Pictures
I just uploaded all my pictures, and I thought I would share a few here. I have been dying to test out the picture features of blogger, so this is the perfect opportunity!
This is the Ratskeller, which is a type of "city hall", has a restaurant in the celler, and is the home of the famous Glockenspiel clock. In the background you can see the Frauenkirche, otherwise known as the "onion domes."
Here is a closer shot of the Frauenkirche. I loved the way the branches of the trees silouhetted against the church, and I was having fun with perspective a bit.
We visited one of the museums while we were there, the Antikensammlungen (what a mouthful!), and this was one of the items on display. I was learning how to use the macro feature on my camera, and I just really liked the way this shot came out.
Since I dont want to bog blogger down too much, I won't post anymore pics here. I uploaded them to kodakgallery.com however, so if you really want to see the rest, you can go
Here!
I made it!
I just wanted to post a quick update this morning that I did, in fact, make it home last night. I am here safe and sound, and will be back to the normal routine today!
In Route from Germany...
I am, at this moment, on a plane over the Atlantic. I am in the middle seat, which I had both ways, and I am 4 hours into a 9 hour journey. The woman in front of me has her seat ALL the way down, so I am cramped, and can either type and hope I make no mistakes, or see my screen. Because of the angle, I really can’t do both at the same time.
So much for the unpleasant stuff.
The trip itself has been great! The weather sucked for most of it, but that was ok. We were at events held by the company whose open house we were attending for most of it, although we had some time yesterday to wander around Munich on our own. That rocked. I never thought I would ever get to go once, much less go back again less than a year after the first time. It was a bit surreal to tell you the truth!
We wandered around the city in the rain and took lots of pictures, and actually took the time to do some leisurely shopping, both window and actual. I bought far too much chocolate. Fortunately, most of it will go to others as gifts.
We also made it to one of the museums, as well as hit a few locations we missed last time. It was a lot of fun, despite the cold, since we were able to be a bit more casual about it. Last time we were trying to cram as much as possible into just a few days. This time, we didn’t have to hit it all.
I must admit, I am feeling pretty jet lagged at this point. I was there just long enough to get to the point where I was able to get some decent sleep last night, and now I am heading back again, to another time zone. Considering Munich was 7 hours ahead, that is pretty significant. I will be awake tomorrow morning, but I am not sure how long I will last. We shall see, and everyone can make fun of me to your hearts’ content when I am falling asleep at 3 or 4 in the afternoon.
Now, you may be wondering how I am able to post this from about 30,000 feet up. Well, Luftansa, my airline, is the first to offer on-board wireless access. Heaven. I just wish my battery life was longer!
Anyway, I will see everyone when I get back!
So many people, so many stories
I love riding the train and going into the city. There is the usual thrill of the hustle and bustle, as well as whatever event I am there for, but more than that, I love to watch all the people. You see them walking by on the sidewalks, going into stores, riding in cabs...And every single one of them is their own story. I can't help but wonder what they are doing, where they are going. Are they enjoying themselves, or are the irritated? What problems are they facing? What excites them, what makes them laugh?
It is even more fun on the train, especially at night, when you pass buildings with lights on. You catch glimpses of lives through open windows, a tv flickering, a vase of flowers, a messy desk. Never more than a glimpse as you fly by, but enough to understand that a person live there. And you will never know who they are, what they are thinking, what their live is really like. All you can do is wonder.
Think about it. You pass probably hundreds, if not more, people in the car every day. Have you ever looked over and wondered what that person was thinking? What did they have for breakfast that morning? Are they a morning person, or did they roll out of bed grudgingly? Who are they talking to on the cell phone? When that man waves his arms around while talking to the passenger, is he just like that normally, or is he really agitated over something?
I think that is one of the reasons I love to write. I can't meet every single person on Earth and hear their story, but I can try to imagine them. Character more than anything else is what I love to both read about and to write. Plot is important only so far as it is necessary to let the character grow and develop. And anyone who has read my work will note that I generally don't do a lot of "scene setting" as that is very secondary to me. I give you enough that you have some context for what is going on, but then I rush back to the character, to learn what drives them, how they are reacting to the situation.
The world is a beautiful, ugly, peaceful, chaotic place, and it spawns every concieveable type of person and situation. How can you not wonder how about it?
Mwa ha ha!
I have discovered the wide world of blog templates. Now I can subject you all to an ever-changing blog look and feel, every time I get bored with the old one!
Painted lines?
Have you ever stopped to think that, while zooming along at 70+ miles per hour, other cars packed around you, sometimes as close as a half-foot away, the only thing that keeps us from running into each other are painted stripes? How did this sort of behavior evolve? How was this considered a good idea? Were the first highway planners sitting around asking themselves what the best way would be to prevent crashes, and some guy in the back pops up with a "Eureka!" cry, and proceeds to outline how paint is all they need?
Think of all the other problems we could solve in life if the same principle applied. Someone trying to invade you? Paint a solid yellow line across your border, and you are completely safe! Prisons getting too crowded? Group them all togehether and paint a big circle around them. Much cheaper than a building! Workers keep wandering away from their desks? Have someone come in a paint lines across their doors when they get in, and erase them at the end of the day!
Am I the only one who is a bit disturbed by the fact that only paint keeps us from dying in a horrific car crash?
