Not happy with Sicher German textbooks

I am relieved that the latest German class ended as I was running out of steam with it. We used a book that is, in my opinion, very poorly organized and difficult to follow; I was also very displeased with the same company's B2 book, both of which are in the Sicher! series. One learns the grammar that's spread out in tiny, nonsensical bits and bobs throughout the chapter then it's repeated all over the place in the back of the book in no particular order. At the end of the chapter, there's a short description of the grammar but it wasn't that clear.

It's the kind of grammar learning where the grammar is presented in use and the learner is just supposed to "get it"on one's own, to an extent. Yes, I realize that we were using the upper intermediate and advanced books and have higher skills at this point, but still...with some of these nebulous constructions, one needs much more.

I was so frustrated with the book and didn't feel that I learned the material well that I bought Erkundungen, the C1 book from the previous series we'd used before we were stuck with Sicher. With those books from Schubert Verlag, I felt that I learned the content well; chapters are laid out in a manner that makes sense and there are clear reviews at the end of the chapter that explain the grammar clearly. The book has a good flow and it's easy to thumb through it and find the particular thing one learned. Plus it includes an answer key, which Sicher doesn't. I don't like putting all the work into exercises without being able to check immediately if I completed them correctly in order to avoid burning the wrong answer into my brain.

I am either going to go over the Erkundungen chapters myself or see if I can find a teacher on my own before the Uni offers the next level of class in the fall. It's my goal to take/pass the C1 exam sometime next year or so and I doubt that'll happen if we keep using the Sicher books. It seems really difficult to retain any information from those books, and I'm certainly not the only student in the class who felt that way. It's ironic that we felt insecure after using Sicher.

The bane of my German-learning experience

Have you used the Sicher books? What is your opinion of them?

Blah Friday

Even though it's always a bittersweet experience to spend a holiday like Thanksgiving away from one's family and sometimes there's a bit of homesickness while being away, one thing that I did not miss was the whole Black Friday mess of consumerism and greed.

For me, the day after Thanksgiving is the antithesis of the Thanksgiving spirit. One can't turn on the tv or the radio in the US without being bombarded by advertising for store sales. In the past, stores were closed on Thanksgiving Day so families can spend time together. However, stores would also start with crazy sales at 3 a.m., for example, the day after, or more stores are opening the day of Thanksgiving too. Yuck. Can't we have 1-2 days a year of no shopping?

People have started to set up tents outside the stores, sometimes days in advance, in hopes of snagging some deals. Once the stores open, sometimes pandemonium erupts; people have been trampled as the crowd rushed in. In an equally ugly situation, fights have broken out among customers to grab the last of an item.

I thought that, having moved to Germany, I'd be away from such things. However, this year I've noticed extensive advertising for "Black Friday" or even in some cases, "Black Week" (which is not really what we'd call it though). I've seen it in Germany and in France, too, when I visited Colmar for the weekend. Check out the photo below from a Colmar storefront.

Ick. It's an American invention that I would happily do without in Europe.

--
A bit of irony: when I emailed myself this photo, I tried to type "Black Friday" on my phone and instead ended up with, thanks to autocorrect, "Blah Friday," which totally fits!

Situations in Germany that make me frustrated

Living in a foreign country as an expat requires a certain level of adjustment. One must deal with different social norms and a new language. Sometimes it's not so difficult but at other times, one might experience frustrations.

I really enjoy living in Germany and constantly try to learn more about its language, customs, and daily life. However, there are certain things that have happened either to me or that I've seen that aren't so great. Let me be clear that these things don't happen all the time and that not everyone here acts like this but when they do, I admit: I get frustrated.

1. People waiting for a bus or train rush the doors as soon as they open and before the departing passengers can even disembark. They push and shove. It's ridiculous and would go so much more quickly if people weren't so impatient.

2. One time, I was in a super thick crowd of people at a festival. We were in a bottle neck and some dude with a huge belly behind me kept coming closer until he was shoving his gut into my back. Nope, dude, it won't make me walk any faster since there is nowhere to go.

