The Death of the Johnny Jump-ups

As my regular readers know, I have been trying to grow Johnny Jump-ups for the last 2½ months. Overall, they have done very well and I am proud to say that I have not killed them.

However...

I noticed about a week ago that one of the four plants was shorter than the other three and upon closer investigation found that the leaves were getting scraggly and beginning to yellow. A little sad at the thought I was losing one of my plants, I went out and did a little research. I learned that Johnny Jump-ups are cool weather flowers. This means when the weather heats up, the flowers naturally begin to wilt and by July they have finished their growing season.

Being that is June, I guess it is natural that they should begin to fade away. However, according to my mother, who is a real gardener, even if they finish blooming now they may come back in the fall.

In general, I'm very pleased with the success I have had with my Johnny Jump-ups this spring. Plus, my geraniums are starting to look really good. I may not yet have a green thumb, but perhaps it is not as black as I had thought...

Marriage Quarks

What is it about a marriage that suddenly makes one partner helpless in the eyes of the other when they aren't together?

Both A. and I were single long before we became a couple, and we were both able to successfully care for ourselves. In other words, A. fed himself, did his own laundry, etc., etc. long before I entered the picture and for me it was the same. However for some reason, we now both have the idea that this is something that was impossible before we met each other.

Last night, A. told me that he had to go on a little last-minute business trip today and most likely wouldn't be home for supper, so I was going to have to eat alone and probably order a pizza. Now, I don't have anything against ordering a pizza, but politely reminded him that I can fend for myself and that could mean ordering a pizza or perhaps eating a liter of ice cream for dinner... either way, I would not starve.

However, I'm not any better. When I know I won't be home for dinner I always make sure that he has leftovers to eat and that I tell him where the dishes are, which ones go in the microwave, which ones don't, and how long he should warm up said food.

Is it that we have become so dependent on each other that we have forgotten how to function alone? Or is it that we care so deeply about one another that we want to believe that without the other we can not function? I guess it is just one of those mysterious quarks of marriage...

Dirty Thoughts

Spring is my favorite time of the year and after living away from Iowa for about 10 years, the time that I notice I miss home the most. Today, when I looked out my bedroom window and the saw the rocky field with brown dirt behind our apartment building, I suddenly became very nostalgic for a freshly plowed black corn field.

I spent about half of my childhood (from 12-18) growing up on an acreage. I come from "Big Farm County" where farms of thousands of acres are not unheard of. My grandpa was a farmer until he retired. But farmers never really retire. During his retirement, he bought 10 acres of land with an old farmhouse and while my family lived in the farmhouse, my grandpa planted corn, soybeans, alfalfa, or raised about 10 cattle on those 10 acres until he died as his "retirement hobby." Today my dad, who is a police officer, still lives on that plot of land and grows alfalfa and makes hay as his hobby.

Even though I may miss it now, I was never a farm girl. I hated it when we moved from "town" (ca. 1800 people) eight miles south of town to the "country." Even so, coming from Iowa, I can't help but know a little bit about farming and the state which produces the most corn in the United States also has some of the most fertile top soil in the world.

Growing up, I never thought too much about the dirt in Iowa. It wasn't until I had lived in Mississippi and experienced the red clay that may grow exquisite cotton, but stains your clothes like you wouldn't believe that I truly began to appreciate Iowa dirt. In case you have never visited the Midwest or think all dirt is the same, let me tell you Iowa dirt is something special. It is black, loose, and stone-free. If you look into a bag of potting soil, you can get a good idea of what Iowa soil looks and smells like. It smells best after a spring rain and when I was a little girl it made the best mud-pies. It is the kind of dirt that you like to run your fingers through and when it is mud, the kind you like to squish your toes in.

My mom used to work in a "dime store" and according to family legend once some visitors from the South came into the store and wanted to know where they could buy some Iowa dirt to take home as a souvenir, only to be told that she would be happy to dig a bag of dirt out of the backyard and give them their souvenir for free!

Unfortunately, much Iowa top soil is washed down the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers every year and while farming is the life-blood of the land, it also abuses the land. However, today many Iowa farmers are conscientious of this and go to great effort to preserve the land for following generations.

For me, Iowa dirt is, and will always be, the only dirt in the world that can make me feel free and clean.

Burger King Embarrassment

Picture it: Friday, 11:30 a.m., Munich Hauptbahnhof, Burger King

I was scheduled to meet someone outside Burger King at 11:30 a.m., but was a few minutes early so I decided to pop into the fast food joint and grab a Coke.

