Another day in the mind of a creative madman....

It's snowing outside. No really!

2005-11-28T10:03:45Z

So, I haven't update in awhile and I amwriting here on an idle monday morning before my one class of the day, and it just started to snow again. It snowed overnight, but now it's really really snwowing. Coming down in big chunks and it's not like that crappy schneeregen we had the other day, it's actual snow thats sticking to the ground. It must be freezing outside. Eitherway, I don't know if I wrote about my bank situation yet, but my bank card is no longer working. So that means I can't get money, but I will be coming home for the holidays if my readership is that interested in it. I feel slightly annoyed by this and wrote an angry email to the Bank Of America people, that unless my bank card situation is fixed, I'll be finding another bank, finding a lawyer, and calling the BBB over this. Hopefully this will get the fire under the ass of the wetback or some other idiot they hired to put the card codes into the computer during the switch. I have almost $5000 in my account! I WANT MY DAMN MONEY!!! This is pissing me off! Other than that, things are going well. I've met some interesting people, though it is somewhat intimidating to call a German up on the phone and ask them to do something. I reunited with a Stammtisch Friend and I think I'll hang with him sometime this week. Wow, it's really going at it outside. NO snow days here though, so I don't get an extra day off. Not that I have that much to do anyway, but I have to give an essay to another friend of mine to look over for Grammatical errors and such -- which I am pretty confident, it is RIFE with them. My German is getting a lot better, but not as fast as I'd like it. Though it's definitely made a substantial improvement over the last week. More sleep I guess. But I ramble. I'll spare the whiny gothy crying bullshit about missing home. I do, but it really doesn't matter to me. The snow is enough of a novelty for me to keep me happy. I've never lived in a place where it snowed before so this is, to put it lightly, cool. Other than that, I don't really have much to say. I think I'll start updating this more regularly... hah, I say that everytime.

Because I want to update this sumabitch!

2005-11-08T19:57:20Z

So, it's time for more on my European happenings. I am well-underway in my classes and my German is improving at an accelerating rate. I haven't met that many people from outside my group yet, but I suppose that's alright. I get along well with my roommates and such, but my going out has gone way down since school's started. A positive thing I suppose -- I really should work on my homework and read more. It's not worth failing out just so I have a great time. I'm having a decent time anyway living my life as I normally do, even in Europe. I probably should go travelling this weekend to some place, even if its relatively minor and podunky.

As far as classes go: They're cool, I'm enjoying them a lot -- though I do find some of them pretty annyoing and pointless, like my Wörtschatz course, which I may drop. Thomas Mann and Die Wiener Moderne are all very interesting, and I like my phonetik class, which reminds me -- I have to pick something up for that biznitch. The TM stories have been pretty depressing up to this point, but I liked the one this week. IT was actually positive. The Wiener Moderne is typical weird poetry about people expressing a lust to return to a more natural state and understand the world around them while progressing into the future. You tell me what that means, I'm just regurgitating what I learned in class! Or think I've learned. I can never tell with this crazy language. My friends are cool, though I am (and somewhat regrettably) hanging out with the Americans for the most part. It's hard to just meet Germans, though the ones I've met have been pretty nice. It'll take a bit more effort and time to get to know them, but things should start proceeding soon enough. Eitherway, I'm gonna pop off and grab a beer.

Myers-Briggs Re-evaluation.

2005-10-26T21:24:57Z

So, I did my 6-monthly Myers-Briggs re-evaluation...

Your Type is
INTJ
Introverted Intuitive Thinking Judging
Strength of the preferences %
I 11 N 62 T 12 J 33

Independent, innovative, logical and driven by the inner world of ideas and possibilities, the INTJ often appears to others as a quietly self-confident (and sometimes stubborn) critic of the status quo, convinced that reality can be altered, the future reshaped. Wherever there is a need for change in systems, programs, concepts or theories, INTJs will be working behind the scenes to reorganize and revise. This type's focused attention to the personal mission may be inspiring or frankly obsessive, depending on the observer's viewpoint or the success of the enterprise. Introspective and somewhat shy, INTJs place their trust in logical analysis and intuition to guide their thoughts and decisions. More feeling types may find them chilly, and more practical types accuse them of being unrealistic, but INTJs take their cues mostly from those they recognize as intelligent. Often attracted to theoretical, analytical and methodological areas of inquiry, INTJs succeed in a wide variety of fields, from ones heavily dependent on mathematics and science to more philosophical, literary or applied disciplines.

Classes!

2005-10-23T18:25:16Z

So, I started classes on Monday. Well, not really start, but went to a few orientation things to get my bearings and understand how the school works. Same old crap that I had fed for six weeks before everything began. Woohoo. Eitherway, it was interesting to take a class in english in Germany and listen to a man with a funny english accent talk about Moby Dick and huge, thick books of great American literature. I decided to ditch a couple of my classes simply because they were either repeats of shit I did or simply were too dry or difficult with my current German expertise. And I am far from expert. I'm not sure about my schedule, but I like it. Leaves me with plenty of time to travel and relax and catch up on my work and party. I want to have a good time while I'm here because honestly, shit feels really repressed in the USA right now. I would expound more on my political feelings, but let's get this out of the way first.