What had me seeing red, though, was when people in the crowd were also pushing into a disabled person. They could have severely hurt that person had he fallen. I have also seen people shove past elderly citizens. To say I was ticked off would be an understatement. What the heck is wrong with people?!


3. People don't "do" lines so well here. It's often a big crowd of people in bunches and people rush up without waiting their turn. I've learned to stand with my hands casually placed on my hips. This sets up a bit of a barrier that says, why yes, I am indeed next in line and it is not nice of you to try to shove past me. I've also been pushed in the heels (purposefully) with a shopping cart from another customer while in line. There was nowhere for me to move farther ahead. Another time, apparently an elderly lady wanted to get past me. Instead of saying "excuse me" or tapping me on the shoulder, she grabbed me by the hips and threw me aside!

4. When I am concentrating on something, whether it's at the store, the art museum, or in front of a sign, I stand out of the way so I don't impede traffic or other patrons. The next thing I know, I have someone standing practically on top of me, trying to look at the same exact gosh darned thing. The person couldn't have waited a few seconds until I was done? Was the person even interested in the thing before I was looking at it? I won't lie: on a particularly frustrated day, I've put the thing down, sighed, and walked away.

I can understand that it's busy in grocery stores and there isn't always a lot of room to look at things. However, I was once in the middle of examining a painting in a gallery that housed twenty other paintings. The gallery was otherwise empty. Someone walked in and instead of looking at any of the twenty other paintings, stood on my heels and breathed over my shoulder. It completely blew my mind.

5. When it takes forever to pay at a restaurant. Yes, I know that restaurant food takes longer to prepare because it's not fast food, yada yada. I'm talking about the actual act of paying. It generally takes anywhere from 10-30 minutes to receive and pay the bill after asking for it. I kid you not; this has happened at many different restaurants, with different price points, and different levels of being busy (from us being the only customers to the restaurant being full). Does anyone know why on earth this is? I'm to the point now, if I have limited time, that I ask the waiter for the bill when he brings the food.

6. Customer service in general. I hope for mediocre to average service. However, I've had some really bad service, too. For example, I was asking for help at the Deutsche Bahn counter. The guy shrugged his shoulders and said he couldn't help with the situation. Not his problem. He didn't offer any alternatives. Grrreat.

Another time, I called Kabel Deutschland and needed help. I didn't know enough German at the time and asked if it was possible to speak with someone in English. Nope, they didn't have anyone there who could speak English to help a customer. I raised my eyebrows at that one (no one? really?). Okay, fair enough, whatever, it's a German company.

Imagine my surprise when I received a telemarketing call from KD and I told the lady I didn't speak German. She flawlessly switched to English to try to sell me tv service. I asked her to take me off the list and never call again. Why would I want tv service from a company that's willing to sell me the service using English, but if I had problems, they wouldn't help me in English? Fair is fair, after all.

7. People not cleaning up after their dogs, or...people who bag up the droppings and then chuck it under  a tree. At least it's not as bad as it is in Paris, but still! Clean up after your darn dogs. I'd love to follow these people to their homes with a pooper scooper and deposit the "deposits" on their lawn/sidewalk and say, "oh, you forgot this, so I brought it for you." Okay, I wouldn't actually do that, but it's tempting!

Getting screws at the German hardware store

After an incident that I want to name something snappy in the vein of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, I found myself in need of a new screw for a bathroom fixture. I think that the new name of the incident should be My Mom, the German Sink, and the Loose Screw that Went Gosh Knows Where When She Was Trying to Be Helpful. In other words, the screw from the drain stopper for my sink was lost so the drain turned into this open black hole of doom; I needed a replacement screw. The next book in the series might be called The Lost Toothpaste Cap That Did Go Down the Drain and Countless Other Things That Almost Went Down the Drain While I Had a Heart Attack While Trying to Fish Them Out.

