"Total Wahnsinnig"

I don't know why, but I need naps. Every day. Even just for half an hour. I think it's because my brain gets worn out from trying to understand everything that's going on around me all the time.
I mean it does that normally, but it has to work super hard right now. You understand.

The first week is in the past. It's hard to believe but at the same time I feel like I've always been here. I see myself easily traveling to different places in the world after this. This is the beginning.
When Birte, Hans-Peter's oldest daughter, asked me how long I'd been learning German and I said three years, she was amazed. She said she learned French for four years before going to Canada and didn't understand anything the first week. Phew! So people aren't just being nice when they say my German is good. This has always been true, though, language has been one of my few natural talents.

The weather has been kind of iffy here, but it makes sense. We're on the northern tip of Germany. It's a bit like Portland in June, but less rain. Cloudy and in the high 60s. We've been spending a lot of time with another family (I'm not sure how they know each other), and they have a son who's 13 and a daughter who's 9. The son (Bjana, I think his name is?) is really interested in America and what's popular. He asked me if I knew who Ne-yo is and it took me like 2 minutes to remember that that is actually a pretty popular singer/musician. Haha. I'm really not a good person to ask about pop culture.

Also, bummer time, they don't really eat mexican food here. I miss Los Gorditos!! Last night I found some tortillas in the exotic section, though, and make tofu and potato breakfast burritos. nomnomnom.

Is this interesting at all? It's really been an easy transition and I think I just got lucky to have such a chill, friendly, and open-minded family. Except for the yelling at the kids. Why is this neccesary? It makes them act out more and be louder. My dad always says, "you know, I don't yell and stomp and scream" and it always sounded so dorky, but I understand now. I am not a fan of shouting at someone because they accidentally dropped a bottle.

ANYWAY. I think I'm gonna go nom on some bread and tofu scramble. Missin' y'all. If you can find a way to send a soy curl burrito from Los Gorditos to me, I will be in your debt eternally.

I hate coming up with titles.

So we're in Sankt Peter-Ording. I need to figure out a way to get photos going. I have no camera with me at the moment. I am blaming my parents for this. Because even though the memory card was in my room, we still had no chord that connects the camera to a computer. So it's pretty much useless either way.

Anyway. It's pretty beautiful here, there's a cute little shopping center that would be called "old town" anywhere else. We got rained out on the beach today but now it's sunny. bwaahh. I got hella sunburned on my face and the back of my legs.

Right now I'm feeling like something needs to be added to the mix. Feeling kind of at an impass. Some moments I think 6 months will be no where near enough, and then at other moments I don't know if I'll last through the week. Usually the nights are better, when we're all lounging around after the day. I think that's just my personality, though, I suck at active daytime things. Haha.
One of the main issues for me so far is how they discipline the kids. In my family our parents honestly never yelled at us. I can't really remember how we were disciplined...I don't know. Anyway, there's a lot of pausing to place fault on the kids for doing or saying something that isn't really bad or wrong, just kind of annoying or frustrating.

Bah I don't know. It's interesting though. And by "interesting" I mean "awkward" and "uncomfortable" but also "worthy of thought".

I'm getting really good at understand people when they talk, when the conversation switches from one topic to the next, and, more and more, the details of conversations at they happen. Sometimes, after someone has talked to me, I can't remember if they spoke in English or German, because I understood them.

Anyway. jfdkslajgldfj done.

So then.

I just finished packing for our vacation to Sankt Peter-Ording. Hans-Peter's youngest (of his older kids) was just here; I don't know if it was just so she could meet me and I could be awkward or what, but that's pretty much what happened. I really hope that wasn't the only reason she came over. I would feel really bad. She seems cool, though. We discussed the fact that we both have piercings and tattoos and she asked me if I liked Tokyo Hotel and I thought she meant a Hotel in Tokyo. (It's a band...)