So, my classes are interesting -- though I hate to say it, but Moby Dick, the book I have dreaded for my entire education has FINALLY caught the fuck up with me. In Germany of all places, it GOT ME. I'm only taking 5 classes outside of my language enhancement courses, so I feel a bit weak on my schedule, but then I realize, I have a full plate! It's not going to matter because I'm in class almost all day most days, especially THURSDAYS. Monday, I have a half day and Fridays I have off. Monday isn't too bad outside of the language (vocabulary building class) I have in the evenings, but that's just for an hour and should be fun. Tuesday is my creative writing seminar and that should be enjoyable. Take a class for shits and giggles, kids! Thursday is gonna be hell. Wenesday isn't too bad. I get a big break between my tutoring session and my langauge instruction. As for this weekend, I really didn't do much except hang out with some of the people from EAP and went out with them. It was fun and I got drunk (when do I not?)

I'm having fun here, though I would like to meet more people. I'll write more tomorrow, hopefully.

The Trip Continued...

2005-10-18T14:17:51Z

Now, I said Monday or Tuesday, and I am indeed updating on a Tuesday! So to my limited readership, deal with it motherfuckers!

After we saw the Tower of London, we headed over to Westminster, saw Big Ben -- yes, it is very impressive in real life and as soon as I can get the unlaziness to upload the photos, you can see too! The British obviously spared no expense building things like Westminster Abbey, the Clock Tower that houses Big Ben, or the Houses of Parliment. Buckingham Palace was also big and impressive... to look at. Couldn't go inside. The London Aquarium, yes, it was a nice little side trip, was also nice and peaceful considering the hectic pace of the trip up to that point. After much walking, photo taking, and a chat with a sketchy fool who sold Scott a flag and I a patch to sew onto my backpack. (For those who do not know, I am collecting patches of every country I've been to, or the nationality of every girl I've sacked. ...I KID! I KID!) Really, I could be poetic about London, but unless I'm actually writing my memoirs or a novel, I'll leave my random, meandering thoughts to regular speech. Westminster Abbey itself was very impressive, beautiful, and all of that jazz. What really surprised me though is Oliver Cromwell is buried there, but Princess Diana (I looked it up later) is not, though I had thought she was.

Let me tell you though, that waking up at 3:00 in the morning to catch a plane flight IS THE FUCKING SUCK, especially when your 16-person room hostel mates talk and grow progressively louder as they get drunker and then sack in at 11. But we had our revenge -- and my cell phone has the Mexican Hat Dance in polyphonic, and when loud -- it is PARTICULARLY annoying -- so I set that as my alarm. Now! To Oslo!

Let me put it this way, if you like Maine or Eastern Canada, you'll probably like Norway. If you like to drink, you won't like Norway. 159 Kronor for a six pack of half-strength beer or for a 1.8L pitcher. (Translation: 16-18 Euros there about.) Though I loved Oslo in a way that was different from the way I liked the other cities. Dublin was interesting for it's "Down and Dirty I don't give a fuck, let's get smashed and have a great time!" Attitude and London had a rich tradition and seemed both dingy and classy at the same time. Oslo, on the other hand, was immaculately clean (for the most part) and everyone there seemed content -- not too mention people had no shame! The Breakdancing Kids really took "No Shame" to knew heights. It was painful to watch them. Really it was -- watching the flop on the ground like dying fish. There was also a cool park, with a giant phallic statue in the middle and a bunch of naked stautes on a bridge, a fountain depicting various stages of life, so on and so forth. It was not so interesting that it was a phallus or there were naked statues, but the way it was depicted and the fact that people were walking around like it was perfectly normal. I know ol' Johnny Ashcroft would have had that thing covered up or torn down for the 'public good'. The Hostel was also great in Oslo. Our room was fairly small (only 6 people), and the people therein were very nice. On the second day, I saw the Scream, though I'm not sure it was the real deal or a fake, considering that sucker was stolen -- but the Munch paintings were very interesting. Social alienation and all that jazz.

...then came the Bum. The Bum of Oslo. A Polish guy who reeked to HOLY HEAVEN. The description of the stench could only be described as feces, B.O. and BEER... all months old. I couldn't take the stench, but somehow Scott braved it. I almost puked and Scott summarized it pretty well: "I was just waiting for him to rip ass, so I could end it all." So, we were basically kicked out for the day of our room. Fortunately, the bum left and we got a rather crazy looking photo of me in the stocks and saw some less "interesting" and more mundane places in Oslo for our final day there. Also met two really cool guys from Texas, just chatted and had beers with them, which was nice to hang out with Americans/Canadians other than the ones in our group.

At 5:00, we took off for Stockholm, and go there almost 12 hours later (courtesy of Ryan Air and lay overs), fortunately, we found the Ice Bar there and had a great time. Also, we ate at a Pizza Hut -- which really surprised me. Apparently, its taken very seriously in Oslo and was more like CPK than a Pizza Hut in the states. Not as good, but still good, cheap food. The Ice Bar was one of the highlights of the trip though. It ranks just behind the night with Geoff and Han, simply because of the novelty value of it. It was a bar, made completely of ice that only served vodka and juice because anything else would freeze over. The next day was very sedate, mostly just walking around the very dense, and beautiful city of Oslo and realizing that light looks like 5 o'clock any hour of the day there in the Fall. After seeing the various (closed, sadly) sights, we packed our things and headed to Nypoking so we could easily access the airport which would take us home. We got into Germany at 9:30 after being diverted to Koln/Bonn airport (who OVERCHARGED ME FOR MY TICKET! *SHAKES FIST*), which made getting home a lot eaiser and without suicidal taxi drivers to Mainz. It was a straight, but stop-filled shot to Hannover and from Hannover, it was a 34 minute ride back home. What's fiunny, is I think you probably could do Koln/Bonn to Gö in 2 hours without all the stops in Dortmund, Köln, Dusseldorf, Wuppen, Ecklishen, Biefeld and Snabrueck. (I sincerely apologize if I mutilated any names!)

