A Little Fun from this Weekend

After the long trip to and from Switzerland last weekend, Dawn and I decided to stick around Parsberg this weekend.  We both needed to recover from our illnesses and we had a few things backlogged at home that needed taken care of.  Still, wed did manage to get out and have a little fun.  Here are a few pictures of Dawn standing in a field covered with snow and a couple of animations, something new I decided to try out for fun. 

Dawn in a Field

Animations

Interlaken / Jungfrau, Switzerland

'm putting this post up a bit late for a couple of reasons. Reason number 1 being that both Dawn and I have been sick for the past few days which leads in to reason 2 - a delay in going through our pictures because we've been sick. Actually, Dawn was sick on the trip to Interlaken and then proceeded in getting me sick which made for a fun week at work. While Dawn battled with a stuffy head and plugged-up ears on the trip, I whined and cried about my back and some minor to middling gout attacks that decided to pop up and say hello in a few joints over the weekend. Still, even with these setbacks, the trip was great. Neither of us skied, but we got out and about and saw a lot while in Switzerland. The weather, once we got out of the fog-magnet that is Interlaken, was spectacular.

The entire area as a ski region is an interesting one. Although Interlaken is the biggest town in the area, it isn't really considered a ski town. It is more of a summer retreat for the rich and famous and people with way too much money in their wallets. Although the locals were down-to-Earth and very nice and helpful, many of the tourists were of the highfalutin variety, noses in the air and ten thousand dollar furs wrapped around their surgically-tightened necks. Basically, the pompous assholes that I generally can't stand (maybe I'm just jealous). The ski slopes themselves sat high above Interlaken, spread out below the prominent peaks such as the Wetterhorn, the Jungfrau and the Eiger (yes, that Eiger for you Clint Eastwood fans). To reach the main slopes, one could drive to either Grindelwald or Lauterbrunnen, each town sitting on opposite sides of the Lauterhorn, where a train would then be boarded to take skiers to the small town of Kleine Scheidegg which sits right at the base of the Eiger and the Jungfrau. Or, if one was so inclined, trains could be taken all the way from Interlaken to Kleine Scheidegg. One interesting thing to note - the ski passes for the area covered both the ski lifts and the trains, something that was entirely new to us. The trains pulled an extra open-air car exclusively for carrying ski and snowboard gear up to the slopes while the people rode in comfortable and warm enclosed cars. Not a bad way to travel from slope to slope!

On our first day, Dawn and I took the train to Kleine Scheidegg and with a ticket we had purchased in Interlaken, boarded the train for the Jungfraujoch, elevation 11,333 feet. Although this is more of a summer trip for tourists to take, we're happy we made it. The views from the top were outstanding. Many of the areas that are open in the summer were closed in the winter for safety reasons, but we still did manage to get out on the snow and ice to snap some pictures. The sun was shining brightly, almost too brightly, but it was cold and windy - oh, and did I mention cold?

On day two, we left our hotel early and boarded one of the first trains up to Kleine Scheidegg, We were very unimpressed with the breakfast at our hotel and were on a mission to find something a bit more substantial and satisfying. We hit pay dirt at a restaurant right off of the tracks in Kleine Scheidegg, gorging ourselves on fried eggs, cheese, a croissant complimented by a huge spoonful of strawberry jam and three thick slabs of country bacon (I cheated - my first meat in a month). We also received bowls, not cups, of coffee for me and tea for Dawn. It was the best breakfast we've had on the road......ever! Dawn has pictures I can post later. I'm drooling right now thinking about it. After breakfast, I set the tripod up to take some pictures while Dawn climbed a very large hill of snow next to us, proceeding to do some yodeling from its peak and then butt-sledding down in the soft snow. We had a lot of fun that morning!

Day three found us staying in Interlaken, walking around town with other ski club members, checking out the sites and touristy junk shops. We were also on the prowl for a good fondue restaurant, as the reviews received from others about their fondue experiences the night before weren't too promising. After asking a local on the streets, we eventually ended up in a fairly non-descript restaurant across from the Interlaken-West train/bus depot and enjoyed a fantastic last feast in Switzerland.

Overall, this was a great trip and I'm glad we made it.  The bus trip was long, we both weren't feeling well, but it was great to get out of sleepy 'ol Parsberg and finally get back to the mountains during the winter.  I don't think we'd ever go back to ski this area as it looked pretty boring to me, but during the Summer?   Heck yeah. 

All pictures from the trip can be found HERE

A quick update on my back

A quick visit to the post clinic revealed that my back problem is not disc related, thankfully.  I was really worried about this.  Although not positive, the doctor is pretty sure that this was a freak accident.  I did do a lot of snow shoveling over the past couple of weeks and can honestly say that I really didn't concern myself much with proper shoveling technique as I tried to clear the driveway and sidewalk as quickly as possible before heading to work each morning.  I need to remember that as I get older, I need to give these types of things more consideration.  My body is a mess as it is, and although slowly improving, I still need to be careful.  I know that Dawn really enjoyed pushing me around in a wheelchair at the hospital in Regensburg back in October, but I really don't get warm fuzzies from picturing her doing that for the next 50 years! 

So, on the doc's orders, I'm at home right now working.  I wish I could do this every day.  It is sooo much less stressful than being in the office surrounded by the people I'm surrounded by on a daily basis during the work week.  My productivity working from home skyrockets and in my opinion, the output is of a higher quality.  It's so much easier to think and concentrate when I can have some music playing, the dog lying at my feet and I don't have to hear the incessant ramblings about who won American Idol or why Obama sucks. 

