call me for free online!

you can call me for free anytime anywhere... ish. you can download skype to your computer and we can talk. totally free! remember though, that i am 7 hours ahead of central time...
go to the "call me" green bubble on the right side of the blog and click on it.

Fresh milk anyone?

well, i am turning out to be quite the bavarian (much to the dismay of my berliner friends)! the farm down the road has fresh cow milk where you just bring your bottles and fill them up from the container dealy and leave your 50 cent in the change jar... you have to be sure to drink it fast though as it has no preservatives. so we went ahead and embraced the perfect moment to make brownies and enjoy our fresh cold milk, coffee with milk, and even hot chocolate made with milk. i am dairied out!

Germany 101: Rolladens

eh? germans don't play when it comes to sleeping. they put the house on virtual "lock-down". most houses have these built-in outdoor blinds for lack of a better term. when these bad boys are closed, your room is now batcave-esque. no light is getting in. when you wake up, it could very well be next tuesday as you have no clue what time it really is and you just have to try to make out your clock (assuming it is a light-up one, which mine is not) to figure out whether it's time to join the rest of the world and it's goings on, or roll back over for another hour or three. i have to crack them a little or i would NEVER get up. i tell you, these people have their priorities straight...

Germany 101: Recycling

this is the part of the blog where i will share with you all as i learn the joys of recycling as a lifestyle. it is not an option and there are slightly more rules than when i lived in brookside and you simply threw all plastic, paper, and aluminum into a bin. no sir, there are specific days when you dispose of your plastic, other days for paper, another for "garbage" and the fun part is that they aren't the same from week to week or month to month. there are so many dang holidays around here so that messes up the whole schedule - one week it's on friday, then the next monday... who knows. it's all some big conspiracy filled with unspoken rules and loopholes so that when confronted by a four-holed trash container on the street, and i can't even read the words of what to put where, i just wait until i can safely assume no one is looking, and cram my bread wrapper into whatever hole is closest to me. the fine art of recycling is overwhelming and even with all of my visits here, i am still learning. some of your recycling is picked up, the glass you take yourself, beer bottles and plastic bottles you take back to the store where you purchased it for a refund, the food waste is separated into liquidy flushables and solid biodegradables (which stink up the kitchen) as they have no disposals... yes, this is normal and there is a very intricate system and i am silly for not knowing what goes where. if any of you happen to have any other tips on recycling here, please share them with me as i discover how to make the most of the limited resources and care for the environment. germans are very conscientious of this and i rather enjoy it, however dumbfounding it is to me currently...

Wilkommen aus Deutschland!

Hallo! i have now been here one week and two days - and it has snowed every one of those... but that's ok, i am adapting and becoming more and more german everyday. strolling around the frozen lake, enjoying the midday wine with lunch (outdoors), and opening wide the windows for the fresh air are a way of life here. and quite refreshing to be honest. i even have an apartment waiting for me in april, so in the meantime i am collecting furniture donations from generous people in the church and then, one glorious day i will head off to the one and only IKEA for all the rest of my stuff - including a kitchen! yes, you read correctly, i have to buy the whole deal: cabinets, sink, oven, stove, fridge, everything. there are hookups all ready. the germans just take it all with them when they move. homes do not even include closets, you have to purchase the wardrobe, or "shrank". wednesday is magic day, when i will be hopefully obtaining the all-important visa. my key to germany and what basically makes life here possible. i am especially enjoying the slower simpler pace before ministry comes in full force. i look forward to all that germany has in store for me.
"... if you run for God - you won't regret it" Psalm 2:11