Random Thoughts Tuesday: uncoherent

*Why would anyone have mustard colored walls? (I'm watching Design Remix)

*70's furniture is hideous

*I want longer fingernails.

*The sandwich might just be the greatest food invention ever. You can make anything into a sandwich. Like right now, I'm having a Caprese sandwich: tomato slices, fresh basil, real mozzarella (not that gross Kraft stuff-REAL), and a dash of olive oil. De-lish!

*I don't understand people who don't drink water. Water is awesome. Drink more water people!

*Allergies still suck.

*Why have I not been to Italy yet? Seriously. I live an hour and a half plane ride from Rome. Have I been? No. No I have not. Boo!

*I'm tired. All this medicine makes me sleepy. If I nap though, I will stay up too late and be miserable tomorrow morning. It's a vicious cycle.

*Do you ever think it's unfair how some people are so multi-talented? Shouldn't talent be more equally spread out? If you can paint and draw, you shouldn't also be able to sing and act. I'm just sayin.

* For those who were concerned about my "purple" thought last week, let me be clear. I wasn't saying anything bad about purple, it just popped into my mind and I typed it. I like purple.

*"I don't need it!" "Pinkies up!" If you know what that's from, I heart you. Big time.

*I wish I had $250, 000 dollars. That's not greedy right? It's not like I'm wishing for a billion, or even a million. Just $250,000.

*One of my dogs is sleeping on my foot. My foot is falling asleep, but I don't want to disturb him.

*Random Thoughts Tuesday is really relaxing. It's nice to be able to just spill stuff out without having to be coherent.

*I need to go plant my geraniums, but my allergies are killing me. What to do? What to do?

*I wish I wore hats more, but I don't think I have a hat face. Weird.

*Why don't I have a maid?

*I can't find my ipod. :(

Whew! I feel like my brain just emptied itself. Now, go read all the other cool random thoughts.

Brunch, a confession

"It's not quite breakfast, it's not quite lunch, but it comes with a slice of cantaloupe at the end. You don't get completely what you get at breakfast, but you get a good meal.”  -“Jacques, the bowler” The Simpsons

Do you brunch?  I love brunch.  Love.  With rainbow hearts and unicorn kisses, I love brunch.  It’s a meal that is relaxed and fun.  Just saying the word evokes images of friends getting together and having a great time around a lovely meal.  Plus, it’s the only time you can have a drink before 5 pm and no one thinks twice.  Well, Europeans often drink wine with lunch, but you know what I mean.  If I had a mimosa with breakfast, I’d probably be labeled an alcoholic.   If I didn’t have one with brunch, people would ask what was wrong.  How can you not love that?

We had an Easter brunch last weekend with our friends and it was just wonderful.  We met up at one apartment and everybody brought something.  Brunch was at 10:30 and we had salmon quiche (OMG, so good!), Belgian waffles, croissants, biscuits, brotchen (a small roll with a soft center and hard crust), jellies, cheese spreads, bacon, sausage (for the meat eaters), sweet rolls,  yoghurt, cakes, tea, coffee, juices and of course some alcohol.  One neighbor had planned on bringing Bloody Mary’s but ran out of time to get to the store, so we had only Mimosas.  Or, as I like to call them Mmmmmmmmimosas. 

Brunch is an incredibly civilized meal.  Breakfast is usually a greasy affair and lunch is often a quick bite on the go.  Unless of course you are a lady who lunches, and I sadly, am not.  Brunch means sitting for hours around a table, laughing and talking with friends, eating at your leisure and being relaxed.  Ah, brunch, how I love you.  Except.  Ah, there’s always something isn’t there?  And here is my confession.  I have to eat earlier than that.  Seriously.  I usually have to eat within 30 minutes of getting out of bed or I’m a complete and utter psycho grump the rest of the day.  There’s just something about having food on my stomach early in the day that starts me off right.  It is the most important meal of the day, you know.  Even if I eat later, I’m still a grump unless I eat early on.  And no, a slight nibble won’t do.  I must have at least a full bowl of cereal (organic honey o’s) with fruit and a cup of tea.    Even if I know I’m having brunch later on, I must eat.  Even the thought of Mmmmmmmimosas doesn’t keep the psycho grump at bay.    I wonder why this is.  Have I just trained myself to need food early in the day?  Well, if I have, it’s bloody inconvenient, I can tell you that. 