After nervously standing in line (I was afraid I might miss the person I was meeting) for what seemed like an Eternity, but in actuality was probably only a couple of minutes, I reached the counter and placed my order: a small Coke with ice - total 99¢. As the Burger King chick sat my Coke in front of me and told me the price, I looked in my wallet and lo and behold I only had a 20 cent Euro coin and a couple of 5, 2, and 1¢ coins. In total, about 38¢. I checked the cash pocket and it was empty. Suddenly I remembered that I had put my cash in my coat pocket (but not the one I was wearing) the day before.

My reaction was, spoken aloud and in English, "Shit! I don't have any money." Then remembering I was in Germany, "Tut mir Leid, ich habe kein Geld." (Sorry, I have no money.) Without so much as a second glance a my Coke with ice, I high-tailed it outta there.

Thirty-something

Well, it is finally the evening of the 30th birthday, and even though the day started out kind of shitty, things have gotten better. And though I won't be getting my present until Monday, (it seems like a new computer is in the works for yours truly... it's not the diamond earrings I requested, but I guess it'll do...) dinner at my favorite Indian restaurant was enough for me to say that I have had a decent birthday, even if it wasn't exactly what I had hoped for.

Secretly, I had always hoped that on my 30th birthday someone would throw me a surprise party. But now since my family lives thousands of miles away and my husband and I still don't know that many people I guess my dreams of a surprise party will have to be put on hold until my 35th or something...

Luckily though, I haven't been depressed at that thought of turning 30 and overall, I don't feel old. I look at myself in the mirror and know that no one will mistake me for 21 anymore, but that is OK since I wouldn't want to be 21 again and also because I know that few people would guess that I am actually 30.

Anyway, tomorrow I officially enter the fourth decade of my life and from now on I can say that I am thirty-something. I wonder what surprises it has in store for me...

Holiday at Tegernsee

Today is Christi Himmelfart (Ascension) and of course a holiday here in Germany! Since I am not now, nor have I ever been religious in any shape or form, I had no idea that this holiday/festival even existed until I came to Germany and even then I had to read up on it to figure out what the heck it is anyway! But that isn't what is important today anyway...

Since it was a holiday today, A. had the day off from work. It was beautiful here today: warm, sunny, everything you could ask for May weather. So we decided to take a little day trip to one of our favorite places in the area: Tegernsee. (Visit the official Tegernsee site - in German, but nice pictures)

photo by blondelibrarian's husband

First we did a little sunbathing, then we stopped in a local museum that is dedicated to Olaf Gulbransson, after that we got some ice cream (mine was strawberry and kiwi, yum!), and finally we walked along the south end of the lake, where we came upon a local celebration complete with a Bavarian band playing Bavarian music and (I kid you not) yodeling!

All in all it was a fine way to spend a free day in May.

English Words in German

A couple of months ago, Neil wrote about English words in German and how they are invented. At the time, I thought, "I know exactly what you mean," even though I could think of no other words than his classic example of "handy." Until today.

I was sitting in my Business German class and we were doing a listening exercise. On the tape there was a woman who was complaining about how her colleagues were treating her. My teacher asked if we knew the word for this. At that time, she looked directly at me and asked what this was called in English. I tried to look like I was thinking this over, but honestly I was clueless. I personally thought the woman on the tape was just a little paranoid. Suddenly, one of the Russian girls in my class whispered to me "Mobbing." Then it was clear. I had heard the term "das Mobbing" before, but filed it under "word not commonly used" in my brain.

In German, "das Mobbing" translates to "workplace bullying," which is what the woman on the tape was describing. However, the only time I ever use the word "Mob" in English as a noun is in reference to organized crime or a large group of dissatisfied or angry people. I also occasionally use "mob" as a verb as in "the crowd mobbed the store," but in reference to workplace bullying? Never.

Tasty Cream of Broccoli Soup

I am a carnivore and unashamed of it. I didn't fight my way to the top of the food chain to eat grass! Seriously, I can count all of the vegtables I like on one hand...

Broccoli happens to one of the those vegtables, and one of my favorite broccoli dishes is Cream of Broccoli Soup. I used to buy some seasoning mix for it when I lived in the U.S., but have never found it here. But today is kind of cold and rainy and when I was out walking about, I decided I wanted some Cream of Broccoli Soup. When I got home, I pulled out my three favorite cook books, The Joy of Cooking, The Complete Pilsbury Cook Book, and The Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book and started thinking about how exactly I was going to make the soup. Each cook book has its own recipe for Cream of Broccoli Soup and through combining what I thought sounded good and leaving out what I didn't from all three, I created my own Cream of Broccoli Soup Recipe, which I found to be so tasty that I am going to share it:

Tasty Cream of Broccoli Soup:

Combine and heat:
1 ½ cups Water
1 ½ teaspoons Chicken Bullion
2 Tablespoons Butter

While heating, add: **
Minced Onion (to taste)
Garlic Powder (to taste)
Thyme (to taste)
Parsely (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
1 ½ Tablespoons Flour

Bring to a boil.

