Excersise Chick Gets Hitched!

Yay! Pictures of the Bride, the Groom, and the Cake.

Meeting the past

On Saturday, one of my oldest friends was married. I have known her since 1983. We were the town wierdos then, and we probably still are now. It was a very nice wedding, and a good time was had by all.

Sunday was spent at the always fun Knobels Grove. What a wonderful thing to be able to do--to bring your child to a place you loved as a child. It is a wonderful family amusement park, where things are still affordable and fun.We all had a great time.

Day out with Thomas

Hey, look at what we did today! Wendall had a wonderful day, and so did we. This was just after we had a 20 min. ride with Thomas actually pulling our train.

Wendall's face when he first saw Thomas was truly magnificent. He was soooo happy. He stayed happy all day long, and it was a really really long day.

Oh, and for my own pleasure we went to Waffle House.

Mmmmmm, Waffle House....

Esther Baby Cat

What can I say, I love my Esther cat. Pay no attention to me, though. It was 5am.

Oktoberfest

Goodness! Public drunkenness to an amazing degree. As one of our busmates said on the way home, "German's take their Oktoberfest seriously!"

This picture shows a beer tent. Notice that it has two stories, and that people are pressed up against the window. Notice also that people are clustered in front of the door, waiting for space inside. The beers were a litre eash, and cost $10. One of the people on our bus claimed to have downed 8 of them in a 7 hour period. He was finishing the last one as we drove home.

It's not something we need to do again, but we are glad we got the chance to see it.

Go West, young man....

That's right, it is time to head west. Master Wendall and I shall spend our usual way too long traveling to the lovely Newark airport. We plan to get going before the sun rises on the 19th, and we will be in PA that evening. Woo-hoo!

Weekend Events

On Saturday we traveled to Garmisch-Partenkichen , in the Bavarian Alps. We stayed at the Edelweiss Resort, and had a few days of fun. We were there to attend a marriage retreat, where we "discovered" that we have a healthy relationship. Who knew? The retreat paid for our rooms, our meals, and child care for the boy, so we did not complain. Hey, they even gave me a book!

We took the train to the top of the highest peak in Germany, and had lunch in a cafe on the Austrian side of the mountain (we get to add another country to our maps!). We had a wonderful weekend, and we look forward to going back soon. Wendall had a great time, going to the top of his first mountain, touching snow for the first time. Riding on a real train for the first time, playing with lots of new friends, swimming in an indoor pool, and having a great time.

It was unfortunately a cloudy day on top of the mountain, but we took lots of pictures anyway. Next weekend we are off to Oktoberfest, and then it is off to the States!

Wendall with his first snowball. We are in the Alps until tomorrow. We had lunch in Austria. 

Too much to ignore

Take a look at the links at The All Spin Zone. Take a look at the entire blog while you are there, but look at these links first.

The three stories tell of the things happening off camera. Hundreds of people are being rounded up and sent to camps surrounded by fences and patrolled by federal authorities.

My friend Ann had a post last week which made me think. This past week has made me think. I've discovered that I'm not terribly fond of thinking. Most people aren't. I don't want her post to be true, but I'm finding it very difficult to ignore what is so plainly before me.

Take a look at this photo gallery. It is one woman's account of the storm. She has some amazing pictures.

Ain't that the truth.... 

Wendall and Nulu. She looks so happy. 

Aaron Broussard on Meet The Press

Monetary contributions are needed. It does not have to be the Red Cross. Pick the charity or orginization which makes the most sense to you. Donate as much and as often as you are able, and don't forget them later in the year when the media has gone away.

Please also rememember that the government of this country abandoned the poeple in New Orleans. This week has shown me how little the poor are cared for in our wealthy nation. Crooks and Liars has video of one of the most heartwrenching interviews I've seen this week. It will take some time to load. The transcript is below.

Transcript, via MSNBC

MR. RUSSERT: And we are back.
Jefferson Parish President Broussard, let me start with you. You just heard the director of Homeland Security's explanation of what has happened this last week. What is your reaction?

