Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Giving props where props are due
Greg earned a 101.97% overall grade in his last (Insert retching sound) Accounting class. Apparently the teacher was impressed. Below are his comments on Greg's final paper.
Monday, December 26, 2016
Good Morning America. How are you?
Willie Nelson's seems a good place to kick this blog off. I have been on a bit of a country kick since landing Stateside. The rental cars radio didn't change for 5 days straight and amazingly no song repeated the entire time. Perhaps my sticking to the country channel had to do with the feel of Vermont or perhaps it has to do with those "Windshield Wipers slappin out a tempo" as I finally find myself back behind the wheel (What a pleasure that is!!)
We have been here for a week now. Its been a rather busy one. We landed late on Sunday in Montreal. There where some issues with getting a rental car. The one I had lined up was to small to hold our luggage. They swapped it out for a car with a van that started screaming warnings at me the minute I put it in drive and after an hour long wait we were lined up with a Chrysler Town and Country which fit the bill. We left Montreal and arrived in Burlington in time to order room service and go to sleep. Jet lag and time adjustment took about 4 days to get through the worst of. I had wanted to stay up on the night of the 21st to welcome the Sun as I usually do on the Solstice but being in a hotel in the dark with kids passed out at 7 pm made that just a little bit to difficult. Anyway,..
Monday I met with my home loan lender at the IRS. In order to secure my loan, they needed confirmation that our 2015 taxes had been submitted to the IRS. Don't get me started on the process of taxes and dual country filing and ... well... long story short ... we were down to the wire as the house closed on Tuesday. Needless to say that the IRS had changed its procedure (In the last few weeks) and it was not as easy an experience as we were expecting but we got it done and we were able to close as anticipated on Tuesday. Whew!
That doesn't mean we moved in on Tuesday. On Wednesday our air shipment containing some dishes. towels, lawn chairs and sleeping bags/cots arrived and were unpacked. Thursday was spent checking out the schools and getting the kids registered as well as doing some shopping and we started painting the rooms that needed it (Two of the bedrooms really needed to be toned down otherwise I love the existing color schemes of the home.) Friday our internet was installed and our mattresses arrived. We fought the holiday crowds as we ran some much needed errands to Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond, and the grocery store (all just down the road and easy to get to). Saturday we checked out of the hotel and began to settle in and make ourselves at home. Sunday was spent mostly painting. We had a fantastic feast of Mountain Home (camping .. add water and waalaa) and there were a couple "surprise" gifts on the mantel for the kiddies. Today I went to the Toyota dealership and bought a Tacoma and the last of the painting was finished.
Whew. It has been a very productive week to say the least. The work is by no means done but the bulk of it for now has been seen to and the next few days will be spent attending to smaller details... Like lining up Eye Dr. appointments. Willow keeps laughing at me because I have to take off my glasses and bring things right up to my face to read... could it be time for bi-focals?
The wind is whipping outside and more snow is on the way. It snowed 2 inches on Thursday. I bought a snow shovel on Friday to take care of the driveway and the woman at the registered said, "So you are gearing up for the season." I guess that means we can expect a lot more to come.
It is beautiful here. We are in the middle of a valley with a giant lake not more than 20 minutes away. Already it feels like home. The kids are doing well with the change. Connor is going to do great at his school. And although Willow is a bit overwhelmed by the size the the high school she is happier than I have seen her in a long time.
Meanwhile in Germany,... The house was packed up on Tuesday and loaded on Wednesday (Hopefully the delivery will be around Jan 20th). Some rental furniture was delivered that afternoon so Greg has a place to sleep and work. Thursday and Friday he took a Holiday with some friends and toured a mine and enjoyed some beer and a statue of Karl Marx. Over Christmas he stayed at home and just relaxed. His school course wrapped up. He has two more classes to go before graduating with his MBA in May. He also came in first in the world wide "manufacturing simulation game" that he took part in. He is quite the strategist. In not so happy news, he learned today that the plant has been sold and that things are officially shutting down later this week after he makes the announcement to his team and immediately lets them all go. It is not an easy position to be in and I am hoping that it goes as smooth as can be for him.
With this news, it is pretty certain that he will be on a flight out here at the end of January. We will be waiting..... Unless I devour the children first.
It sure is good to be back! I can't wait to start exploring. As always, more to come soon.
We have been here for a week now. Its been a rather busy one. We landed late on Sunday in Montreal. There where some issues with getting a rental car. The one I had lined up was to small to hold our luggage. They swapped it out for a car with a van that started screaming warnings at me the minute I put it in drive and after an hour long wait we were lined up with a Chrysler Town and Country which fit the bill. We left Montreal and arrived in Burlington in time to order room service and go to sleep. Jet lag and time adjustment took about 4 days to get through the worst of. I had wanted to stay up on the night of the 21st to welcome the Sun as I usually do on the Solstice but being in a hotel in the dark with kids passed out at 7 pm made that just a little bit to difficult. Anyway,..
Monday I met with my home loan lender at the IRS. In order to secure my loan, they needed confirmation that our 2015 taxes had been submitted to the IRS. Don't get me started on the process of taxes and dual country filing and ... well... long story short ... we were down to the wire as the house closed on Tuesday. Needless to say that the IRS had changed its procedure (In the last few weeks) and it was not as easy an experience as we were expecting but we got it done and we were able to close as anticipated on Tuesday. Whew!
