deployment!

I've been notified by my employer that I get to take a little trip to Balad, Iraq, this summer for about 4.5 months.

I'd originally been told this would probably happen in November, which would've been perfect. I could've enjoyed the Bavarian and European summer and fall with visits from family and friends.

And I would've been deployed over Christmas, something I was looking forward to. There's just something about being away from home over the holidays with a bunch of others who are away from home. Given that I'm in a humanitarian organization, one of our unofficial duties is to try to help morale.

July. Okay. So be it.

This is a photo of me in Kuwait in about June 2003. I was working the late shift and was on my way to midnight dinner on my little bike. The temp had cooled off to 100 or so -- nice and cool. Daytime temps in June were about 115-120. I'm told Iraq will be just a little cooler. After being in Germany for a winter, I'm sure those 3-10 degrees will make a huge difference!

The Kuhlstahl Cafe

I took a trip to the Kuhstahl Cafe today. . . that's Cow Stall Cafe for all you non-German speakers.

The wife of a dairy farmer opened a little cafe in the barn. It's only open on Sundays, and it's up on the second floor looking out over the dairy cows on the first floor. It's really a very attractive set-up.

If you've ever been around dairy cows, you know there's quite an odor associated with them. And there is in this place as well, but just a little bit of an odor. Tolerable. The place was packed. It's packed every week.

We had a choice of about 10 different kinds of cakes and tortes plus ice cream, too. I had the bananeneierlikorsahnetorte. Banana, egg liqueur and cream torte. Yum. It was worth the trip. (photo to come)

a shot from folk alliance

I guess everyone's having fun at the conference. . . Who is this person?

Channeling Folk Alliance

Friends rb, mony and jk are at Folk Alliance now. I should be there, too. I usually go every year to help out with rb's showcases, but the distance was a little great this year and I opted out.

Last night I must've channeled Folk Alliance in my sleep. I was living in a huge old Victorian house. A couple of guys and I were sitting in the living room when there was a knock at the door.

When I opened it, an unruly band of about 10 musicians came in. They were followed by a bunch of other people (like 100 of them). The place was swarming. The business manager of the band told me that they had a signed contract to play in the house that night, and that they were going to play, dammit.

I looked at the contract, and it was signed by someone I'd never heard of and furthermore, it didn't specify a date or location. As I was trying to get a grip on the madness and get these people OUT of my house, I realized it was 11:15 a.m., and I had a staff meeting at 11:30 -- in real life, I have that meeting today.

How could I get these people out and get to my meeting, which was 30 minutes away? My two friends were of no help whatsoever, but I knew that the house would be torn up if I allowed the party to continue. Huhhhh, sounds a little like the folkies in the conference hotel.

Wish I were there.

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

With The Big Read, the National Endowment for the Arts is working to make this a nation of readers and gives away books and audio guides to participating readers. My community is taking part in the event, and the NEA provided something like 100 free books and guides for community readers.

Our book selection is Carson McCullers' first novel, "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter." I've picked up my copy and audio guide, and this is next on my reading list. I've read mixed reviews, but my aunt the English teacher recommended this book to me years ago, so I guess it's time to dig in.

I'll let you know how it goes.

angel face

from the Residenz

Moonrise over Schwangau

My favorite photo from the weekend: This is a chapel in Schwangau (near the two castles) dating back to 1704. The sun had just set, and the moon was bright in the sky.

Part 2 of the weekend

Sunday we got a late start, but two hours and a couple of wrong turns later, we made it down to Schwangau in the Alps. The initial intent was to tour Neuschwanstein, but we ended up seeing Hohenschwangau instead. (In the photo, I'm at Hohenschwangau, and that's Neuschwanstein in the background.) Then we took a leisurely walk down the hill, watched people walking on the ice on the nearby lake, took photos, and wandered the town a bit.

On the way back we stopped in Landsberg and ate at a Croatian restaurant. The food was very much like Bosnian food, which I've had many times before. We had the "Croatian Platter" so we could try several dishes.

