Instant Success

The Bee Trap

I have a spare forty-five minutes before I head to the resort for a babysitting gig, so instead of silently sipping coffee on my balcony I will take a few moments to update you on my new posh lifestyle.   Having the single (double occupancy) room has been a godsend.  I've been sleeping great and enjoying every minute in the new digs.  In the divorce I did lose the coffee maker.  It was a crushing blow that was softened when a neighbor sold me his unused machine a day before he headed on to this next chapter of his life, the Philipines (be happy I'm in Germany, Mom).  As happy as I was, I ruined the sweet deal by getting to eager and forgetting to check it's voltage.  Yes, I blew it up during my first pot of coffee in 243.  Luckily, my night in shining armor, Marcel, found a a retro style coffee maker on e-bay that will be arriving next week.  I think I can survive on instant coffee for five more days.  Despite the coffee disaster I have made the new room feel at home and have started a little garden on the balcony that includes a cactus, basil, and a new beautiful red flowering plant that I just bought today.  The new flower really adds an element to the balcony.  Not just because of it's beauty, but because it attracts bees like none other.  Good thing I'm not allergic.

Marcel arrives on Wednesday for a nine day stint in Garmisch.  It worked out perfectly that I have the first four days off.  We will be vacationing at Lake Contance, the third largest lake in Central Europe.  Marcel did all of the research and secured all of our travel plans while I sat idly by answering calls from anxious military wives making reservations and yelling at their kids in the background.  I would have switched roles in a heartbeat.  I'm really excited for our weekend getaway and know that Marcel will only pick the best things for us to do and see.  He's already put in a request for the iced animal crackers from the grocery store on base.  I suppose he is worth the $2.50.

I recently lost an important member to my bike family, the light.  He fell off in front of the train station and despite my cries and waves to the oncoming car it didn't move over.  I saw him blown to pieces and couldn't do a thing about it.  The car started to slow down when it saw me throw my hands in the air, then it realized that it had crushed a prized possession of mine and it took off.  It was an emotional morning, but I couldn't help but laugh about it.  It was the night before that I had finally secured the back light, so it's only natural that the front one would break.  Oh, and my mud flap fell off the week before.  I like to pretend I've got this whole bike thing figured out, but I really have no idea what I'm doing.  We'll see what happens this week.

Things at work have been going really well lately.  Live I've said before, it's the first time I actually feel completely trained on what I'm doing every day.  The other day I was scheduled as the front desk POC (point of contact) and I was really enjoying having all of that authority.  Especially because there are several new people in our department who had no idea that I really just make up about half of the things I do and say at work.  It was a fun shift, but I prefer to keep the responsibility to the minimum while I'm there.  Some people place way too much weight on these jobs and the stress is not worth it.  Front desk is definitely one of those positions that wears you down, so I prefer to be as unattached as possible.  I know Mom wants me to extend my time here in Garmisch, but I'm not sure if I can deal with one more request for a mountain view. 

Ok, I'm off to resort to earn some extra dough.  More updates to come later!

Looking in from the balcony door.

Standing in front of the fridge by the door.