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Archives for April 2013

Things you wouldn’t know: The German Postal Delivery

April 29, 2013 filed under: Germany, Things you wouldn't know

I started this series “Things you wouldn’t know” a while back, because as an expat, living in a different country away from home, you encounter a whole lot of things that are just different from what you’re used to. Some things are significant, others barely noticeable. After 10+ years, I am pretty much used to most things in the US and I hardly ever bring up when something is different from back home. Every once in a while though, you strike up a conversation and while you’re talking about something, you realize that your counterpart is giving you this strange look of non-comprehension. Let me tell you about one of my recent experiences.


When I was in highschool and college, I had a bunch of odd jobs. I babysat, I worked for the veterinarian next door (great, but often sad job!), I waited at an ice-cream place (that’s the closest I ever came to waiting tables), ​I was a receptionist and during semester breaks, I worked as a mail carrier.

It was one of the coolest and worst jobs I ever had.

You know how there are certain things that you’re just taking for granted because this is what you grew up with and you don’t even consider that there is another way of doing things? I mentioned in one of my last posts that I had a lovely chat with the lady at the post office the other day. I was buying a bunch of international stamps and she asked if I was mailing something for a special occasion. I said no, I just liked to write and send letters. She smiled. We started talking and I mentioned that I worked as a mail carrier in Germany when I was in college and that, as an avid letter writer, the best part of my day was delivering personal, handwritten letters and packages to people. This was the coolest thing about my job.

I must have mentioned that I delivered the mail by bike, which made her stop dead in her tracks, because she was in obvious disbelief. YOU DELIVERED MAIL BY BIKE?
She couldn’t fathom how that was even possible. I tried to explain that we had special bikes, heavy bikes with build-in front and back storage space for boxes/mail bags to transport the mail. I told her about the kick stand that would hold the bike upright when parked – even with 60 pounds of mail loaded on the bike. I also told her that, since you couldn’t put all the mail of your district on the bike at once, there were locked boxes along your route where you could “re-load” your bike. She was baffled. I quickly googled an image of a German postal bike to show her what I was talking about and her jaw literally dropped to the floor.

Pedalpower in gelb

Photo Credit: Schockwellenreiter via Flickr cc

This is what a German postal bike looks like (well, I personally never head one of those trailers — they might be new or just available in some cities). And yes, we also delivered mail in the snow during the winter months. It’s been a few years since I did this job, so I am sure they’ve come up with a lot of new ways to improve the bikes and ways to get around (I read somewhere that some of the bikes have little motors now that can be turned on when necessary).

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Photo Credit: davidgalestudios via Flickr cc

I know that in bigger cities, mail carriers also use these push carts to deliver mail. They’re more convenient than bikes when you’re literally just walk from door to door.

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Photo Credit: Quan the Pooh! via Flickr cc

I guess, if this is something that you didn’t know about Germany (or other countries), it might be quite shocking. Haha. Who wants to pedal around 60 lbs of mail, you might ask. Well, it’s quite the workout, that’s for sure! And you don’t need to think that they make it “easy” for the carriers by putting the mailboxes conveniently on the street. You literally have to go up to every front door (well, besides apartment buildings which have all mailboxes located  at the main door or in the entrance hall way).

I loved the job, especially during the summer months. You were outside all day, you were able to work at your own pace and get a sun tan and workout in at the same time. I mean, that’s a double win in my book. Getting up early though was hard. I usually started work around 5:30 a.m. and while I love to start my day early (I start work at 7 a.m. right now), that was a little bit too early even for my taste.

Also: in the winter? The job sucked! Being on the bike – snow, rain or shine – was tough. Sometimes when I was handing over mail that had gotten a little wet from the rain and people complained about their mail being wet, I wanted to scream at them: can you take a look at me, please? I am completely soaked myself! But that would have been rude. It might not seem this way, but delivering mail is a physically hard, demanding job. Never forget that.

I really appreciated people who offered me a hot cup of coffee/tea in the winter to warm up or some ice-cold water in the summer as a refreshment. Those acts of kindness went a long way (and it subsequently made me treat the mail carrier that delivers at my house with much more appreciation and kindness in return).

