Showing posts with label General. Show all posts
Showing posts with label General. Show all posts

Thursday, May 20, 2010

What's up!

It’s once again been a long time since a post, especially for me. I don’t know how it seems like we got busier, but I think about posting. The last few weeks we haven’t gone anywhere far, but we’ve been getting a lot done. I’ve been going to the arts and crafts shop a few Saturdays to make frames for our new prints and paintings we bought on our ventures. Nate has been busy making posters out of older pictures he had, with a few trips in there to get new towns and vantage points. Lots of new posters to check out on the website. We counted about 104 last night!

We have a fun weekend planned for an extended Memorial weekend. Chamonix, France. I think most of you saw some pictures from last time, but we are really looking forward to this trip. We’ve been thinking about all the places we want to go back to and places we can get other good pictures. Hoping for some sunshine and pretty mountains scenes. Osu doesn’t know yet, but he’ll be excited to go too.

In other news, Nashville is not happening anymore for work. We had planned to have our wedding reception after our work conference in Nashville, but Nashville flooded. So, we are still eagerly waiting for the decision if Chicago will be happening August 23-27th. We are very hopeful, as we need these hours of flying to extend our trip to see everyone. We are supposed to know this week, but no news yet.

In other more fun news, I’m making a GIANT cake for our work SRP Conference here in Germany. It needs to feed 120 people, so it’s either 8- 8x8 cakes or 8- 10x10 cakes. They will be two layers with the logo drawn in the middle and other fun stuff around the sides. I made a tester for work this week, and it turned out really well…especially for 10 pm. Maybe I can get Nate to upload the picture for me too, the small one for now. The real test will be the last week of June when I put it together and move it from our house to Graf, a lovely hour plus ride.

I’d like to say my garden is going well, but it’s hard to tell. We’ve been having lots of rain and little sun. The strawberries are getting flowers, but the pepper and tomato plants haven’t done much. It hasn’t frozen, just lots of rain. I can’t tell much what the blueberry bushes are doing, cuz I’ve never had those before, but they don’t seem to be growing much above the ground. Hope I didn’t plant stuff too early, last year we missed the whole planting time.

One more thing before I go… We’ll have Jef out here starting June 21st. We’re really excited to have him here and do some traveling; Amsterdam for the 4th of July is already waiting for us.

Monday, April 26, 2010

My car lives

Crazy how time flies. It's almost been about a week since my car incident. Last Tuesday was apparently going too well, got into work early to leave early, sunny skies, and a really good workout. On my sunny drive home, only about 20 minutes away, my car began slowing to a stop on B299. This road is like a county road in the states, frequently used by those living in the area and connecting several towns.

I managed to coast to a small break in guardrail and a lady helped me push my car the rest of the way onto the small patch of asphalt. We spoke in bad German and hand signals. She asked if I needed more help, a phone to call with or a number. I was al little confused about the number part, but told her I was okay. I have ADAC, like AAA, and would call them.

Hoping to spend more time with Nate that night, I left work early. I told him I'd be home about 5:30, so I called him right away to tell him I was stranded and I'd be starting my calls to Peter, the guy who sold me the car, and then ADAC. Peter was off in the woods cutting down trees, so I needed to get ADAC to check the car and then tow it to his house. Great. So, I call ADAC. I tell the lady I'm on B299 between two cities, but she doesn’t understand. I'm doing this all in German, but she doesn’t know how I can be by Pfaffenhofen and on B299. There are of course 2 Pfaffenhofens in Germany, maybe more, so I tell her the direction of two other towns near me. She becomes frustrated and transfers me to another woman. The second woman was much more helpful. I told her where I was and the direction I was traveling. Someone will be on the way, and I’m a priority cuz I'm in a dangerous location. Great! Have someone there in 30-45 minutes, maybe, then bring the car to Peter's home by 7 or 8, right.

I waited by the road for about an hour and a half before the first guy came. Either there were a lot of emergencies, or priority means nothing, I think the later. He checks the car out, broken fuel pump. Need to be towed. Nice, I asked for a ADAC truck that could tow to start with, but of course, no luck. The guy calls ADAC, says a truck should come in 30 minutes, okay, not too bad. I'm only starving and been walking in the dirt with my nice work shoes on, pacing at the side of the road bored.

Thirty minutes go by and I get a call, the truck is leaving now, and where am I? What? Where am I? I explain where I am in German again, I think he gets it and he hangs up. Another 30 minutes and he arrives, as it's getting dark. First he checks out the car again, then paperwork. After about 20-30 minutes we get the car hooked up to put on the flatbed of the truck. I think I'll be home in an hour, I call Nate to tell him I'm on my way through town, to Peter's, then the guy will bring me home.