MR. AARON BROUSSARD: We have been abandoned by our own country. Hurricane Katrina will go down in history as one of the worst storms ever to hit an American coast, but the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina will go down as one of the worst abandonments of Americans on American soil ever in U.S. history. I am personally asking our bipartisan congressional delegation here in Louisiana to immediately begin congressional hearings to find out just what happened here. Why did it happen? Who needs to be fired? And believe me, they need to be fired right away, because we still have weeks to go in this tragedy. We have months to go. We have years to go. And whoever is at the top of this totem pole, that totem pole needs to be chain-sawed off and we've got to start with some new leadership.
It's not just Katrina that caused all these deaths in New Orleans here. Bureaucracy has committed murder here in the greater New Orleans area, and bureaucracy has to stand trial before Congress now. It's so obvious. FEMA needs more congressional funding. It needs more presidential support. It needs to be a Cabinet-level director. It needs to be an independent agency that will be able to fulfill its mission to work in partnership with state and local governments around America. FEMA needs to be empowered to do the things it was created to do. It needs to come somewhere, like New Orleans, with all of its force immediately, without red tape, without bureaucracy, act immediately with common sense and leadership, and save lives. Forget about the property. We can rebuild the property. It's got to be able to come in and save lives.
We need strong leadership at the top of America right now in order to accomplish this and to-- reconstructing FEMA.

MR. RUSSERT: Mr. Broussard, let me ask--I want to ask--should...

MR. BROUSSARD: You know, just some quick examples...

MR. RUSSERT: Hold on. Hold on, sir. Shouldn't the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of New Orleans bear some responsibility? Couldn't they have been much more forceful, much more effective and much more organized in evacuating the area?

MR. BROUSSARD: Sir, they were told like me, every single day, "The cavalry's coming," on a federal level, "The cavalry's coming, the cavalry's coming, the cavalry's coming." I have just begun to hear the hoofs of the cavalry. The cavalry's still not here yet, but I've begun to hear the hoofs, and we're almost a week out.
Let me give you just three quick examples. We had Wal-Mart deliver three trucks of water, trailer trucks of water. FEMA turned them back. They said we didn't need them. This was a week ago. FEMA--we had 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel on a Coast Guard vessel docked in my parish. The Coast Guard said, "Come get the fuel right away." When we got there with our trucks, they got a word. "FEMA says don't give you the fuel." Yesterday--yesterday--FEMA comes in and cuts all of our emergency communication lines. They cut them without notice. Our sheriff, Harry Lee, goes back in, he reconnects the line. He posts armed guards on our line and says, "No one is getting near these lines." Sheriff Harry Lee said that if America--American government would have responded like Wal-Mart has responded, we wouldn't be in this crisis.
But I want to thank Governor Blanco for all she's done and all her leadership. She sent in the National Guard. I just repaired a breach on my side of the 17th Street canal that the secretary didn't foresee, a 300-foot breach. I just completed it yesterday with convoys of National Guard and local parish workers and levee board people. It took us two and a half days working 24/7. I just closed it.

MR. RUSSERT: All right.

MR. BROUSSARD: I'm telling you most importantly I want to thank my public employees...

MR. RUSSERT: All right.

MR. BROUSSARD: ...that have worked 24/7. They're burned out, the doctors, the nurses. And I want to give you one last story and I'll shut up and let you tell me whatever you want to tell me. The guy who runs this building I'm in, emergency management, he's responsible for everything. His mother was trapped in St. Bernard nursing home and every day she called him and said, "Are you coming, son? Is somebody coming?" And he said, "Yeah, Mama, somebody's coming to get you. Somebody's coming to get you on Tuesday. Somebody's coming to get you on Wednesday. Somebody's coming to get you on Thursday. Somebody's coming to get you on Friday." And she drowned Friday night. She drowned Friday night.

MR. RUSSERT: Mr. President...

MR. BROUSSARD: Nobody's coming to get us. Nobody's coming to get us. The secretary has promised. Everybody's promised. They've had press conferences. I'm sick of the press conferences. For God sakes, shut up and send us somebody.

MR. RUSSERT: Just take a pause, Mr. President. While you gather yourself in your very emotional times, I understand, let me go to Governor Haley Barbour of Mississippi.

Birthday Party

Today we went to a birthday party. Wendall was the oldest preschooler there, but he had a wonderful time. The three year old birthday boy had a train theme, can you imagine?