I came home. Unpacked. Crashed. Went out that night... drank my ass off. Woke up the next day hungover and did laundry. ...and that was my trip!

First Part of the Trip Update ++ and I am writing from a computer that is in Swedish.

2005-10-09T15:40:41Z

This has been by far one of the most interesting and fun 10 days of my life. Getting to and from Northern Europe was rather difficult... but that will be elaborated later. Let me start from the beginning. Because I had the balls to actually travel through Germany on my own, I was invited to come on a trip with Scott, one of the others in the group -- great guy by the way, and go to Dublin, London, Oslo and Stockholm. Today's entry will deal with my adventures and subsequent misadventures in Dublin and London.

Let's start with October the 1st,

Considering that Frankfurt Hahn, the budget airport for budget carrier, RyanAir is fairly far from our town of Göttingen, we had to leave around 1 o'clock for a 9:35 Flight. Getting there was the fun part. Let me explain that no airport should be called Frankfurt ANYTHING when it is out in the middle of Bumfuck nowhere in the Rhineland! So, first, we take the ICE (For those not in the know, those are bullet trains) to Frankfurt, on which we cannot sit down and are forced to ride on our bags for almost two hours on aan overbooked bullettrain, then we hop a city train and end up going the wrong way. so, we get ourselves set straight and get on a train that stop at the North Sportsfield in Frankfurt. And it just stops there. The conductor gets off and Scott and I are sitting there looking like: HOLY SHIT. Meanwhile, there are legions of Deutsche Bahn enforcers marching up and down the platform. It was like a congregating point for them or something. It was insane and we were a little worried. So, we figure that out and finally get on the train to Mainz. From there, we find out that the Bus we had anticipated to Frankfurt Hahn was NOT running. We were stuck in Mainz and forced to take a taxi at the cost of €115 to an airport in the literal of bumfuck nowhere. (Read $150)

We get to the Airport in one piece, thank god, despite the fact that our taxi driver was a seemingly suicidal kamikaze driver that would weave in and out of lanes on the autobahn, missing cars by mere inches. I feel lucky to be alive to this day. It was absolutely insane. Fortunately, the rest of the evening until we got to Dublin was really uneventful. After we get to the Hostel, we decide to hunt down an Irish Pub and have our first of the best Guinesses of our lives. We hang out at this one pub, O.sheas before we decide to go find another one and wander around for a bit. Unfortunately, it being a Saturday, most of the pubs were toned up and not letting us in, or at least I thought so (SORRY SCOTT!) in our rather disheveled and somewhat dirty states. So, we decide to head back to O'sheas and visit again. On the way, we meet a rather jovial, and rather drunk fellow named Oliver -- who on the way up to the steps to O'sheas falls and nearly breaks his arm. Everyone started laughing and I was mortified, but laughing too. And not mortified for myself, but mortified for Oliver. Poor guy. He was just looking for a drink. So, we get into the bar and its closed! Scott and I say our farewells to Oliver, our newest and bestest friend in Dublin, that we had for five minutes. We head back to the Hostel.

The next day is wild. We get seperated because I got rather bored waiting for Scott to finish up his phone conversation with his girlfriend, which was perfectly cool, but I wandered off and watched TV. I lost Scott and began wandering throughout Dublin, looking for him and wasting an inordinate amount of time and at the same time seeing half the city. Finally around 2:00 in the afternoon, I give up and go to find the Guiness factory. That was great fun. I walked through it and learned that the Irish people basically see Arthuer Guiness as a God. I have a mighty fine, if not the best guiness of my life in the skybar there and an incredible, if somewhat cloudy view of Dublin and the surrounding Countryside. I ran into Scott before I took the tour and we agreed to meet at the O'Connel (IT could be McConnel too, I can't remember right now) Bridge in the center of Town. On the way there, I run into him at a Church and we go look in there. Insert mundane bullshit here. I ate Irish Stew, which is a delicious concoction, though disgusting looking, consisting of chopped and shreaded corned beef, carrots, potatoes all floating in a green broth. IT really did look like vomit, I have to admit, but it was absolutely delicious and filling!

We head back to the Hostel, meet up with some canadian dudes, and hang out with them for awhile, knocking back more beers, and wandering around town where we meet this delightful couple by the name of Jeff and Hann. Jeff, was from the UK, and Hann was from Holland. They bought us a couple rounds of drinks until we got run out of every bar in town because they closed. I had some rather interesting discussions with both of them about the UK, the political situation in the US, food, and what the goings on are in Europe. We went to bed and woke up hungover the next morning at 7:00 so we could catch a 10 o clock flight to London. The plane is... as a perfect demonstration of Murphy's Law -- DELAYED until 13:50 (2 o clock). We miss out on our half day in London, but we get to the Hostel there, have great fish and chips and listen to some frighteningly good karaoke singers. The next day, we head to London Tower, Big Ben, the London Aquarium and Westminster Abbey and I still have a TON of stuff to see! I will be going back to London, so if anyone can offer me a place to crash for a couple nights, I would really appreciate it! So, the sites are amazing and the tour guide to London Tower was hilarious. I really recommend everyone go there, because the tour is long but totally worthwhile, interesting, and the crown jewels are amazing to look at. Unfortunately, my time on this computer is running out and I have a few things to do before I have to sign off. Expect the full updates on Monday or Tuesday... CIAO!

The Saga Continues

2005-09-29T19:18:39Z

So, I just got back from Oktoberfest. It was a great deal of fun, if a bit touristy and kept the entire city of München/Munich crammed with Americans. Fortunately, most people assumed I was either German or some form of European when I wore my more European looking clothes.