The guy's GPS doesn't know where Hardt is...? I tell him I know the way to drive there, the way I always take. If he doesn’t know where it is, that's all we've got. We get into Lupburg, head down the hill, to find the road is closed, nice. No detour signs, so I call Nate ad he calls his boss. It's already about 9pm now, maybe later. We drive around forever trying to get there, through farms, back roads, several U-turns. We get to Peter's and unload the car, yay. Almost home. He didn't want to go back the same way thinking there was a short cut, so we get lost again for a long time. Half the time he's on the phone with his boss arguing. It's mildly amusing, but I'm tired and don't care. We finally get to the autobahn to drive to Parsberg. I have to call Nate to get me from the gas station because it took so long to get back. It's 10:30.

Nate comes to pick me up and takes me home. I have two hockey puck burgers for dinner and go to bed. Nate isn't a bad cook, just made dinner for me when I thought I'd be home at least an hour earlier.

I got to pick up the car after work the next day. Nate rode into work with his boss, so I could take his car. It's all better now, so I hope it stays that way for a while. What a pain and extra long day.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Car troubles and a few photos from the morning

I'll let Dawn tell the whole story if she feels up to it later.  On her way home from work tonight, the fuel pump in her VW Golf went out, bringing her to a standstill on the side of B299.  She eventually was rescued by ADAC (Europe equivalent to AAA) and is now on her way out to her car dealer/mechanic to have the car dropped off to be fixed and then she'll be on her way home.  This will end up being a long day for her.  Up at 4:30 am, out the door at 5:45, work all day, then deal with this on the way home.  It's almost 9 pm now and she still probably won't be home for another half an hour.  I feel bad for her and wish there was some way that she didn't have to do that drive every day.  When something like this happens, it just adds to an already long day leaving little to no time for relaxation for her.  Thank God we've got an extra long weekend coming up in Vienna.  We both could use the time off.

I also got up early this morning to go shoot some pictures of the sunrise.  It was nice, but not as good as I was hoping.  I also wasn't able to stay long enough to get any good morning light on the castle.  I waited as long as possible, but eventually had to load the camera gear and an extra dirty dog in to the Toyota to get home and then get off to work.  Perhaps I'll try this again in the summer when the sun will be up earlier.  Here are a few pictures from the shoot this morning:



Osu having some fun with another dog that was out early with it's owner.  Cool dog and a nice owner who was pleasant to chat with.  They may look like they are fighting, but they were actually having a lot of fun playing.  This is how Osu got so darn dirty.  And to think, I just cleaned the RAV yesterday.....



You can see the rest of the photos on my Flickr page

Saturday, March 13, 2010

The Comments Should Work Now

Have at it.  Leave a comment to let us know what you're thinking or to at least let us know that someone is reading this!  Thanks!

Monday, February 8, 2010

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 :)

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Long Weekend

Three day weekends are a welcome respite from the regular grind, especially when you don't earn a lot of vacation.  Usually, Dawn and I would be off on a ski trip this weekend, but thanks to my faulty knee, we're staying at home and trying to relax.  We aren't really people who can sit around for long, though.  'Cabin Fever' seems to set in for us a lot quicker than most people.  We like to get out and experience what we can and try to take advantage of these longer weekends.  We did plan to go for a drive today, but the weather has halted that for now.  Instead of getting out to take some pictures in the snow, freezing rain has started to fall, coating everything in a glassy sheen of ice.  It looks cool, but venturing out when it is like this can be hazardous.  The last thing I need is to slip and fall and break a hip. 

So, we'll sit here inside, maybe find something constructive to do and hope and wish that it gets just a little bit colder so that the snow will begin to fall again.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

A New Year - and a new attempt at updating this thing more often

I know it's been a while since we've been consistently updating this blog.  The end of 2009 was a busy one for us.  Things are still busy, but hopefully we'll be able to find more spare time to keep everyone updated on our going-ons a little bit better.

Dawn has settled in to her new job well.  It's a much more enjoyable office environment and the work, yes, there actually is work, is a helluva lot more interesting.  The managers are also much more accomodating to her driving situation.  When the weather and roads are bad, she's been able to work from home which has helped alleviate a lot of stress for her.  This has been a good thing, too.  Although the weather here never gets too nasty (at least not yet), the country roads do get slick and are usually low on the priority list of the snow plows.  There haven't been any big snowfalls so far this year, but even a couple of centimeters can make driving conditions hazardous over here.  The roads with no shoulders, the lack of maintenance, the agressive and self-centered German drivers.....it can be a bit much.  Accidents are common over here in the winter for the factors I've listed.  I feel bad that Dawn has to deal with this on a daily basis, but with me working where I do and her where she does and with our future timeline uncertain, it's just not worth it to make a move right now.