After the party, Wendall asked if we could go play at the boy's house someday soon. We have no playmates in the neighborhood, and the nearest playground is a long enough walk to tire us out before we could play. I have to start arranging actual playdates if the boy is to play with anyone. I had not realized how easy it was in Wahiawa. All we had to do was open a door, ad playmates swarmed. I think that this may be one of the big reasons people enjoy living on base. It was easier to just go out and play while we were in the apartment, even if the kids in the building were not terribly nice, at least there were kids!

On Friday, there was a bomb scare at the front gate of the base. Traffic was backed up for a mile, and it was impossible for me to get the boy to school. (The entrance to the town is just outside the gate to the base. The town was created when the farmers who owned the land that is now Rose Barracks were evacuated by Hitler. It is a reall small town, with two roads in and out. When traffic is backed up going on base, the tow of Sorghof becomes inaccessable.) It amazed me that after only four days of going to school, we were both upset that he could not go. We spent the morning trying to figure out what to do with ourselves, as it was raining. The afternoon was better, and we went for a nice walk. I am hoping that we don't have many days like that!

The boy up a tree. 

"How do you make this unhappen?"

Chris Rose, a Morning Edition correspondent asks this simple but amazing question.

I feel no real need to talk about the hurricane.
My spirit is heavy. I can not imagine.


I hope.

Too perfect 

Little boys

Ok, this was meant to be a post about Wendall's first day at school. Then I recieved word that one of my dearest friends has finally birthed her very own baby boy. Now I'm way too happy to actually write.

So. Wendall went to school. He did not even say goodbye to me because he was too busy trying to remember how to greet his teacher. (A hand shake while he says "Guten Morgen Frau Herbst.") I picked him up four hours later, tired and dirty, and very pleased with himself. The only thing that went a bit wrong was that he had expected to eat lunch at school today, and he is not scheduled for lunch until Thursday. Lunch smelled yummy, too. I have a feeling that I won't be packing many lunches for him. We came home and had pb&j and peaches, so he was happy, but I can tell he is looking forward to going back.

To backtrack a bit: Monday afternoon I recieved a phone call informing me that a spot had opened up at St Barbara's Kindergarten in Sorghof, and if I was willing to have him start on Friday it was ours. The school only accepts 50 children a year, and all of the spaces had been filled when we arrived, but so many people have left the base recently that a few of the spaces opened. The school has a mix of German and American kids, and everything is taught in German, along with English assistance. Wendall and I spent the next few days tracking down the paperwork and various items he needed before beginning the school year. On Tuesday, when I am sure that he likes the school, I will have him dropped from the books for the preschool on base. He has friends attending that class, but we will work on seeing them in the afternoon and on weekends.

A big day!

School time

Tomorrow morning the boy begins attending a German preschool. He will be taught in German and English, and will have a mix of kids. We are looking forward to this big step. Today we went school shopping, so he now has shoes, raingear, and other goodies to start him off right.

We went to a corn maze on Sunday, or a maize layberinth. Wendall had great fun at the maize maze, and truly enjoyed playing in the haystacks. 

We went to Vilseck's castle this weekend. Wendall had a great time playing with his sword and shield. 

Sleeping alone

At 4:30 this morning we were awakened by Wendall calling out for us. He had had a nightmare, and needed to know that everything was ok. We tried to calm him, and eventually brought him into our bed, where he settled into sleep, touching one or both of us for the remainder of the night.

We have been lucky up to now, not many nightmares have disturbed our rest, but as Wendall's imagination expands this will change. I still suffer from the occasional nightmare (the last was that I was trapped in the home of a militant anti-choice born again Christian. It was awful, and I only wish I was kidding.), but I know that I once had a few a week.

While pulling Wendall's little body close this morning, I thought about the sleeping arrangements in most US and European families. I realized how unfair it is that we spend our childhood alone in a bed, with no warm body nearby to help fight the terrors of the night. It is not until adulthood, when most of the monsters have been laid to rest, that we are able to cuddle up to someone and let their warmth and solid form remind us that we are safe in bed.

I had a friend in high school who had shared a room and a bed with her older sister from the day she was born. Her sister was two years older, and when I met them they shared a queen sized bed, or they had until her sister went out of state for college. My friend had spent the night alone for the first time in her life, and she did not enjoy it at all. By winter, she had started inviting people to sleep-overs every weekend that her sister was away. Almost every weekend she would have a few friends spend the night, maybe in her big comfy bed, maybe on the floor. She always looked happiest on Mondays. By Thursday she looked tired, the result of sleepless nights. She looked forward to college so that she could have a roommate again, and ended up very happy in a triple occupancy room for her freshman year.

