January/February 2010
Firstly, I would like to note that before I moved to Germany, I used to
think that the lines of laundry hanging over the streets was such a
charming touch. I still find it charming, albeit also a bit disgusting,
but still charming. I cannot imagine that laundry really get clean
hanging above a dirty street in a city. However, I am certain that the
laundry is only hung above the street because it has a no other place to
go. Apartments here are tiny, why fill the already limited space with
racks of laundry. On almost every balcony/terrace and in almost every
garden here, one is bound to find hanging laundry at some point during
the week. It is just how life here is.
So today is laundry day. Or rather, our laundry is out of control so I must start washing clothes now. Why the wait? Why the procrastination? Well, I hate hanging and folding laundry. Particularly the hanging, unhanging (is that a word, or did I just make it up), and folding part.
November 2011
I know, I didn't write much back in 2010, but I still find this topic to be relevant. Plus, I left you all with a bit of a cliff hanger. Why is it exactly that I find laundry to be such a pain here?
One reason: We do not own a dryer. Here are my(our) reasons why:
1) A dryer is super expensive to own. Energy is expensive here, plus David and I aim to live a greener lifestyle and excess energy use via a dryer just doesn't jive with our livestyle.
2) We don't have space. Even in our spaceous (80 m2 or 860 ft2) apartment, I have no idea where to put a dryer.
Now for the most important reason:
3) No matter how much I whine or cry, David isn't going to let me buy one while we live in Germany. I have to get over it. I have. I have moved on to bigger battles. :)
None of this changes the fact that I HATE doing laundry. It is my least favorite chore, unfortunately it is the most necessary. Even in the states, I found laundry to be a never ending task, but without a dryer it takes planning to have clean clothes to wear everyday. I am 150% sure that this the reason why my husband has enough clothes to go 2 months without doing laundry. The first time I went to his apartment, he had a chair COVERED in clean laundry. I don't think he went through the laundry and put it away until his parents came to visit.
There are 3 time related challenges that laundry presents:
1) Everything must airdry. This required somewhere between 1 day (above 80 degrees F) and 1 week ( below 40 degrees F). Thus, if i want to wear something on a specific day I can't just procrastiate and wash it at 9 pm the night before. Not happening unless I want to wear wet clothes or spend 30 minutes with a hairdryer try to get the waistband of my jeans dry. True story. I don't recommend doing this. It is NOT worth the effort unless you have nothing else to wear. By nothing else to wear, I mean that 100% of your clothes must be hanging wet on the laundry racks. 100%. Basically, it is never worth the effort.
2) We don't like to run the washer past a certain time. We live above other people who prefer that we not run our washer at all hours of the night. Technically, we do not have a written statement in our apartment forbidding us from running the washer after a certain time, but I try to be a good neighbor, even if one of our neighbors disagrees (another topic for another day). My goal is to finish running the washer by 9 pm. 10 pm in cases of absolute emergencies. Yes, laundry emergencies exist. :)
3) I am not home much on weeknights. I get home before 6 pm maybe one day a week, maybe, if I am lucky. I am a busy bee and I like it that way. As you know from reason #2, that mean that I am only home at most for 3 of the self-allowed washing hours. A tough challenge when a load of laundry takes somewhere between 40 and 95 minutes to run it's course. Enter the best invention ever (Okay, maybe not ever, but a great one, nevertheless) : the timer function. Just load, add soap, set, forget, and come home to a freshly washed load of laundry waiting to be hung. I did this just this morning. I love the feature. The only challenge that it presents, is that you have to remember to take the laundry out of the laundry upon arriving home. Otherwise, you get moldy laundry, and that is NOT good. Fortunally, our washing machine has a light blinks when a load finishes. We usually notice the light in reasonable time. It also has an annoying buzzer, but that stops after about 20 minutes.
It really isn't that bad. Laundry is a pain whether one has a dryer or not. Laundry is a fact of life. Just like death and taxes.
I could be worse. I could have to wash everything by hand, hang it dry, and then iron it.
