Funny thing I noticed recently. My post about the German stare is generating quite a bit of traffic. In fact it pops up on the first page of a google search. It has been shared at least 10 times on facebook. Now I even have an ad down at the bottom of the page. So I made it private. What’s the point of a blog? To help people, to connect to people. But I think it’s a weird feeling to have a constant stream of people visiting this entry you’ve written and not interacting. Upwards of 500 hits and not one like. That is weird. Like ghost stalkers. I’d like to share my life and I understand a blog enables strangers to view it, but I just find this weird. It’s like my old fb account where I had really old school chums looking at my pics but never interacting with me. I speak personally with my family and friends about the things I write here. Having no interaction with strangers who visit and then watching that number grow, to me it’s just exactly how technology makes us more isolated instead of bringing us together. So for now I’ve made it private.
That being said I don’t have much to say. At least I don’t feel like saying a lot will help anything. University has started again my classes are very interesting. The bf and I will see each other again in 5/6 weeks. So I am a robot, working, sleeping, studying, eating, waiting, and saving money.
What can I say? There’s no point in going into details. It won’t change anything. Instead I will list all the things missing from my life, that I have to deal with living in the dorms and alone that I used to take for granted and am looking forward to regaining, whenever that may be.
1. A washing machine. Just did the laundry today. It costs two euros a load. For whatever reason the clothes never seem to get clean. Maybe it’s cause I wait until my clothes are really dirty so the stains have a long time to set. But I don’t know. I washed some stuff and my boyfriend’s parents house and everything came out spic and span and smelling wonderful. I use fabric softener, stain remover, detergent and anti-bacterial detergent and it comes out dirty and smelling like wet clothes. I can’t wait for my own washing machine again. Probably the costs will be the same, but I just want to do a wash whenever I feel like it.
2. A bathtub. My bathroom is great. It’s small and a breeze to clean, but two weeks ago when I was achy from a cold, the closest thing I could get to relief was a hot water bottle. I don’t pay a water bill and the water pressure is really high, so at least there’s that. But oh a bathtub will be a must in the next place.
3. A full size fridge. I’ve never in my adult life, post-college had a full-sized fridge. Right now I’ve got the middle shelf a veggie crisper and enough freezer space for a frozen pizza. I eat what I buy, but have to go grocery shopping frequently and use up anything that takes up space before I’m ready to. I miss buying things in bulk, when they’re on sale or in season. Oh well.
4. Along those same lines: a kitchen to call my own. Now I’m lucky, we actually do have more than enough space for two normal students. We’ve got 4 burners for two people, but I’ve only got a few dishes in the cabinet and my spices and root vegetables have to be stored in my room. And when one of us does the washing up after a big dinner, the plates take up most of the surface area.
5. Living with someone with a functioning nose. 4 roommates since I moved in last September and all but one had no sense of smell. I’ve basically taken out the trash for two people since then. I came in this week and nearly gagged at the recycling (old meat packaging) My roommate who was home all day did not seem that bothered. Dear God, deliver me from this quickly.
6. Storage space. I thought living in one room would be a temporary situation I could deal with for one year. Now with no end in sight, I fantasize about cellar space.
7. A living room/office. See above.
8. Shelves. Most of my books are boxed up and in Nbg but the one I have here are stacked up every which way on the one shelf and the rest take up most of the space on my table. That’s an important reason I bought a tablet, why pay to print out all the readings when they will just add to the space issue I’ve barely got a handle on.
9. My mattress. I spent a lot of my money on my wonderful mattress. Had I known I would have to do without it for so long, I don’t know if I would have gone to study when I did. I’m being serious. Or at least I would have considered buying a new one. I’m dealing with serious back pain right now and because I know nothing about what will happen this year I can’t decide if buying a new one will be worth it or not.
10. A tv. I’ve got more important things to do right now, but I miss all the great news channels and documentaries on German tv. I’m neither a snob nor a couch potato. The one thing I enjoy is turning it on when I am doing my cleaning up on the weekend. I watch stuff online so this one is ok.
11. Money.
12. The boyfriend. We are entering the 13th month of our long distance relationship. If I had known this in advance I might have waited another year to start this. No end in sight. Which brings me to the last thing missing from my life:
13. Patience. I’ve got none. It’s run out. So I will just carry on studying and focusing on the one thing I can influence, my grades and my work at the uni and ignore everything else.
littlemsami 