Speaking of snow and winter weather, it feels a bit like Christmas Eve for me this evening.  I love snow.  Love it.  For four years now, however, the winters here have been pretty disappointing for me.  The first two years barely saw any snow fall, last year we had a short stretch of wintery weather and this year has been so-so.  People seem to get excited when there are a few centimeters on the ground, but I want to see meter-deep drifts.  I want to see cars burried.  I want to be able to cross-country ski from my front door to the grocery store.  I want a blizzard to hit, immobilizing the town we live in for three days.  I'm weird, but I enjoy these types of events.  Finally, it looks like we may be getting hit with a storm tomorrow that could deposit six to ten inches of snow in the initial blast with a couple more inches expected the following days.  Yeah, it's not Buffalo type snow, but it will do.  The most snow I've seen on the ground in Parserg or Weiden is only two or three inches.  If we can get a foot built up, I'll be happy.  I've been watching this thing all week and it looks like it probably is going to happen.  I'll keep my fingers crossed!

As for me, I'm back at work now after being off all last month.  I was recovering from various physical ailments and just trying to get somewhat healthy again.  While at home, I worked on some photo stuff and wrote a manuscript.  The 55,000 word manuscript deals with my injuries and my suffering from arthritis and gout over the past 15 years.  I've told about dealing with these ailments from the perspective of my traveling and outdoor activities.  I've finished the final draft and now I'm trying to figure out what to do with it next.  If anyone knows a literary agent......

Because of me being all beaten up and broken, there won't be any skiing this year.  I was a bit bummed by this at first, but have come to grips with it now.  I'll deal, get healthy and go from there.  I may be facing another knee surgery, but that still hasn't been decided.  As long as I'm able to do some light hiking and biking this summer, I'll be content.  If not, I'll figure that out when I get there.  Dawn and I will be traveling with the ski club next month for a trip to Switzerland.  Although I won't be hitting the slopes, Dawn will get up there to slide around for a day or two.  I'll just be playing with my new camera and checking the town out.  We're looking forward to it!

Not much else I can think of right now.  I've got some stuff I need, well, not 'need', but stuff I'd like to get done tonight.  Playing more with the new camera, installing a new 2 TB hard drive I just got, doing some research on the literary world and some other things.  We're planning a trip to Regensburg this weekend if the trains are running to do a bit of shopping and to get some sushi.  Sunday, I'm sure we'll be out walking in the snow for a few hours.  This means I should get this stuff done tonight.  It is nice, though, to actually have some plans for the weekend.  With me laid up for the past month or so, things have been fairly quiet.  It will be good to get back out in the world again.

Happy New Year!

My first picture with the new camera:
   

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Down time or laziness?

Well, I'm sure many of you have noticed that there haven't been many posts lately. I'd like to say it has been due to lots of traveling or some crazy new project, however, the answer is no.

Since we've returned from our honeymoon we've been so busy with stuff. The stuff we like to avoid and put off. The stuff that's not exciting, but has to be done. Well, not all of it is not fun, it just takes time.

We’ve been working on all those pictures from Chamonix, the wedding and trips and the honeymoon. I know there are random ones in there too, but I’m still trying to finish the honeymoon to move onto those. Nate, on the other hand, has far surpassed my photos and been working on more posters for the wall.

I think many of you know that our wedding pictures came back from our photographer, so we’re trying to pick out which ones to print there too. There are so many good ones to choose from and then we must pick sizes and all that good stuff.

Another big thing we’re trying to do is take a break. We’ve done so much traveling up until the wedding and then afterwards that we’re tired. It’s nice to be in your own house or not far from home for a few weekends. We’re trying to do that cleaning thing, whatever that is too :) So much stuff. And for those of you who have seen our little house, it’s full, and much of it needs to go. Thanks to my brother who slept in the gear/wedding/junk room while he was here, and Jef who slept on the couch. It was a lot of fun though. We do wish you could have stayed longer.

We’re also working on Nate’s stuff. Need to keep on those doctors for notes to the insurance that doesn’t believe you need to be in the hospital. That’s a whole different can crap we don’t need to start here.

Anywho, we’re hoping to get back out soon. We have Rome coming up for us over Thanksgiving and then the Hinterbrand Lodge we head to in December.

As for now, Halloween is coming up. We’re heading to a party and haven’t decided on costumes yet. Maybe a white trash pirate, something scary with a big wig, or whatever we can find to throw together in the house. I did carve a Jack O’ Pirate.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

In honor of the opening of college football season this weekend.....

I've changed the color of the blog to Orange and Black. GO BEAVERS!!! I'll change it back to something a bit more moderate in a few days......maybe ;)

Just be thankful I'm not a Whoregon 'uck fan. You'd burn your retinas if I changed the blog to their school colors.


And, in honor of tonight's game.........




GO DONKEYS GO! FTDs!!!!!!!!
You may have to be from the Northwest or Oregon to really get this entry.......