Day 58: Happy Anniversary, Ted!

Today marks eight years on the calendar that I've been married to my wonderful, darling husband. Like any couple who has been together for a very long time, there are ups and downs. But these days, there are more ups than there are downs. For that I'm incredibly thankful!

Today also marks the day that Ted had to turn in the EOS. While he is sad that he lost not only his convertible but his sun roof as well, he recognizes that it was a gift from God. A way for us to research whether we would want to actually buy the car since it was the one we were talking about getting if we ever got a "newer" car. We think that the convertible is overkill but we'd like to have a sunroof. That would be ideal! So they drop off the new car and it's VW Golf. I'm sort of happy that we have this car in light of the fact that we will be moving shortly and need all the space we can get to get our eight bags, plus food into it to transport to the new location, where ever that may be.

I spent the day doing some research for an upcoming trip and cleaning and blogging. Since we have an appointment to see an apartment in Plieningen, this evening and it's our anniversary, we are going out to dinner. I get to choose! I settled on the Amalfi Restaurant not far from where we live. But it's on an incredibly "chewed up" road. We have a wonderful dinner and toast with Schwepps Bitter Lemon (me) and a mixture of Fanta Orange and Coca Cola (Ted) - it didn't sound good to me AT all, but he seemed to like it. We also toasted with a bottle of Acqua Panna - my favorite Italian bottled water. The meal was excellent as it always is there and we had the place to ourselves since it was so early. The owner is from Naples and she said I have a "Napolitano" accent. No kidding! LOL! I got to speak Italian for a bit and that made me happy.

When we completed our dinner, it was early so we decided to go over to where the apartment was and check out the neighborhood. We rode around awhile and then parked the car. We walked around a bit and saw that there are several hotels along with restaurants and cafes all within a few blocks of the apartment. There are also quite a few stores for shopping, also within a few blocks. This will be nice in the winter time. I wouldn't have to walk one or two kilometers to get bread and other basic necessities. There are also doctor's offices, hair dressers and various other small boutique like places. The architecture is unbelievable and there's a gorgeous church right around the corner. (In all of the excitement, I forgot to take out my camera!)

We pull into the public parking in front of the apartment. We have about 15 minutes before Mr. Drascher gets here. There's a gentleman standing around and we think it is him (we don't know what he looks like, so we guess it is he). We ask him if he's the tenant and he doesn't speak any English. What? In my broken German, I try to ask about him writing in English. He just shook his head. Maybe this guy is an assistant to Mr. Drascher. He finally pulls out his card and it looks like he's an insurance agent. His name is Andreas Fuchs. What a name, huh? OK, maybe they have insurance agents come to the property. How the heck would I know what their procedure is.

Within in minutes another guy shows up. It turns out, he's the tenant and he speaks English. I ask him why he's moving out. It's a legitimate question. He tells me his wife's grandfather died and they were moving in with his grandmother so she wouldn't have to be alone. He said, "Family comes first". I told him I totally agree with that and applaud his decision. The next thing you know, Mr. Drascher shows up. There was a little bit of a conversation between him and Andreas. The tenant asks if we want to go in and we all amble up the walkway to the apartment entrance. It faces a piece of vacant land where a house will be built this summer. I ask how long he thinks it will be (not that it matters, I was just curious). He tells me the bathroom and the smallest of the three bedrooms face this area so it shouldn't disrupt with the sound. That's OK, I tell him, I'm used to construction.



It turns out there's doctor's offices to the left of the apartment building and a library opposite the living room. It should be quiet in the evenings. Perfect!

We go inside and the floors (and steps) are a speckled marble and the hand rails are polished aluminum. It is very clean and very nice. OK! He opens the door to a long hallway (keep in mind the tenant has not yet moved everything out and he apologized profusely for the mess. I told him to not even to worry about it. I look past all of that and I did. Mr. Drascher shows us the living room which is pretty small but then, this tenant has a TON of furniture in it. I don't think we will be having that much furniture in that room. We look at the kitchen and Mr. Drascher tells us it belongs to the tenant and that we could buy it from the tenant for 2200 Euro. YIKES! But, it has a pantry (which they curiously call "medicine cabinet" after the cabinets in the Apotheke), refrigerator, freezer, dishwasher, cabinets (of course) sink, hood and a high work table that comes with the kitchen. OK. I'll have to do some figuring to see how this expense figures into the grander scheme of things in the long run. The floors in the kitchen are tiled but the rest of the apartment with the exception of the baths are laminate floors. Easy to care for!



It turns out the light fixtures do not stay either but we can buy them from the tenant for 250 Euro. Another expense that I wasn't counting on BUT it sure beats trying to go out, buy fixtures, install them. It has to be more expensive than the 250 Euro!

I ask the tenant about the electricity bill. It's curious how they do the utilities in Germany. He pays a flat fee of 80 Euro a month. At the end of the year, he will get a final bill. If he hasn't used the 80 Euro a month, he gets a refund. If he's gone over, he has to pay the excess and then the electric company will then bump up the payment for the following year. That's pretty cool, except if you really use a lot of electricity, then at the end of the year, it can be a real downer! :)

The heating is gas central heating and is included in the utility portion of the bill to the landlord. That's good. The windows have plastic shutters and some of them are electric rather than with the usual European straps. That's pretty cool. There is a glass sliding door out of the living room looking down into a very small garden which is taken care of by a gardener and is included in the utilities paid to the landlord.

He takes us into see the two bedrooms and the baths. The medicine cabinet in the half bath will stay but not the one in the full bath. OK, another expense. But we could probably pick one up rather cheaply somewhere. How will that figure into the equation? I'll check Toom to see what their prices are and plug it into my handy dandy spreadsheet!

The full bath has both a shower and a tub. The smallest of the three bedrooms will make a perfect home office for my work and/or storage area. That's the extent of the tour of the apartment. We go down into the basement and he shows us a nice-sized additional locked storage area! Great, that third bedroom can be an office or small bedroom for guests. There's a room where bicycles are kept and they put their "gelbes sacs" (yellow bags) in the that storage area for the cleaning company to remove. The cleaning company cleans the common areas. He shows us the laundry room and it's doable. It looks like everyone leaves their laundry soaps and stuff in there and I ask him if he worries about anyone using his machine. He says it doesn't happen and he even keeps a hamper there right by the washer and dryer. These are stackable units and the room is quite small but it is clean.

We turn around and go to the opposite end of the corridor where the garage is. Here's where it gets interesting. It turns out there's two garages for each unit. But they are on hydraulic lifts to put one car in one garage, then it's hydraulically lowered to put the second car. The tenant said, if you have a pick-up truck, forget it. I told him we only have one car so it doesn't matter! It's pretty cool how they really conserved space. The parking garage is ALSO used by the doctors in the nearby building. There's a clicker to get into the garage and more than enough room to back out and go out front ways onto the street. Very cool, indeed. Leave it to the Germans to be very efficient with their space!

While I was speaking with the tenant about the distance to Ted's office and what the road conditions are like in the winter time, Mr. Drascher was speaking to Andreas. Keep in mind that Andreas didn't say too much while Mr. Drascher was showing the property to us, he pretty much talked to the tenant, which I didn't think a thing of...until now. I politely ask Mr. Drascher if Andreas is learning the business. To which he replies no, he's here to see the apartment. Great! I wish I would have known. I wouldn't have been so free with my speech and it would have been nice if Mr. Drascher disclosed that little bit of information. Oh well, if it's meant to be that we get this place, then we will.

I ask him if that's standard procedure and he says he normally does not do that but Andreas showed up early for his appointment. He usually leaves 15 minutes between appointments. I didn't understand that comment but I wasn't going to make a big deal of it. It is what it is.

He said that we would have to complete a questionnaire and I said sure, I have no problem with that. I asked him how it works when there are two interested parties. He told me both of us will have to complete the questionnaire and will be presented to the landlord. At which time, the landlord will decide who he wants to meet with. Apparently, he wants to see who he is renting the unit to and if he likes the family. If our paperwork is in order (which it will be), we have just as good as a chance as Andreas. (Ted seems to think we have a better chance based on Andreas' teeth. Go figure?)

