I AM EMOTIONALLY DONE

One of my New Year's plans was to do something with Joern at least once a week that didn't involve watching TV or surfing the net. Last night, was our first weekly "get out and do something" time. We went to see a movie- yay! The last movie I saw in the theaters was James Bond, which I will also discuss in a second. Anyway, that was over a year ago, so it was quite exciting to wear something other than track pants and slippers on a Saturday night, and go out.
The local OV movie theater here, OV means Original Version, and is the expat's dream come true :), is called the Corso. They sell only salted popcorn, and beer (not too OV) and play mostly American films. Turns out, there are some movie purists in the world who prefer to see a movie in it's original language, even if that means it is a foreign language film. The theater is pretty small though, and being that it is Germany, the few films they play are always at least a couple months behind the American premieres.
But, we did make it to see:


Wow! It was surprisingly short, but a total emotional disaster. Will Smith is an incredible actor, which he has again proven in this picutre. The story though was really difficult to get through. I had tears streaming down my cheeks for the majority of the movie. If you haven't seen it, the movie is set in NYC in 2012, which isn't that far off. The vast majority of the world has been killed off, due to a viurs, from which Will Smith is immune. Will Smith is probably the last man in NYC, who has not died (90% of the population died from the virus,) or turned into a Darkseeker (9% of the remaining population). His goal is to discover a cure to return the very dangerous Darkseekers into human beings. It is so eerie though to see him drive around a completely deserted NYC. That was the backdrop for this very eerie, almost too close to home movie.
I think it took us about 5 minutes before the movie ended to start talking again, which as you know, for Joern and I is a milestone!
Wow again! It was a really good movie, but toook a long time to recover from it!

And on to the other news- part of the new James Bond is going to be filmed in our neck of the woods. They are going to film a scene on the Austrian side of Lake Constance. This is so very exciting, as Lake Constance is also bordered by Germany, and is by far, one of the most beautiful areas in the country. Joern and I love going there, and it is so cool that the James Bond people feel that this lovely area deserves this credit :)

A picture of the set being built along the Austrian side of Lake Constance.

The good news is that this upcoming movie is not destined to be the tear jerker of last night!
Have a great week!!!!

A big welcome

To the newest member of our family, "The Five Series"



Joern officially decided that the Mercedes, which has been a constant companion to Joern for the past 4 years, was using too much fuel. Also, beginning in April, all diesel engine cars will be required to have a particle filter in order to drive into Stuttgart. Without this filter, after April 1st, Joern would not be able to get to many of his customers in Stuttgart, and he would be unable to drive me to work- even though I am thinking positively and will have my license by then anyway :)

In all seriousness though, we love the new car. Okay, it's not new new, but gently used. We have spent the past few days driving around, with the seat heating on, listening to the beautiful purr that only a BMW has. Since it is a standard, sadly, I will never be able to drive The Five Series, but being a simple passenger is quite a pleasure :)

The Five Series will never replace the Mercedes in our hearts, but it will help to fill a void left by the sale of the Mercedes (namely, the transportation void.)

What an exciting way for Joern to return to work for 2008!!

First post of the new year!!

Well, here I sit, on this 2nd day of 2008 with much on my mind. Joern, Marcel, and I have been back in Germany since yesterday, but since we slept most of the day away, today is my first official day back in the real world.
Joern is off looking at a new car, and I have spent the day perusing the internet in search of a new couch! All things that may actually come to friuition this month! Lots of new changes already for us this year :)
We had a wonderful trip to Connecticut, and I already miss it. I guess a year is really too long to go without going back home, I miss my family and all my old haunts. It was great to see my family, and I enjoyed spending extra time with my cousin Elizabeth. Sadly, I didn't get time to see friends, our time was just too short. But, we did get to spend a day in Newport, RI, and a day in New York City- two of my favorite places. We did lots of shopping, and lots of eating, both activities we now have to curtail here in Germany. It was really a great time though, and my soul feels refreshed.

It does feel a little funny to be back in Germany, even though I just celebrated my 6th anniversary of living here. Things look a little different to me. Like, the lack of sun here in the winter is actually depressing, our kitchen looks like a doll kitchen, and our apartment is really small. I can't wait to get outside, maybe go down to Stuttgart, and remind myself of all the wonderful things about this country too.