So I wonder, what would happen if families shared space more freely at night. I know that there are issues with co-sleeping and "family beds", but I wonder how the children sleep, and how often parents are pulled out of bed in the early hours of the morning.

Not that I need my child in my bed every moment of every night, but it made me kinda happy to be in a big bed with two Wendalls and two kitties this morning.

Wendall in his new bed, hugging Doggie. 

Bush Polling Badly

I have not mentioned recently how much I dislike Bush.

I really dislike Bush.

It looks like other people agree.

We went to a Fest, with plenty of rides and food. This might have been Wendall's favorite. 

A man,a beer, and meat.  

Lunch at the Fest. Mmmm, pork! 

The Lego Prince 

This is the street in front of the house, shot from the boy's window. 

Playing With Fire

The Sun is one of my treasured reads. Each month the magazine brings me a new perspective on the world around me. When my copy comes in the mail (always a bit later than I expect), I turn to the last page for sunbeams and then I head for readers write. The rest of the magazine takes a full month to read, but those two sections are first. They help ground me for the coming month.

While reading "readers write" this month, I noticed that the next round af entries would be on the topic "playing with fire". I knew immediately that there was no time to submit my entry, as I had less than a week before the deadline. I sat down anyway, and the following essay was written.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Playing With Fire
(a love letter to my parents)

My parents make their living playing with fire. They are artists, sculpting metal with welder’s tools.

The fire that they control has allowed our family to live a charmed life. We spent my childhood traveling from town to town exhibiting at craft fairs large and small, following the market. My concept of weekend boredom included trips to museums and restaurants in Manhattan and Philadelphia. Weekdays were spent in school in central Pennsylvania, in an area where Amish buggies were a daily sight. Because of our frequent trips to the city I missed a few sleepovers and birthday parties, but I gained wisdom, culture, and work experience (not to mention an extensive wardrobe!).

As a child I remember asking my parents why they did not have jobs like those of my friend’s parents. I wanted to visit them in an office, play with the electric typewriter, and drink from a water cooler. I wanted to stay home on weekends and spend two weeks every summer on vacation.

Instead, I had parents who worked in the basement of our home. Weekday afternoons I would return home from school, dump my backpack by the door and head downstairs. My parents would set their torches aside, and we would spend time talking. Whatever problems I had were discussed. Whatever achievements I’d accomplished were celebrated. After dinner as I climbed the stairs to my room to do homework, they returned to the fire that kept us warm and fed.

I have learned that the sculpture they create, using metal and fire, leaves a more lasting impression than the stroke of an office typewriter key. Water sipped from a mountain stream is more refreshing than water from a cooler depicting that same stream. Weekends are best spent wandering through the cultural offerings of a different city each week. Vacations during the “off season” allow your dollar to stretch farther, and offer more time to spend as a family instead of as tourists.

Beyond all else, I have learned that my parents stopped “playing” with fire long ago. They have learned to work with the fire, forging a mutual respect, molding objects at their will, mastering the elements to create beauty. Through fire they created our family. Through fire they create life.

This is just funny. This was the beginning of opening gifts on his birthday (the 27th). 

Sunset from the third floor 

Declaration

"Daddy, I am a soldier boy and a Bookcrossing boy."
"Really?"
"Yes. That's what I am. Because you are a soldier and Mommy is a Bookcrosser."

Ah, it's nice to be summed up in just a few words.

Well they did say 90 days...

Our household goods will be here on the 8th of August.

It's a S.N.A.P.

It’s a S.N.A.P

Last week I took part in a class titled “Welcome to Bavaria”. It is a week long program designed to get dependents off base and comfortable in their surroundings. I wanted to take the class so I could learn more about the area, and so I could meet people on base who might be able to help me over the next few years. I achieved both goals.

One of the odd, but useful sections of the class consisted of visitors from many of the major programs on base. We were lectured on topics such as the wives (social) club, crisis counseling, and financial planning. Vilseck, like most bases, has a program to fill most needs. All one needs is a vague idea of the services they need, and it can be found (or created). It was a helpful few hours because we now have some idea as to what exists on our particular base, and have met the people in charge of running the programs.