As for the damage count, let's put it this way: 2 Mass Beers under an hour are deadly. I didn't puke, but I didn't realize that the beer was a bit stronger than normal and it was damn good, so it went down quick. Augustine Voeri is the best beer ever. Period. Spaten is also very good. And Schwabian cuisine is the shit, I had the best Wienerschnitzel I have ever had in Munich and the thing I ate -- I can't remember the name, but it was a swine cutlet with melted cheese, fried bread and steamed vegetables and it was absolutely fantastic. Anyone who says German food is terrible is lying to you.

I, regrettably, did not see as much of Munich as I would have liked, simply because I only had two days there -- and they kicked us out of the Hostel at 9:30, so I didn't have anywhere to stash my stuff and I wasn't going to walk around Munich with my rucksack all damn day. I can always go back, as its only like 50 bucks and 4 hours on the train. (Trust me, it's worth it for the food and beer alone.)

I went to Hannover last Friday, I liked the museum and the old town hall, found the city boring and ugly. I'm heading to Northern Europe on Saturday, I'll have a BIG update after that.

On the professors, I only need a sentence -- just be polite and do what I need to do and get out.

Further Adventures

2005-09-19T22:53:53Z

I seem to have made a breakthrough in my German. I'm speaking with relative clarity and fluency now, but I still make minor mistakes and stumble over unfamiliar words. Yet, it's far better than where I was before I arrived, because my German was just fucking shitty to say the least. All those years of practice and going to Stammtisch didn't do me any damn good, but perhaps they accelerated the process of my learning when I got here. I've been having the time of my life. I'm starting to break off from the American Group and hanging out with the same group of Germans repetitiously, but I'm sure I will make more friends as time goes on, and I learn new people in my classes. ILP is almost over. I'm glad and I'm sad, for one -- I won't have to go to class every fucking day, on the negative, I'll have to deal with cold and distant professors, which is going to suck because I have to be remarkably polite and tactful in a country that does not exactly bear tactfulness in its culture.

I'll elaborate more on this in my next update.

And the Saga Continues!

2005-09-13T12:05:14Z

Okay, 12 hours and another class day later I am here to finish that story. So, we get back to Göttingen and I get my bike back from the Bahnhof. I come home and crash at like 12:30, only to wake up at 8:30 the next morning to find my internet has been "Gesperrt" because the bank fucked up and misdeposited my money. Of course, this was made worse by the fact I had a presentation that Wednesday that I had not even started and I was forced to rely on the Internet Cafe, because my account had not yet been activated because I "hadn't" paid for my internet rights. Well, two days of boredom (people were out of town -- and had I knownte, I would have gone to Berlin! Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda, Didn't!) and suffering later -- I get to the place on Monday and figure out what the problem was. So, I had to go running around town to get bank statements and such to prove I had paid and it was in fact, the bank and the internet people that messed up. Fortunately, I was right and didn't have to pay the 12 Euros again. The exchange was rather entertaining and worked like this (of course, loosely translated)

Daniel Kranz: You haven't paid for your internet.
Me: Yes, I did.
DK: Nope, didn't.
Me: I remember despositing the slip.
DK: Well, it's not on our records under your student ID number.
Me: I swear I paid, can I please have my internet back?
DK: If you can prove to me that you paid, I'll correct the error, but you have until 3 o'clock.
Me: What time is it now? *looking at clock, seeing it is like... 1:30, I run out*
DK: Not realizing I had walked out, 1:30... ...sir?

So, I haul ass across town, getting stuff I needed and trying to get crap fixed before I'm further up a creek than I already was. I get back to the Internet House at 2:30, finally after some mess ups on the part of the bank and annoyances with traffic. Being a bike pedestrian sometimes sucks in Göttingen because half the streets are pedestrian only zones most hours of the day or when there are more than 30 people congregated in a block area. I get everything fixed, and viola! My internet is back up, though there was another person ahead of me, having a screaming match and being blithely ignored. I, immediately and much to said persons annoyance and dismay, turned in my bank slip, got everything fixed and my Internet was totally restored within in an hour. I went shopping fgor stuff I needed in the meantime. I would talk to one of my other Mitbewohner, Rene, for awhile after I had gone shopping.

The rest of the week was relatively uneventful. I went to Tangente on Wednesday, which is a cool alternative club. It plays hard rock, metal, and alt-pop, as well as K-Musik, (not K-Pop, German music), and I find it a lot better than say, Savoy, or Alpen Maxx. I would go there a week later with my American friends and my other roommate, Gleb, but that's another post for another day.

Because I promised you an update

2005-09-12T23:39:45Z

After Livejournal LOST my damn update, I'm going to try this again...

The last couple weeks have been anything but uneventful. First off, I made my first foreign friend, here in Germany. While he isn't actually German, but Russian, it transcends the point of nationality, in that we enjoy each others company and have a mutual bond of trust and friendship forming between us -- not too mention I get excellent practice for my german. As far as my German goes, it's improving dramatically, but I still feel inept and unable to communicate and some days are better than others. Today was one of those not-so-good days.