Since I felt that this series already had a much longer run than it should have, I finally got off my lazy tukus and stopped by Hornbach, a very Home Depot-like place*, which even has an orange logo. C came along with me (mostly because she had no choice as I was driving). We made a game plan to speak German and I tried to quickly learn the German word for screw (you know, in the hardware sense; I had already learned the other word after laughing at some graffiti where I thought the "artist" had misspelled the English cognate).

I asked, in German, for the "the lost thing for this thing," holding up the other parts of the drain stopper. (I have finally realized that visual props greatly help understanding of my ridiculous spoken German.) The store clerk actually took us to the screws department to help us (I was a bit shocked at this level of service; at many businesses  one would just receive half-hearted or incorrect instructions of where to look in general). He started speaking to us in English, then stopped, giving us a grin and saying in German, "oh, I'm supposed to be speaking in German."

We finally found a suitable screw and he walked us to the end of the aisle where he stuck it in a plastic bag, entered the SKU from its bin, weighed it, and printed a label for it. I was very happy that he helped us because I probably wouldn't have thought to do the last steps and probably would have been sent back in shame by the cashier to do it the right way.

After our adventure, I reassembled the drain plug to realize that the screw is slightly too long and the plug sticks up a bit too much in the drain.

Screw that. I'm not going back and it'll just have to do.


*minus the gun owners carrying their weapons around the store just 'cuz they can, as they do in the US

Why I like fall but why it is also killing* me

*not literally/immediately, but it doesn't help my health, that's for sure

My two favorite times of the year are spring and fall. Coming from a state that has very distinct seasons (though many feel as if winter lasts really long), I view those two seasons as the times that birth two other seasons. Plus, I don't like really hot weather but I can tolerate cold weather.

Spring is a wonderful, hopeful, and beautiful time. Remember how good it feels when the weather starts to warm up and the early flowers are pushing their way up from the ground? Everyone seems to be in a better mood as they shed bulky winter clothing and get some sunlight. Fall is lovely, too, as the hot and humid days of summer dissipate and the leaves change color (assuming it's a climate such as in Michigan or in Germany).

Fall is also great because of the fun seasonal things to do, such as visiting Herbstfest in Heidelberg (which may/may not include drinking grappa and dancing in front of an ice cream store) or drinking Federweisser and eating Zweibelkuchen.

However, sometimes I think that fall is trying to take me out. I suffer from seasonal allergies and chronic sinus infections. As the leaves fall and it rains, I feel awful, probably from the combination of mold and the leaves. I've been sick twice in September alone, then sick again in October. When I'm not actively sick, I feel as if I'm on the verge of getting sick, suffering from nasty congestion, headaches, and feeling as if I'm about ready to spike a fever. I'm exhausted; perhaps I don't get as much oxygen or I sleep poorly from being congested.

To be fair, I feel that springtime has it out for me too, with all the pollen flying around, which also induces more sinus infections. However, fall is made even more difficult by the decline in daylight. Even when I go straight home from work and not to one of my many engagements after, I am totally exhausted and am ready to go straight to bed. Sometimes it's difficult to stay awake even until 8 p.m. I guess it's a good thing that I usually have commitments after work; otherwise it's so hard to ignore the siren call of sleep! It can be 6 p.m. and feel like it's time to go to bed. I definitely feel some grumpiness settling in because I know that it'll just get gloomier with winter settling in.

Maybe one of these days I'll buy myself a special lamp for light therapy. I wonder if it would help. Readers, have you ever used them, and do you feel a marked improvement in wakefulness and mood as a result?

Finished week 1 of the vegan challenge

My friend had the great idea to be vegan for 40 days. Since I alternate among being vegetarian, vegan, and then eating BACON, I thought that I may as well join too. I just finished up the first week of being vegan.

