Laundromat, Internet, Triathlon, Sundays

My every-sunday occupation:"NyBORG, sounds Swedish...." With only 7 T-shirts/Underpants/Socks (rest still on sea) what can you do? At least it all fits into one machine!

I realize, I am getting lazy with blogging: The first excitement has worn off and slowly, slowly, the "daily grind" raises its ugly face. Most things start falling into place and I feel, I want to get my project going.

One thing to learn/remember, is the sunday: Sunday everything (except bars/restaurants/theaters and the likes) is CLOSED "on the seventh day thou shalt rest!" Reality at home. I forgot: in the US one gets to expect, that shopping is a 24/7 thing and that services are available all the time, and that planning ahead shopping is a thing only very anal and old-school people do. Different here: Becausestores are not open until 12am, and one usually works during the week: Saturday is the day to get things done. Means I went downtown to get that "Splitter" (a box required for a DSL Installation) that the guy from Telekom forgot to install, and that is necessary to have my internet going finally (still on the neighbour's!). Downtown is a big disaster, as Hamburg is the place of some important triathlon tournament, and the whole city is dominated by racing biker girls in spectacularly tiny stretch outfits.

OK thats nice (yeah, make fun of me: it IS, at least I admit to it...) but it also explains the hordes of spectators along the streets who make it close to impossible to reach the downtown "T-Punkt"store.

Female triathlon participants in tight, tiny sports-suits attract huge crowds in Hamburg!

-strictly for sportive reasons- (of course!) ;-))

Who would not like to watch sweating close-to naked perfect female bodies racing around downtown. (I have seen Anna Kournikova in the US-Open in La Costa, same idea) Still I stay focussed and get my "splitter"from the beleaguered T-Punkt store (the race passes right in front!). On the way home I am checking out the local Chinese supermarket. They are still open although it is saturday 6 pm, in Germany essentially already part of that "seventh day": Weekend shopping needs ORGANIZATION and PLANNING AHEAD. New things to learn/ old things to remember. Also: SHOPPING BY BICYCLE (no lockable trunk to drop off purchased items) So I learn, I should better consider THE ORDER OF PURCHASES in my saturday-shopping: Big things last:

I assume: nobody steals toilet paper, and I leave it on the bike while in the store. Indeed the toilet paper is still there.

likely I look like a total idiot with the big toilet paper on the bike: next time better planning!!

That part is bad, but it has the benefit of creating one wonderful thing I have always treasured, but almost forgotten in the land of comfort, distraction, "customer confidence" (important economic indicator in the US, unheard of in Germany-doesn't this tell us something?) and instant gratification:

A DAY OFF!!!!

Sunday is a day of rest, reflection, recuperation. And it feels GOOD. I spent the whole day reading, listening to radio, drinking tea, thinking about things, talking with my mom on the phone (iPhone: flat-rate to landlines all over Germany). in my humble opinion, its definitely worth the "saturday hassle"!

One thing disturbing my peaceful mood: the apartment. (Oh, isn't there always something?)

I learned that the small place I am in now, is already rented out to a middle-aged woman, who works closeby. Means I have to move out soon. Of course the girl with the wonderful place in Altona did NOT get back to me "by end of the week" I will have to call her now to discuss her time frame. Luckily, the new tenant is friendly and says that she can delay a month or two. This might do. I cannot move into yet another transient place. This wears me out. I wish I could finally settle in. it is draining to always feel the "second half of the move" is still ahead of me.

OK now, back to my tea! TTYL! Thank you for reading! It's a good feeling someone thinks of me over there! I know, Hui, you do all the time, thank you for that! :-)

"home is where the heart is"

In that regard I still have a split-home.