Belly Dancing
I have decided that belly dancing is the ultimate form of dance expression. It celebrates the female form, no matter what age, race, weight or boob size a woman might have. Every woman who tries it immediately feels sexy and sensual. And any woman who attempts it will usually get the immediate and undivided attention of any males in the room, or so I have been told. The only male I ever danced in front of was my brother when I arrived home after a class and wanted to show off the new move I had mastered. He told me if I didn't stop, he was going to gouge his eyes out, since that was not the sort of thing a
sister is supposed to know how to do. Of course, he said the same thing when I would stretch and do a few yoga moves to loosen up stiff muscles, so I take his opinion with a grain of salt.
In addition to the sexy factor, belly dancing is a great form of exercise. There are moves to work every muscle in the body, one by one, ensuring an overall workout. Plus you have the cardio factored in from moving all around constantly. So the more you do it to feel sexy, the sexier your body becomes. Perfect!
I actually considered joining a troop once, before my last job went to hell and I ended up dropping everything and moving north. Not only would you get to put "professional belly dancer" on your resume, it was a great way to get training to go beyond the ameteur level. What really stopped me was that the troop required you to buy your costume up front from a specified dealer. And while her costumes were of exceptional quality, they carried an exceptional price tag. For something that would be no more than a weekend job to make a little extra cash and have a little fun, it wasn't worth it.
Bottom line: I loved doing it, and I miss it. Rachel found a class that starts in the summer, and Liz mentioned she might be interested too, so I think I will ask them again. In the meantime, I will have to settle for dancing around my apartment when I am home alone on the weekend, making the cats wonder if I have lost my mind.
Have it Your Way
Ok, I am thoroughly amused by the new print campaign Burger King has on its various cups, bags, etc. They are actually funny, mocking themselves and the general way fast food restuarants market their goods. For example, on the cups:
Maybe you want a lot of ice. Maybe you want no ice. Maybe you want your top securely fastened, or maybe you want to go topless. Hmmmm? Maybe you want to mix Coke and Sprite. Maybe you want to let your cup runneth over (we wish you wouldn't). Whatever you do, make sure to have things your way.I'm not sure why that makes me smile every time I see it. And I just read the bag for the first time today, which equally amused me:
Getting fresh hot food is exciting. But for some it can be too much to handle, leading to heavy breathing, lightheadedness and in a few cases, fainting. If you feel you're getting much to excited here's what to do: quickly remove the contents of this bag. Hold it up to your mouth. And slowly breathe in and out. Once you've calmed down, put down the bag, finish your meal and try concentrating on other things like slow-flowing streams or sleeping kittens.I think what tickles me about this is the sheer randomness of it. It goes hand-in-hand with the campaign they kicked off during the Superbowl, with a rather abusrd commercial, and a theme song that took great pleasure in being totally ridiculous. If you haven't seen it, check it out
here.
All in all, I find I respect a company who can make fun of itself a little more than one who takes itself too seriously. The marketing department is showing that they have a sense of humor, and you know what, it works. I don't generally go to Burger King, but lately when I crave greasy fast food, I find myself thinking of them first. So kudos to whomever came up with this idea!
The Art of Self Delusion
I am beginning to wonder if everyone else practices self deception. I have had several conversations lately, which got me thinking, about happiness and optimism, and how hard it is to BE happy when there is so much grief in the world. I had a hard time answering that, since I am happy most of the time. But when I really started thinking about it, I realized that while I am aware of and live in "reality", I am very good at ignoring anything that makes me unhappy or upset, or any of those negative emotions. I just convince myself that they don't bother me.
It is kind of hard to explain, since I know the first reaction of anyone reading this will be that I live in denial, or that I am a bit "not all there." It is hard to put into words how I can be both aware of the bad stuff and ignore it at the same time. Have you ever heard the song 'Imaginary' by Evanesence? That is kind of what I am talking about.
It is not only a method of enjoying life, it is also a form of self-defense. If I don't like something, I can either pretend it doesn't exist, or convince myself it doesn't matter. For example: public speaking. In reality, it terrifies me. However, I simply tell myself I don't mind doing it, and behave as if I don't mind it, so in the end, I am able to do it with no problems. I think that may be the key: acting as if you believe your own deceptions, even while acknowledging, to yourself at least, that they are deceptions. But then, whether you believe them or not, if that is the only face you show the world, does that, in fact, make the deception true?
These are the kinds of things I think about when driving to and from work. It is a long, boring drive.
Is any of this making any sense? I guess that is why I waited so long to post it. It is hard sometimes to put a feeling into words, or to describe the different masks we wear and how that effects us. Or maybe I am the only one. Maybe I do, willingly, see the world through the proverbial rose-colored glasses, knowing the tint of everything is off, but choosing not to care, since while I can't change the real color, I can at least impact how I perceive it.
This is the Ratskeller, which is a type of "city hall", has a restaurant in the celler, and is the home of the famous Glockenspiel clock. In the background you can see the Frauenkirche, otherwise known as the "onion domes."
Here is a closer shot of the Frauenkirche. I loved the way the branches of the trees silouhetted against the church, and I was having fun with perspective a bit.
We visited one of the museums while we were there, the Antikensammlungen (what a mouthful!), and this was one of the items on display. I was learning how to use the macro feature on my camera, and I just really liked the way this shot came out. 