At any rate, we left it that Mr. Drascher would send us the questionnaire later this evening and we would fill it out and get it along with a copy of the lease agreement from the housing office which is in English and in German.

We had to go back to Amalfi because I left my sweater in the booth and I really like my sweater! After stopping there, we headed home.

I sat down with my spreadsheet and did the calculations based on the electricity estimate the tenant gave me and all of the additional costs minus the medicine cabinet in the bathroom and in the long run we'll be further ahead with our monthly housing allowance!

The only drawback is that all of the money has to be paid for up front and it will be a tight squeeze until we get reimbursed for our shipping and expenses. After that we can breathe a little.

Now more than ever, we are depending on God to show us the way. We want to live where He wants us to live because ultimately, He has a MUCH better plan than we ever could have!

That's it for today. Happy Anniversary, Ted!

Day 57: Another Drive By!

Today was a day marked with getting the Blog caught up as much as possible and taking care of finances. It took almost the entire day. I also had to clean up the apartment from Sunday night and put away all of the laundry.

I received a message back from a Herr (Mr.) Drascher. I had found a place that was well within our budget, looked really good from the photos and is close to Ted's work. It's in the town of Plieningen.

He sent me a more in-depth listing information sheet that actually had the floor plan on it. I was in heaven! It has 1 1/2 baths - the full bath has both a shower and a tub! And of course I'm thrilled to have what they call a guest bath. It looks pretty small from the photo but I don't really care, it's an extra bathroom. It has two nice-sized bedrooms and a living room/dining room combination. The kitchen is small (as is all of the German kitchens) but it is fully equipped with Refrigerator/Freezer, stove and dishwasher. There are two balconies: one off of the living room and one off of one of the bedrooms. It appears to be light and airy and is relatively new: 2003! That's new for Germany. Some of the places we looked at were built in the 60's and 70's!

This apartment is in a six-unit apartment building and from the looks of it, this is one of the bigger units. The other unit looks like it's one big room (living/kitchen/bedroom) with a bath.

The realtor and I emailed back and forth (he speaks English, thankfully) regarding the unit along with some specifications that the housing office recommended and I want. We have to get a copy of the lease the housing office uses. I'm hopeful that Ted will be able to obtain it so we can send it along to him. While I was emailing the realtor, I was also emailing Ted to ascertain his availability to go see it. We determined that we wanted to go see it tomorrow night.

I'm chomping at the bit and wished we could go see it tonight but...it is what it is.

Ted calls around 6pm and wants to go out. But I cooked! So he came home and we had dinner. He wanted to go out because we probably have to give up the EOS tomorrow and get another car. One more month on the company and we have to bite the bullet and buy a car! That's another one of those things that's on my to-do list but is more up Ted's alley than mine. I just find him and he says yes or no to my selections. We have yet to call anyone, we're just trying to narrow the possible options.

I suggested we do a drive by of the apartment and he agrees but wants to have the top down because it will probably be the last time we can. I go along with it but I bring my hat and sweater, just in case I get cold. While the sun is out, it's warm but when the sun begins to go down, it starts to get cold. It's still Springtime here, not summer!

They were supposed to pick up the car today but they didn't so we got a reprieve and Ted wants to take advantage of it. He had taken all of our "stuff" out of the car and put it in a box in the trunk. This included my collection of CD's and the GPS. He pulls out the GPS and we program it for this apartment. We get there in no time and it looks pretty good. I think the reason it's so inexpensive (compared to what the base is offering and what we've seen so far) is that there's construction going on behind the property. I don't care about that. I know that they won't be working in the middle of the night and I can deal with the noise factor during the day. The price is too good to pass up for what you get!

There's a underground parking which is great. And it is on the first floor! Woo Hoo! I don't mind the steps...but three floors? With groceries? With luggage? No!

The only thing that I don't like but I'll deal with it is that it has a community laundry room for washers and dryers. But it also has a room for bicycles which is cool because I will be riding my yellow trek bike all over town! They will KNOW I'm an American with that bike! LOL!

It appears it's in a more populated area and there are stores close by. I cannot see myself walking two miles on very cold winter mornings...but I can see myself walking 2 - 3 blocks to get what I need under those conditions.

Ted said it's not as quaint as Filderstadt but it can't be helped. I reminded him that we really haven't driven around Plieningen to see what's there. It may be JUST as quaint once we check it out. He did notice there were lots of restaurants. Leave it to Ted. He's always thinking about his stomach, even when it's full!

Ted wants to see what the route is to the Kelley base but of course, Kelley is not in the new GPS (and her voice is driving me nuts). So, in typical male fashion he tries to find his way. It's not easy with twisty turny roads that lead everywhere and sometimes nowhere! We end up near this tower that we wondered what it was but Kelley base is no where to be found. It cannot be this hard. We tried to put in Ted's work address but neither of us could remember how to spell it! DRAT!

So I put in our home address but Ted isn't listening to the GPS lady so I shut it off. The ride is wonderful. He's getting a bit cold (I had my seat heater on and my sweater so I was warm and toasty) so we stop to put the top back up. Time to turn down that seat heater!

I was irritated with Ted and didn't even think to take pictures!

We finally see a sign that says "to Kelley Barracks". We take this beautiful country road. That's another thing...here you will find small villages interspersed with lots of farmland or you will see train tracks with farmland adjacent to it. There's LOTS of green here!

We end up BACK in Plieningen near where the apartment is. We follow the Kelley base signs (it turns out, Ted took a wrong turn - of course!) and we quickly find the base. It cannot be more than 5 kilometers from the apartment, a shorter distance than what he's traveling now and no jam-packed freeways! We don't know what the morning commute will be like or what the roads will be like in the winter time but he can enjoy the summer and the drive to the base...because it is a beautiful drive.

We get to the base and ask the security guard (who are all German) what is the address of the base. She could only tell us it was on Plieningenstrasse but not the number. If you didn't figure it out yet, "strasse" means street. It could be spelled like this or with that crazy italicized capital B: straBe.

Ted decided to program the GPS for the location and see what the actual kilometers are to and from this apartment. It's actually 4.8 kilometers! Less than half what it is from our temporary housing! This is cool because Kelley is where we get our mail and where we do our laundry (hopefully not for long)!

He wants to see how far it is from his office so we drive on over there and program his office in. There was a W in the name of the street Eichwies...something. I can NEVER remember how it's spelled. Luckily I have it written down so I won't have to.

It turns out the apartment is 5.4 kilometers from his actual work location. It's now time to go home but I requested a gelato from our favorite Italian gelateria. I know it's cold but I still wanted one! We stop and have our ice cream and then go home.

I get the listing document that was sent to me and now I want to translate the whole thing and see how the realtor's fee figures into the scheme of things. I find out they have satellite TV, a caretaker (whatever that means), and some other type of caretaker that didn't translate, and DSL! It's gas heated which is also good.

It turns out over the course of time we will make money even AFTER we pay the realtor, which is a GREAT thing. God really DOES take care of us!! Always! Better than we could ever do on our own!

After having moved so many times in the past four months, you'd think I'd be dreading it...but I'm not. I'm ready for it. I need to be a place of my own with my own things and my own bed!

I don't know how I'm going to sleep tonight! I can't wait to see it tomorrow night! I'll keep you posted and take photos then!

Day 56: Hohenzollern Castle

It’s an absolutely gorgeous day today! The sun is shining and it’s warmer than it’s been in a few weeks. I’m feeling better even though I’m still coughing but the coughing is getting less and less. For that I’m grateful! And I am still able to breathe through my nose! Hooray!

We slept in this morning and missed the time frame to get to church so we did a small Bible study. I made breakfast for Ted again and we decided that it was too beautiful of a day to stay cooped up in the apartment. After looking online for somewhere close by that we could go as well as be open on a Sunday, we found there were three castles nearby. They are all within 60-70 kilometers of our apartment. We nixed the one because it was actually a convention center. And we picked one that is further south than Tubingen. It’s called Hohezollern Castle.