It was a roller coaster. I don't want to dissuade anyone from being vegan because it can introduce one to some awesome food that one normally wouldn't try. However, for me at least, there is a bit of detoxing time. I obsess(ed) over cheese; I had to pick up some things at the store and forced myself to walk quickly past the cheese aisle and all its lovely offerings.

The other problem was that I had been eating a rather rich diet (at least for me) before I went into this. I had been having cheese, desserts, and meals out several times a week so of course I was craving these things.

The cravings came to a head earlier this week: I went on a candy bender! I bought some candy after first making sure that it was vegan and went to town on it. Of course I felt like crud later and told my coworker (who was with me at the time) that I am to have no more candy.

I'm doing okay so far with that part. I haven't bought any commercially prepared sweets or candy. I did make a loaf of homemade vegan banana bread with half of the sugar that the recipe called for. I plan to share it with my friend when we take a trip together.

If I can't eat cheese, candy, or desserts, then I start craving carbs like bread. My next goal will be to cut way back on anything that contains gluten since I don't feel great after eating it. I won't go so far as to say that I think I'm gluten-sensitive, but I can say that all the carbs from flour aren't the best for me.

After meeting that goal, then I'm going to work on mostly eating vegetables with some fruits, beans, seeds (i.e. quinoa), etc. I once lost 10 pounds in two weeks by following that diet, which was really quite healthful. I had to eat a couple cups of raw vegetables a day in addition to some yogurt for breakfast. By the time I had done that, I was not very hungry for much else! I certainly have plenty of time left since there are still about 31 days left to the challenge.

Oh, glorious land of cheese.

I see this and I'm all like:

The anger & frustration of the suburban trains to Amsterdam

[Here's a website with some good information about the issue I'm writing about below. I had done some quick research into public transport before my trip, but apparently not enough and I wish I had read this first! Keep in mind that this article is about using the trains outside of Amsterdam. At the Centraal Station in Amsterdam, we had no problems buying tickets for transport within the city at kiosks where we could use our credit cards or pay with bills.]

During our trip to Amsterdam, there was one absolutely aggravating issue: using the suburban trains to get into the city center. We stayed in Weesp, a suburb that was a short 17 minute train ride to the center. The town itself was adorable and our accommodations pretty much perfect. However, getting to Amsterdam put us into a rage.

Why is that? I've traveled plenty of other places and have never had such an issue. I've even been to Amsterdam before, in 2008 and had no problems then. This time, though, it was a frustrating experience (I'm getting grumpy all over again, just writing about it!).

It was awful because of the system for buying tickets. Imagine this: we've finally arrived to Weesp and have to pick up a friend at the Centraal station in Amsterdam. We are equipped with cash in the form of bills as well as our giro chip credit cards that work in Germany (but are from an American bank - with the chip, that's all that matters, at least in Germany). It's 11 p.m. but this shouldn't be a problem because of our cards and the cash, right?

Oh no, my friend, it was a major problem. Here's why: the train ticket machines would not accept bills! There were no change machines around. Okay, so then we tried our credit cards with the chip. We were denied; the machine only took Dutch PIN/Maestro/V-Pay. Cruuuuuud! It was also 11 at night and it's a suburb. What would be open to get change? Well, we lucked out: there was a small bike kiosk and the guy was kind enough to give us change. If it weren't open, we would have been hosed.

So, we get the change and try to buy a ticket. The whole thing was confusing; it appeared that we had to buy some sort of card for 7,50 euros. Ah, that seemed reasonable! My friend chose that option, thinking it was a travel card for the duration. It then told her that she had to put in 20 more euros. What the heck!? At that point, we were going to run late so she just put in the total amount, in change only. She wasn't happy about having to shove almost 30 euros' worth of coins into the machine, and I don't blame her at all.