So, let me pick up where I left off last: I had missed the bus to Weimar, after being woke up at 8:12 by a rather indignant phone call. This was after an already miserable night at a local club called Savoy, where I got kicked out because of the Bartender's incompetence. They had lost my Bartab Card and I got accused of trying to help a guy skip out on his bill. Two guards drug me upstairs, to get bitched out by the management, who told me I had to pay 50 Euros, which I didn't have, or they would call the police unless we found my card. So, we finally find my card after I convince them to look for it -- Rita, one of my colleagues had recieved it, rather than me. I had gotten some random sketchy guy who was notorious for skipping out on bills. Still, I got charged 15,90. I paid 20,00, which they took -- did not give me my change and threw me out onto the street. Of course, I was hopping mad -- and yelled at the guards and the club before walking home. So, then I get the call at 8:12 because the bus was leaving and I jump out of bed, throw on the same clothes I wore the night before, B.O. and stench of Jack Daniels and all and hauled ass to the bus stop. I got there at 8:16, right as the bus was leaving. Had I parked my bike outside my house, rather than the lot the night before -- I would have made it. But that's beside the point, I missed the bus and thought I had missed out on going to Weimar. Which was very important to me, because I was stoked on that trip. Eitherway, I went back home and wallowed in self-pity and tried to go back to sleep, figuring it was a missed opportunity.

Then for whatever reason, through some otherworldy force, was charged with energy, and knew what I had to do. Get on a train. I looked up the time a train was leaving. 9:08 AM, it was then 8:36 in the morning. I had a little more than half an hour to get to the train station, so I hopped on my bike and hauled ass. OF course, I was in such a rush I forgot to change my clothes to something a bit more presentable, but that's beside the point. Though I had sprayed myself down with a mixture of Axe Bodyspray and a Febreeze type thing. I get to the Bahn in a miraculous 8 minutes on my bike, as all of the lights worked exactly in my favor and I pedalled like I have never done so before. Buying my ticket, I hopped on the train, which was due to arrive in Weimar at 10:54, a full 36 minutes before the others arrived. The train ride took me through some wonderful parts of the German countryside, and also showed me the horrible environmental damage that the DDR had done. Finally, I arrive at Weimar and through Serendipity and a few lucky phone calls, I managed to find the Schiller House and reunited with the groups. Keep in mind I had only had a bottle of fizzy water on the train and nothing to eat, so I was up shit creek as far as hunger goes. The group explored Weimar and I wandered through the narrow alleys of the German Capital of Humanism, Liberal Thought and Literature. A beautiful sight it was, with soaring, romantic architecture, beautiful churches, ancient houses and sprawling parklands where Goethe and Schiller wrote some of their most famous works, appropriately highlighted by the weather which was cloudy, but very pleasant. The sun cast almost holy rays over the city through the rifts in the clouds and I got a number of absolutely gorgeous photos. The tours of the homes themselves were not the most interesting things in the world, I'll admit, but hearing about the lives of these writers and poets helped me connect with them in a way that was impossible simply reading their poetry. After we finished our tours of the Schiller and Goethe house, we were schuffled onto a bus and taken to Buchenwald, a stark contrast to the beauty and elegance of Weimar. It was only damaged by the fact I was hungover and had to stop to get something to eat and drink every couple of minutes to replenish my exhausted energy.

As a member of the ADL and a long-time Holocaust Scohlar, this was a moment I had dreaded for awhile -- my first visit to a Concentration Camp. While Buchenwald was not a true Death Camp, it was a hard labor facility, and later, a lab for the most depraved of Nazi Genetic Experimentations. It was a stark, realization seeing in its true glory, the terror that was the Nazi Concentration Camp System. People were reduced to cattle, stripped of their humanity, and either murdered, or worked to death as slaves to an unforgiving and relentless evil. No words can describe what happened there, and being particularly attuned, and yes, I hate to admit it -- I can read people pretty well and sense energies around areas, this place had a scar in it. Whatever divine force exists in this universe was wounded in this particular place. It was not a deep sucking wound, but the evil that happened here had hurt the living energy that surrounds everyone. I could not help but feel cold and reticent here. I was silent through my tour of the place, a deep sadness filling my soul the deeper I went into the camp. The letters wrought into iron forming the words, "Jenes das Seine" -- For All, their Due, ring an ironic twist to the nature of this place -- as those who were sent here did not recieve their due in this life, and those who created it, seemed to escape it. It was a profound, if life-changing experience, even if I did not realize it at the time. After the war, it continued its function as a hard labor-death camp after the Soviets took it over. 50,000 of the 250,000 Nazi Prisoners interned here died, and the Russians brutally executed 7,000 Political Dissidents and delievered justice to countless Nazis. The Soviets were anything but liberators, and used the facilities as a location of convenience and propaganda in the coming years. About half a kilometer down the road is a monument to the "Founding Fathers of the DDR", and used made up characters to justify a parade grounds for military marches and Stassi Inspections. Nazi Fascism turned to Soviet Fascism in the post war days. That was equally profound, as the Soviets, who are praised by many as liberators would then turn and try to kill everything that opposed them, even those that praised them. It's impossible to describe such a place, or series of events, except that it shows the ever pulsing cancer in the hearts of men. Evil. And the most profound part of Buchenwald -- it was deadly silent. No birds, no animals. Nothing.

I spent much of the bus ride home, trying to sleep, I could not help but reflect on what I had seen, something that no matter what amount of study or knowledge, I could never be totally prepared for. I can only begin to fathom the terrors of Bergen-Belson or Auschwitz. If Buchenwald, which while horrible, is relatively mild by KZ standards, I cannot even imagine the pain and anguish in these places.

Upon my return to Göttingen, I felt a bit restored, feeling the youthful, happy energy of a college town. This ironically, is something I sense missing from Berkeley. There is youthful energy, but it is chaotic, disorganized, and at times, miserable there, like the entire place is in conflict with itself. Göttingen, seems united in the pursuit and thirst for knowledge and human relationship. But that's beside the point, I picked up my bike from the trian station, ate dinner and went to bed. The next day, I slept, and worked on my referat (presentation).

