-
Directories
Regensburg Expat dinner in one week!
Sorry for not posting or commenting, I’ve been laid up with a bad cold the past few days. Oliver had his first cold as well, although he did not get nearly as sick as Rainer and I. I must say that taking care of a baby while sick is tough. I’m hoping that this is it for the year (PLEASE!).
I just wanted to remind those in the Regensburg area that the Expats and Friends Meetup in Regensburg is next Sunday, November 4th, at Restaurant Meier at Stadtamhof 15 starting at 5pm. So far, confirmed attendees are Rainer, Oliver and I, Tim and Heather, and Alex and Hezamarie. There were a lot of maybes, so… are you coming or not? 
If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
In the news
Rauchverbot auf dem Oktoberfest: Kein Qualm auf der Wiesn - Starting January 1, smoking will be banned in all public places in Bayern, including pubs and tents, which means that Oktoberfest 2008 will be smoke-free (in the tents anyway). Yippee for non-smokers! Only two more months and we can go out to restaurants again without exposing Oliver to smoke or coming home smelling like an ashtray!
SPD fordert Tempolimit von 130 km/h -The Social Democrat Party (SPD) is supporting a move to have a nationwide speed limit of 130 km/h (or 80 mph) for environmental reasons. The limit should reduce gasoline consumption and CO2 emissions. The Green party have joined this initiative, but it will not pass without the Christian Democrats (CDU). Perhaps this is just a way to accuse the CDU of not doing anything for the environment.
I support imposing speed limits for environmental reasons. I also up until recently thought it would make the Autobahn safer, but I’ve heard that the Autobahn is safer than the US Highways. This seems difficult to believe, because it feels so dangerous to have tractor trailers in the right lane going 80 km/h (50 mph), while most of the traffic is moving at around 130 km/h, and then there are the Autobahn racers who fly past at 200 km/h (125 mph). I can’t remember who, but someone told me that they think that because the Autobahn feels dangerous, the drivers are more careful and aware of what’s going on around them, while in America, people feel the highways are relatively safe, so they eat, telephone, or otherwise divide their attention from focusing on driving. In the end, much of the Autobahn is already covered by speed limits anyway, so it won’t be that huge a change.
And one final odd piece -
FLIRTY OLD MAN: German Playboy, 77, Sues for Sex
Aging German playboy Rolf Eden has rarely taken no for an answer. And he’s not about to start. He has filed charges against a 19-year-old for refusing to sleep with him. The complaint? Ageism.
I’m not even going to comment on that one.
California burning
My brother took this picture from outside his hotel room in Southern California this weekend. Yikes!
Holey Cheerios, Batman!
At the store Saturday, I was walking through the cereal aisle and I spotted a new, promising looking offering, Weetabix Looters. True, the whole Pirates of the Caribbean box theme is a little cheesy looking, but I grabbed it anyway and ran home to try it. Now admittedly, it’s been a long time since I had Cheerios, but I think these taste pretty much right. So, Cheerios-missing expats, run out and grab a box (and tell me if I’m just way off on this one).
Over the ocean and through the clouds…
…to grandmother’s house we go.
We’ll be in the DC area from December 20 to January 5. And we’re bringing empty suitcases with us. Woohoo!
Maenner
Note to self: do not leave husbands in charge of children when football matches are on.
Saturday, Rainer’s best friend Tobias came to visit with his wife Katrin and two beautiful kids, Hanna, who’s almost 5, and Simon, who’s 2 and a half. I made cookies, which the kids, and unexpectedly Charlie too, gobbled up. We watched Charlie carefully for any signs of distress at such a massive chocolate consumption (he snagged half a plate), but he was fine.
All went well until it came time to prepare dinner. Us womenfolk went into the kitchen to chop veggies and cook, and left the men in charge of the kids. Suddenly, I heard the most terrified shrieking cry coming from my tiny little boy. I rushed into the living room to find a red welt covering a large section of the right side of his head. I scooped him into my arms and began comforting him.
Me: “What happened?!?!?”
Rainer: “Simon wanted to give Oliver a toy and accidentally dropped it on his head.”
The toy was a large wooden Ikea Mula push toy.
Me: “Weren’t you watching?!?!?”
Rainer: “Yes, but these things happen so fast, you can’t stop them!”
True. Sometimes.
Me: “Where was Oliver at the time?”
Rainer: “In his playpen playing with his baby disco.”*
Me: “And he just dropped it in? Didn’t you get suspicious when he said he wanted to give it to Oliver?”
Rainer: “These things happen so fast, and it was more like he brought it down on Oliver’s head.”
Rainer then demonstrates an overhead swing that any pro tennis player would be proud to have.
Me: “What!?!? And what was Simon doing with the toy before this happened?”
Rainer: “Well, he was running it along the rail of the playpen for a while.”
Me: “And you didn’t think to stop him at that point????”
Rainer: “I don’t know… we were watching football…”
Aha! So the kids were basically unsupervised.
It took about 15 minutes to soothe Oliver. I’ve read breastfeeding helps with pain reduction, so after I ascertained that the injury was not serious, I tried that and it did seem to help, although he’d suck a little, then let out a little pitiful sob. (Katrin also took a look - she’s a doctor - and thought he was fine, so I didn’t get too upset).
Tobias took the kids to the playground, Rainer watched Oliver, and Katrin and I finished cooking. It was a nice meal and the kids seemed to enjoy the Chinese chicken salad, sesame meatballs, and stir-fried veggies that I prepared. After dinner, they headed home to Würzburg (after apologizing profusely, yet again).
Hanna and Simon
Chinese chicken salad
Sesame meatballs and stir-fried veggies
In the morning, Oliver still had a red mark on his head, but by afternoon it had faded away and all day Sunday he was a happy little guy. Katrin called on Sunday to check on Oliver, and Tobias wrote Rainer twice on Monday to double check. He added, “Tja, und kannst deiner Frau sagen, dass sie die beste Köchin ist, die ich kenne.”** Aw shucks, I guess all is forgiven
Oliver, yesterday
*Baby disco = Baby Einstein Play Gym
** “Tell your wife that she’s the best cook I know.”
Christina’s Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Mrs. Fields ain’t got nothin’ on me!
Although I’ve heard expats complaining about the consistency of their cookies being off, I’ve never had that problem with this recipe. For flour, I use Gold Puder type 405 für feine Backwaren, for butter I use Meggle die Alpenbutter, and for chocolate I use Sarotti and/or Côte D’Or brands.
ingredients
200g each semi-sweet chocolate (Halbbitter), at least 70% cacao bittersweet chocolate (Edelbitter) and milk chocolate (Vollmilch), chopped
225g butter
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups unsifted flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
225g pecans, chopped
directions
Heat over to 375 degrees F. Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter well, then add the white and brown sugar. Once these are well combined, add the eggs and vanilla. Slowly blend the flour mixture into the creamed mixture. Stir in the nuts and chocolate pieces. Drop by tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheet (I usually get a dozen on a German-sized sheet). Bake for approximately 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
-
Subscribe to AmiExpat
creativecommons License
Blog under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License.