We got in the car and darn but the new navigation system doesn’t show the town. UGH! Ted forgot his watch and I sent him back upstairs to look up the spelling because I may have misspelled the name when I wrote it down. I started playing with the GPS and found points of interest (POI) so I tried looking up Burg Hohenzollern and lo and behold, I found it!! I waited a few minutes and Ted wasn’t coming back so I decided to go back upstairs to tell him I found it. By the time I got to the front door, I realized I left my keys in the car. I saw that the window was open in our kitchen so I called up to him to let him know that I found the location.

By this time it was about 1pm and the Castle closes at 5:30 so we needed to get a move on. The trip there was uneventful and took less than an hour. What was interesting was that we were on flat ground and then all of a sudden we could see this castle in the distance. We knew it was the one!

The only fly in the ointment is that I do not like the voice on the GPS. Where was Julie Andrews? This woman sounded nasally, like she had smoked her entire lifetime. Ted has to see if he can change it so "Julie" will come back. I do like her voice!

We drove as far as we could and parked the car. We had to get a shuttle to take us the rest of the way up to the castle. We got round trip tickets so that we could have a way back. The trip up was around hair-pin curves but the driver, obviously having done this for a long time knew how to maneuver along the narrow road. It took less than 10 minutes using the shuttle. Some people decided to walk up various pathways to the castle. We didn’t want to do that because we’re slow and Ted’s knee has been bothering him, not to mention his foot.

When we got to the top, we got out of the bus and walked to the entrance. We decided to take the tour even though it was in German.

As we walked through the entrance, we didn’t know how far we had to go or how high. I think that part is the interesting (and exciting) part, you just don’t know what you’re going to see.



We climbed upward in a circular fashion. As we walked we could see a beautiful set of stone circular stairs that led to a garden below. There was a gate so no one could go down them but they are beautiful nonetheless.



Drat! Our camera’s batteries died and I’m frustrated with myself for not checking them before leaving the house. I’ll have to depend on my standby…my cell phone. But I knew that the cell phone would take bluish-hued photos so I was upset with myself. I thought perhaps there was some setting that I inadvertently hit at some point and needed to re-adjust it. Lo and behold, there WAS a setting that needed to be fixed! UGH! I wish I had tried to fix it in Tubingen. No matter, we will return there on a Saturday when the stores are open!
At any rate, I knew I would be able to take good pictures now, thank goodness!

We continued in that circular fashion and came to an archway that had a small drawbridge in front of it. It looked like the ropes were the original ropes used from centuries ago.



After going through the archway, we noticed that it was a tunnel, a large tunnel and it was cold and damp. The walls were stone and the ceiling was stone and was arched. The ground was cobblestones and it was hard on Ted's foot and knee but he's SUCH a trooper, he never once complained. On the left side were small windows that let the light in and on the right side were very tiny gated cells. At first I thought they were where they kept the horses but the areas were so small that Ted thought it might be where they kept prisoners. Creepy to say the least!



We kept moving in that circular fashion. I wondered how long it would take us to reach some sunshine and warmth. Finally I could see the light and knew we would be going back into the sunshine. As we turned the corner, there was another archway and we kept going. I wondered how long it would be before we got to the Castle. Finally we went through another archway and we could see the castle and it’s grounds.

It was well worth that trip through the tunnel!







We could hear music and we wondered if there was some sort of function going on today. As we went up the last incline to the center of the castle, to the left and down a few steps must have been a garden at one time and it had been converted into a place where people could get a bite to eat




We were told to meet in the center of the castle grounds by the cannon and wait for the tour guide. We noticed there was a group of people going up a stairway and we ambled along. It was about 3:00 by now and we knew the tour would take a good hour and we wanted to make certain we did NOT miss the bus going down this time!
As we climbed the stairs (we were the last ones to go inside), the tour guide took our tickets and locked the door behind us.




We were in this beautifully preserved room. It was small and there were about 50-60 people crammed in there. We were the last ones in and were able to sit on the wooden seats attached to the walls. Ted pointed out that almost everyone was wearing these felt slippers. I didn't see any when we came in so I wasn't sure where they got them or if we needed them. Not speaking the language can be a bear! I snapped photos of the room and the family tree. Notice the ceiling and chandelier. The ceiling is all wood and the chandelier has real candles in it. I can't imagine trying to light those things every night, not to mention the fire hazard and being burned! But it WAS gorgeous!






I just wish we would have bought the book about the Castle that was written in English before the tour so we could have at least followed along. I understood a word here and there but he was talking so fast that I although I listened intently, I couldn’t understand 99 percent of it. The tour guide droned on and on. He apparently was describing the castles rich heritage and family ancestry. Too bad we couldn't understand it. Oh well, we will pick up the English book on the Castle and read up on it before anyone comes to visit so we can be well versed in its history.

The next room we saw must have been the King's Dining Hall. It was exquisite. The tour guide said something to me but I didn't understand him. I just kept shooting the photos.




An elderly woman with a cane, pointer her cane at our feet and motioned to us that we should have slippers on. Well, who knew? And where in the heck did you get them. She realized we didn't speak German and turned around and pointed to the room behind us. At that point we saw the HUGE wooden boxes that were hidden from our view with all the people in that small first room. We trotted back to the box and picked out a pair for each of us. Ted whispered to me that he wanted a pair just like it. NOT!

We then went back into the room and I continued to take photos. That same elderly woman turned to Ted and me and pointed to us (with her hand, not her cane) and said, "Ist Verboten" which we understood, surprisingly enough! She was trying to tell us that photos of the interior of the Castle were not permitted. Now I'm REALLY bummed because I cannot share the beauty of these rooms with everyone.


We continued on into another room that was long and much narrower than the dining hall. It had beautifully hand carved cabinets along one side of the wall, and wooden seats interspersed with tall narrow windows. You could tell that the glass was very old because it had that wavy quality about it. Above the cabinets were square murals outlined with wood framing. The tour guide was explaining each of the murals but again, we didn't understand. I have to get that darn book now, for sure!

At the end of this room there was an angled doorway to an octogonal room. Again, it was gorgeous and I apologize for not taking any photos. It is almost impossible to describe the workmanship of these rooms. It must have taken years and years to complete this work! Ted threatened to take the camera from me if I tried to take a picture after we were told not to. So....no more photos of the interior just a description.

Onward through a small door into a hallway and then into another very small room with a bed. I mentioned to Ted it must be the King's bedroom. He said no, it looked more like the Queen's bedroom with the dresser and mirror that was there. The tour guide was coming up behind us and I politely asked him if he spoke English. Of course the standard answer is..."a little" but they speak very good English. I asked if this was the Queen's bedroom and he said, "No, it was the King's bedroom". He also told us that the King had not lived in the Castle for many, many years. I'm not sure what that was supposed to mean, hopefully it will be explained in the book. Another bedroom and then another hallway.

That hallway turned into another room that was more square than long. It had portraits of various individuals and I think one of them was actually Queen Victoria. There were several pieces of gorgeous intricately carved furniture along with upholstered settees. The ceiling was was hand painted with a floral design inside of wood frames. We think this room must have been the King's sitting room because when we turned the

We went through another long room to the end of the room and there was a circular cement stairway leading down. I'm thinking this was a renovation because it didn't look old. We ended up back outside in the courtyard. The tour guide then motioned for us to go into another set of rooms on the first floor. As we entered, there were swords and suits of armor. It's amazing that anyone could wear all that gear and be able to fight! It must have weighed a ton, not to mention how cold it must have been in the winter and how hot it must have been in the summer. I cannot even imagine.

We turned the corner and there were glass display cases of garments worn. The dress they had on display was exquisitely embroidered. The man's jacket was impressive and I noticed that the buttons were hand sewn! It's really hard to describe but
the buttons must have had a piece of wood under them because they looked hard but the button was sewn in quarters.

There was various gold chalices, silver pieces, medals and place settings. I wondered out loud if that was all that was left of the dinnerware. After going around and looking at all the "goodies", we came to the end of the tour. It was the king's crown under glass. It was impressive and I asked Ted if he thought the jewels on them were real. He looked and said that the case was electronically monitored so more than likely they were real.

Once back outside in the courtyard, we noticed the band had moved from the outdoor dining hall to inside the courtyard. It was slightly curious to hear Simon & Garfunkel in such an ancient place!