Add 400ml, or approximately 1 ½ cup, Cream.

Bring to a boil over medium heat.

Add 300 grams, or approximately 2-3 cups Broccoli. (I use only the flowerettes) Stir and simmer until Broccoli is tender.

Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve with crackers or croutons.

That's all there is to it. Enjoy! :)


**A word about seasoning:**
I am a big fan of tasting your food as you go along and seasoning it accordingly. However, if you MUST have measurements, try 1 teaspoon of the onion and garlic, ½ teaspoon of the thyme and parsley, and a dash of pepper.

Soap Bubbles

One of my guilty pleasures here in Germany is watching on a semi-regular basis The Bold and the Beautiful. I know it is cheesy, but The Bold and the Beautiful has always been one of my favorite soaps and I was delighted to learn that it runs here in Germany.

It is dubbed into German and I find it extremely easy to understand. (Incidentally, I have greatly improved my German vocabulary relating to sex, betrayal, romance, and the like...) The funny part is, when I found it on TV here and started watching it, they were running episodes from almost exactly where I stopped watching it in 1999. It was like I never left! The few episodes that I missed I was easily able to catch up on, because believe it or not, there is a Bold and the Beautiful Archive out on the Web. At that point the story lines of my favorite characters were quite good and I hated to stop watching, but alas! I had to start working.

** Warning! Trivial blabbering about the soap opera's plot from 1999/2000 follows. If you aren't interested in that kind of stuff, return to the main page.**

Anyway, those story lines have played themselves out and now the story lines are terrible and only partially relate to my favorite characters. And that is what I would like to bitch about. These awful story lines!

The first story line is indirectly related to my favorite character, Amber. The long story short is Amber's cousin, Becky, has cancer and is going to die. (I guess "Becky's" contract must be up.) Posing as Becky, Amber found out Becky had cancer... but here is the stupid part... Amber can't bring herself to tell Becky that she has cancer! Becky feels and looks shittier every day, but thinks there is nothing wrong! Hello! I know it is a soap and everything, but who in their right mind would keep something like this from someone they claim to love? Grr! Luckily, according to the archives, this story line is almost over. Thank God!

The second story line is just as stupid. Morgan, who I suspected from the beginning was the new "crazy" character, had an abortion many years ago. Now she wants to have a baby and decided to go with invetro (sp?) fertilization. However, she keeps having abortion nightmares and flashbacks. So when she goes to get the process done, she freaks out in the doctor's office because it reminds her of the abortion. I will admit I don't like Morgan's character, but here is my question. In all the years since the abortion has she never been to the gynecologist? I just find the whole freaking out in the doctor's office plain stupid! And according to the archives this story line is going to go on for some time... the silver lining is, yes I was right, Morgan is the new "crazy" character! What would a soap be without one?

Anyway, even though the story lines currently stink, I will probably continue to watch it until I find a job or have some other conflict, because I just love it!

blondelibrarian on books #2

I finished A Thousand Acres yesterday. Now, I know I promised a book review but after I thought about it, I remembered that I am not really very good at writing book reviews.

Actually, I find this kind of amusing since I majored in literature as an undergrad and have worked as a librarian for many years. But I really suck at writing book reviews. I can write a lovely plot summary or a deep essay comparing and contrasting A Thousand Acres with King Lear, but a simple book review, forget it!

I can't write a book review for two reasons: 1.) In a fiction book review you really aren't supposed to give away the ending and I always do and 2.) The thoughts I have while reading a book and the days afterwards aren't really review-material. I tend to ask myself lots of questions about the plot, the characters, and their motives, and while trying to answer these questions, I also ponder what the books means to me, but I always find it difficult to form a solid opinion on a book that I want to share with others.

Of course I form an opinion on a book and can tell you what I personally thought about it, but in truth, I am reluctant to dump my recommendations on others. The fact is not everyone likes reading the same things that I do and because of this, whether they find a book worthy or not is a very personal decision.