Weekend - part I

I just got back from the weekend trip to Munich. I met jk at the airport Saturday morning.

We spent all that day in Munich. What a wonderful city. We wandered around the Viktualienmarkt (here's jk inspecting the veggies), then had a good Bavarian meal.

We also went over to the Residenz. Oh, and there was some shopping in there. See the photo a salesgirl took of us -- mony wanted proof that we were both there.

what is it about a weekend?

i've been anticipating the weekend all day. half the week really.

what is it about a weekend that pulls our attention away from the work at hand and leads us to daydreaming about whatever we're planning to do when the blessed moment finally arrives and we can lock the door to the office and let the fun begin?

i love weekends. . . whether i'm planning to stay home, chill, read, watch videos, and/or clean house, or I've got plans with friends for dinner, day trips, a weekend away, whatever.

it's MY time and no one dictates it but me.

this particular weekend i'm going to munich, as i mentioned previously. one of the things i might do with a friend is go to the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising -- it's the oldest brewery in the world. we're also planning to visit a market or two and go to Salzburg on Sunday.

past that, who knows? who cares? it's the weekend.

sweet freedom.

a day like every other day. . .

Hmmmm. Can't say I had a day that started out like mony's or was anywhere near unusual, interesting or different. Can't say there was anyone I love in the picture (too new here), but there were people I like.

Treated myself to breakfast, but when it's $2.10 for all-u-can-eat, why not? Omelette with tomatoes and green/red/yellow peppers, two small sausages, fresh cantaloupe and grapes, orange juice, coffee. Friendly "hi" and "bye" to the guy who always sits at the other end of the table from me (that married guy from the last post) -- we both sit facing the TV to catch the morning news. Chatted with an acquaintance, a high school teacher, for a few after breakfast (she came in after I did).

Mid-morning: A volunteer worked in my office for a bit. She's generally good company.

Lunch: Broiled chicken, rice, salad, milk, guava juice, coffee. Ate with a veterinarian (he's a kind of interesting guy originally from Slovenia), a historian and a clinical social worker (the latter two are married and from California). Okay, I think the occupations can make for an interesting mix. The LCSW gets very animated and puts on a show when she meets new people, so I just sat and watched while she entertained the vet. He and I stayed for coffee after, then he came to my office to discuss a class he's going to teach for my organization this weekend.

After work: Conversation with my boss who I don't personally dislike but who irritates me at times. Productive conversation about my frustrations.

Then to Regensburg with the LCSW and the librarian with whom I've been carpooling. Georg the instructor was okay tonight, more entertaining than last week. Last class for this term. Halleluiah. Am thinking the students ought to get together for coffee some weekend. The class has nice folks from Poland, Czech Republic, Malaysia and Thailand. We'd have to practice our German because some of them don't speak English.

Now I'm home and I'm off to bed. Here's wishing you (and me) sweet dreams.

Tomorrow's Friday, then it's the long weekend. I'm off to Munich to meet jk, a Folk Alliance friend. Woo hoo! A mini-vacation!

love, love, love

Who, being loved, is poor? ~Oscar Wilde

Tomorrow is that fateful day -- the one that new lovers look forward to and old ones sometimes take for granted. Valentine's Day. Nothing for me there right now to look forward to OR take for granted.

There's this married couple -- I met her once, and I say hello to him occasionally at breakfast. When I met her, I mentioned that I see him at breakfast sometimes. Her comment told me that she's still madly in love with him, three children and many years (I'm guessing at least 15) of marriage later.

A couple of days later I saw him at breakfast and told him I'd met his wife the previous weekend. His response: "You know, she really is the best part of me," and he got this dreamy look on his face.

Call me a romantic, but I appreciate hearing things like that from people who have been together for years and who, I'm sure, have been through their share of trials and tribulations. Some people say that no one could really feel that way after so many years of marriage or living together.

My sister really poo-poos it when one of my sisters-in-law STILL talks dreamily about my brother after 10-plus years of marriage. She says my sis-in-law is being ridiculous. But I like knowing that some people really do still like and love each other, respect each other, AND can still feel mushy about the other (at least occasionally). It's such a rarity, I think.