After going inside to the souvenier shop and getting that darn castle book, along with a few other goodies, we went back outside to look around and decided to have an ice cream cone to tide us over before dinner. It was getting a bit cooler and the wind was kicking up. It's time to leave but I wanted to snap some photos of the countryside from the perimeter of the castle.






We didn't see when we first came into the courtyard but Ted noticed it because there was a woman with a dog on a leash. It's a Doggie Bistro! The Germans DO love their dogs! After snapping the photo and having a laugh at it, Ted remarked that it really wasn't a bistro because there was no food in the bowl! In case you didn't know already, "hund" is the word for dog!



So off we go back down the winding road to the shuttle stop. As we go down the winding roadway, I stop to take a photo of the sentries that are above us and the sign that indicated that this castle was Prussian!




The ride back down the hairpin curves was uneventful. We got to the car and by this time, Ted wanted to have dinner. It's after five so I suppose he's right. He wants to have dinner somewhere close by. We ask that "nasally lady" where she thinks we should go. After driving around and not finding the place she suggested (probably because the little town was having a street fair and we couldn't drive down the street she told us to turn on). We spotted a place with tables under an umbrella and decided to eat there. We had no idea it was an Italian place. The name was Schwann's!

Ted has his favorite: Calamari with potato cakes. They are exactly like the ones my mother-in-law used to make and I remarked to Ted that I knew how to make them. These, however, must have been pushed through and extruder and then deep fried. My mother-in-law hand formed hers. This is much more efficient, in my opinion. I had tortellini. After all, it was Sunday and I needed my pasta. We also got a salad. We were suprised that it had Thousand Island dressing on it. While we were eating the wind kicked up and it started to rain, hard. Ted got a few drops on him from the wind but I was protected where I was sitting. The waitress spoke English and she delighted in telling us of her travels to the US (what she liked and what she didn't like).

By the time we were done eating, the rain had stopped and we walked to our car. It was time go home. We still had laundry to do! I had forgotten about it, until Ted reminded me.

We reached our apartment around 7. I told Ted there were a few things I had to do to get the laundry ready. He sat outside on the balcony and promptly fell asleep. It was not more than 20 minutes later when I called him that it was time to leave. We trekked our laundry basket and laundry supplies down to the car. It looked like it was going to rain again.

We drove over to Kelley but realized as we were nearing the entrance that Ted forgot his badges. UGH! Another trip back to the apartment to get his badges. By the time we got to the laundromat it was about 8pm. No one was there and I had all of the machines to myself. I brought along my computer so I could download the photos and get them cropped and renamed so I could write this Blog in the morning.

When the laundry was done, we packed up the car and went home. Of course it was now lightly raining and cold. He dropped me off right in front of the house and I unloaded while he went to park the car.

By the time we got everything upstairs, it was after 10:30. It's time for bed. It's been a very long day but a very fun day.

Until tomorrow!

Day 55: Shopping and errands

The only thing I didn't clean yesterday was the bathroom. I figured why waste scrubbing the floor, sink and toilet when Ted and I are going to mess it up again in the morning so I'll clean that when we're done using the bathroom.

We putzed around for a bit in the morning while I made some financial arrangements for something I have to do next month along with getting together a to-do list along with an itinerary to maximize the gas mileage! Our car uses diesel so the mileage has been really good. We've been looking in the "lemon" lot (the lot at the base where everyone puts their cars for sale when they rotate out of country or back to the states). They really aren't "lemons", they just call it that! I've also looked in the Stars & Stripes but we haven't made a decision yet on the age of the car or the make. Our top priority right now is to find an apartment. We have a scant four weeks left (the last four weeks both of us have been sick - first him, then me) so we did nothing during that time. YIKES!

Ted wants some breakfast this morning and since I've not been cooking because I've been sick, I make him some eggs. He's happy as a clam!

By the time he gets done in the bathroom, I've got the kitchen clean, the itinerary done and all I have to do is shower and clean the bathroom and we're ready to go!

It's still cool outside but at least it's not raining and the sun is out so I'm looking forward to driving around town.

We leave the house around 12:30 and the first stop is Bopple Bakery to buy bread. While I'm in Bopple getting our fresh loaf of bread, Ted ambles over to the Apoteke to get a pair of cheaters (he left his glasses here one day last week and had to drive all the way back to get them) so he wants a spare to keep at work. I don't blame him for that. He also wants to get knee brace to help his knee. They only have Ace Bandages but we'll take what we can get!

After we get what we need, we get in the car. I program the first of the three apartments into the GPS, we're driving by. Oh...and did I mention that last week we got our very own GPS. It was a TOM-TOM and I hated it, so we're taking it back today and getting the Navigon. It's expensive but SO necessary in a foreign country...or even in the US when you're driving out of state!

I think the first apartment is one that we've already seen before but I can't be sure since my mind is a bit foggy and the names are all so foreign. It is in fact one of the ones we saw before. It's on the third floor and the yard is messy. I don't want a third floor apartment. It's in Filderstadt where we'd really like to be but at this point, we have to really get serious about finding a place.

The next place is also in Filderstadt. But it's on the other side of Filderstadt. By the time we find it, we realize it's in an industrial area. We both nixed this one.

The final place is a townhouse in Boblingen. What is it with the German language? Everything is "dinger", "dingen", "lingen" or "hauf"! LOL! It's a ways away but it's near Panzer base where we have to go to exchange the GPS. We find the place and it has a garage and it looks like it has a small back yard (or garden - as they are called here). We can't see it because it looks like the garden is over the garage, much like the garden over the garage at the clinic. I'm not crazy about the front of the townhouse but there is a minimum of steps from the street (about 3 or 4) to the door. It wouldn't be my first choice so we've decided to bite the bullet and get a realtor. It appears the housing office doesn't get really quality properties. In addition, the guy that seemed to be so helpful told my husband that he cannot give us names of the landlords to make appointments directly that we had to PHYSICALLY come into the office and sit there while they make the appointments. How incredibly inefficient is that? I just don't understand why this cannot be done over the phone. It's almost as if they don't want to do any follow up whatsoever.

I'll be checking the online apartment listings tonight when we get home and putting an email out to Frau Brunhilde tonight.

While we are disappointed with our drive bys we know that God has a plan and that He will provide a place in His timing. We just have to be open to the opportunities that are placed in front of us. We decided to expand our areas and look in an area that my husband and I seemed to like that is near the Kelley base. It's called Plieningen. We drove around there a few weeks ago and it looks doable.

Off we go to Panzer to take the Tom-Tom back and do a small amount of shopping. Luckily we do not have to go back to the apartment because nothing that we are buying has to be refrigerated!

We do some banking at the ATM (getting Euros and Dollars) for the week. Ted gets paid every Friday. Of course he finds that weird but he told me that because M.C. Dean is actually a construction company (mainly electricians), they depend on that weekly paycheck. It's ok with me either way - whether it's every two weeks or weekly, it doesn't matter...it's a paycheck and one that we hadn't been getting for a very long time!

We decide on the Navigon and it turns out it's cheaper than the Tom-Tom! YEAH! After getting our purchases and dropping off a letter in the US mailbox, we're off to look for the shoe store.

My daughter told me about these shoes that are great walking shoes and that I should invest in a pair. I went online and found a place in Stuttgart that sells them. I've had the address for several weeks but have not been well enough to even attempt to go look for a pair of shoes. We finally find the place only to find out they are closed. It turns out they are only open until 1pm on Saturday! What the heck!

Ted has been wanting to show me the local "Mall". I'm a bit curious as to what constitutes "Mall" in Stuttgart. And since it's nearby, we decide to trek on. It's only 4pm so the stores will be open for a few more hours, not that I'm in the market to buy anything but it's fun to window shop and I'm feeling good so why not?

Ted points out the Mall and we decide to park in the underground parking lot. We have to turn around somehow to be facing the right direction to get into the parking area. We finally get inside and drive down, down, down a circular ramp to the first parking area. We park the car and find the elevators to go up to the Mall area. It's two stories high and very small compared to some of the mega malls we have in the states but VERY large for Germany by comparison. We go up to the second floor because we wanted to check on our phone.

