Photohunt: Lazy

When I showed Brian the photo I was going to use for the theme lazy, he said, "That's not lazy, that's jet lag." And he's probably right. This photo was taken on July 4, 2007 -- three days after arriving in Vienna.


Technorati Tag: PhotoHunt

Small word, big difference

One of the many difficult things about learning German is figuring out which preposition to use. I used to think it wasn't such a big deal if I used the wrong preposition, but after a recent experience I realized that perhaps it's more important than I thought.

About two weeks ago I made my second trip to the Austrian equivalent of the DMV office in order to transfer my U.S. driver's license into an Austrian driver's license. It really isn't a difficult process, but it's not so easy either. Generally, to transfer your license you have to fill out some forms, make some copies of various documents, and get a physical then take all of the papers to the Verkehrsamt (let's just call it the DMV) and get the license transferred. But when you're diabetic like me, you also have get a note from a specialist, get blood work and see a special doctor at the DMV.

On my first trip, I waited for an hour or two just to find out what information I needed from the specialist.The second trip was much faster. I was shuffled back and forth a bit and finally ended up with the DMV doctor. He reviewed the note from my doctor and the results from the blood work and asked me a few questions. Fortunately, he spoke English, so it was pretty easy. When he was finished he said everything looked good and that I would receive a license in five year.

I couldn't believe it! I was going to have to wait five years to get a license. Actually, sometimes the rules are so odd around here that I could actually believe that I would have to wait to get an Austrian license. The doctor explained that I would have to return to the DMV office in five years and if the results from my blood work were consistent I would be able to get an unrestricted license at that time. He sent me down the hall to talk to someone else.

I was just about ready to cry. After all that work and I wouldn't be able to get a license for five years. But I held it together. When I talked to the next guy, he told me that I could go home and that I would get a letter in about two weeks and I could get a license in five years. We spoke for a few minutes (still in English) because I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to get a license now. Something just didn't seem right. That's when it hit me. Both guys had told me that I could get a license in five years, but they actually meant that I would be able to get a license that was valid for five years. After five years, they would check my blood work again and if I was still stable I would be able to get an unrestricted license, or a license that doesn't expire.

So now I'm just waiting for this letter, which should be here any day now. I'm still not sure whether it will contain my driver's license or if it will be another paper I have to take back to the DMV. But I'm pretty sure it won't be a letter that tells me I can pick up my license in five years.

Photohunt: Sad

I spent last week at a women's retreat in a small Austrian village. While exploring the town one day, I noticed a boy leading a young goat into the middle of a pasture and tying him to telephone pole. The goat wasn't too happy about being left alone and was bleating his little heart out. He reminded me a bit of Sharkdog, who also has abandonment issues.



Technorati Tag: PhotoHunt

Sewing advice

I found this quote while perusing the blog of my Sassy Apron Swap partner a few weeks ago.

This is an actual quote from the Singer Sewing Guild: A Complete Reference Guild to Sewing first published in 1949)

"When you sew, make yourself as attractive as possible. Go through a beauty ritual of orderliness. Have on a clean dress. Be sure your hands are clean, fingernails smooth --a nail file and pumice will help. Always avoid hangnails. Keep a little bag full of French chalk near your sewing machine where you can pick it up and dust your fingers at intervals. This not only absorbs the moisture on your fingers, but helps to keep your work clean. Have your hair in order, powder and lipstick put on with care. Looking attractive is a very important part of sewing, because if you are making something for yourself, you will try it on at intervals in front of your mirror, and you can hope for better results when you look your best.

Again, sewing must be approached with the idea that you are going to enjoy it, and if you are constantly fearful that a visitor will drop in or your husband come home and you will not look neatly put together, you will not enjoy your sewing as you should. Therefore, “spruce up” at the beginning so that you are free to enjoy every part of any sewing you do. "

I think it's great advice. It fits perfectly into my daily schedule: wake up early so that I can make myself presentable before my husband wakes up; prepare my husband a breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast and orange juice; clean the house and bake a cake; sew a new dress for myself so I'll look pretty when my husband returns from work; prepare dinner; greet my husband at the door with a kiss; enjoy a quiet dinner together while discussing the day's events; watch the news; then turn in early so I can get up the next day and do it all over again.

'Cause that's how I roll

Today I have a special treat for my loyal readers. After much begging and bribery, Sharkdog agreed to grace us with a post. So sit back and enjoy the musings of this little dog. I promise, it's time well spent.

The life of a miniature beagle isn't always easy. Sure, I have good looks and people area always fussing over me. But emotionally, it can be trying when people question whether I'm 100% beagle because of my small stature. Or when people think I'm puppy just because I'm small. But every once in a while a product comes along that seems like it was designed just for someone my size, just for a miniature beagle.

Last week Brian and Alisha bought this miniature computer. They said it was so Alisha wouldn't have to carry around her heavy laptop when she needed a computer on the go -- remember what happened to her last laptop? -- but I know what it's really for. Me. It must be for me. It's just my size.

Ah, yes. Now I can finally keep up with my stories on my own computer.

It may be small, but like me, it's packed with charisma. It has Skype pre-loaded and with it's integrated webcam I'm able to talk to my friends around the world without running up a huge phone bill for Brian and Alisha.

Why, hello there. Aren't you looking fine today.

To give you a better idea of the size of this miniature marvel, here's a photo of Alisha's Dell and my new laptop. Isn't it magnificently mini!


Alisha says it's too small to use as a main computer, but I think it's just the right size for me. For those of you interested in the specs, it's the Asus Eee PC and you can a nice quick guide on their website. (The page has music, so make sure your volume isn't too loud if you're at work.)

PhotoHunt: View

I'm participating something new. PhotoHunt, hosted by tnchick. Each week there is a theme and on Saturday tnchick and all of the participants post a photo along that theme. So, here's my first.

This week's theme is view and I've selected a photo of the view from our balcony. Brian actually took this photo, but I edited it. We make a good team.



Technorati Tag: PhotoHunt

Let's call this a learning experience

So. I was planning on harvesting the sweet potatoes a few weeks ago and was reviewing some websites about what exactly I was supposed to do. While reading through the troubleshooting section I noticed what seemed like an odd warning: if you give the sweet potato plants too much water, the sweet potatoes will be long and stringy. One website discouraged "luxurious growing conditions", which, I guess, includes daily watering.

So what does it mean that the sweet potatoes will be long and stringy? Well, here's an example:


I realize that there's nothing there to judge scale, but each of these sweet potatoes is about the length of a finger. And these are the large sweet potatoes. I found several roots that were the color of a sweet potato but otherwise looked just like a root -- no thickness at all.

So what's a girl to do? I decided to stop digging around in the dirt and let them grow a bit longer. I have potatoes growing in two containers and I only dug up one of them. I have no idea whether the other potatoes will continue to grow, but I can wait a few more weeks before I have to harvest them. Don't worry, I'll let you know.