We later found out how this worked (and it's still crummy, in my opinion): the card she got is called the OV-chipkaart. It's possible to either have an anonymous one (like what my friend bought) or one can buy a personal one with the owner's photo and lost card protection. The latter option is more likely for Dutch residents. The card itself is a non-refundable 7,50 euros and there must be an additional 20 euros of credit on it. If my friend wanted to turn in the card and get the remaining credit (less than 30 euros) off it, she would have been charged 2,50 euros for the "privilege." Oh, and if you don't have a Dutch bank card, you better as heck have a boat load of change to buy the dang card at the machine.

The other option we later found was the single-use cards, which were more reasonable. For 3,20 euros, I bought a one-way ticket from Weesp to Amsterdam Centraal. At the time, I had a printed ticket. I later found out that a few days after our trip ended, the system was changing over to single-use OV chip cards (enmalige chipkaart) and that there would be a 1 euro surcharge on each single-use card purchased.

The whole thing was entirely frustrating and the system is not at all friendly to people who are not going to be using transport very often (i.e. the hordes of visitors to Amsterdam). I think that the worst thing is the payment situation; the machines won't take most credit or debit cards and there are no change machines. If the train office or stores aren't open, how is one to get change to buy tickets? Many of the stores around the trains aren't always amenable to giving change, either; on our second day, we went to the convenience store in the train station in Weesp and they refused to give us our change from our purchase back all in coins. I understand that they need the change too, so it's extremely frustrating to have to scramble for coins to pay for train tickets.

The Netherlands are otherwise pretty cool, but buying train tickets outside of Amsterdam is an exercise in frustration.

Getting a massage at the German massage place: hilarity ensues, or it doesn't

Whenever I get into a situation that spirals out of control in a way that's so ridiculous that it's funny, the music below plays through my head. I had such an experience earlier this week.

On my day off, I decided to get a massage by someone recommended by a friend. My friend didn't think that the guy really speaks English, but said I should go anyway. Since I've been working on my German a bit, I figured I could make an appointment without too many troubles.

Imagine trying to make a massage appointment with a man who's basically like a hyperactive squirrel. He doesn't really speak English and I am halting in German. I said that I needed an appointment (in German) but I think he was so freaked out about dealing with an English speaker that he asked for help.

He enlisted the help of one of his clients who speaks better English. Said client is in the middle of a massage so I get waved to the back of the practice and ask a man who's laying on the massage table and only wearing underwear if he can help me make an appointment. We all agreed on a time.

I don't think that I would have seen a client in situ in the US (at least I don't think it would have, or at least the masseuse there would have probably had me talk through a cracked door and I wouldn't see the other client). Though honestly, if the masseuse just slowed down what he said and listened to me a bit more I think we could have made the appointment without help. I'm thankful for the other client's help. He didn't seem phased by this at all. At least he was wearing underwear! I'm trying to adjust to the German lack of hang-ups with partial/full nudity. However, I just wasn't expecting the situation to happen this way. I had practiced the phrases I would say in German before I went there. After all, how hard is it to make an appointment; I'm almost at the A2 level. That got shot out the window. Doesn't that make you think of the adage, "it takes a village?" I thought it took a village to raise a child, but apparently it also takes one to make an appointment.

As for the massage itself, it wasn't really what I prefer. When it was my turn, the masseuse utilized a client who was in another room as an interpreter for a bit. I told the masseuse, "wenn Sie sprechen langsamer, ich verstehe mehr" (when you speak slower, I understand more). He had left the curtain to my room open and was going to commence working on me. I knew the other client was in another room, and I am still a bit prudish/American, so I told Mr. Masseuse, "bitte mit die Tür nicht öffnen" (please with the door not open). Yes, that's not the most grammatical way to put it, but it still makes sense and I couldn't remember the word for closed. See? I know enough German to communicate my wishes, just not in an elegant way.

I was on a table under this crazy heat lamp thing; I almost felt as if I were at a tanning salon! After turning off the lamp, he draped a heat pack over my back. I have a feeling that Lucifer did him a solid and let it heat up on his sidewalk a bit before handing it over. It was rather hot, especially on bare skin. I have a reasonably high pain tolerance so I just dealt with it. 

