WHASSSSSSSSUP? Blog.
Weather brought to you by Karmella: Summer.....
Exchange Rate: 1 Euro = $1.43....its a little better.
I know. I know. I have not written a blog in a week and I am sorry. I have so much new and awesome material too! I have just been ridiculously busy or ridiculously lazy.
J Lo is gone for a month in the states....which makes me VERY sad....but also makes me feel VERY sorry for N(2) (N squared).
J LO is Bette Crocker incarnate and I know the poor guy is eating....
......you know......all those things we eat when our significant other is gone....
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich's, Corn Dogs, Cereal, Cheese, and other random items like pickles, chocolate, a piece of bread...
So.....On Saturday night we invited him over for Taco's and Margaritas.
Right before he arrived for dinner, the German neighbor who got on my case for mowing the lawn on a German Holiday showed up on my doorstep.
His name is Yogi. Yeah, like Yogi Bear. Seriously. (I think its adorable and every time I say it, I SMILE).
Yogi came to my door and basically said that....he was sorry, he didn't want to upset me or cause trouble. He said that he didn't want any of the other neighbors getting upset with me and that he came to me personally because he doesn't like it when other people aren't direct. He said many of the other neighbors would be irritated with me, but they wouldn't tell me to my face and he doesn't agree with that.
I, of course, accepted his unnecessary apology, apologized myself, and told him that I was really embarrassed.
He asked if we were going to the FEST in downtown Oberdachstetten. I told him that we had forgotten about it, but that we would try to make an appearance.
So we ate taco's, had a few margaritas, and then casually strolled down to the FEST. This is how casually, I strolled down there;
I had on a gray zip-up American Eagle Hoodie, a pair of ripped up jean shorts, my multi-color swirl crocs, and a pair of knee high Gray and Pink socks that Queen Di sent me for Christmas one year. (Incidentally one of my favorite pair of socks).
Once we arrived at the FEST, we looked around for some of the neighbors we knew, but quickly realized that we didn't know ANYBODY there.
(This is one of those moments where you walk in to a place, expecting your party, or friends to be there, and your the dumb person looking around while everybody else is sitting and starring at you like you forgot to zip your fly....you know what I mean?)
So instead of being RUDE, since everybody saw us arrive, we bought a beer and then sat down the three of us. There we were chatting it up over a couple of beers and then I saw a neighbor we knew.
I happily stood up and hugged HORST. (You might remember him from the previous blog "ARMS walks with STICKS...sortive...") He sat down with us briefly, of course speaking German, which the three of us weren't smart enough to figure out.
(Many of my German neighbors just speak German to me even though they understand that I might not understand what they are saying, in hopes that I will have learned something new, or perhaps will learn more from them. The truth is they teach me the most German, and they know that I am desperately trying to learn it.)
He invited us to sit with him and Ursula. So we relocated to another table with Horst, Ursula, and another couple that are our neighbors, Reinhart and Ushi (short for Ursula). I had never met them before, although I have seen them around so this was exciting for me.
We all chatted and joked around over a few beers.
You might be wondering how on earth we are able to communicate, especially since I know very little German and they know absolutely NO ENGLISH. (Many of the Older Germans do not know English because they did not have it when they were in school.) And my answer is that....there is a lot of charades and pantomiming....but also....
There is a human element that is universal- our desire to communicate with each other and to be understood. That desire (in my experience) is more powerful than words, more powerful than language.
At one point, they were talking to LEGS about being a Helicopter Pilot. They said something about the noise of them flying over head.....
(Side Note: Many Germans don't like the noise the Helicopters create by flying low over their villages).
To break up the tension,
HORST ripped out his hearing aide and exclaimed ES MACHT NICHTS (Translation: IT MATTERS NOT!) Then he said 50 kilometer or 300 kilometer, MACHT NICHTS.
This was the funniest thing I have ever seen a German do. It reminded me so much of the silliness my Pops sometimes participates in. We all just laughed and laughed!
N(2) and LEGS decided to buy shots of Svedka for our table and for the band.
(When I say band I mean, a Trombone and Accordion)
So there we were with my neighbors who are 70-80 years old, can't speak English, taking shots!
Shortly after LEGS and N(2) went to hang out with the band a few other younger German's. And then soon after that, the FEST was over.
Next thing we know the three of us were kidnapped by the younger Germans and taken into this bar in Oberdachstetten that only opens ONCE a year. We were lead through a crowd of Germans, who were all watching our entourage, make it to the bar. They bought us all drinks. ( I have noticed the Germans are not happy unless you have a drink in hand.)
At one point I realized that I was surrounded by all the German men and LEGS was surrounded by all the German girls. As we both starred at each other across the room, smiled and winked, I knew that our relationship was strong enough to handle this situation, and frankly....it all seemed so innocent....and it was.
By this time, every body was kicking off and having a good time. The Germans were telling us how much they liked us living in Oberdachstetten, we talked about sports (some guy tried to tell me that boxing wasn't a sport LOL), politics, LIFE, LOVE, DREAMS....
At one point I had an older man, probably The Daddy's age, serenading me with Clear Water Revival....'I see the bad moon rising, I see trouble on the way...' It was really funny because for the longest time I couldn't understand what he was singing- the Germans tend to butcher American music- but then I finally realized what it was! And all I could do was laugh and smile!
Later on....one of the German girls that was hanging out with LEGS came up to me and told me she loved my socks. I said thank you. Then she told me she liked my socks like 100 times more. LEGS leaned over and told me to give her my socks.
I resisted momentarily because they are one of my favorite pair. But then....I started to think.....I know how hard it is to score cool clothes over here, I can always get what I need in the states.
So......
Right then, I took my socks off and gave them to her.
She raised them up over her head screaming and jumping up and down like she had just won the lottery!
I never felt so happy. I knew right then I had made a friend for life.
We stumbled back home and passed out.......
Guilty Pleasures:
Excessive Laziness.
Excessive Drinking.
Random Thoughts:
If another American that is stationed over here, TRIES to tell me the Germans aren't nice....I swear......
Just another day in the life of an unlikely military wife....**
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