So, now you know my brunch secret:  I have to eat first.  If you ever invite me over to brunch (and really, why haven’t you?) don’t be offended if I don’t eat a lot.  It’s nothing against you or your cooking.  I’ve already eaten, so there’s not much room for your delicious waffles.  I will save room for mimosas though!  Cheers!

Being Kind-A Social Experiment

Have you seen those commercials (I think for insurance? It’s been a long time since I saw a real commercial) when people see someone do a random act of kindness for a stranger and then they do something nice for a stranger?  I know you have.

Now I  know every single one of my readers is a kind, loving, wonderful person.  I’ve read all of your blogs at one point or other (cause I love you all) and know that while some of you may be snarky (and I love you for it!  Some days you just need some good snark), you are each and every one of you generous, funny, and amazing in your own special way.  I also know that you are kind.  You may not think so, but I know you are.  I’ve been thinking about kindness lately.  I am, according to my friends, generally a kind person.  I try to be kind and polite to everyone.  I don’t always succeed, but I do try.  I realized the other day though that I could be more kind. Kind to strangers.  I try, I really do, but some days I’m tired and irritable and just don’t feel like it. BUT!  But, what if that grumpy guy in line behind me is having a really bad day too and once small act of kindness on my part might make it a little better?  If I’m in a store with a trolley full of stuff and the person behind me has only one or two items, I almost always let them go ahead of me.  This really seems to put the Germans off kilter.  They look at me like I’m crazy, but always smile and thank me as they zip ahead of me.  Oddly enough, it makes me kind of happy too. 

Has a stranger ever done anything nice to you for no reason?  Maybe they let you jump ahead in line when you had only a few items or picked up something you dropped and returned it to you.  Maybe they just smiled at you when you were feeling down.  Think how that made you feel.  Could you pass it on?

I’m going to endeavor to try to be more kind to strangers as a general rule.  I’m asking all of you to try to do the same.  Think of it as a social experiment.  Try it for one full day.  Be as nice as possible, even if you don’t feel like it.  Smile at people.  Let them cut in line.  Compliment someone.  Hold a door open for a harried mom trying to wrangle her 3 overly tired children.  Look the cashier in the eye and tell them they’re doing a good job.  See how it makes them feel.  See how it makes you feel.  I don’t expect some bazaar timeline circle of paying it forward, but I think you’ll see a difference in others and yourself.  If you do, please tell me how it went and how it felt.  But please, don’t stop the snark on the blogs.

Snakes on a plane!

Where is Samuel L. Jackson when you need him? Snakes on a plane! Seriously, how many times do you think that famous line was said? "I'm tired of these #@#%*&^% snakes on this #@#%&^% plane!"
BTW, thanks for all the well wishes on my recent post. Still miserable and had to spend 3 hours at the ER today getting breathing treatments and shots, but I'm confident I will be better soon. Cross your fingers!

Somebody kill me!

Death would be preferable to the misery I’m living in.  Seriously.  Spring is here with a vengeance and my allergies are on the warpath.  I can’t sleep, I can’t breathe, I can’t see, I can’t function.  Yeah, I’m fun to live with.  Of course M is gone right now.  Of course.   Really, if you saw me, you’d think I’d  gone several rounds with Oscar de la Hoya. My eyes are swollen to mere slits, my nose is red and my skin is sallow.  Maybe it’s a good thing M is gone. 

I ventured out today and am paying the price.  My friends decided to go have some breakfast at IKEA (squeeeeee!!!!!!!!!) and you know I couldn’t pass that up.  Indy was excited because it meant he would get to go to Smaland.  When we showed up, my friend commented that I wore a top that matched my eyes.  I should add that my top was white, pink, red and black paisley.  Nice.  I made it through b’fast without sneezing and spent a while wandering the store commenting on this and that (and maybe buying a thing or two).  My eyes were getting itchy, but weren’t watering (much).  I knew I needed to get home though before a full blown attack hit.  Indy and I made it home and within 30 minutes my eyes were pouring, my nose was running and I was sneezing so much I feared my brain would come untethered  and fine its way out of my head.  It got so bad I couldn’t even read my book because I couldn’t focus.  Oh, the misery.  The agony.  BTW, there are no photos because if you saw me like this you’d run screaming and never come back to my blog.  It’s that bad.  If only it would rain for more than 2 and a half minutes and wash some of this horrible pollen away.  Now I’m done griping and am off to lay back on the sofa with a cool cloth over my eyes.  Leave me some love people.  Leave me some love.

