Ich gehe jetzt in Deutschland

We spent our weekend playing hillbillies, seen above, buying and carting around home furnishings. We now have a futon for our guestroom. Come on down folks, we're all set.

I have an executive star alliance flight on hold to Germany that I'm going to buy today. Ya-hoo! The logistics of this trip are a bit headachy but in the end I think it will be fantastic. If I didn't go I'm pretty sure I would regret it. The thing I'm most excited about is being back in a country that is orderly and logical. Ah, how I've missed thee.

Tiny Dreaming Dancer

The following is a dream I had a few nights ago...... vivid and weird as usual.

So there I am in my room (some room from a past house or apartment) and I can't decide what to wear. Then I come up with the idea of pairing a white bodysuit and leotard with a poofy white skirt. Hmmm, what shoes shall I wear? I wondered. Why of course! My white ballet slippers! What else? But then there was the obvious problem of where I could wear this outfit without looking and feeling ridiculous. (Reality check: The real-life solution would be to not wear this ensemble at all.) I really wanted to wear it so in my desperation I came up with the idea of going to a ballet audition....duh. Where else would I fit in?

The problem of not knowing how to dance did occur to me but I decided that the whole experience would be hilarious and a good chuckle for my friends in the re-telling.

So off I went dressed like a frilly marshmallow. Cut to next scene. I'm backstage at the Northern Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton and there are no other marshmallows to be found. Instead, all of the hopeful dancers are gay men in their 40s and 50s wearing cords, orange sweaters and scarves loosely tied around their necks. Gulp, guess I don't fit in. So I take a seat and am immediately approached by the oldest man there holding a clipboard who proceeds to say, "you know, men think you're beautiful and so do you, but really, you're not." "Um, okay.... whatever," I stammered. So I sit there baffled as to why the guy I think is the director targeted me over such a silly thing. My confidence shaken, I start thinking about what exactly I'm going to do onstage when my name is called. I also start to think that this whole thing was a very bad idea. I imagine the humilitaion I am going to feel when I catch glimpses of the shocked and disgusted looks of the panel as I'm whirling around ridiculously.

My thoughts are interrupted by a man sitting a few people away. "Don't worry about ol' George," he says, "he's like that with everyone.....he thinks he has a chance to win but girl, lemme tell you, he so does not!" I smile and nod. I guess he was just a raving lunatic and not the director.

All of a sudden I'm no longer at the audition but rather walking through -30 frozen downtown Edmonton (reality check: downtown Edmonton is nowhere near the N. Jubilee) in my nearly-bare leotarded legs and ballet slippers being led into a secret passage by one of the other candidates who assures me that this secret passage will get us out of the cold and to my destination. Wherever that is.

Then I woke up.

Deutschland bitte, Deutschland!

Valentine's Day was a smash hit this year. I got lovely flowers and white gold earrings that J picked out all by himself! Mama decided not to have her some taco salad, instead opting for a big tasty burger and a margarita.

With that all finished for another year, my focus has now shifted to J's upcoming trip to Germany. As to whether or not I will join him, we still don't know. I will most likely not be there for the whole month but at a minimum I hope to go for a weekend. Sure the cost may offend my cheap sensibilities but sometimes you just gotta look at the whole picture. Why waste living in Europe because of a few hundred dollars? Unfortunately the only direct flight to Frankfurt is with a ghetto partner who shall remain nameless of the evil Skyteam. C'mon Star Alliance! Get it together and bust through this evil empire!

B always loves a nerd war so she is throwing herself into the haiku competition.

I live in Europe
My life is better than yours
Visit to worship

Just kidding, I'll be nice now......mostly.

Oh how lone I am
Without brainy friends like John
No one can compare.

Mama Wants Her Some Taco Salad

Happy valentine's day to all. Tonight we feast at Applebee's.

No really, that's where we're going because in a country where all you can eat is Italian food, the variety that a chain like Applebee's offers is quite a luxury. So while taking your date to this establishment may be considered cheezy or even trashy to some in the US or Canada, trust on me, it's quite executive here.

And it was my idea.

Happy birthday Sam and Andy P.!

A Half Day in the Life

I've been mulling over the idea of a doing a 12 of 12 like other bloggers I visit (him and her) but I've encountered two dilemmas. One: my life really isn't that interesting in pictures or in words right now and Two: A lot of what I do in the afternoons is on the base and there are many commercials on our military tv stations encouraging people to report 'suspicious' activity like other people taking pictures of things on base. So maybe I'll do a 12 of 12 one day when I'm doing something interesting, far away from anything American. It may not be on the 12th of a month though. So for now I present a small glimpse into the few hours in the morning/early afternoon that I spend at home. Enjoy.


With the exception of a couple of rainy days, for the most part I wake up to completely clear days like this one.

First thing is first: make the bed. If I go about my business somewhere else in the house knowing that the bed is unmade, the vision of the unmade bed gnaws at me like an angry badger. Note the lovely white with red accent duvet cover that finally arrived. The blue blanket at the bottom is for added warmth only.... I have no intention of making the red, white and blue color scheme a permanent thing. We need the warmth cause I'm too cheap to turn the heat on.

Then it is on to some light chores. Yesterday it was cleaning the guest bathroom.

Then the dishes. Or sometimes I mix it up and do the dishes first thing cause I'm crazy like that.

Time for some TV. Yesterday I was watching bits of the "Grammy" replay. I only watched bits because I was cleaning at the same time. I don't have the attention span to actually sit and watch award shows.

Then I go out to the Jeep and leave for my activities on base. Because I was sick last week, I have a lot of working out to catch up on. Unfortunately you can't really "catch up" on working out.

And that is pretty much that.

Sick Week

I hope in my absence you have all read and re-read my post on John's site. Sadly that was my only offering this week. I have been a bit sick and haven't had much energy to do anything, thus, not much to report. I managed to drag myself to the gym a couple of times and did a bit of practicing one day but other than that I have led a very boring life.

My only outing was last Saturday. We went to Catania with another couple in the hopes of witnessing the patron saint's day revelry. St. Agatha is Catania's chosen one and from all we had heard there was to be parading and fireworks en masse. Well, not so much. Apparently the previous night's football (soccer to us) game between Palermo and Catania (resulting in Catania's loss) provoked riots and eventually the death of a police officer. Yeah......wow. I guess it's not just Canadian hockey fans that can do'er up real violent-like.

So obviously the rest of the weekend's festivities were cancelled and we were left to peruse the candy and 8-foot-candle stands with our heads down.

It was pretty chilly that night so perhaps that's how I caught my cold. Or maybe I am still sick from the memory of trying a supposed Sicilian delight. Giant oversized lemons with 6-inch-thick rinds topped with baking soda and salt. Blech. It was like a tequila shot without the tequila. What is wrong with these people?!

Temporarily Deployed

Today I am posting here.