Ted was able to get the unlock code for my phone so I could use it here but they don't have the nice floor plan directionals that we have in the states. They just list what store is on what floor. After walking around in a daze looking for this Vodafone store, we decided to get a gelato before looking again. We sit with our Nocciola (Hazelnut) gelato and eat. Now both of us need to use the restroom. It turns out the restrooms are way down in the parking area. How lame is that? So off we go again in the elevator down to the parking garage where the restrooms are located.

We go back up to the second floor and finally find the Vodafone store and go inside. The girl was not helpful at all. Ted was told that if he had the unlock code, any of the services in Germany would be able to unlock the phone and get us access. She would not do it. Perhaps Ted's info was incorrect. We did speak with salesperson at the base who said she could do it if she had the unlock code. We will be going back to the base to handle this issue but not tonight. Ted asks the girl about their Internet service and gets some information about that for when we move into our permanent apartment...or should I say semi-permanent apartment.

We walk back down the corridor and I spot a little store I want to go into. It has girlie things and I'm wondering if I can pick up a trinket or two for my girls. I find a few things and make my purchases.

By this time, Ted is, of course starving again! He wants to try one of the restaurants in the Mall. I just go along for the ride. So we go into this restaurant that looked all but deserted (it was only a little after 5 by this time). As we walk in, this tall black man with a straw cowboy hat comes out of a hallway. I don't know if he's part of the restaurant or just a patron. He starts talking to the mannequin that's holding up a tri-pod where the restaurant would place the menu for the day or something. There's nothing there but this black guy is having this conversation with this mannequin (in English, of course) and Ted and I are chuckling. I don't know if he's been drinking or he just wants to be funny.

Finally, the waiter comes over and the black guy's conversation with the mannequin is curtailed. He shows us to a table and we are the only people in the restaurant. It sounds like there's a party going on in a back room somewhere but we only see a few people here and there. They have an outdoor area where you can sit under HUGE umbrellas in comfortable wicker chairs with tables. Of course, I nixed that because it's still cold and I don't want to get sick again.

We both decide on a salad with grilled pork medallions and potato cakes. Finally, they have Iced Tea! Hooray! I get to have my favorite drink. Maybe they will have it in the summer time!

The one thing we noticed about dining out in Germany is that the Germans let you take as long as you like to finish your meal and sit and chat. Sometimes to our dismay when we want to leave because we end up having to call the waiter/waitress over to give us the bill. And what's different here is that the waiter/waitress is ALWAYS the cashier. They carry this little purse around with them and they give you change right at the table. You don't leave a tip on the table, that's not done here. You give the tip directly to the waiter when you pay the bill. I still haven't figured out what's appropriate in the way of tipping and I think we have been over-tipping because we use the states rules. I have to find that out somehow. I'll have to look on the Ex-patriots website to see what they have to say about it.

Our meal comes and Ted is always amazed at the salad. He says it looks like they just went out into the garden and picked the greens and plopped them on the plate. I guess that's how you can tell if it's fresh or not. At any rate, the salad was terrific, the potato cakes were great and the pork was OK. They grilled it alright...on a griddle, not on fire. I guess I'm just going to have to wait to get to the states to get a fire-grilled piece of meat. Not that I need it or anything, it's just nice to know you can get it. Outback, here I come! LOL!

I'm starting to get tired and my voice is starting to go so it's time to cart our stuff home and go to bed.

Tomorrow is another day and this one was great!

Day 54: Feeling better!

Since I've been sick, my posts have been sparse and for that I apologize. It occurred to me that although I'm keeping track of the days, the dates that are published on the Blog are not the days that correspond with the days (i.e. Day 53 etc). To correct my shortcoming in not giving you the dates, today is Friday, May 15.

I'm happy to say the housing office has been sending me copies of the housing available. Ted was able to get addresses for me and we are planning "drive bys" on Saturday. I feel so much better. Ted has been calling me every day and he can tell by my voice how well I'm doing. He says I sound really good today. I FEEL really good today.

I've even felt good enough to make up a "to do" list of things I haven't gotten done over the past two weeks. It's really a pain when you're sick. You don't want to do anything so nothing gets done and as a consequence, things pile up!

I feel SO good that I'm cleaning the apartment (on my own without Ted's help) and getting the laundry ready for going to the base! It's taking me a little longer because I don't think my lungs are 100 percent but I'm SO much better today than yesterday and I imagine it's only going to get better. I'm still coughing but other than in the morning when I get up, it's a dry cough. I'm happy with that. The Juice Plus+ is DEFINITELY kicking in! Thank goodness.

I forgot to mention in yesterday's blog that we stopped by the Klinik because Ted wanted me to get another round of antibiotics. The klinik was closed. Apparently the klinik is only open on the weekends! It's for the best though because I'd rather have my body heal itself than to depend on antibiotics all the time.

I'm excited because the apartment is spotless, I have dinner ready and we have a little dinner and can just hang out here until it's time to go to bed. Ted was a little late due to the project he's working on. They have to turn it over to the military on June 1 and they are working on top of one another to get it done. It doesn't help that the officer in charge decided to cut 30 days from the project making everyone scramble!

Tomorrow is Saturday and there are tons of errands that need to be done, not to mention the "drive bys"

Until tomorrow!

Day 53: Dining Out.

Although the day started out rainy, it turned to clouds and it's still chilly.

I'm feeling SO much better!! I think getting rid of the Alka Seltzer and just taking Advil allowed my body to really rest. I think my double dose of Juice Plus+ is kicking in! HOORAY! Now if the weather would get better it would be terrific!

Although I'm feeling better, I'm still tired and not doing much of anything other than keeping the place neat and tidy and making sure the dishes are washed and put away.

Ted doesn't want me to cook tonight so we are going out to dinner. I'm not sure if that's wise given the weather and how poorly I've felt in the past but I've got to get out of this apartment. I'm getting stir crazy.

We decide to try a local place that serves traditional German fare. The one "Julie Andrews" recommended doesn't seem to exist so we look around and find a tavern that serves food. They have an outdoor dining area and had I felt good, I would have rather sat outside but neither of us want to chance me getting worse when I'm finally starting to feel better.

We go inside and it's very rustic. The waitress realizes we don't speak much German so she speaks in English. She says she speaks a little English. Her English is better than my German right now. Since I've been sick, I've not touched my German studies. You can't think when you're head is congested and you're coughing like crazy.

She brings a menu in English! HOORAY! I chose to eat something that I KNEW what it was rather than be brave and try something new. Ted is the opposite, he'll try anything once. I'm not a big fan of the bratwurst and it seems that's all the Germans make...either in Pork or Veal or Beef. UGH! So I opt for the Cheese "Spaetzle" (pronounced spet-zel) with onions. Spaetzle is one inch egg noodles. I've seen them made and I think I could make them myself but why bother when you can buy them ready-made! I wanted Iced Tea but it appears few places make tea so I settle for Stilles Wasser (Plain Water). Ted orders a beer that's made in house. If it's not beer or soda, the Germans don't drink it! LOL!

The beer and water comes and Ted sips his. He says it's incredibly smooth and that it would be very, very difficult to find a beer this good in the US. He reminded me of the night we went to dinner on his birthday. The German guy sitting next to us, ordered a Miller Lite. Ted just shook his head. He could not believe with all of the GREAT beer in Germany, someone would actually order an American beer. What a waste of money!

Ted orders Brautworst with mustard and a Bretzel. My order arrives first. He says it looks really good. And of course it is! My appetite is not normal and I can barely eat half of what's on my plate.

When the waitress arrives with a turreen and a plate with a Bretzel and a jar of mustard, Ted's face fell. I could tell just by looking at him that he was not happy with his order. Well, that's what you get when you try new things. You never know what you're going to get! Luckily he ordered only two and not three! He opened the tureen and pulled out one of the brauts. To me that Braut looked like an albino braut! It was so pale. I knew that it was made from veal. All veal brauts look like that. So he carefully cut his braut and put some of the mustard on it. The mustard was a cross between sweet relish and mustard. He said it was really good. I took a taste of it. Normally I don't like mustard but this mustard was exceptional!