Unless you’re German, did you know that mail was delivered (mostly) by bike over there? Did this piece of information take you by surprise?

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2013 in pictures: week 17

April 28, 2013 filed under: a year in pictures

2013 in pictures: week 17

Köln • teal sandals • self •
strawberries • quiche and salad • Saturday treat •
French Press • Sactown • sunny Sunday •

3

Awkward & Awesome

April 25, 2013 filed under: awkward & awesome

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This is a regular feature post on my blog. See the archives here.

AWKWARD

  • Witnessing two adults act like children and all you can do is shake your head in disbelief. Seriously. I am too old for this.
  •  When I try to understand someone’s behavior and can’t for the life of me make sense of it. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
  • Going to the doctor’s office twice in the last month and being told that I most likely have allergies (without actually testing me) when I am convinced that I do not  have any allergies (since I don’t have typical allergy symptoms). Needless to say, I won’t be taking the Claritin I was prescribed.

AWESOME

  • The people on the Internet! I have met the nicest people and couldn’t be more thankful and can’t wait to meet some of them in only a short few weeks!
  • Unexpected, awesome mail from one of the sweet friends I met online who sent me these lovely postcards of Köln (see above) and some yummy German treats! This girl knows the way to my heart! Also, if you don’t read her blog, you’re missing out. Just sayin’.
  • A super-cute postcard from another dear Internet friend!
  • And more awesome mail from my sister, who sent me a loop scarf that she made for me!
  • Unexpected kindness from strangers. Seriously, it’s the best. (As you can see, I am having a particularly awesome week in regards to people showing me their love and support… how did they know this is exactly what I needed? ♥)
  • A new address stamp that I ordered through “Pick your plum” a few weeks ago. They really have awesome deals! Today I ordered some more Washi Tape. Win!
  • Sending out some mail just because.
  • When I went to the post office on Friday, I started chatting with the postal lady and I told her that I was once a mail carrier during my college years in Germany and that I delivered the mail BY BIKE. She was thunderstruck! Haha!
  • Texting with my cousin Basti who is in Australia right now. He’s following into my footsteps, ha! (And everybody is hoping that he won’t “get stuck” there like I did over here.)

13

10 ideas to build up that financial cushion

April 23, 2013 filed under: FYI, goals, help

2012 in pictures: week 35
With my goal to track our spending for the last couple of months, I have also thought about ways to save a little bit more money for rainy days.

I already have some money automatically transferred into savings every month, but I know I can do more.

My problem usually is that what is most commonly suggested in order to cut unnecessary spending, I already do. I make my own lunches 99% of the time, I don’t get fancy coffee on the way to work, but brew it myself at the office, I don’t go to happy hour or spend a lot of money on eating/drinking out in general.

I realize that I do tend to be a bit of an impulse buyer, usually just little things here and there that provide instant gratification. A new stamp at Michaels, a marked-down shirt at Target, some random product from the beauty isle. I know that is an area I can work on.

A penny saved is a penny earned, right? Money that is not “available” in cash or your checking account, is not as easily spent.

So, the trick is to trick yourself into putting away money without even really knowing it.

Here are a few ideas I already implement:

1. Put your spare change in a piggy owl bank (like the one above). J is really good at that and he often goes through my wallet to empty it of all the change that I carry around. I frequently get mad at him for taking away all my change (as I do like to have a couple of quarters and nickles, because you never know when you might need them for a parking meter or what have you), but fact is: our piggy bank will fill up and that’s a good thing. It might not be that much total, but it could add up to as much as $100 a year or more.

2. Use a cash-back credit card. A lot of banks and institutions offer the option of earning cash-back on every purchase that you make with your credit card. I only recommend this if you know how to handle a credit card and if you pay off the balance every month (otherwise it won’t make any sense), but if you play it smart, you can make actual money off using your credit card. I personally have an AMEX account through hour Costco membership and I average about $200 in cash-back every year. Not bad, if you ask me!

3. Automatically transfer money from your paycheck into savings. Like I mentioned above, we do this already, but I know that we could save a little more. I’ve seen recommendations for like 10% of your income and then built it up to a higher percentage if you can.

