But, I'm rediscovering the equilibrium in my life and while I'm getting adjusted, here are some recent snapshots (or snap-videos) of life in the past few months.
Sadly, my German hasn't improved much since July or August of last year. I still look like a fool when I interact with my neighbors. For a glimpse, watch the video. Background: Heinz and I went to Austria for a ski trip before Christmas and decided to play a joke on our waitress and our stupid selves. Watch her face as Heinz orders five apple strudels while gesturing that he wants two. Note: the camera is concealed by a menu and my arm.
One of the coolest traditions I've discovered in Germany is the Christmas markets that pop up in every big city and small village in December. Essentially, wooden booths are erected in city squares and people gather every evening in the cold to drink gluhwhein, eat bratwursts and delectable sweets. It is a neat display of community in the midst of freezing temperatures. Heinz and I enjoyed the most famous one in Nuremberg.
A typical day of work for some of my Soldiers. I am the Platoon Leader of a Maintenance Platoon (43 men and women) and my guys are some great mechanics. We keep all the trucks and equipment working in the entire Battalion.
(Note: This one is a little graphic) While my Soldiers are mechanics in the Army, they are Soldiers first. I took them to the gas chamber in the Fall for some good training....inside the chamber, they took off their gas masks and were exposed to the toxic gas. The intent was to show them that gas masks work and not to freak out when we are hit with WMD type missiles.
On tough days, small things like this mean so much. I bought some ink cartridges from Best Buy online and when the package arrived (mailed to my special military address), this note accompanied the package. It was humbling and pretty powerful. I know the troops are not forgotten, but here in Germany my Soldiers don't witness the everyday support that US-stationed Soldiers do. So, thank you Best-Buy employee....your kindness meant a lot to me.
I'll be honest...sometimes I forget that I live in a foreign country. 65 hour work weeks with Soldiers can make me absent minded about the fact that I live in Germany. But, one morning, I was vividly reminded of where I lay my head. I was awaken at 7:12am on Saturday by this...!!!
So, there you go. Some snapshots of my life.