He kept eyeing my Spaetzle. I finally took pity on him and asked him if he'd like some. Of course, he jumped at it! I forked in more than half of what I had left on the plate. He was in heaven. The Bretzel was good too. The Germans do three things REALLY, REALLY well: potatoes, bread, and pastries! They don't do meat well at all and forget trying to get anything grilled. You have to go to an American Restaurant for that and even then, it's on a griddle not on fire!

We finished our meal and decided to split an Apfel (apple) Strudel. It was heavenly! When we left, we realized that they truly did make the beer in house. The vats were on the other side of the door and we didn't see them when we came in. We spoke a bit with the bartender about their beer and noticed the bags of grain on the floor waiting to make the next brew.

It had been raining when we were eating but now it was just overcast. This part of Filderstadt also had a May Pole. It's so curious to see their culture.

We went home and watched a couple of episodes of NCIS and then went to bed.

Tomorrow HAS to be a better day!

Day 52: More Rain

I'm REALLY getting sick of the rain. One would think it's October rather than May. Hopefully the weather will clear up soon because I'm sure that will help me get better too!

I'm thinking the Alka Seltzer Plus I've been taking at night to help me sleep is doing more harm than good. I think it's been masking the symptoms and not allowing my body to heal itself. I'm going to rely on my Juice Plus+ to help me get better. Tonight, I'll take some Advil, prop up my pillows and try to sleep without the aid of the Alka Seltzer. Tomorrow I'll see how I feel.

I don't have a sore throat but I'm still coughing. My nose isn't clogged so that's a good sign. Hopefully I'll be better soon.

Day 51: Thunderstorms

I'm still sick and it's still raining. I wonder how long the rain will last. It seems more like April weather than May, but then again, this is Germany so I don't know what to expect.

Ted's knee has been bothering him. It must be constantly climbing those two flights stairs at work all the time. He's been on his feet more these days and that adds insult to injury. The project he's working on has been keeping him late every night but it's ok because I'm still under the weather so I don't mind. It just gives me more time to rest.

When he finally did come home, we received a package from my mom. All of our mail along with some Bible studies I ordered arrived. I really can't deal with the all of the correspondence except to go through them, open them, sort them and do the most important things. The rest will have to wait. My head is just not in the right place to read all of the mail.

Ted scheduled an appointment with the massage therapist in town for 9pm tonight. It's rather late but again, I don't mind because I'm not feeling well anyways so I'm not very good company.

He doesn't get home until almost 11:30 and by that time it's time for bed. There's an awful lightening / thunderstorm going on and it's difficult to sleep. I realized that the ear plugs I normally wear is making my ears hurt even worse. So I'm losing the earplugs until I feel better. I'd rather listen to Ted snoring than have my ears hurt.

Abend!

Day 50: Rainy day.

Not much going on. I'm still sick. Ted came home early and we had supper. Rain, rain and more rain...and thunderstorms.

Day 49: Happy Mother's Day!

It's Mother's Day and I'm far, far away from my children and my mom. But I think about them and want to call them but the time difference tells me I have to wait until this afternoon to do so...otherwise I will be scaring them by calling them in the middle of the night!

I hope all my family and friends who are mothers have a wonderful and blessed day.

I can't believe we've been in Germany for seven weeks. It almost seems a little surreal. I am still coughing and had a rough night. I kept Ted awake for half the night coughing. I don't think I've ever had such lung congestion in my life. And the weather has not been exactly conducive to getting better. There's a little sunshine during the day and then tons of rain and thunder/lightening storms.

I'm glad the skylight is over Ted's bed and not mine. He seemed to like the light show but I opted to put my sleep mask on but even then the light came through. I dislike lightening storms and it's even worse when there's a skylight right above you. I wanted to pull the shade on the skylight but Ted was enjoying it so much I didn't have the heart to ask him to do so.

We didn't do much of anything today...we didn't even make it to church as we felt we would be more of a distraction with all the coughing not to mention the germs that we stayed home and rested.

We did do a few errands that were totally necessary: grocery shopping and laundry. Luckily it was nice out when we did the grocery shopping but we couldn't pull the car into the lane to quickly move the groceries from the car to the steps because our neighbors were having a Mother's Day celebration and their grandchildren were on their bikes and scooters.

So we dragged those groceries from the front of the house (where the car is usually parked) to the steps, then made several trips up the steps to get them into the apartment. By the time we got the last load up the steps, I was sweating.

After putting the groceries away, I decided to rest a bit before we hit the laundromat. I always take one of my new Graham Cooke devotionals with me to read while waiting for the laundry to be done.

It's begun to rain and Ted brings the car around so I don't have to carry the laundry bushel and soaps and stuff to far away. Yes, I finally succumbed and got a laundry basket. The laundry bag was just not cutting it! After clothes are neatly folded it's a real pain to get them into that bag and then to take them out again, you almost have to re-fold all of the clothes again!

We usually don't go to do laundry until late because we want to miss the crowds and we want the big front-loading commercial washers. We decide to stop at Kelley Club to have a small meal before hitting the laundromat. Since the Kelley Club is on the base where the laundromat is, it's a hop, skip & a jump to get the laundry done. They were only serving sandwiches but that's ok with us. Ted really wanted a hamburger but what we got was really that good. We left half of it on our plates.

When we get out of the Kelley Club, it's raining again. I pull my sweater over my head to keep the rain off of me but it's damp. I don't know how this is going to affect my infection. It can't be good for me.

Ted gets the car as close to the building as possible to minimize the possibility of me getting wet.

He then goes to check the mail while I load the washers. Alas, no mail. Sigh. It's so nice to get snail mail! We wait while the laundry gets done and within an hour it's done.

By the time we get home, the rain has stopped but it's damp. I'm ready to go to bed.

Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.

Day 48: Big Day.

I got up early and decided to clean as much as I can before leaving for the clinic.
By the time I had the floors swept and "swiffered", I was ready to go back to bed. But alas, it's shower time and I need to get dressed to get to the clinic.

By the time we leave, it's around 9:30. I couldn't believe how many people were in the clinic. There were at least four people ahead of me. But at least the doctor spoke English and I requested a z-pack to get this infection under control.

I was surprised that we got in to see the doctor in less than an hour! We got the prescription but unfortunately, she would only write it for three days and not the five days I requested. She said if I needed more to come back. I thought that once you had a z-pack, you couldn't take it again for a long time. I hope it works! It's 500 mg so I'm not sure what the US dose is. She did say that the z-pack continues to work even after the three days are up. Of course, I'm still taking a double dose of my Juice Plus+ (Fruits, Veggies and Vineyard)every day so I know that has got to be helping as well. And I'll continue to take it...I think we were just too worn down and we skipped some doses so that's how we got sick. I'm angry not only with myself but with my husband for forgetting to take it. We know how incredibly important it is to take it to stay healthy. We will NOT miss any more doses, ever again!

We decide to go to the Apoteka in Bonlanden for the prescription. He dropped me off because there was no parking. Luckily, she speaks English so I was able to communicate, get my prescription and then leave. Since the bakery is right next door, I decide to get a loaf of bread. I get the bread and then look around for Ted. He was walking towards me and wanted to know what I bought. I showed him the bread and he insisted he wanted to see the inside of the bakery. Back inside we go for a few minutes and then on to the car (which he parked two blocks away). Normally, I would have no problem with walking but in my weakened condition, I was angry with him for not going around the block a few times to get me. Part of the issue is that where the bakery is, we had to walk 'down' the street (literally) and then 'up' the side street (literally).

Finally in the car and sitting, I feel a little better. Ted, of course, is hungry and since he wants "real" food - whatever that means, he opts to go to Cafe del Sol for brunch. With my antibiotic in hand, I want to take the first dose as soon as possible. It's 11am when we get to the restaurant and we have about two hours before we have to meet "Brunhilde" (the real estate lady). I'd forgotten to write down the directions to get to the apartment because Ted's boss took back the GPS lady so we are finding the place, the old fashioned way....turn right here...turn left there...etc.

We get done eating and it's back to the apartment. I really would like a nap and that nice, comfy bed is calling my name but it's not to be. We have just 15 minutes to write down the directions and get our butts over there.

It's such a beautiful day that Ted wants the sun roof open and I'm up for that even though I keep coughing and blowing my nose.