So here's to romantic love, for whoever still has it, feels it, experiences it. Enjoy and appreciate it.

photos with commentary

Check out this blog by Reuters photograph editors and photographers. Good stuff. . . something to aspire to.

Frozen Grand Central

This is the coolest thing! You've got to see it.

are you reading me now?

i keep getting e-mails from friends and family saying they're perusing My meanderings. . .

why not leave a comment (see the comment button below this post) so i'll know you were here? to sign it, use the nickname option and give me a clue to your identity. for example, someone recently signed "cousin." i think it was my cousin MK but am not sure -- cousin JK usually signs letters and e-mails "cuz." give me a clue!

how well do you know your world?

Can you identify this place?

Okay, that's a tough one. This is a convent in Pielendorf, Germany, and there's no reason why you'd know about it. I found it on the back road to Regensburg, and from the road it appears to be larger than the village in which it sits.

But try some of these geography quizzes. At least some of these locations will be easier to identify!

One of Reba's new Kick-Ass Men?

. . . . . . . . . . . Hey Ronda, can I play your room? . . . . . . . . . . .

A street musician in Prague on the St. Charles Bridge -- for my friends who are going to Folk Alliance soon. . .

the power to stand alone

I love this tree so much that I decided it should have a posting of its own instead of sharing space with photos of buildings in Amberg (see those a few posts down). "Which one of these is not like the other ones?"

The tree is on (yes, "on" as in attached to) a building in Amberg with a sign that says that King Ruprecht was born here in 1535. Wonder what kinda guy he was to warrant such a tribute. . . a swaying, top-heavy gal doing the hula.

constant craving

I've been craving chocolate chip cookies for three days. Actually, the dough sounds better than the cookies themselves. I'm going to have to break down and buy a package of dough. . . then get busy on that exercise regimen I've been planning to start since Jan. 1.

Amazingly, I didn't gain any weight in Minneapolis. Of course, having eaten about five not-very-appetizing meals that were provided for me probably helped in my vigil to maintain my weight. I might've even lost a little.

knowing the hearts of others

I was just reflecting on the current state of a colleague's love life, which led me to thoughts of how well we truly do or do not know others.

My colleague moved to Germany several months ago and left a "serious" girlfriend behind. When asked about her, he commented that she's an older woman and pretty, and also someone he's considering settling down with. He didn't claim to be madly in love, and when asked about this, still didn't claim it. Instead, he said he's about ready to settle down and. . . well. . . she's there.

Apparently she called and e-mailed a lot. When he went home in November, it was to break up with her. "She's getting too serious," he claimed. Upon his return, he confirmed that they did break up. . . but they also had a good visit. "You know, starlit walks on the beach and the like."

Friday he admitted that he's getting married the end of April. She's already got the whole thing planned -- the place, the caterer, etc.

I marvel at the whimsical nature of human beings. While there are those I like to think I know really well and could predict many of their moves, the truth is that by nature of being human, we are, inevitably, somewhat unpredictable.

We can never truly know someone else completely, nor can anyone else know us that well. Most of us still surprise ourselves from time to time (thinking we know ourselves so well).

chills, volunteers and politics

I've just returned from a conference in warm, sunny Minneapolis. Wednesday's low *during the day* was -40 with wind chill. Skin freezes at that temperature.

The conference was Red Cross's annual Volunteer Administration Institute, which was much more valuable to me than I expected. And in light of Red Cross's severe financial issues right now, volunteers are going to become even more important to the organization.

On the way back from the conference, I went through a security checkpoint at the airport in Amsterdam. One of the two security guys told me that the other guy (who spoke no English) wanted to know if I were voting for Obama or Hillary. I said I hadn't decided yet. Then he asked, "Or maybe McCain?"

I've always found Europeans' knowledge of and interest in US politics to be pretty impressive. And these were security guys I was talking to, not necessarily among the better educated.