Random Thoughts Tuesday: the one where I b!tch a lot

Do you have random thoughts? Yes, you do. Why not post a RTT? It's very freeing. Plus, a lot of other people will stop by your blog and give you some bloggy lovin (which you know you want).

*Why do we have eyebrows? I'm not buying the "to keep sweat out of our eyes" theory. Why? Cause it doesn't work! What are they for? Seriously. Mine are in serious need of waxing. Gah.

*Brown eggs taste better than white ones. It's a fact. I said so.

*I need to take out the recycling, but just don't feel like it. I have to go down 3 and a half flights of stairs, unlock the garbage/recycling center, throw the stuff in the right containers, then walk back up 3 and half flights of stairs. SO much work. I told M we need a garbage shoot from one of our windows to the garbage center. He didn't think it was a good idea. If he were here, I'd make him take out all the garbage. Also, I have about 6 empty wine bottle from Easter and a whole load of other glass that needs to go to the glass containers, but that's a whole block away, PLUS all the stairs.

* Purple <-----How's that for random?

*Indy starts violin lessons on Thursday. Could you die from the cute? I could. Anyhoo, the program falls underthe Children and Youth Services umbrella, so before he could take the lessons, he had to be registered with CYS. I have to bring in a copy of M's latest LES (military speak for paystub), Indy's shot records, and a list of his medications. They said the nurse would have to approve him before he could take lessons, which could delay him by a week or two. WHAT? He has allergies. I don't think violin lessons will be too strenuous for him. So, we run all over creation, we live on one Kaserne, the hospital is on another Kaserne about 2 miles away, and CYS is on yet another Kaserne about 9 miles away. We have to go through security checkpoints to get on all the Kasernes. We got searched twice. Once at the hospital and once at PHV (where CYS is located). In and out of the car. So annoying. Open all the doors, the trunk, the hood, the glove box, hand over your ID card, DL and registration. Wait in the red box on the sidewalk. Close all the doors, trunk, hood, go back to the box while they do an under carriage. You have no idea. Plus, all the buckling and unbuckling. Sigh. When we got to CYS, a different lady registered me (from the one I talked to on the phone) and when she asked if Indy had any medical issues, I simply said no. She said okay. We were done and off we went. Stupid CYS.

* Why is it that blogger says "aren't" is spelled wrong by underlining it in red, but buuckling passes the spell check? Learn to spell blogger! BTW, it also underlined blogger until I added it to the dictionary.

* I want smilies on blogger. Life would be so much better if I could insert an eyerolling smiley when I feel like it.

* Allergies blow! My eyes itch. My eustation tubes (that would be in the ear in case you can't remember) itch. They actually itch. I feel like I'm going insane.

* I hate seeing guys in flipflops. That's right, I said it. Ditto sandals. Cover those hairy man feet!

* I miss Friends. The show, not the people I know IRL. Why is there no Friends made-for-tv-movie, a la every show from the 70's? I want to know what happened after they all left the apartments that IRL there's no way they could afford. Well, we know what happened to Joey. He moved to LA and got cancelled. But what about the others? I want to know!

* Also, Pushing Daisies. WHY did they cancel that? That's just a darn good show. I'm so mad. Sure, Flavor of Love and Rock of Love (or whatever that Brett Michaels show is called) are still on, but not Pushing Daisies? Are you kidding me?

* British TV is awesome. The end. Except for the new Dr. Who. That's just weird.

* My house needs to sell. NOW.

* Rumba is fun to say. Try it. Rumba. RRRRRrrrrrrrumbaaaaaaa.

Hve a great day peeps. Leave me some random love.

And the winner is....

Thanks to everyone who entered my give-away and left all the lovely comments. I decided Indy should get to pick the winner. I have some great photos of him thinking about it, but I can't find the cord that hooks my camera to my computer. Gah. I wrote each entry down in order (twice for the followers) and gave Indy some parameters (pick a number between 1-whatever my high number was). He thought and thought and though. And thought. He finally picked a number and I looked down the list to find the corresponding number. The number he chose belonged to Amanda from Serenity Now! HURRAH! Congrats to Amanda and big smoochies to all who entered. If I could send you all a goodie box of chocolate and stuff, I would. My readers make me happy and I love you all.
Amanda, shoot me an email with your address and I'll pop your box o' goodies in the mail.