We get there OK using the written directions and park the car. Frau Wirsum (Brunhilde) brought her son along to help with the translation because she says he speaks better English than she does. We'll see.

We didn't see the entry way on Thursday, we just saw that there's an underground parking garage, which is cool. The entrance to the building is in a sort of breezeway, which is also cool because it will keep you out of the rain.

I knew the apartment was on the second floor and that there were no elevators. I'm really dragging so I take my time. It turns out, the Germans don't count the FIRST set of stairs...I guess those are freebies or something but we climbed three flights of stairs to the apartment. It's a lovely apartment (and it turns out it was actually TWO apartments that they converted into one.

It has some GREAT amenities: 2 1/2 baths, 1 bath has a whirlpool tub and shower plus a steam sauna. The kitchen is brand new and has a dishwasher and a pantry...BUT it is VERY small when compared to the rest of the place!!

There's a built in curio cabinet in the corner of the room and a balcony that has the most amazing view! There's two sets of stairs INSIDE the apartment. One goes to the master suite where there's built in cabinets (for clothes), a space for a washer and dryer and a huge bathroom. The master bath has wall cabinets and under the sink cabinets (which is unheard of in German apartments. The master bath is the bath with a shower and with a whirlpool tub. Pretty cool. This bedroom also has it's own balcony. But again, the unit is really chopped up, in my opinion.

When you go through the living room, there's another smallish room that could be an office or Dining room. it has built in cabinets on the one wall that sort of look like a buffet. When you go through the door, there's another bedroom with a balcony and it's own private bath. It too has a set of stairs going up to the next floor.

That's where the steam sauna is located along with another bath with a shower. It's a really nice apartment but it's really chopped up and I can't get past the three flights of stairs. Ted thinks it's because I'm sick but I got to thinking. What about carrying up groceries and luggage? What about when Ted comes home from work where he's been going up and down stairs all day. At that point, he has to climb not THREE flights but FOUR flights of stairs because of the basement garage.

Well, one thing is for sure...if we did take this apartment which is JUST in our budget, we'd probably be in GREAT shape by the time we got back to the states...LOL!

They even have a special room for bicycles near the entrance to the basement garage. And there is additional storage in the basement for "stuff".

Again, the ONLY drawback to this place is those three flights of stairs.

After leaving the apartment, we left it that we would discuss it and get back to her before the end of next week. In my mind's eye, I think we should at least look at the other units that are available from the housing office before making a final decision on such a long term event.

Ted has to go to Patch to pick up his pants at the cleaners so off we go. He now wanted the top down and I agreed to it with the condition that he keep the windows up. It is a gorgeous day and I want to soak up some sun.

After Patch, he wants to zip on over to Panzer to get a navigation system because we think the company will not give us the one we had been using for the past seven weeks. I give him a list of a few things that Panzer has that I need and we decide that it's been a draining day for me so I wait in the car. I started to snooze for a bit when he came back to my side of the car and said that the beauty shop would take me if I were to go in right now. Darn...my hair REALLY needs to be cut.

So off I go to the hair place to get my hair cut. She did a terrific job but boy, it was a bit costly. I'm sure on the economy, it would be just as costly. I guess I'm spoiled because I'm used to getting a hair cut for $12 - $14, including tip. This haircut cost me $16 Euro which is about $21. She did, however, do a terrific job. I love the way she cut it.

On the way out, I noticed little boys' "lieder hosen" and shirts. They are SO cute and I KNOW my grandson would look adorable in those little shorts with the suspenders. They are leather (but look like suede) and the shirt matches the shorts. I'm getting them AND I want a picture taken with them. It's something his Nana got for him from Germany.

Since we were at Panzer, we decided to look over the "used car" lot that is near the BX. This is a place where service men and women leave their cars when they need to sell them because they've been transferred out of country.

There's a few there that look promising. In particular is a white mercedes. It's a bit older but it looks to be in good condition and we could buy it outright. I'll have to do a Kelly Blue Book on it to see where they are on price but I still want to look in the want ads in the Stars & Stripes because I think we need to check all avenues first.

I'm REALLY exhausted by this time so we head for home. We get home around 5pm and I lay down on Ted's bed and promptly fall asleep until 6 when it started to rain. Ted had been playing with the new navigation system and he wanted to try a new restaurant out for dinner. OK. By the time he figured out where he wanted to go it was after 7pm. And the place that he decided on was closed anyways. So the next best thing was to go to the local hotel and see if they have a restaurant. They do. By the time we finished our dinner it was close to 10pm and I was REALLY ready for bed.

I know that we have to go grocery shopping and do laundry tomorrow along with go to church so I'm hoping the antibiotic will kick in tonight, let me sleep so I can be on the medn for tomorrow.

Until then....

Day 47: Setback.

I thought I was doing really well but man, that little trip last night just did me in. I slept off and on for the entire day and didn't even have enough strength to do my weekly "cleaning" for inspection.

Although, this week I'm not worried about it because my landlady and her husband went on holiday to Majorca, Spain and won't return until next week. I think perhaps her son will be exchanging out the linens and taking out the trash. So I'm not too worried about whether I've scrubbed floors or not.

Ted is getting really concerned because I'm starting to wheeze when I breathe and I'm having difficulty breathing. I think the infection has traveled into my lungs. He says we are going to the clinic tomorrow to get an antibiotic. I'm OK with that.

I've also scheduled a viewing of that apartment in Filderstadt. We've been here almost seven weeks and the clock is ticking for us to get a place. With both of us being sick and Ted working all the time, going on base to check out the available units has been next to none.

We did, however, figure out that even with the realtor's fee, we would be ahead in the long run. Ted also checked with the housing office to see if they would review the contract for us because more than likely, it will be in German.

They recommended that we use their contract because it is written in German and in English. That's a good call, in my opinion.

I'm going to bed early but cannot sleep. The coughing keeps me awake. I finally manage to fall asleep.

I can't wait to get an antibiotic in my system.

Day 46: Feeling better.

I was feeling a little bit better today. I don't know why but I am. It's a nice day out but I don't want to jinx it by trying to do too much.

I've cleaned up the apartment pretty well but because Ted has been working on a huge project that they have to turn over the project, he's been working late every night this week. It's not cool. By the time he gets home, I'm ready to go back to bed.

I've been corresponding with this real estate lady on an apartment here in Filderstadt. She sent me all of the information and has answered many of my questions. She even gave me the address. If Ted comes home early enough tonight, we'll drive by the area and the unit. If we like it, we'll schedule an appointment.

He didn't get home until almost 7:30 but it's still light outside so off we got in search of this apartment. It isn't too far from where we live but the streets to get there are here, there and everywhere. The first go around we ended up at a dead end but we finally found our way and it looks fairly nice. We think we'll schedule an appointment.

The unit has a sauna, a whirlpool tub, built in closets in the master bedroom, built in cabinets in what looks like an office or Dining Room and the kitchen has a dishwasher. WOOHOO!

By the time we get home (this trip took all of a half an hour), I was wiped and ready for bed.

Tomorrow is another day.

Day 45: Still cold.

It's still cloudy and cold. Gosh I sure hope that the entire summer isn't going to be like this. I need to research the weather patterns for this area and see what we can expect.

I still have to put those clothes away. They are still sitting in the laundry basket since Sunday. There are dishes that need to be done and today I really must cook something because we are all out of Bertoli and I'm sure Ted is sick of eating it anyways. He would never say so because he knows how sick I am but I feel badly that I'm not taking care of him as I normally would.

I'm still alternating between trying to get some things done and resting. I can't stand it that I'm feeling like this. I have not walked in days and I know I'm going to have to start all over again when I get better. Oh well...it is what it is.

That's about all I can handle for today.

Day 44: Ted works late.

I can't believe it's May. It's so cold and dreary. I wish the sun would come out. I know that would help my mental state. I can't say whether or not it would help my sinus infection or not but it can't hurt.

Ted takes off to work and I go back to bed. There is company work for me to do but since it's the middle of the night in California where my boss is, I'm not going to worry about it.