Ironing. Please, do make me go there. Ever. *Shutters in horror*
Showing posts with label thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thoughts. Show all posts
Monday, November 14, 2011
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Lost in Real Life
One of the hardest parts of moving to Germany has been finding my place,
my life. My first year here I was, for lack of a better word, lost. I
had uprooted myself from the southern USA and moved to my husband's
hometown. I was thrust into a life as a housewife, wife to a PhD
student, an immigrant, a foreigner....I just felt lost. One of the most
difficult challenges proved to be finding friends, people I could
relate to and connect with. People other than my husband and his family and
friends to share this wonderful blessing known as "life" with. I have a
wonderful family here, but in order to true establish a life for myself
here, I needed to find my own way.
When I decided to move to Germany, I knew it would be challenging, but rewarding. However, I never anticipated the challenge it would be to make friends. I remember thinking that since we were moving to David's hometown, finding friends would be easy because he already had an established group of friends. What I didn't realize was that my husband related to his friends through things like playing soccer and drinking beer (while watching soccer games). Whereas I relate to my friends in other ways, coffee, girl's night, and talking. What proved to be more complex than just a battle of the sexes, was the fact that David simply did not have time. The demands on his time made by his job proved to be the ultimate champion and I was left to fend for myself when it came to entertainment. This is not to say anything negative about my husband. He has a very demanding job. He puts 200% into his job, just as he does our life together.
At first this was wonderful. I crave alone time and for once it was nice to have endless amounts of time without the pressures of work or school. However, it got old really fast. There are only so many things to do when you have endless time on your hands. Things such as reading and watching a movie became less of a joy and part of the everyday grind. They lost their meaning, significance, and specialness.
The first year here was really difficult. There were many days that I wanted to pack up and move back home, wherever "home" was. I felt liek my dream of living in Europe had been crushed. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. This was supposed to be the experience of a lifetime, but it wasn't.
I met lots of people in my German class. Mostly students who were not here for significant lengths of time. Others were older, looking for a way into Germany, to make a better live for themselves and their families. Everyone I met was transient. It felt impossible to make friends that I could keep.
I prayed alot during that first year here. I felt frustrated that I had given up my life, only to be thrown into what felt like an endless pit of dispair. It was a dark time for me. I felt isolated and alone. I felt abandoned.
Slowly, things began to happen. My life changed. It started by putting myself out there. Something which I am really uncomfortable doing. I put my name on a forum for tandem language partners. Within days I recieved lost of emails from people wanting to meet me. From this forum, I made my first friend of my own here. Someone who is still a part of my life. A German girl, who had lived in the states for a time. We bonded over cocktail and walks with my dogs. She loves my dogs. My dogs love her. We were taking a walk about a month ago and Emma actually saw my friend and started pulling me towards her, crying. It was really sweet.
In October of 2010, I enrolled in a new German class. One that was especially for people who were immigrants to Germany. People like me.
It was in this class that I met my first American friend. Another American girl married to a German boy. Her situation, so similiar to mine. We both move here in September/October 2009. Our wedding were actually the same weekend. Crazy, huh? My husband always joked that every American in our town knows this girl. It's true. She is such a sweet person.
Also sometime in October 2010, I received a text from another girl. She and her husband had really moved to my city. A lady who works at her gym, another american, sings in the choir with my mother-in-law. She and her husband are so kind and generous. They have been such a positive influence on David and I. Both are devout Christians. They have influenced me to finally face my fears and go to church here. Something I was really missing in my life here.
In March of 2011, I meet yet another American girl in one of my German classes. She is married to a German man, who like my husband, is a local and a PhD student. She has managed to integrate herself into her husband's life her, while simultaneously creating a life of her own her. She is also fearless when it comes to embracing life here.
Lastly, I must include my Irish friend, who also possesses immense bravery. She moved her to be with here German boyfriend. She is our group organizer. The reason that we all meet up weekly. She super sweet and always trying to connect and include people. She is also a great confidant.
Today I am so blessed to have found a this wonderful group of girls that I meet for lunch/coffee every week. A group that is slowly expanding as we meet others like us.
We talk.
We listen.
We vent.
We advise.
We empathsize.
We sympathize.
We console.
We celebrate.
We laugh.
We support.
We lose track of time. :)
I love it!
Those few hours I spend every week with these girls is one of my favorite time of the week. I love have a group of people to lose track of time. Thinking about it brings such a smile to my face. We come from different backgrounds. Have different occupations. Have different ideas and opinions. Different beliefs.