I have spent my morning formulating my plan for the New Year. I am not one really for resolutions, but more plans. I make these plans more often than once a year, but since I have a few right now, I will post them. Hopefully, by posting my new plans, and therefore, by making them public, I will have a better chance of sticking with them:

1. I will post more often on this blog. My Aunt Karen reminded me that I haven't posted since October, which is crazy. Even if nothing is going on, I should post. My dream would be once a week- don't hold me to that though, just a lofty goal :)
2. I will take better care of my skin- my grandmother's anti-aging regime (not washing your face) did not prevent wrinkles, so I've got to start tackling time.
3. I will go home again this year before Christmas. By home, I mean Connecticut, and not Germany, I am here every day.
4. I will buy toilet paper before we run out of it. I forgot to buy it before we left for our trip, and I am now trying not to go until after we go to the grocery store. Really, I wasn't this bad in college.
5. I will get my driver's license, because I am dying to drive my 3.5 l, 211 hp, gas-guzzling BMW 735 iL before they put a speed limit on the autobahn.
6. Joern and I need to find a hobby that doesn't involve sitting in the couch (that includes surfing on the internet, and the Wii). Hopefully, it will be an activity we can do together, like taking walks or initiating a weekly date- night.

I guess that's it for now. Happy New Year!!

A healthy Allison is a happy Allison!!!

When I first moved to Germany, I had romantic ideals about life. And for the most part, life in Germany is even better than I could have ever imagined. Unfortunately, life also came with it :) We have to go to work every day, sit in traffic every day, and pay bills just the same. I also found out that I am not immune to health problems just because I live in a foreign country.

I was diagnosed with arthritis in May. It took a while for us to find a rheumatologist that we were pleased with, and finally, 3 weeks ago, I began a serious treatment regimen. Until now, I have been mostly on pain - killers, which are a blessing, as without them, I would have little use of both hands. But now, I have started a series of injections which are meant to attack the actual arthritis. The medicine I am taking has some serious side - effects though, which has made the whole experience a little frightening. Because I must keep taking my pain killers for 6 weeks, the time for the injections to start working, the side effects can be stronger. I have to take folic acid supplements to fight some of these side effects.
Yesterday, was my first blood test to check for indications of the serious liver problems that can be caused by the medicine. The rheumatologist explained that the liver problems caused by the medicine occur early on, so I have to have blood taken every two weeks.
The great news was that my first blood test came back with great results - everything is a.o.k!!! I had my third injection yesterday, and I feel really fine. I think I am battling a slight head-cold, I am sniffly, but I think that is a side-effect of working with four year olds. Hopefully, all things will continue in this direction, and I can get some relief, and start to lay-off the pain killers.
This is a great start to our "Herbst Ferien" or fall break! Yay!!

My new good news!!!

Things here have been busy, but great. I have been very busy helping my friend Mandy set up the new apartment that she is buying. Saturday, we went to look at bathrooms and went to a few Home Depot-type stores looking at various odds- and- ends needed for a new home. Tonight after work, we drove to a kitchen store to pick out her kitchen. So much fun!! Tomorrow, we are off to pick out tiles for her bathroom and kitchen. Aahh, at least I can live vicariously through friends :)
But the Roesner family good news is that we just booked our tickets for Christmas!!! Joern, Marcel, and I will be flying in on Dec. 20th, so I hope everyone is prepared for the jolly German three! I am so very excited!!!

Payday baby!!!

I am so very excited today! I was finally paid today! True, I have been working since the end of August, but due to the lovely German pay system, I only just received my first "paycheck." Here, you´re only paid once a month! Crazy weird, I know. Imagine though, how large a monthly payment seems, then imagine the knowledge that you have to stretch it out for the next month. Yikes! Then of course, is the huge chunk that magically disappears here without explanation (that would be taxes.) I do miss the good old American pay stub that explains where your money went. The only deduction listed separately was my health insurance. Everything else simply went into this magic disappearing pot! How wonderful :)

The good news? The great exchange rate for the Euro :) And of course, the fact that tomorrow is a holiday here, and I have lots of internet shopping to make up for!!!

Celebrate fall- auf Deutsch!

Happy memories of life in Connecticut always include fall. Aahh, that marvelous season. School begins, the air becomes crisp, the smell of fireplaces used for the first time, and the beautiful lush forests of gold, red, and orange. And of course, the wonderful harvest foods- pumpkin pies, apple crisp, delicious acorn squash- just to name a few. Such pleasant memories!
Fall in Southern Germany is just as magical to me, yet in slightly different ways. School begins just the same, the weather has turned wonderfully cool, people have turned on their fireplaces, and the leaves have started to turn. Sure, we can buy lots of apples and pumpkins, but why stop there? Joern purchased 10 kilos (yup, that´s over 20 lbs!) of cabbage last week. He worked hard all weekend to make 7 Kraut Kuchen (cabbage cake!)

Okay, so kraut kuchen is like a cabbage quiche. It is so delicious, although sadly, because they are a lot of work, have fallen out of style. They taste best with another German fall favorite- Neuer Wein (new wine.) Neuer wine is wine that is bottled directly instead of stored. It´s like hard grape juice- delicious!!

Three Kraut Kuchen, some Neuer Wein and pear cider.
Starting new traditions, especially around fall, makes me really happy!