That doesn't mean we moved in on Tuesday. On Wednesday our air shipment containing some dishes. towels, lawn chairs and sleeping bags/cots arrived and were unpacked. Thursday was spent checking out the schools and getting the kids registered as well as doing some shopping and we started painting the rooms that needed it (Two of the bedrooms really needed to be toned down otherwise I love the existing color schemes of the home.) Friday our internet was installed and our mattresses arrived. We fought the holiday crowds as we ran some much needed errands to Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond, and the grocery store (all just down the road and easy to get to). Saturday we checked out of the hotel and began to settle in and make ourselves at home. Sunday was spent mostly painting. We had a fantastic feast of Mountain Home (camping .. add water and waalaa) and there were a couple "surprise" gifts on the mantel for the kiddies. Today I went to the Toyota dealership and bought a Tacoma and the last of the painting was finished.
Whew. It has been a very productive week to say the least. The work is by no means done but the bulk of it for now has been seen to and the next few days will be spent attending to smaller details... Like lining up Eye Dr. appointments. Willow keeps laughing at me because I have to take off my glasses and bring things right up to my face to read... could it be time for bi-focals?
The wind is whipping outside and more snow is on the way. It snowed 2 inches on Thursday. I bought a snow shovel on Friday to take care of the driveway and the woman at the registered said, "So you are gearing up for the season." I guess that means we can expect a lot more to come.
It is beautiful here. We are in the middle of a valley with a giant lake not more than 20 minutes away. Already it feels like home. The kids are doing well with the change. Connor is going to do great at his school. And although Willow is a bit overwhelmed by the size the the high school she is happier than I have seen her in a long time.
Meanwhile in Germany,... The house was packed up on Tuesday and loaded on Wednesday (Hopefully the delivery will be around Jan 20th). Some rental furniture was delivered that afternoon so Greg has a place to sleep and work. Thursday and Friday he took a Holiday with some friends and toured a mine and enjoyed some beer and a statue of Karl Marx. Over Christmas he stayed at home and just relaxed. His school course wrapped up. He has two more classes to go before graduating with his MBA in May. He also came in first in the world wide "manufacturing simulation game" that he took part in. He is quite the strategist. In not so happy news, he learned today that the plant has been sold and that things are officially shutting down later this week after he makes the announcement to his team and immediately lets them all go. It is not an easy position to be in and I am hoping that it goes as smooth as can be for him.
With this news, it is pretty certain that he will be on a flight out here at the end of January. We will be waiting..... Unless I devour the children first.
It sure is good to be back! I can't wait to start exploring. As always, more to come soon.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Quick hello before I go
It has been a crazy sort of month filled with the details and challenges of buying a house in Vermont while living abroad, and managing the process of contract cancellations here. Germans don't move often and their system reflects that. For instance my cell phone.. I can't just go in and cancel it with the payment an early termination fee. I have to submit documents proving my citizenship has been cancelled and then, after three more months, they will disconnect the service. The same goes for Cable, internet and landline services. Regardless, all the pieces are falling into place and our transition will go rather smoothly. At least this time around we know what to expect at the other end.... apparently Snow and lots of it. I have not driven a car in a year and a half.. it should be interesting. Anyway.. so it goes. The kids and I leave on the 18th and (it is now official) we close on our house on the 20th. A right and proper way to celebrate the Solstice eh?! Here comes the sun and all that. You know .. making it memorable. Greg will be out to join us in a few months. We are taking it in stride.
Connor has been busy lately with a new project. He has started a Youtube Channel. Its fun to see how much his editing skills have improved. Check him out at Creed Games.
I could probably go on .. but I wont. I have chores and calls and preparations that demand my attention. I probably won't pop up here again until I am stateside. Despite the insanity there, It will be good to be "home".
Connor has been busy lately with a new project. He has started a Youtube Channel. Its fun to see how much his editing skills have improved. Check him out at Creed Games.
I could probably go on .. but I wont. I have chores and calls and preparations that demand my attention. I probably won't pop up here again until I am stateside. Despite the insanity there, It will be good to be "home".
Friday, December 2, 2016
Inked
I got a tattoo. And like with everything I do.. well.. Go big or Go Home. Its healing now. Still sore from the needle and I know that soon it will be itching like a son of gun. But everything comes with a price and I am most willing to pay it.
There are some key elements to the art work that now adorns my left forearm. For starters it has a bird.
There are some key elements to the art work that now adorns my left forearm. For starters it has a bird.
The bird is a skylark.. sort of a totem animal for me.
Some have described this bird as a "Punk Thrush" because it has a little mohawk. After the artist got done with the outline I realized that the placement of some feathers made it look as though the bird had a ginormous set of balls. Quite fitting in my mind. When I went in for the coloring I asked him to leave it as it was. I explained that it added character. He didn't understand.. But being German this was to be expected but he left it alone anyway.
Another element of the design is the rainbow radiating out of the lighthouse. The rainbow is styled in the Bauhaus tradition of Herbert Bayer's Chromatic Twist (1970).
As Weimar is the home of the Bauhaus movement, I thought it a fitting symbol of our time in Germany. It is also a symbol of "Hope" and of dreams that carry me through life and feed my soul.
Some day we'll find it. The rainbow connection. The lovers, the dreamers and me. La da da di da da dum da duh da da dum di da ohhh
The words "Chasing Rainbows all my days" are lyrics from the Iron Maiden song, Ghost of the Navigator. This song speaks of Homers Odyssey. It is a personal anthem of sorts. Paying tribute to the epic adventure that has so far been my life.
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