We do have one, very important thing in common. We are all trying to make a life for ourselves here. All try to navigate this multicultural family life. A bilingual life. The challenges it presents.
I am writing this post, so that my friends can now just how much they mean to me. How much I appreaciate them. Thank you for being my friends. You know who you are. :)
When I decided to move to Germany, I knew it would be challenging, but rewarding. However, I never anticipated the challenge it would be to make friends. I remember thinking that since we were moving to David's hometown, finding friends would be easy because he already had an established group of friends. What I didn't realize was that my husband related to his friends through things like playing soccer and drinking beer (while watching soccer games). Whereas I relate to my friends in other ways, coffee, girl's night, and talking. What proved to be more complex than just a battle of the sexes, was the fact that David simply did not have time. The demands on his time made by his job proved to be the ultimate champion and I was left to fend for myself when it came to entertainment. This is not to say anything negative about my husband. He has a very demanding job. He puts 200% into his job, just as he does our life together.
At first this was wonderful. I crave alone time and for once it was nice to have endless amounts of time without the pressures of work or school. However, it got old really fast. There are only so many things to do when you have endless time on your hands. Things such as reading and watching a movie became less of a joy and part of the everyday grind. They lost their meaning, significance, and specialness.
The first year here was really difficult. There were many days that I wanted to pack up and move back home, wherever "home" was. I felt liek my dream of living in Europe had been crushed. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. This was supposed to be the experience of a lifetime, but it wasn't.
I met lots of people in my German class. Mostly students who were not here for significant lengths of time. Others were older, looking for a way into Germany, to make a better live for themselves and their families. Everyone I met was transient. It felt impossible to make friends that I could keep.
I prayed alot during that first year here. I felt frustrated that I had given up my life, only to be thrown into what felt like an endless pit of dispair. It was a dark time for me. I felt isolated and alone. I felt abandoned.
Slowly, things began to happen. My life changed. It started by putting myself out there. Something which I am really uncomfortable doing. I put my name on a forum for tandem language partners. Within days I recieved lost of emails from people wanting to meet me. From this forum, I made my first friend of my own here. Someone who is still a part of my life. A German girl, who had lived in the states for a time. We bonded over cocktail and walks with my dogs. She loves my dogs. My dogs love her. We were taking a walk about a month ago and Emma actually saw my friend and started pulling me towards her, crying. It was really sweet.
In October of 2010, I enrolled in a new German class. One that was especially for people who were immigrants to Germany. People like me.
It was in this class that I met my first American friend. Another American girl married to a German boy. Her situation, so similiar to mine. We both move here in September/October 2009. Our wedding were actually the same weekend. Crazy, huh? My husband always joked that every American in our town knows this girl. It's true. She is such a sweet person.
Also sometime in October 2010, I received a text from another girl. She and her husband had really moved to my city. A lady who works at her gym, another american, sings in the choir with my mother-in-law. She and her husband are so kind and generous. They have been such a positive influence on David and I. Both are devout Christians. They have influenced me to finally face my fears and go to church here. Something I was really missing in my life here.
In March of 2011, I meet yet another American girl in one of my German classes. She is married to a German man, who like my husband, is a local and a PhD student. She has managed to integrate herself into her husband's life her, while simultaneously creating a life of her own her. She is also fearless when it comes to embracing life here.
Lastly, I must include my Irish friend, who also possesses immense bravery. She moved her to be with here German boyfriend. She is our group organizer. The reason that we all meet up weekly. She super sweet and always trying to connect and include people. She is also a great confidant.
Today I am so blessed to have found a this wonderful group of girls that I meet for lunch/coffee every week. A group that is slowly expanding as we meet others like us.
We talk.
We listen.
We vent.
We advise.
We empathsize.
We sympathize.
We console.
We celebrate.
We laugh.
We support.
We lose track of time. :)
I love it!
Those few hours I spend every week with these girls is one of my favorite time of the week. I love have a group of people to lose track of time. Thinking about it brings such a smile to my face. We come from different backgrounds. Have different occupations. Have different ideas and opinions. Different beliefs.