Take the book Angela's Ashes for example: This book won all sorts of awards in 1996, including the Pulitzer Prize and was on the New York Times Bestseller List. Many people considered it a "must read." My well-meaning aunt bought it for me for Christmas and after I read the back of the book, it sat on my bookshelf until one day I was desperate for something to read. I read it in one sitting and my first reaction was, "Yuck. I really didn't like this book." And then, "So, what was the fuss all about?" Personally, I didn't really even think the book was all that well-written. But who am I to tell someone else that this book isn't worth reading? Obviously, other people have enjoyed it and thought it award-winning... but me, I sold it the first chance I got after I read it.

I have always been a member of the literature school that promotes reading what you want and thinking what you want about it. As far as A Thousand Acres goes, I enjoyed reading this complicated book full of plot twists and Shakespearean-style tragedy and if you enjoy that sort of thing, I would definitely recommend it. However, if you don't, then I would say don't read it. It's all up to you.

How DUMB can you be?

I will confess that I have been really tired of this whole Iraq War thing for... oh I don't know, since before it began, and never have had any desire to put anything about it on my blog before today.

However, since these torture pictures came out I keep thinking about the people that took the photos of the prisoners. Yeah, the photos disgust me and all, but what I don't get is why the soldiers took these pictures in the first place.

Not so much because only a moron would be stupid enough to take them without thinking that eventually the press would get ahold of them, but what the hell were these people planning to do with these photos in the first place?

Were they going to put them in their "Iraq War" photo album so that years down the road they could browse through the pictures and tell their grandchildren, "Look Sara, these are the pictures of the Iraqi prisoners that your grandfather tortured back in the days when war was about oil and anyone who was a Muslim was considered a terrorist?"

Man, I just don't get it!

Job Description

Today on Dear Abby, I saw this list sent in by one of her readers:

A Mother's Job Description from A-Z:

• Accountant
  
• Baker
  
• Coach
  
• Dressmaker
  
• Electrician
  
• Financial adviser
  
• Grief counselor
  
• Health-care practitioner
  
• Interior decorator
  
• Judge
  
• Kitchen Manager
  
• Lender
  
• Mediator
  
• Nutritionist
  
• Office clerk
  
• Psychic
  
• Quartermaster
  
• Restaurateur
  
• Supervisor
  
• Taxi driver
  
• Underwriter
  
• Victim's rights advocate
  
• Weightlifter
  
• X-ray vision expert (OK, but for years I THOUGHT she had it!)
  
• Yard maintenance assistant
  
• Zookeeper

I know my mom reads my blog from time to time, and so if she is reading today, I just want to tell her that I love her and Happy Mother's Day.

I hope all of you out there have also told your mothers how much they mean to you today.

Things I Have Learned in Germany

In two days, I will mark my two year anniversary of living in Germany. For the past couple of weeks, I have been trying to decide what Germany has come to mean to me in that time. But that has turned out to be an esoteric question that I have had difficulty in answering. Instead, I started thinking about what I have learned since I came to Germany.

The first and most obvious thing that I have learned in Germany is the language. I came here not speaking one word of German, but prepared to learn it. While I would not claim by any means to be fluent, I have certainly come a long way. It boggles my mind to think there are immigrants here that have lived here for years without learning the language. I have often wondered, "How can someone come to a foreign country and NOT learn the language?" But I have also learned that if one doesn't make a concentrated effort to do so, it certainly is possible.

I have also learned about Germany itself: culture, politics, geography, history, and a host of other things. I admit that I knew little about Germany before coming here. I now know how the German system of government is supposed to work, where Disney's inspiration for the "Cinderella castle" came from and where it is, where the source of the Danube is, what the highest peak in Germany is, and that Germans eat french-fries with a fork, just to name a few.

I have learned a great deal about how my country, its culture, people, and politics are perceived by Germans. I think it could be best described as a love-hate relationship. There are things about America(ns) that Germans love and just as many as they hate. And the funny thing is, most of the time I agree with the things they hate and the things they love, with the exception of their American musical taste. They have a fondness for some good bands, but mostly, for some strange reason, it is the bad ones that they love.

And of course I have learned all about the little quirks that differentiate living in Germany with living in the U.S.: mandatory health care, the metric system, the Euro, the autobahn, the advantages and pitfalls of public transportation, 110 vs. 220 volts, the 24-hour clock, apartments with no closets and rarely built-in appliances, the list just goes on and on...

But the most important thing that I have learned about living in Germany really has very little to do with Germany at all. The most important thing I have learned by living in Germany is not only that I have been successfully able to do it, but that most of the time I really enjoy it.