In the following weeks, I began my relationship with Gleb. We went to see Sin City, and it was interesting to see an American film in German without having it seen in English first. I understood almost all of it, and it was easy to follow. That weekend, I stayed at home and studied, just like I did this last weekend. We go out almost nightly now to the little cornerclub for the Studenten Dorf, the Dorfkrug. It's a good place to get a relatively cheap beer, though it's not the best price in town. I hate to disappoint to, but as it is 1:40 in the morning, I want to get at least two sleep cycles in before I have to get up at 7:30 tomorrow and get ready for class. I'll finish this story when I have the time...

Because I haven't updated in forever....

2005-09-10T11:13:32Z

So, it's time for another update -- not much has happened of great interest over the past weeks other than me going out, getting bombed, and making some new friends. I'm really hungover and tired -- so expect a greater update tonight.

Germany: PHOTO BUCKET IS AT http://photobucket.com/albums/a231/filmbuffatcal/

2005-08-20T19:15:22Z

So, I've been in Germany for about two weeks now. It's been a little slow getting used to the entire thing. My friend Jeremy keeps encouraging me to go out and hit on Frauleins. I'm not sure thats exactly how things are done in the German culture, but it might be worth a shot, on my own at some point in the near future. ILP is going well, even though I got a test this Thursday. Friday, we're taking a field trip to Weimar and I believe Buchenwald, which was a Nazi Concentration Camp. For several people in the group, I think this will be a good thing because a lot of them still have that naive, self-centered American attitude about them. But I won't talk too much shit, everyone in the group is a good person in their own, unique way.

So, let me give a recap of the first week --

On Monday, I arrived in Germany after a long plane flight and dealing with three babies. One would cry every half hour or so and then the others would get going. There was a tot, about 3 years old who would kick me and other passangers while we slept or were eating. I, however, managed to stave off and avoid jet lag. After arriving in Germany, we met our Orientators, and got to know them a little bit. Jan and David. They were nice guys, and I would like to see more of them. The group went out that night, but I missed that because I went to sleep way early. I was exhausted for not sleeping for basically 36 hours.

Tuesday -- we went through the regular setting up a life stuff. Bank accounts, paying the rent, getting signed up for internet (which I did not get until almost a week and a half later!) And then we went out to dinner. It was nothing spectacular, but it was good, decent food.

Wednesday -- Placement Testing and then we went to the club. I got to see the German clubs and drank a lot. Did not get hung over.

Thursday -- Went to a luncheon and then got released into the world.

Friday -- Went on a scavanger hunt. Went to a technoclub. Got piss drunk. Managed to ride my new bike, which I bought that day up to the house. Did not fall off. Did however scrape the back of my foot raw on the steps.

Saturday - Went to Kaliberg, a salt mining town with 400 people on the Leine River. It was interesting to find out about the history and story of this town, plus I got to see men in funny hats. Okay, perhaps that's not the most tactful way to put it, but it was a beautiful little town. We then went and saw some miniature castles to give us an idea of German castles. Then went to a place called Bad Karlshafen. It was a huegonot town. Very pretty, but also tiny. Hung out at Hofbrau.

Sunday - Slept. A lot.

2nd Monday - Started ILP, ended up in the middle class. Got to know the teacher. Accidently insulted Professor Keller by turning down an offer for Goose Patey and talking about American sensibilities. Worsened it by insulting McDonalds. Went out with some Berkeley friends for dinner, then went to the local Hofbrau.

2nd Tuesday - Woke up late for class. Almost fell asleep in class. Learned about Da and Weil. Also learned about German political parties. Ate lunch at the Mensa.

2nd Wednesday - Class. Mensa. Club Savoy until 3:30 in the morning, woke up at 8 the next day with the clothes I wore the night before.

Thursday - See above.

Friday: Went to class, learned about my group, presented a presentation on SPD (The German version of the Democratic Party). Started research on my project about Goettingen's past. Went to Celle in the afternoon, walked around the town taking pictures until it got too dark.

Saturday: Woke up early, had breakfast, checked out of the hotel. Saw the major sites, was done by 3:30, got on train, headed back home. Photos are up.

filmbuff84 @ 2005-07-23T23:33:00

2005-07-24T06:34:18Z

There are simply somedays I hate Berkeley...

Today is one of them.

Surgery

2005-06-10T06:24:09Z

So, on Monday, it was the big day. I had my surgery and surprisingly, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The nurses at Cedar-Sinai were very nice and my doctor did an excellent job to ensure I was comfortable. Anaesthesia was weird, it stung and tingled before it finally put me out because my body literally resisted the sedative and wouldn't accept the Anaesthesia. I wanted to go under, but my body resisted it.

My doctors always said I am one of the hardiest, toughest patients they ever see -- but this was kind of ridiculous. If I can take something akin to an elephant tranquilizer and still be vivid and coherent, I can probably endure just about everything. But, I'm not willing to try it. Heh. I came too not long after I was knocked out -- huge surprise there. The surgery took longer than expected because apparently the damage to my nose was far more extensive than either the X-Ray, CT, or examinations revealed. I was missing a huge amount of cartiledge and scar tissue had made up a big chunk of my nose. Scary! In the morning, I get this annoying packing removed so I can breathe again, as well as my cast. I'm just hoping my nose is okay. I did this for the breathing improvement first and the cosmetic improvement second, but I will be disappointed if I end up with a freak Michael Jackson nose! EEEP!

Eitherway, I'll post a before and after photo soon enough. Stay tuned folks!

I decided to nerd out...

