden%20ze%20nooit%20krijgen

Enkel de keuringen is niet afgewerkt geweest door hun maar via de curator ben ik nog aan de nodige documenten geraakt want Eandis zit in onze nek te hijgen.

Probleem is dat deze panelen en home batterij (eSAJ) via een app werkt maar hier lijken wat issues mee te zijn. Als ik de app open krijg ik telkens een melding dat er een update beschikbaar is maar als ik deze dan wil laten updaten zegt hij dat er niets te updaten valt.

Als ik in de app store 'esaj' zoek krijg ik de app ook niet meer te zien dus is deze niet meer beschikbaar? Wat in de toekomst als ik deze op een nieuwe smartphone zou moeten installeren?

De app dient ook niet enkel om te zien wat je verbruik is maar ook foutmeldingen te zien, etc..

Ik heb de fabrikant eSAJ (omvormer en batterij) & Belinus (de zonnepanelen zelf)gecontacteerd voor meer info maar ik wacht nog hun antwoord af.

Heeft iemand hier ervaring mee? Is er geen wetgeving dat als consument u moet beschermen dat uw smartapparaten moeten blijven functioneren en de 30 jaar garantie die ons beloofd was?

Alvast bedankt!

Hello I am a male from East Europe moved to Belgium for Work I have OF account which generates me 5-7 k a month, do i need to pay taxes on it? How to do it correctly?

Does Maasmechelen Village still have a Ted Baker store? Their website doesn’t show it, but google says they do (and that it is open).

The official website doesn’t ship to Belgium anymore and the store in Antwerp is temporarily closed.

So.. what is it? Anyone with direct info on this?

Thanks.

Hello guys, I want to update my card on itsme with my linux machine. I have the Eid viewer installed and everything, and can look at my card, but just on itsme they ask to install a connective browser plugin which is only supported by windows and macos? Has anyone got to workaround this? Thanks for the help!

Hello, I bought a car on the phone from the car dealer in Belgium. The car is for export so that means I won't get 1 year warranty and technical inspection. I will order a car transport services and these people will pick up the car for me and transport to another EU country where I live. I made the purchase and seller only sent me pro-form file. What other documents should I receive from the seller?

Hello!

I have recently moved to Belgium and as my family lives in another country, I will be spending Christmas by myself in Belgium. I would love to do some volunteering or charity work during the holiday season so spendy time somehow productively, but I'm uncertain what options I have. I don't speak French and my Dutch is still A2 level, so barely conversational. If you know some resources or have any advice and suggestions, please let me know!

If you have questions about common topics like student choices, travel recommendations, deliveries, please try to use the search function of otherwise ask them here.

Also try to contact the company, the companies' websites, rental companies, ... before asking your question as they have more up to date info.

Some common examples and replies:

• Brussels is not more unsafe as any other capital.
• Contact the delivery company for delivery questions (BPost even has a chat)
• Use a dedicated forum for technical / DIY questions (userbase / tweakers / zonstraal / livios / ...)
• Contact your union (ACV / ABVV / ... ) or RVA for payment, unemployment or jobrelated questions.
• Use the website of NMBS / De Lijn for questions how to get somewhere.
• Visit tripadvisor or the subreddit of the city you want to visit to know more about things to do during your trip (ae /r/brussels; /r/gent; /r/bruges; /r/antwerp).