Flowers for Dummies

I walk by the flower shop on my way to German class and kept seeing these lovely geraniums. Yesterday I finally succumbed to temptation and bought two pots. (In case you wonder, the most common geranium color is red, but I chose a lavender one and a hot pink one.) Other than the fact than I can recognize geraniums when I see them, I know nothing about them. I did a little research about them on the 'net and found out that they are supposed to be pretty easy to grow. In fact, I think I saw a website that indicated that geraniums are one of the most popular "Flowers for Dummies."

Tomorrow I will be buying some potting soil and replanting them. Then we will see if geraniums really are flowers for the gardening-challenged.

Amusing Spam

Here is an excerpt from some Spam that was in my mailbox last night:

From: Jesus
Subject: Huge Savings!

Amusing, huh?

Fremdsprachige Literatur und Heimweh

(Foreign Language Literature and Homesickness)

Yesterday our little village library had a book sale. Yippee!!

Normally, shops aren't open in most of Germany on Sunday, but yesterday was a special day. In our little village it was the Maidult, a mini-fair that saw the square and half of main street covered in booths selling all sorts of junk. Many local businesses also joined in the spirit by opening their doors. The library was one of those places and, much to my delight, was having a book sale.

Since the books were being sold really cheap (20 cents for a paperback!), I had decided that I would try and find some German books to practice my reading skills. I looked really hard too. However, I mostly came across crime and spy novels involving the Soviet Union or American books translated into German.

First of all, I am not a fan of crime or spy novels and ones that are so dated that they include the Soviet Union do not even tempt me.

As for American titles translated into German... well, I'll pass. The idea of reading a translation just seems like too much effort. If I'm that interested in the book, I will find an English copy.

So much for my finding some German books to practice my reading skills...

However, I was rewarded by a little rummaging through the shelves. They had a very small section of "Fremdsprachige Literatur" (Foreign Language titles) which was mostly in English. I managed to pick up four new titles including the gem A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley.

While I was an undergraduate studying literature I was supposed to read this title for my "Literature by Women" class. Loosely based on Shakespeare's King Lear, this Pulitzer Prize winning novel not only takes place in Iowa, but depicts events and characters that are stereotypically "Iowan." It was the therefore a necessity on many of the English professors lists at my small Iowa college. Amazingly it was only assigned to me once, but I still managed to B.S. my way through the paper and discussions on it without actually having read it. It wasn't that I didn't want to read it; I just never got around to it...

I know that I still have my original copy back home, but I decided when I saw it (in English) for 20 cents I should buy it and actually READ it this time. So, I started it today on the train. So far it isn't too bad. Though I'm from southwest Iowa and I'm pretty sure the novel takes place in north central Iowa (from the references I would say Cerro Gordo County), it feels enough like home that I have to admit I was a little homesick today.

(book review to follow...)

May Day Disappointment

In addition to yesterday being Labor Day and EU Expansion day, it was also May Day.

When I was a kid, we used to deliver May Baskets to our friends and family on May Day. These usually consisted of little paper cups with pipe cleaner handles that were filled with candies like butterscotches or cinnamon disks and flowers like violets, lily of the valleys, or even dandelions. The trick was to deliver the basket to the door of the person, ring the doorbell and/or knock, and then runaway before the person came to the door. If the person came to the door and "caught you," you were required to give that person a kiss. Some years there was even a dance around a May Pole in the park.

I'm not sure when I stopped delivering May baskets (around 10, I suppose) but until I came to Germany I had nearly forgotten all about May Day. Upon moving to Bavaria, one of the first things I spotted in our little village was a very tall blue and white striped pole. When I pointed it out to A., he told me that here in Bavaria, most towns still celebrate May Day with the raising of the May Pole. I was so excited I couldn't wait until May to see the whole thing.

Last year, there was a May Day celebration here. There was a beer garden in the middle of main street, a Bavarian band that played all day, and the May Pole was laid on its side along the side of the road. We went to the beer garden early in the morning, because I was under the impression that they were going to raise the May Pole first thing. Imagine my disappointment when we had been wandering around for an hour and there was no May Pole raising. We got kind of bored after an hour or so because the band was beginning to repeat their songs and we don't drink beer. So we bought a pretzel and went home, intending to come back later to see the May Pole raising. Of course, one thing led to another and before we knew it, we looked out our window and the May Pole had been raised. I was very disappointed, but consoled myself that I would see the feat "next year."

Well, yesterday was "next year" and there was no sign of a May Day festival. Because of the EU Expansion celebrations, A. told me to wait until today because maybe they had pushed the festival back a day. I have now officially waited and still I hear no music indicating a celebration and if I look out my window, the May Pole is where it was yesterday. I guess they have decided not to celebrate May Day this year. Boo Hoo. Oh well, I guess there is always "next year."