Here are a few more ideas that I’d like to consider:

4. Save money that you earned by using coupons and store card discounts. I am not BIG into couponing. Most coupons are for stuff I usually don’t buy anyway and it’s too much of a hassle to search for coupons every week. However, I do use coupons (when I come across them) and store discounts where I can. I am thinking about putting the coupon savings (that are conveniently printed on to your store receipt as a percentage and $ amount of your purchase) to savings after every shopping trip. I mean, you technically could have paid full price, so why not put away that extra money?

5. Save interest earned on your savings. Do you earn interest on the savings you already have? For me, they show up in my checking account and even though it’s a really small amount, I want to get into the habit of transferring the interest back into the savings account, where it belongs.

6. Save your raise. If you were lucky enough to get even the smallest raise (ha! Hasn’t happened for me in… ever!… due to my stupid contractor position), consider automatically having the amount transferred into savings. You won’t even miss it since you already have a budget set to the salary that you earned previously.

7. Save all your $5 bills. My Dad taught me this when I was a little girl. He would put away every 5 Deutsche Mark coins (now 5€ bills) into a piggy hour glass bank and use this to finance part of our annual skiing vacations. Genius.

8. Transfer left-over money into savings at the end of the month. If you happen to have budgeted quite successfully during the month, consider transferring left-over money (or part of it) into savings, before you start a new month. I really like this idea, although I wish I wasn’t paid on a bi-weekly basis, but instead got my salary at the beginning of each month in full. Maybe it’s just me, but I have a hard time keeping track of expenses (and which part of the month they belong to), when I get paid twice a month on odd days. I am sorry, I just like it a bit more organized than that.

9. Reward yourself for chores you don’t like to do.  This really is a bit of a mind game because by paying yourself, you’re not actually earning any more money, BUT see it as a treat for yourself that every time you do an unpleasant chore, you put a couple of dollars away to reward yourself with later.

10. Round-up online purchases. If you happen to do a lot of online shopping, you could consider rounding up to the nearest dollar amount ($14.49 to $15) of even to the nearest ten ($14.49 to $20) and put the difference into savings.

Do you have other suggestions?
What do you do to trick yourself into saving a few bucks?

11

A stroll through the rose garden

April 22, 2013 filed under: weekend

We had beautiful weather this weekend and Saturday was a perfect day for a walk through the McKinley Park Rose Garden. It was gorgeous to see all the rose bushes in full bloom with their huge blossoms and their amazing range of shapes, sizes and colors. Aren’t they just beautiful?

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Other good things this weekend:

brunch ♥ a musical at a small theater company ♥ phone calls with friends and family  ♥ lots of coffee ♥ a clean apartment ♥ a good movie ♥ stitching ♥ a spring pedicure ♥ milkshake ♥ reading ♥ good talks ♥ text messages with my sister ♥ a lovely chat with the mail lady ♥

How was your weekend?

9

2013 in pictures: week 16

April 21, 2013 filed under: a year in pictures

2013 in pictures: week 16

view from my bed • water • me •
breakfast • wallet • real simple •
milkshake • roses • sunday coffee •

0

​The chain of love

April 17, 2013 filed under: good things, help

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Photo Credit: Ian Sane via Compfight cc

Last night, it suddenly hit me that I hadn’t used my Starbucks birthday reward yet. It was about to expire today. I usually don’t stop at Starbucks on a regular basis, definitely not during my work week. It’s a special treat that I allow myself when I am traveling or meeting up with friends. Although I like the idea, you won’t find me randomly by myself at a Starbucks somewhere. I like my couch at home way too much and besides, Starbucks is, if we’re honest, quite expensive. I can make make a good cup of coffee at home.

Since I didn’t want to let the birthday reward go unused, I decided to stop at Starbucks on my way to work. It didn’t really make sense, as we always make our own coffee at the office, but why would I ‘waste’ a $4-5 beverage when I can get it for free for my birthday?

I stopped at the small Starbucks which is only a couple of blocks from my apartment. ​When I got out of a car I saw a homeless person with a sign sitting on the sidewalk in front of the coffeeshop. This is not uncommon in Midtown. I run into homeless people frequently, sometimes have a short conversation with them; hardly ever do I give them money.