2005-05-23T07:26:51Z

You scored as Chaotic Good. A Chaotic Good person is someone who has little intrinsic respect for laws or authority, seeing them as insufficient to sustain what's right. These people work according to their own moral compass which, while good, is not necessarily always aligned with that of society. Despite their chaotic tendancies, these people are good at heart.

</td>

Chaotic Good

80%

Lawful Evil

75%

True Neutral

65%

Neutral Evil

65%

Chaotic Neutral

55%

Chaotic Evil

55%

Lawful Good

45%

Neutral Good

45%

Lawful Neutral

35%

What is your Alignment?
created with QuizFarm.com

RIP Mike the Cat: April 1st, 1994 - April 30th/May 1st, 2005

2005-05-01T20:04:36Z

Okay, I'm going to talk about my feelings... and don't give me shit about it.

My childhood pet, Mike the Cat died last night after a drawn out battle with cancer (Feline Sarcoma.) I saw him about a month ago, and the poor thing looked like he was being eaten alive by the damn thing. He seemed so frail, I was afraid to scoop him up and hug him like I used to when he was in better health. But he's in better place now, so I'm happy for him. I'm going to miss him and I'm sad he's gone, but I think this is probably for the best. I remember, when we first found him -- sick, half-starved and covered in fleasa. I suppose it is fitting in a sad, and sickly, ironic way that he would leave the world in that way... except without the fleas, thank god. He was a very special cat, as he was my first cat and he was more like a dog than a cat. Followed you everywhere, waited for you to come home, wanted his belly rubbed, etc, etc. The world will be a sadder place without him.

My FAVORITE time of the semester, and I do use favorite loosely... and an attempt to overuse "fuck"

2005-04-25T22:21:14Z

So, it's finals time... and I still got fucking shit to fucking write. I fucking fuck got a fucking presentation of William Appleman fucking Williams' seminal work of anti-imperialist fucker literature, or so they fucking would like you to fucking believe. The fucking fucks. He isn't fucking against fucking American fucking empire, just fucking how it was fucking performed.

But anyway, fucking finals are fucking coming and fuck do I have so fucking much to do, my fucking eyes are fucking brown from all the fucking shit fucking piled up around me. Woo. I fucking could go on forever, but I hate being fucking verbose. Fuck Fuck Fuck that fucking shit, back to fucking work!

Oh yea, and those of you who didn't go to fucking Cave. It was fucking AWESOME!

filmbuff84 @ 2005-04-20T19:14:00

2005-04-21T02:15:02Z

Odin
Indeed, you are 79% erudite, 41% sensual, 70% martial, and 58% saturnine.

King of the Gods and leader of the Aesir family, Odin was all wise, all seeing, and almighty. He was the very personification of authority, skilled in battle, and swift in administering justice, but also prone to unpredictable bouts of extreme wrath.

Along with his wife Frigg (yes, that was her name), Odin ruled from his magnificent hall of "Valhalla" located within the realm of Asgard, home to the deities. Valhalla was also the afterlife destination of brave and valiant mortal heroes who had fallen in battle. These dead heroes were whisked away from the bloody battlefield by Odin's elite force of armour clad female warriors called the Valkyries, charging through the sky upon flying horses.

Valkyries were originally fierce spirits of slaughter who soared over the battlefields like birds of pray, though in later Norse myth, they were romanticized as Odin's Shield-Maidens, virgins with golden hair and snowy arms who served the chosen heroes everlasting mead and meat in the great hall of Valhalla. And isn’t that just any man's dream?

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 61% on erudite

You scored higher than 3% on sensual

You scored higher than 86% on martial

You scored higher than 56% on saturnine

Link: The Mythological God Test written by Nitsuki on Ok Cupid

I'm over worked...

2005-04-10T21:03:31Z

I'm overworked and have a lot more translating and redacting to do, so I'll make this short and quick:

It was another shitty week at school.
1. I put my foot in my mouth at least 12 times. (I meant to say something completely different than it came out, my AS 110H professor probably hates me now.)
2. I gave a presentation and I choked in the middle of it.
3. I have WAY too much work for any human to do in a reasonable amount of time, yet I WILL get it done.
4. My grandfather has cancer. Fortunately, it's early stage prostate (we hope...)

...understand why I'm in a pissy mood now?

Good news:
1. I'm going to Germany.
2. There is only 4 more weeks of class. YAAAAY!
3. It's I-Week. The funnest part of pledge semester... *rubs his hands together evilly!*

Oh, and this paper I'm writing about the Nazi Indoctrination of Youth is a bitch to translate, but the evil and atrocities of the Nazis are that much starker in the exceedingly direct German language.

I'm over worked...

2005-04-10T20:46:12Z

filmbuff84 @ 2005-03-28T21:52:00

2005-03-29T05:52:50Z

<tr>
<td align="middle">ENTJ - Commandant
Your Type is 60% Extroverted, 37% Observant, 68% Logical and 75% Structured </td></tr>
<tr>
<td>The single word to describe your type is fieldmarshal or commandant. You also belong to the larger group called rationals. You love to organize others in matters of logic. Even as a child, you likely naturally assumed the role of leader in groups. You share your personality type with 2% of the population. When you lead, you are more concerned with policy and goals than rules and regulations. You have a tendancy to become a workaholic. You are impatient with repetition of error. You are friendly and outgoing, though. You don't mince words and willingly share your many strong opinions.
As a romantic partner, you are inspiring, but also somewhat challenging. You have a strong desire to be in charge and your clear need for an organized life and home can be overwelming to a partner. You like to confront conflict directly, discuss problems unflinchingly, solve them, then put them behind you. However, you can be too impatient or unwilling to take the time to listen to your partner and give them a chance to express themselves fully so that they also have a sense of closure. You are generally uncomfortable dealing with emotions, so you are apt to dismiss your partner's emotions as illogical. You feel most appreciated when your partner asks for your opinions, takes your adivce, and relies on you to get a job done right.
Your group summary: rationals (NT)
Your type summary: ENTJ
vincex's shorter version of this test. </td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="middle"></td></tr></tbody></table>

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 54% on outgoing

You scored higher than 48% on observant

You scored higher than 68% on logical

You scored higher than 90% on structured

Link: The Quick and Dirty Personality Test written by unpretentious2 on Ok Cupid

Things gained, things lost...

