yawn

so i'm trying really hard this tax season. i've been given a lot more responsibility, and i'm doing my best. but one of my bosses just told me to not stress out (i was pulling my hair out at the time) because, and i quote, "you won't be here in a month or so!" ha! i guess i never thought of it that way. in about two months i will be on a plane, bound to germany.

i've been doing a lot of online reading. expat blogs and the like. they all talk about the ups and downs of moving abroad. some have mentioned the expat "U". i guess that most expats go over to europe thinking that it's going to be all like the movies.... sipping wine on a mountainside, eating cheese, brats, bier... but after the initial euphoria, reality sets in! ahhh! you're alone, all alone, in a place with no tap water, weird rules, and old men that don't like deoderant!!!! i guess most people come back out of the depths of the "U" and enjoy their life for the rest of the stay. some don't and go home!

i hope that i'll be so lucky to enjoy most of the time we're there.

oh, but i must mention that i read that stuttgart (and germany in general) has a climate like that of the west coast, particularly like seattle, WA. argh! this is one of the sides of germany i hadn't contemplated. nate and i have argued often about moving to the west coast. i always say NO, because of the rain. i love the sun!!! oh, it's so warm and happy. it just makes me feel better to look up at a cloudless sky.

reality bites sometimes. nate and i just bought rain coats.

i have read of happier things, like the weinfest (wine festival), and Christmas markets, oh and warm pretzels, fresh bread, bakeries, fresh brats... and hopefully family. i really hope the german family likes us, or at least will talk to us a few times while we're there. that's what this trip is really all about for me. discovering my roots, going back to the place my Grandma (and most of my ancestors) is from, and hopefully becoming a better person for it.