One program did concern me, however. It is titled SNAP (The Safe Neighborhood Awareness Program), and purports to be a neighborhood watch program. I joked that it should be titled SNOOP, because in reality it is a program designed to teach you to spy on your neighbors. It was presented in terms of terrorist awareness, and of looking out for your family to the exclusion of those around you who are “different”. I found myself upset over the emotional manipulation used by the presenter. She worked hard on an “us versus them” presentation, and since 5 out of the 6 people in the room signed up (I was the nogoodnik!), I guess it worked.

The idea, simple and elegant, is that we log hours while going to playgrounds and walking our dogs. We must remain ever-aware for the terrorist threat! Remember that Germans don’t like us! We have been victimized, and need to protect ourselves. We can prevent attacks by being aware of our surroundings at all times. OK, fine, I can understand how some of this makes sense to some people, but come on, is there no room for living your life in a positive, open way and hoping that you are lucky enough to never have the bad things happen to you? Honestly, the fact that we (US citizens) have lived charmed lives up to this point does not mean that our lives get to remain peaceful and complacent. WE HAVE BEEN LUCKY, and while I sincerely hope it stays that way, I really do have the feeling that our time is almost up. I don’t like it, and I wish it were not so, but there it is.

My plan is to not spend the next few years hiding behind black-out curtains (yes, they are suggested by the program). I will not answer the door and tell the repairman that my husband is napping upstairs. I will not spend my time staring at every person who walks slowly past my house (at the top of a steep hill).

I will make it a point to meet my neighbors. I will spend time learning the back streets of my town. I will greet the cashiers at my local market, and I will sit in the playground and enjoy the time with my child.

I will not be held hostage to another person’s fears.

Wendall on the slide. This is in our communal back yard. Our house is a few yards away. 

I can drive!

The car arrived today. We spent the entire day doing car things and then I DROVE HOME!!! I have not gone farther than a mile or so at a time since our arrival, because I have only just learned to drive a stick, and I just did not feel safe. Now, with my fantabulous automatic transmission, I can move about at will! Oh, and just for the fun of it, I bought really BIG things and put them in my trunk. It felt soooo good!

So today had me thinking, why do manual transmissions still exist as anything other than a novelty? When color tv was created, people saw that as an improvement and replaced their b&w sets as soon as they could. When the tv remote was created, people again saw this as an improvement. Why is it, then, that an invention which allows the driver to see more of what is around him, while at the same time doing a great deal of the work for him, is shunned by such a large segment of the world? Why do people not want what is easy, and fun. Why do they demand stiff ankles, distracted minds, and overburdened hands? I just don't get it.

I love my car.

To the pool!

We went to the pool today. It was a lovely way to end a sticky afternoon, and we made it home just before the skies opened for an amazing storm. Wendall had a wonderful time in the water, and I had fun floating about. I suspect we will return soon.

In the morning we get to pick up the Buick. This is way more exciting than when we bought it in the first place. I can not wait to be able to crank up the AC and DRIVE.....

This shadow is cast on my bedroom wall at sunset 

This shadow is cast on my bedroom wall at sunset 

Dinner

Tuna pizza and "Hawaii Toast". 

It was honestly much better than it looks, but no, I don't ave any desire to order it again.

Artwork from school

Wendall brought home a picture from school. He had folded it and put it in an envelope as a "surprise". When we arrived home he pulled the picture out of the envelope and told us that there were pretend words on the page. These were the words he read:
"I love you Mommy very much and I love you Daddy very much. I drew these two pictures for you and I want you to be happy all the time. And I want you to be proud of me."
After wiping away tears and giving him HUGE hugs, we told him just how proud of him we both are. He really is just the most extraordinary little boy.

It's rainig again

The rain is back, and it is blustery cold rain. I am really hoping that tomorrow afternoon will be nice, as tomorrow is the boy's first day at school, and I am hoping that he will be able to play outside.

I have been really tired recently, as have the Wendalls. I personally am waiting for one uf us to catch a cold. We still have not figured out how the heater works, and it gets pretty darned chilly at night.

Raindrops  

We went to Prague for the weekend. Stunningly beautiful, and lots of fun. Thank goodness we had a two mile walk to the river from our hotel, because the food was rich and absolulely delicious. We all enjoyed ourselves, and we look forward to returning.