As the day wears on, it becomes increasingly difficult for me to function. I'm just completely worn out. I don't know if it's too much rest or if it's because I'm not getting really good night's sleep at night. I wake up at least three or four times a night. That can't be good.

By the time my boss is ready to work, I'm not. I explain the situation and she asks if I can do one thing. I muster up as much strength as I can to get the small task that needs to be done, done. Luckily Ted called and will be home late from work tonight so I can work on the company work and not worry about dinner.

Dinner is going to be Bertoli because I just don't have the strength to do anything. I can't believe how hard this infection hit me. I haven't had one of these for over 10 years!! I don't know if it's because I'm not in my own surroundings that's making it more difficult or if the strain of the infection is such that the homeopathic medication isn't working as fast as I would like.

Whatever the case, I have to ride it out for two weeks...that's how long the doctor said it would take. I don't feeling cooking much less eating. But I'm trying to drink as much as I can.

Ted is finally home at 9pm and I fix him a quick meal and then off to bed.

Day 43: Back to Work!

It's the first week of May and I found out that our "stuff" is being shipped on May 5 and will arrive here on June 4. We really need to get busy with finding a place but quite frankly, I'm not really up to it.

Ted is much better. He still coughs but says it's just the itchiness in his throat causing him to cough. He says that's a good sign...a sign of healing. Good for him but what about me?

I'm still coughing and I sound like a bullhorn, not to mention the drainage and stuffy nose. It's very uncomfortable to say the least.

My boss sends me a voice mail message that a new project was approved and that we are to begin working on it. Where was this work when I felt good and had nothing to do? Oh well, we'll get through it, we always do!

Ted brings me home more housing lists but there doesn't look like there's anything new on it but then I didn't look at it too closely. He informs me that we will be heading down to the base sometime this week. OK. We'll see.

After dinner and responding to emails, I'm off to bed.

Day 42: Still resting.

Again, it's a cloudy day and I'm still feeling very poorly. I don't think it's wise for either of us to go to church and infect others. So we stay home and rest. The entire day was spent alternating sitting in those hard dining room chairs and laying in bed. We really did rest, though.

Unfortunately, there was the practical thing of laundry that had to be done. So we gather all of the laundry at around 7pm and trek down to the Base to do the laundry. As soon as it's done we are on our way back home.

After taking the clothes and laundry supplies upstairs, we are ready for bed.

Tomorrow is another day.

Day 41: Resting.

It's still dreary but it's Saturday and there are definitely things we need to do.

Friday is my usual day to clean before inspection but because I'm feeling so poorly, I skipped it yesterday and Ted has agreed to help me clean. It shouldn't take too long and with someone there to help I will feel like I can push through.

He sweeps and "swiffers" the bedroom after I've made the bed and wiped down the furniture. My landlady is changing the sheets today and I think it would be good since both of us have been so sick. I would have liked to change them sooner but I don't have any other sheets to put on the beds.

I make certain the dishes are all washed and put away and the sink and drainboard are spotless. I then sweep the "living room" (just a desk, two chairs and a bed) and shake out the area rug. I wipe down the desk and organize the laptops and "stuff" sitting on the desk. Ted swiffers the living room while I sweep the kitchen floor after putting the chairs upside down on the table (restaurant cleaning style). I wipe down the countertops and the oven hood with lysol and then continue on into the bathroom. Ted begins to swiffer the kitchen.

There are no cabinets in the bathroom and all of our "stuff" is sitting on a four inche ledge that runs the length of where the sink is to the corner where the commode is. Everthing needs to be moved and the ledge wiped down along with the sink and commode. I squeegee the shower everyday so that doesn't get dirty but I'm going to have to wipe it down with lysol here shortly.

Let's talk about that commode. I love that commode for two reasons. It does not sit on the floor so it makes cleaning the floor a breeze. It comes out of the wall and is just high enough off the floor to allow a mop to easily go under it. Ingenious! And the second reason is this commode (and I think all commodes made for residential use - or possibly newer ones) have two flushes...a small one and a big one! I'll give you one guess why! And it's easy to figure out how to do the big one versus the little one. There are two oval circles, a small one and a big one and you just push it when you're ready. Again, German efficiency at it's highest.

We really didn't want to leave the apartment but knew we had to for two reasons; I needed more Alka Seltzer Plus and the landlady had to inspect and change the linens.

So off we go to the BX with a quick stop at the bank to do some banking. We get the few things that we needed and Ted put more money on the fuel card. I was wilting by now so I went and sat in the car and waited for him to do his thing. I was going to get my haircut but they were booked up. Perhaps it was for the best since I wasn't feeling too keen anyways. My hair can wait.

We also needed some orange juice so off to the other base where the large commissary is and we pick up a few things including the juice. All I could think about was how am I going to last to take this stuff upstairs to the apartment. I guess when you have to you do it...and I did.

Once everything was put away, we sat in the living room. It is becoming uncomfortable to sit in dining room chairs all the time. I think it's more that we haven't been feeling well than the chairs themselves. But we are looking forward to finding a place and getting our "stuff" and no more inspections!!

I didn't feel like cooking so it was left overs tonight for dinner and then bed. I'm hoping I'll be feeling better tomorrow.

Day 40: Still sick.

Finally, the sun made its debut today after five cold, cloudy and rainy days. But I still am feeling poorly. While I thought we were going to the base to speak to the housing office, I'm glad when Ted nixes the idea and goes to work instead. After checking email and corresponding with my boss, I go back to bed.

I guess this homeopathic concoction is going to take some time. These pills look like Acini di Pepe pasta (if you're Italian you'll know what I'm talking about here, if not...they are very small fine round dots of pasta). Anyways, I'm to take 10 in the morning, 10 at mid-day and 10 in the evening of each compound. Luckily they taste good but to count out 10 of each is a pain. I think he gave me 14 day's worth and I'm going to take them as long as I have this terrible infection.

I get up and I'm still feeling badly. Today is my usual cleaning day where I sweep and mop all of the floors and do a thorough cleaning. It's not going to happen today. I'm feeling awful and I go back to bed. I get up on ocassion but keep going back to bed. I wonder sometimes if I'll ever get better. But I know this has to go away sometime.

Ted gets home by 6pm and I tell him there's no way that I can fix him a proper meal and that it's Pizza night. He's fine with it. Thank you, my husband.

He tells me he wants to try the Amalfi Pizza place. The place that he dragged me to find on one of our earlier jaunts. So we go there and decide rather than try to bring the pizza home and risk it being cold, we ate it there. We spoke...or rather I spoke to a very nice Italian man called, Guiseppe. He told me has been in Germany for over 40 years that he had immigrated here as a child of 11. He still has a home in Calabria that he goes to for vacation.

As we continue to discuss various things like relatives in the US and where we lived and my family tree, he tells me that he has rented out his home in Calabria to friends over the years. As he takes care of other diners, I tell my husband about our conversation. Poor Ted, he was just sitting there and didn't undertstand a word that was going on. I finally translated our conversation. His ears perked up when he heard Guiseppe rents his place out and that it's right on the sea. Ted asks me to ask him what the cost would be for a week. When Guiseppe came back he said he's using it this August but I could possibly rent it in September. He wanted to know how long of a stay. I said a week. He told me he would charge me 300 Euros for the week. When we did the calculations, it was a great deal!!

We will be calling Guiseppe to make arrangements for the future. What a great contact to have!!

At this point, it's time to go home. We arrive home and my head is completely stuffed up so I'm putting hot compresses on it in the hopes that the heat will help dissipate some of the congestion. Ted wants to sleep in with no alarm tomorrow and of course, I have no objections to that. And Ted agrees to help me clean in the morning as my landlady will be doing her usual weekly inspection and will be changing the linens and the bedding. I can't wait to have a place of my own!!

We're trying to figure out the most efficient way to view the apartments that are available. My fear is that we are going to have to "settle" for something because we have been sick and because his work schedule is such that it's difficult for us to coordinate a time. I threw out a few ideas which we will work on over the weekend to hammer out some sort of plan. We have only 6 more weeks that will be paid for and we need to move fast.

I'm still tired from going out tonight so I'm going to bed early.

Naben! (short for Gutten Abend - which is the proper way of saying it...I spelled it in error in other posts)