I couldn't believe how fast he did the massage strokes. At one point, there was disco music playing on the radio and I swear that he used that to keep time! So, while it wasn't the worst thing ever, it was still a rather odd situation so I think one visit there suited me just fine. The awkward thing is that I ran into Mr. Masseuse two days later when I was out with friends. He hollered to me to ask how I was feeling and I spoke German back. See, dude? If you just listen, I can tell you what needs to be said.

Grumpy Fahrrad Herr fixes my bike

Since the movers lost a pedal on my bike and neither friends nor I could get the replacement pedals on the bike, I bit the bullet and wheeled my bike down to the repair shop tonight.

Herr Fahrrad Repair was rather grumpy, but I think he was already in that state of mind before I arrived. I asked in German if he spoke English because I couldn't think of all the words to make the request of what I needed on the bike and he said he spoke some. I told him, auf Englisch, that I bought replacement pedals and was wondering if I could pay him to put them on the bike for me. He said he had pedals for sale.

I said, "I have pedals that I just bought; is it possible for me to pay you to put them on?" He then asked if I didn't like his pedals. Crap! I don't think he took that very well, but I had just purchased the pedals and really didn't want to buy new ones. Since the store is also a bike repair place, I assumed that people could bring in bikes for repair. Yes, I know, I went in, asking if he'd speak English and if he could install pedals that I had bought somewhere else. That's probably not a successful combination.

I told him that I had just bought the pedals and he agreed to look at the bike. He said he could put my pedals on for 12 euros. I thought that was rather high but at that point what I thought was a simple errand had blown up in an epic unhappy experience for both of us so I agreed. It took him less than a minute to put the pedals on; it turns out if one has the proper tools (or any tools, for that matter! Guess what I didn't pack when I moved here?), it's very easy.

He ended up charging me 10 euros instead of 12. That was nice of him, and I left, hoping that I hadn't made him too unhappy with me. It's so frustrating when I inadvertently piss someone off and it's even more frustrating to have to shell out about $20 for new pedals and labor when it's the darn moving company's fault.

What I have learned about getting things done on base

When one becomes involved with a military base, whether to work there, live there, or whatever, there are many official "chores," so to speak, that must be completed. These chores include getting one's ID card, receiving a background check if working there, etc.

What I have learned in the last month from completing these chores is this:

-it is generally not straightforward nor excessively easy to get many of them done;
-it is not uncommon to have a difficult time finding the correct office to visit, either because it's been moved, closed, or consolidated in one fashion or another;
-offices might be closed for US or local holidays;
-staff might not know the correct office to visit so you'll have to talk to multiple people/departments;
-you might be told different things by different staff and those things may be in conflict and have to explore all options to find out what is the correct way of accomplishing your chore.

Here are some hints for dealing with these problems:

-always call the office you want to visit before you go there to make sure that they're open/available to help you when you plan to be there and take note of their closures for lunch breaks;
-make sure that you are prepared and have all necessary documentation for what you are trying to accomplish; check both online and ask people working there when you call to check the hours (and if the two sources conflict, err on the side of caution and bring everything that both sources recommend);
-write down the dates, times, and names of the employee you talk with regarding your situation;
-don't be shy about POLITELY explaining to a staff member what you've heard from a conflicting source and quote it if it's official to work through the problem;
-approach the chores with a hopeful attitude that things will go smoothly but with the realistic thought that they probably won't and have a back-up plan;

-don't abuse the staff working at the offices; there is a good chance that they are just as frustrated as you are but their hands are often tied because of staff cuts or administrative requirements -- being nice to them might just help you get some extra help or consideration; and
-bring something to amuse yourself while you wait...and wait...and wait in the office for your appointment; also bring your cell phone in case you need to call someone to confirm information during the meeting (i.e., calling your sponsor to ask what your official department is, etc.).