I went inside, ordered my grande vanilla latte and scanned my “Gold Card” on my Starbucks App to claim my reward. When I received the drink, I automatically wrapped my hands around the warm paper cup, as it was a bit chilly out this morning and my hands were cold.

As I left the coffeeshop, I had to pass the homeless person with the sign again. I glanced down to read what it said. “Female vet, struggling to get by.”

I don’t know if it was the fact that the person was female (I don’t run into female homeless people nearly as much) or the fact that she was a vet and looked tired and cold, but not disheveled, just  in need. I didn’t even think twice and offered her my vanilla latte. Her eyes lit up when she looked up at me and she accepted the steaming hot beverage with a smile of gratitude and surprise and whispered a “Thank you and God bless you”.

I smiled back at her, then got in the car and she waved me goodbye when I drove off.

I know it was just a small gesture. I know it’s not making a big impact on the world or anything, but knowing that I made this lady’s morning by offering her a hot cup of coffee – which most of us take for granted – kinda made my day.

It’s the little things that we can do on a daily basis that do make a difference, if only in this one person’s life. Don’t let the chain of love end with you.

14

2013 in pictures: week 15

April 14, 2013 filed under: a year in pictures

2013 in pictures: week 15

flowers • park • German pancakes •
necklace • coffee • twins •
flower • latte • mini-garden •

3

The little reminders

April 11, 2013 filed under: family, nostalgia

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Today is my great-aunt’s birthday. She would have turned 91.

It’s hard to accept that I won’t be able talk to her today. In a way, since I’ve lived so far away form her for so many years already, she’s still over there somehow.

This morning, I remembered the pashmina scarf. It was a gift to her two Christmases ago and the only item I claimed back immediately when we cleared out her apartment.

It’s dark teal. My favorite color.

It has been sitting on my bedroom dresser ever since I returned back to California and for the first time this morning, I picked it up again, held it in my hands for a few seconds before I buried my face in it. The sensation was quite overwhelming, as her smell is still clinging to every fiber of this scarf. Funny how that works. It hit me like a fist punch to my nose, my eyes started to water and tears escaped the corners of my eyes, while simultaneously the soft scarf caressed my cheeks like her loving hands so often did.

I wonder if I can find a sealed box somewhere in which I can store the scarf, afraid that it will eventually, with time, lose the precious smell that is so dear to me and evokes such raw, but beautiful emotions now that she’s gone.

Why is grief so freakin’ hard?

 

7

Currently Vol. 11

April 9, 2013 filed under: about me, currently, lists!

Spring.

Current Book(s):  I just got “BossyPants” by Tina Fey for a bargain on my nook and can’t wait to start it.

Current Playlist: NPR. Ha! I don’t find much time to listen to music right now.

Current Shame-Inducing Guilty Pleasure: Kinder Chocolate.

Current Color: purple.

Current Drink: fresh, hot steaming cup of coffee.

Current Food: German Apple Pancakes.

Current Favorite Show:  “All in” with Chris Hayes.

Current Wishlist: An iPhone 5. Or maybe, I’ll actually wait for the iPhone 6 which will, no doubt, be coming out in the not to distant future.

Current Needs: Some more discipline with my work-out routine!

Current Bane(s) of my Existence: Not enough sleep. I am so tired.

Current Celebrity Crush: Zac Efron (in ‘the Lucky One’). I KNOW. Don’t ask me how that happened, I have no idea.

Current Outfit: jeans, top, sneakers.

Current Excitement: Spring weather. It’s been so nice and lovely out – minus the crazy winds yesterday – and we’ve been enjoying some walks in the park.

Current Link: I was looking for a website/app that would help me track my spending and I found Buxfer. I really like it so far, because it will sync between web and app, you can batch fill in your expenses and it will let you look at different spending periods (not just ‘per month’), which works great, because I get paid twice a month on odd days.

*  *  *

What’s up with you CURRENTLY?

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Hi, I am San – German native, dual-citizen living in beautiful Northern California. Runner. Knitter. Crafter. Reader. Writer. Proud aunt, sister, and friend.

I’ve been blogging since 2004 and don’t intend to stop any time soon. If you are looking for personal content and making a  genuine connection, you’ve come to the right place.

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