One other note - I'm thinking of switching from the German doctor back to an American doctor for my gout treatment.  I know what I need to do now and what path I must follow.  It would just be so much easier to go to the clinic on post instead of having to drive back in to Parsberg for appointments, sometimes waiting two to three hours extra to be seen.  I really like my German doctor and would still see him for acute attacks and my knee problem, but as far as getting blood drawn to monitor my uric acid levels each month and refilling my prescriptions, going to the clinic makes a lot more sense.  Plus, doc Warner is a great guy and a real pleasure to talk with.

Alright, the programs I need for work are installed - time to get back at it.  The harder I work, the faster the time goes and the sooner I can talk to my wife tonight :)

Another Weekend has Slipped on by.................

I've got to keep this semi short.  After a great, very early morning of shooting pictures with Dawn and Osu in the fog and the snow on Saturday, my back went out on me.  Sure, I had no problem breaking down boxes, packing up the recycling, helping dawn carry a 27" TV to the car.  However, just trying to move the already placed TV a bit further back in the RAV resulted in an extremely sharp pain and me crumpling over immediately.  After coming back home from dropping things off, I carefully laid on the couch in the most comfortable position I could find.  Later, I tried to get up.  It was nearly impossible and horribly painful.  We eventually did track down a doctor on duty (rare in Deutschland on a Saturday) in Velburg, driving there quickly so I could receive a shot of something and a prescription for some weak German meds that have done nothing to really alleviate the pain or help my back.  After a restless four hours of sleep last night, on the couch none-the-less because I can't walk upstairs, my back does feel a bit better today but not much.  I'm going to try to go in to the clinic on post tomorrow so I can maybe find out what's wrong.  The German doctor offered no exam and no diagnosis - just the shot and the prescription.  I know that the problem is not muscular and it's not nerves.  Been there, done that.  I'm afraid this is something worse.  I know pain, unfortunately all too well, and this is bad.  I'm pretty bummed about it.  The gout and arthritis has slowly been improving, my knee has felt better with rest the past few months - now this.  I'm falling apart.  I joked with Dawn that marriage has broken me :)

Anyway, we did have a lot of fun out in the snow in the early morning fog and we were able to take some nice, moody pictures.  After doing some chores after our jaunt down the road, we had planned to go back out so I could take some pictures of Dawn in some specific settings I had in mind.  The snow, the dark woods in the background, low hills off in the distance.  It would have been nice.  We may have to wait until next year now.  Dawn left on a work trip just a bit ago and won't be back until Friday.  Then, if I can walk, we leave on a trip for Switzerland with the ski club (I'm not skiing, obviously).  The snow is quickly melting away outside as the sun has made its first appearance in some time today and it's relatively warm.  It would be great to go out and take some pictures, even without Dawn here, but the three stairs leading down to the driveway look like Mt Everest right now.  There will be other days.

Anyway, here are a few of the pictures I shot yesterday.  The entire set can be seen HERE on my Flickr page.

Snow, Snow and more Snow...............

We woke up this morning to an unexpected six or seven inches of new, unforecasted snow.  It took me about an hour to clear the driveway and the street in front of the driveway before I left for work.  We did have a two hour delay this morning which means, me being a contractor who works for a company who could give a rat's ass about employee safety, could either take two hours of vacation and drive in after the roads were cleared or I could brave the country roads and idiotic German drivers in order to preserve what paltry amounts of time off I receive.  I chose option two and drove in at the prescribed starting time. 

Tonight, we are supposed to get hit with another round of snow and wind and what the Gemran forecasters are calling a blizzard.  I'll believe it when I see it.  I'm sure it will snow as I can see that on the RADAR.  Will it get as bad as the weather sites are saying?  Who knows.  I think all German meteorologists went to school in Los Angeles, learning from the best how to hype a tenth of an inch of rain and make the public believe the next Biblical flood was immenent.

Yes, this country has been getting on my nerves the last couple of days.  Germans freaking baffle me.  They portray an outer character of toughness and resilience and then whine and cry about going home early because a couple of white flakes are flittering down from the sky (seriously, worthelss lazy bastards).  Then, they get on the roads, tailgating, driving aggressively and overly aggorantly and generally acting like a sixteen year old American teen with a new license and a shiny new muscle car.  Hey, that's fine and dandy if the roads weren't covered with snow and ice and if I already weren't going the damn speed limit.  Back the F off, Fritz!  And, it's illegal to flip these A-holes off.  They actually are offended by a middle finger and will report you to the police for using it but are just fine with 80 year old Frau Schnitzel riding two centimeters from their back bumper while driving on a sheet of ice.  Makes sense to me!

Yeah, anyway............ her's a little photo montage of the snow today.  I'll add more if and when any new snow does fall.  At least I like the snow.  It keeps the Germans inside clapping along to their favorite TV shows of 1970s classic folk songs lead by some idiotic looking douche in lederhosen.

 
10:00PM Update.  Okay, a walk in the snow with Dawn and Osu helped calm me down a bit.  What a crappy start to the week.  I guess it can only get better.  Here's the latest update on the snow.  It's started out coming down pretty good and there is some bigger stuff headed our way.  Graf is on a two hour delay already for tomorrow.  Where I work is still saying things will run normally tomorrow.  If the past gives any indication of future actions, this means they'll institute a delay or close post AFTER eveyone has already shown up.  Working with the Army AND Germans sometimes is a bit too much even for the most patient among us..........

Here are two pictures I took tonight of the Parsberg Castle from a different vantage point in town.  They came out okay, but what you can't see is the blowing snow in these long exposures.  It made the pictures softer than I would have liked.  We'll have to give this a go again when the weather clears up.  I've never taken any good shots up there during the day.  With snow, it might look nice.  Bigger versions are on my Flickr page.