We do have one, very important thing in common. We are all trying to make a life for ourselves here. All try to navigate this multicultural family life. A bilingual life. The challenges it presents.
I am writing this post, so that my friends can now just how much they mean to me. How much I appreaciate them. Thank you for being my friends. You know who you are. :)
Monday, November 7, 2011
Unpublished Memoirs: An Introduction
When I started this blog back in 2009 I wrote alot of posts...then never published them.
That being said, I would like to introduce a new series on this blog. That's right, I said series...as in multiple posts. Ambitious, yes, but we all need goals in our lives. Am I right? I started this blog as a way of documenting my life and thoughts here in Germany. I started strong and then slacked off about 5 months in. I have been trying to get back to blogging ever since. Maybe it is where I am in my life at the moment, but I really want to start documenting things that happen to me. My life at the moment is full and I want to remember it. Both in words and pictures. (Quick note on photos. Pictures at the moment are lacking due to a broken camera and phone that is in dire need of replacement. Thus, you all will have to make due with really old photos, really bad blackberry photos, or no photos for the time being.) I have never been one for journaling, but have always admired those who do. I do really well when I have accountablily, so maybe keeping a journal where others look forward to hearing what I have to say is a good way of doing that.
Sorry to ramble so much, I am in my head tonight. Back to the point.
I want to publish this posts from back in the day when I first moved here. I also want to update them with my thoughts 2 years later. A persons' perspective can change significantly in two years. I am no different. I have grown and changed so much since moving here. I want to record that for myself.
Stay tuned. Part 1 to come tommorrow. Really. I mean it. It is written and scheduled.
Maybe soon I will get around to those much promised Turkey trip recaps. :)
That being said, I would like to introduce a new series on this blog. That's right, I said series...as in multiple posts. Ambitious, yes, but we all need goals in our lives. Am I right? I started this blog as a way of documenting my life and thoughts here in Germany. I started strong and then slacked off about 5 months in. I have been trying to get back to blogging ever since. Maybe it is where I am in my life at the moment, but I really want to start documenting things that happen to me. My life at the moment is full and I want to remember it. Both in words and pictures. (Quick note on photos. Pictures at the moment are lacking due to a broken camera and phone that is in dire need of replacement. Thus, you all will have to make due with really old photos, really bad blackberry photos, or no photos for the time being.) I have never been one for journaling, but have always admired those who do. I do really well when I have accountablily, so maybe keeping a journal where others look forward to hearing what I have to say is a good way of doing that.
Sorry to ramble so much, I am in my head tonight. Back to the point.
I want to publish this posts from back in the day when I first moved here. I also want to update them with my thoughts 2 years later. A persons' perspective can change significantly in two years. I am no different. I have grown and changed so much since moving here. I want to record that for myself.
Stay tuned. Part 1 to come tommorrow. Really. I mean it. It is written and scheduled.
Maybe soon I will get around to those much promised Turkey trip recaps. :)
Friday, November 4, 2011
Friday Evening Ramblings
It is 7:22 on Friday night and where am I? Work. Why? Not because I am a workaholic. Not because I have so much work that I can finish it all. Then, why? Because I am waiting to meet some friends downtown tonight and I do not have time to go home between work and going out. Well, technically I had time, but who wants to bike for 30 minutes home, sit for 10 minutes, then bike 20 minutes back into town. Not me! No thank you. I would rather sit in my office, catching up on email and blogging.
I would also like to point out that I am currently listening to the local soccer team play. No, not on the radio. Live. Real sounds. That's right I can hear the crowd cheering and booing while sitting in my office. Not too shabby, huh?
I must confess that I feel REALLY lame sitting here on Friday night. I am racking my brain for things to do. Ways to waste the time.
I could go shopping...but I am not in the mood.
I could organize and clean my desk...but it doesn't need it.
I could Skype with my cousin...but need to get Skype installed on my work computer.
***Just checked the Fußball score online because I heard some yelling and singing. Lots of singing. Intuition was right. We scored. Er, they scored. I am not actually on the team, so no "we."***
I already checked flight prices for my trip home over Christmas....still expensive, sigh.
7:38
12 more minutes.....why can I think of nothing.
Time is creeping.
Does anyone else ever feel this way?
This entry is pointless. I apologize.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Let's get this party started!
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