2005-03-10T05:51:04Z

So, I'm getting close to close of my collegiate career. It is anywhere from 6 to 18 months away, so I have to think about my future and what to do next. I know I complain a lot about being here, but with the nicer weather, I find myself in a much better mood than normal. I suppose, I could quit brooding all the time, but that's simply who I am as a borderline I/ENTJ. I realize I have learned a lot since I came here and have improved greatly as a person. I am probably more conservative than my parents would like and than perhaps I should be considering my education. I'm far from a right-wing lunatic, it just happens my politics fall more in line with the libertarian party, and the Enlightenment Philosophes (without the condoing of slavery and such.) I am a Hofstadterian Liberal. I am not liberal. I am Liberal. Free market society, free rights, human equality, government as a framework, not an activist, all that good jazz. I've more than earned my degree, with a minor in determination. :P

I was saddened today by the loss of my high school class ring. As much as I hated LACES, that little piece of gold and faux jewel had a great deal of sentimental value, but it also carried a great number of bad memories with it, so perhaps its loss is more symbolic of divorcing mytself from the past. I think this chapter, the start of my life is closed. Its time for my life to begin and move on, do something unexpected, do something different and do what I think is right, rather than what is expected. My future is wide-open, no matter what I do -- whether that be law, film, teaching (god forbid), military (eek!), etc. I'm really sort of clueless what to do next, after I finish school. I'll probably get a job and do what I need to do to get ahead in life. Oh well, it's almost time for South Park.

Reminded why I chose Berkeley...

2005-03-02T19:28:39Z

Every now and again, when I get in the dumps and feel like whining -- this is my dumping board and things may seem worse than they actually are. Okay, enough with the disclaimers:

Sitting in class today, I remember why I came to Berkeley in the first place -- but the reason was what happened yesterday in my american studies honors seminar. Professor Brilliant, yes, that's his name, Professor Mark Brilliant -- who by the way, RUNS AN EXCELLENT course, stated that was one of the things he appreciated about Berkeley was the diverse political opinions. While most of the younger students would disrespect me for my political beliefs (I tend to lean a bit more conservative than the majority of the students here.. okay, a lot.), I am still a "liberal" in the traditional sense. I found that people as they grow older and get more experience find themselves respecting others for standing up for their beliefs more. When I first got here, I was criticized and even "hazed" for not believing the "right" way. Once you get past the first two years, people become a lot nicer and more understanding. They don't criticize as much for thinking differently or trying to go against the grain -- which in this place seems to be going against the grain.

But the sheer diversity of opinions is what made me choose Berkeley. Everyone probably has a niche here. I won't get into my political beliefs because they are a smorgasboard of differing ideologies. Anyway... uhm, I forgot what I was gonna talk about. Time for lunch.

Midterms suck

2005-03-02T05:59:43Z

Woo. One midterm down and I feel a bit better about school, but I am still bored and restless. I wanna graduate. WOO. Midterms always make me cranky.

Restless and bored

2005-02-28T21:09:59Z

I'm so bored and restless right now, I feel like I'm about to jump out of my skin. Maybe I should go for a job around 3:30 or 4:00, but still, I have so much work to do. UGH! It's driving me insane, and now I'm getting calls about a class gift for 2005. Since when am I graduating? O.O Actually, I don't think I am. But I am seriously thinking about dropping the German major to a minor so I can graduate next semester. I'm really tired of school and I'm finding I'm not all that thrilled with German as a major. It wouldn't be a huge loss. I wanted to learn a language and culture, not learn EVERY last nook and cranny of something. I've done the latter part and gotten a few history lessons too. Unfortunately, I'm losing most of my motivation to even finish school. I dunno if its burnout or I am just sick of it and want to do something else.

Going abroad wouldn't help much either, because the only programs I'm qualified for are intensive academic programs and I just don't have the heart or energy to do that right now. I'm not depressed, just tired of going to school. I've basically been going to college since the 10th Grade. Starting with AP Euro and three honors classes, then moving on to 4 APs a year for the next two years. I also will have 128.7 or something units at the end of this semester. Time to get moving! I never really enjoyed Cal, the environment was all wrong for me. I would go into the reasons, but college should NEVER make you shudder as you walk on the plane to go back. I really wanted to do something else between college and high school. I needed time to grow up -- I was too immature, undisicplined, and stupid to take on something as large and difficult as Cal at the tender age of 18. I wasn't even my own person yet, and I hate the person I have become because of this place. I seriously need to get out of here.

I had no idea what I wanted, and here I am; stuck with a degree that is UTTERLY worthless (assuming I drop German to a minor). American Studies? What the hell am I supposed to do with it? And it's the damn reason why everyone is pressuring me to be a teacher. I will reiterate: I WILL NOT TEACH A BUNCH OF FISH-EYED IDIOT KIDS! I hate kids. I especially hate high-schoolers.

I thought about law school and decided that I don't even want to do that. I have no idea where I want to go or what to do next...