German Easter Egg Market

Thanks to all you who have entered my 100th post give-away! You have until tomorrow so make sure you enter!

A few weeks ago my friend and I went to an Easter Egg market in Schwetzingen, which is a gorgeous little town about 15 minutes from Heidelberg. It is known as the spargel capitol. Spargel is white asparagus and so freaking delish. Just so you know, spargel is the same as regular asparagus, but they cover the plants with soil to prevent photosynthesis, hence the white. Who says I don’t teach you stuff? Look, they even have a bronze statue just across from the palace entrance celebrating the spargel market.

It was cold and dreary the day we went. I know, Germany? Cold and Dreary? You don’t say! Yes, it’s usually true. We are having an unusually warm and sunny week right now though and honestly it’s kind of freaking me out.

This is the entrance to the palace and grounds. The framed map is just on the left as you enter the arch. If you look to the very bottom of the map, you can see the palace. This helps give you an idea of the scale of the gardens. HUGE.

The market was held inside one of the curved wings of the palace.

See this guy? He hand beads all of these eggs. Hand. Beads.

He said the large eggs (ostrich, emu, rhea) can have up to 30,000 beads. By. Hand.

These blew me away. They are carved with a dremel like tool, then covered in wax in a pattern and dipped in acid. The acid eats away part of the shell. When the wax is removed, the pattern shows up. Amazing! Click the pics for a better look.

These eggs are hand painted/drawn and have lyrics to songs or poems about Heidelberg in them. The floral eggs had little messages of friendship or luck or Easter. The little linen strips were attached to a dowel and rolled up. Awesome. Look at the detail.

These are covered in hand fired porcelain flowers.

Are you drooling yet? I was. I swear I’ve never used the word “awesome” so much in my life. Not even in the 80’s.

This vendor was my absolute favorite. He was so funny. And patient. I swear I asked him a million questions in a weird mixture of German and English. He responded in the same mix.

He hand paints all these eggs. The girl with the umbrella was my favorite and I’m sad I didn’t buy her.

Can you stand it? Isn’t it all amazing?

He sketches his ideas in this little book. What I wouldn’t give to have an hour or two with this book!

This is the kind of egging I do (did you know that about me?), so I was totally in love with her booth. Plus, she was soooooo nice. Her husband doesn’t look it in the photos, but he really was, he just didn’t like having his photo taken.

I have more photos, but these were really the cream of the crop. I hope you enjoyed your little glimpse of a European tradition.

Don’t forget to enter the give-away!

It’s my 100th post! And a give-away!

I can’t believe it!  100 posts!    100 times I’ve sat in front of my computer and written something.  Sometimes funny, sometimes reflective, sometimes helpful, sometimes showy offy, but always me.  I thank each and every one of you who have read and/or follow this blog and sent me encouraging emails or left sweet comments.  And to celebrate your super awesomeness (and you know you all are) I am doing my very first give-away!  Can you stand it?  I can’t!  Here’s what I’m giving away:

 

 

Just so you know, I had to hide this stuff from M and Indy.  Otherwise, they’d eat every bit of it and I’d have two sugar bombs waiting bouncing around my house waiting to explode.  Here’s what included:

1 package of ORIGINAL Gummi Goldbaren (gummy bears)

1 package of Happy Cherrie gummies (cause who can resist something called Happy Cherries?)

1 box Merci chocolates (so good you’ll have to slap someone.  seriously)

1 box Afrika cookies (OMG.  ‘nuff said)

1 box Yogurette chocolate covered strawberry bars (I really don’t want to give these up)

1 package Ritter samplers (various kinds of mini candy bars)

1 cute little German thermometer (Indy picked this out)

1 lovely little table doily type of thing.  I don’t know what else to call it.  It measures 11x21 inches and is decorated with pink and white flowers.  It’s from Kathe Wolfahrt.

BTW, the Gummis and the Happy Cherries are much tougher and chewier than the super sweet, soft gummies we’re used to. 

So, how do you win?  Leave me a comment telling me how wonderful I am.  No, really, just a comment will do.  If you’re a follower and you leave a comment you’ll get 2 entries (make sure you tell me you’re a follower in your comment).  I’ll leave it open until Saturday and announce a winner on Monday. 