Anyway. Super interesting, right? I'm already beginning to feel like this is my home, and the good definitely outweighs the bad and awkward. Leonie and Silas are very friendly and love talking and sharing, so that's helpful. It would be really difficult if I had to initiate every interaction or got shot down when I tried to.

Silas got a Nintendo DS when we were at the Einskaufzentrum (fancy word for Mall) yesterday, so we've been talking about Mario Kart and Pokemon. Leonie reads 24/7, and it's really cute when she tells us about what's happening in the book. It sounds like it's really happening. Like yesterday, out of nowhere, she pops her head out from behind her book and yells: "Es schneit!" ("It's snowing!").

Last night we saw a play in a big outdoor ampitheater. It's called Halbblut and is about...Cowboys and Indians. Hahahaha. Except for the fact that everyone around me was speaking German and the show was in German, we could've been in America. It was very strange. It was also weird to be walking through this quintissential tiny German town, and then come upon this "Indian Village" with totem poles and the like.

Another weird moment was driving home after the show. "Barbie Girl" was playing on the radio, we were driving on a highway that looked like it could be Oregon except all the signs were in German, and I was with a family that only 3 days ago I had never met, but now already knew quite intimately.

Agh I have so many stories and want to just write them all down, but that would make this way too long and I'm sure they're not very interesting. It's just really exciting to be somewhere completely new with people who are so accepting and welcoming and friendly and open-minded and funny. The language is frustrating though, because I feel we would be able to talk about so much more, but I'm limited in my German and they're limited in their English, so we're forced into silence a lot.

Of course these things come with time, and I think they're really enjoying having me here. When we can communicate, I get along well with everyone.

Also, I just realzed this morning that I've been saying "ganz" when I should be saying "sehr". Why has nobody corrected me?? Gah.

Okay. I'm done for now.

woah.

Okay. First off. This computer has letters with umaluts on the keyboard. And the y and the z are switched, for no apparent reason.

Findus the cat purrs loudly as he naps on the ikea couch.
Holly the blond retriever lays on her side under the table.
I have bug bites on my left leg and under my chin from the walk we took this morning, which was through wheat fields and forests and near sheep and a beautiful river that we'll swim in at some point relatively soon.

Yesterday we drove 20 minutes to the Nordsee. The water was warm, we layed on the sand, I had some Waldbeeren sorbet. Sehr lecker!

Already I'm thinking in German word order and english feels kind of unnatural. It's been barely 24 hours. Haha. I wonder what it will be like 6 months from now.
Yesterday I was totally dead because, although it was the middle of the day here, my body felt like it was the middle of the night.

Awww Holly just got up and stuck her head out from under the table for some love. I love animals; they speak one language: petting.

Anyway, yesterday was horribly awkward because, on top of my German not being fantastisch, I was terribly tired. So things that I would normally be able to kind of figure out, I couldn't even begin to understand. But this morning, things are better. Anette and I were able to get on kind of the same level as we took Holly on her walk. We were able to communicate better and I helped her with some English words, since her English is about as good as my German.

Deborah, Holly reminds me of Tucker, which reminds me of you, which makes me happy. It's like you're always with me. :)

What else. It's vacation here, so things are very relaxed. Anette is working a bit right now and Leonie (the daughter) and her friend Klara are outside playing. Leonie has a really strong personality, always pushing people's buttons and chat-chat-chatting. She's hilarious to watch, especially since I don't understand her half the time, so I don't feel awkward when she says something that pisses her mom off. Haha. Klara is rad, and she's been very open and friendly with me. She's staying with us at the house until Friday, which is tomorrow, and I'm kinda bummed, but I'm sure she'll come around often.

Anyway, I'll keep updating this as a way for everybody to see what's happening in one place. If there's anything specifically you want me to talk about, or if you have any questions jus' let me knoowww.
The cat looks adorable, so I think I'll go snuggle with him and read a bit before we go out on the town.

I miss you all terribly! Oh, also, I need to get a memory card for my camera, and then I'll be able to upload pictures. Sweeet.

Tschüs!