Here is an example of trying to do one simple thing that turned into a major chore: I was trying to find out where to pick up my ration card, which I am entitled to as a civilian employee. I looked online and noted that the office was at a particular building. However, upon talking to people within my own department, I learned that it probably had moved. I called someone in another department. He gave me information about what I had to do to get the ration card, but he also didn't know the new location of the department (which is very odd because he deals a lot with that department). He asked me to update him when I found out where it is (which I did, after this ordeal). We finally heard through word of mouth the possible location of it. When we showed up to the base and building where it was supposed to be, it wasn't there. We asked one office and they had no clue. We stopped by another office and they said that it was in the first location, where we had unsuccessfully already visited. After some conversation with staff in that office, we realized that we all knew a mutual acquaintance who had just received his ration card, so the staff there was kind enough to call him for us and ask the correct building number. The ironic thing is that this person works in the same building that we do, but we hadn't run into him to ask him ahead of time. He gave us the correct building number and once we arrived I had my ration card within a few minutes. The ridiculous thing was that we spent probably about 45 minutes trying to figure out where to go.

Someone's not getting it, and it's me

I have been searching for a permanent place to live, and I have not been enjoying it. Since this is a bigger city where I'm living, I would have thought that there would be more apartments available. What I didn't take into consideration is that it's a bigger city with a university and is also surrounded by lots of military bases with not enough room for all their personnel. So apartments, especially decent ones, get snatched up very quickly.

I have tried calling some real estate agents because it's very difficult to find an apartment here that is provisionfrei, or without a real estate agent's commission. Unlike the US, where the property owner would normally pay the commission, here the renter would pay it and it's usually between 1-3 months' rent. Ouch.

Calling the real estate agents to view properties was not that easy. Reception on my phone was horrible and there was the language barrier to work through, which is even more difficult when the conversation is not face to face. I felt very bad to offer spotty reception and lack of German.

And then there's just my stupidity. One real estate agent was more than happy to show me the property but we had a tough time finding a time that would work. He only wanted to show the property during the day. I told him that I couldn't do that because I had to work. I asked if I could come at night. He said no, because I couldn't see the property. I told him that it was okay if I couldn't see the outside of the property that well; I was sure that the streetlights would illuminate it.

He finally was able to get it through my head that I wouldn't be able to see inside the apartment. The light bulb (har har) finally went on inside my head, at least. I had forgotten that it is not uncommon for many German apartments not to include what Americans would take for granted: light fixtures and other built-ins and appliances (such as kitchen cabinets, ovens, etc.). There is a good possibility that the previous tenants took the light fixtures they had bought. The other possibility is that the electric had been in their name and when they moved, it was turned off.  We did manage to work out a time on the weekend that would allow us to see within the apartment itself.

Moo just wants a permanent place to rest his Moo-face.

In Which the Author Does Not Have an ID and Therefore Cannot Do Anything

For people who are stationed at or are an employee of, the bases here, the ID card (or as it is called, the Common Access Card or CAC card) is very important. It's mandatory for so many things, from entering the base, to shopping at most of the stores on base, to even using one's work computer. It's very difficult, if not impossible, to do anything without the ID.

Guess who doesn't have her ID yet? Yep, that would be me. I arrived Thursday and as far as I know, I'm not even in the system yet so I can't even make an appointment to get the ID. In fact, I cannot even seem to get an answer if I'm in the system or not; I called the office three times today to ask if I'm in it and I was asked to call back later each time to find out.

My coworkers must sign me in each time we go to a base, which has been a lot lately. I can't sign up for the work email for my institution. That email is required to access many of the mandatory training modules I must complete. I can't do any work, period, on my computer. I can't buy items at the commissary on my own, but at least I am very lucky and have kind coworkers who take me over to buy things.

It can take a week to 10 days to get the card. I'm not sure why, but my guess would be it's because there are so many people in-processing through here (there are about 50,000 of us in the area) and many of the offices here seem short-staffed. I will be very thankful when I have the ID, that's for sure!