Thanks again for being so loyal and giving me such awesome feedback.  The blogging community is truly awesome and unique.  People from all walks of life and all over the world can be friends.  I recently discovered someone I like very much is a Brewers fan.  I still like her though.  :)  Good luck!

Random Thoughts Tuesday!

I’m going to participate in my first ever Random Thoughts Tuesday!I have lots of random thoughts. Lots. I often think of turning them into a post, but…I’m too lazy to give it that much thought I’d rather watch Oprah it’s too much work I’m simply so busy reading other, cooler blogs watching crap on TV teaching Indy and keeping the house tidy (oh, how that makes me laugh). So, onto the griping /randomness:

*Americans are so lazy!& We live about a 2 minute walk from the main gate of where many of the soldiers work. M walks to work every day. It actually takes longer to drive on because you have to go through security and you *might* get searched which takes forever. Oh, how I hate to get searched!

Anyhoodles, a soldier who lives 2 buildings behind us drives to work every day. He drives home for lunch, then back to work. Are you kidding me? I would see him driving out every day and assumed he worked on one of the other Kaserns (which you do have to drive or bike to), but no, I saw his very custom truck on post one day when Indy and I went to check the mail. I was dumbstruck. He actually has to park almost as far away as he lives. Dummy.

*My dogs really need a bath, but I so don’t feel like giving them one. Instead I made them an appointment to get groomed. Does that make me a bad mommy?

*German TV commercials are weird. Wacky and often full of nudity. M likes them. Too much.

*The days are so long here! It’s daylight until 9pm. By mid-June/July it will be light until around 10:30/11pm. It’s really hard for Indy to grasp why it’s still daylight at bedtime.

*I wish I were taller. And thinner. Sadly, being thinner is something I *can* do, but it’s just. so. much. work. Blech.

* I get irritated by people who update their facebook status every 10 minutes. I don’t need to know that much!

*Spiders are everywhere right now. Especially in our bathroom. WHY?

*Tulips are so pretty. They always make me smile.

*This is my 99th post! Holy moly! For my 100th, I’m doing a super awesome give away. If you like sweets and chocolate and pretties, you do not want to miss this one. Check back.

And please, don’t forget to visit my Esty shop!

I have and Etsy shop!

I’m so excited!  I’ve opened up my very own Etsy shop!

 

 

After exploring blog after blog (after blog) and seeing beautiful things, then reading comments from readers wishing they could find stuff like what they saw, I decided to find it for them!  Whew!  That was a long sentence.  I’ve been scouring flea markets here in Europe for beautiful items (that are hard to find and crazy expensive in the States) and I think I’ve come up with a lovely collection at fair prices.  Please click the banner above and go visit Tres Magnifique!  Yes, I know I live in Germany, but Tres Magnifique sounds way better than Sehr Schonen.  Enjoy and if you have any questions, please let me know. 

Grandparents

My maternal grandparents were married 62 years ago today. I remember when I was younger how one of my aunts or uncles (they had 8 kids together) would inevitably make a joke about how they were probably married by a prankster posting as a JP and were really living in sin. My grandmother used to get so upset even though she knew they were joking. It would have been an interesting story though.
Here they are around the time they were married:



Aren't they adorable? My grandfather was in the Army and stationed at Carlisle Barracks in PA. My grandmother was from the area and attended a USO dance. They met there, married in 1947 and the rest is history. My grandmother passed away in Sept of 95 and my grandfather followed in March of 96.

As a side note, my grandmother was actually married before my grandfather and divorced him. In the 1940's this was scandalous. Her first husband was a drinker who apparently beat her and she, being a smart woman, left him. They had 2 children together, so my mom's oldest brother and sister (making a total of 10 children) are her half siblings.

As yet another side note, my grandmother's parents were also divorced. In 1929. This was unheard of! He (my great-grandfather) didn't want the children and she (my great-grandmother) was seen as a fallen woman (being divorced and all) so she was not allowed to keep the children. Instead the children were split up and went to various relatives. Does that make sense? No, no it does not. My great-grandmother was pregnant at the time of the divorce, though no one knew, save her brother, whom she swore to secrecy. She gave birth and put the baby up for adoption. When my grandmother was 65, her uncle (the brother) was on his deathbed and told the family. Everyone was shocked. Shocked! A private investigator was hired and her younger brother was found (aged 62) living very close to where my grandmother and her other siblings grew up. Can you believe it?