Sonntag, 8. November 2015
Slow Week
durhamfamily, 16:02h
Greetings everyone!
Nothing happened over here this week. Sorry to say, we won't always have exciting stories to share. It will likely be the case more and more as we settle in. Our surroundings lose their magical qualities, and our lives fall into routines. We still will travel on occasion, but the truth is that vacations are very draining on our resources, so we must do it sparingly.
Elizabeth was vegan again this week, and I was vegetarian... except for Monday. What started as a temporary "challenge" has relaxed into a no-pressure decision. I prefer it that way: I chose today to eat vegetarian, but it's not who I am. Success/failure in doing so has no effect on my self image.
We still have the kittens. They will be here for another week or so. It is wonderful having life in the apartment (I'm certain Elizabeth feels that to an even greater extent than I), but those boys sure can cause trouble. Since they are only a few months old, every day they are growing. Every day they learn something new. And every day they can jump just a little bit higher than the day before. That is an especially dangerous situation. Our once cat-proof apartment on Tuesday becomes a deathtrap by Thursday. But regardless of their shenanigans they are fun to have around.
I am officially signed up for the Netherlands marathon, but anyone could have guessed that. I especially want to take this race easy, so nobody say anything about my pace, or I'll be encouraged to push my limits!
We are still 4 weeks away from learning if we are going to the Berlin marathon next year. If we are accepted, it will be a genuinely difficult decision how to train... because today I consider myself in a much more relaxed and noncompetitive state of running. However, Berlin is perhaps the fastest course around. It will be hard to not train for the best race that I can run (and then to be horribly disappointed because my 2013 running achievements are an unrepeatable phenomenon).
I have a new boss boss at work. It's a new position, so I'm not entirely certain what role he will play (they probably explained it, but the explanation was in German). He reminds me of a younger brother to Benedict Cumberbatch. He has only spoken to me in German so far. I'm afraid to disappoint him and tell him that I'm stupid.
Speaking of: I attended a ridiculous, 3-hour meeting on Friday. The room was stuffed with 14 other people, all higher up than me and all German. No fewer than 15 times were conversations interrupted but the phrase, "Let's switch back to English so Kyle can understand". Besides the fact that I clearly become a burden... the switch to English is made with complete disregard to other people in the room. What if someone in the room isn't comfortable with English? That question is never brought up, even though it's painfully obvious that some people are less than comfortable with the switch. I don't like it.
It's time to study German. As always, our teacher will be here tomorrow evening, and I'm tired of disappointing her. She is very nice, and we should at least attempt to meet her halfway.
Nothing happened over here this week. Sorry to say, we won't always have exciting stories to share. It will likely be the case more and more as we settle in. Our surroundings lose their magical qualities, and our lives fall into routines. We still will travel on occasion, but the truth is that vacations are very draining on our resources, so we must do it sparingly.
Elizabeth was vegan again this week, and I was vegetarian... except for Monday. What started as a temporary "challenge" has relaxed into a no-pressure decision. I prefer it that way: I chose today to eat vegetarian, but it's not who I am. Success/failure in doing so has no effect on my self image.
We still have the kittens. They will be here for another week or so. It is wonderful having life in the apartment (I'm certain Elizabeth feels that to an even greater extent than I), but those boys sure can cause trouble. Since they are only a few months old, every day they are growing. Every day they learn something new. And every day they can jump just a little bit higher than the day before. That is an especially dangerous situation. Our once cat-proof apartment on Tuesday becomes a deathtrap by Thursday. But regardless of their shenanigans they are fun to have around.
I am officially signed up for the Netherlands marathon, but anyone could have guessed that. I especially want to take this race easy, so nobody say anything about my pace, or I'll be encouraged to push my limits!
We are still 4 weeks away from learning if we are going to the Berlin marathon next year. If we are accepted, it will be a genuinely difficult decision how to train... because today I consider myself in a much more relaxed and noncompetitive state of running. However, Berlin is perhaps the fastest course around. It will be hard to not train for the best race that I can run (and then to be horribly disappointed because my 2013 running achievements are an unrepeatable phenomenon).
I have a new boss boss at work. It's a new position, so I'm not entirely certain what role he will play (they probably explained it, but the explanation was in German). He reminds me of a younger brother to Benedict Cumberbatch. He has only spoken to me in German so far. I'm afraid to disappoint him and tell him that I'm stupid.
Speaking of: I attended a ridiculous, 3-hour meeting on Friday. The room was stuffed with 14 other people, all higher up than me and all German. No fewer than 15 times were conversations interrupted but the phrase, "Let's switch back to English so Kyle can understand". Besides the fact that I clearly become a burden... the switch to English is made with complete disregard to other people in the room. What if someone in the room isn't comfortable with English? That question is never brought up, even though it's painfully obvious that some people are less than comfortable with the switch. I don't like it.
It's time to study German. As always, our teacher will be here tomorrow evening, and I'm tired of disappointing her. She is very nice, and we should at least attempt to meet her halfway.
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