I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2020

Dear 2020 – you’ve been a real brat. I know, I know, Covid is one thing. Maybe that wasn’t your fault entirely, but you’ve been piling on big time on a lot of people that are dear to my heart, and I kinda had it with you, TBH. Can you just stop being so awful? Can we at least have the holiday season without any more bad news?  

Dear Covid – while I am at it, could you just go tf away?

Dear fellow citizens – please act responsibly during the holidays. I know, it’s hard to not see family and friends, but remember there are lots of people who sometimes – for other reasons – can’t see family or friends for the holidays (like me!) and they make it through the holidays somehow, too. Which means, so can you. Isn’t it worth it to you to bite the bullet and skip family gatherings this year, so you can see your family members for many more years to come?

Dear body – thank you for being healthy and strong and (mostly) willing to do what I ask you to. You fall asleep easily (most of the time), you haven’t given me any worrisome aches and pains, and you generally happily support my active lifestyle. I know, sometimes I am not kind and I could treat you better, but I try to not take you for granted, ever.

Dear Tr*mp –  for the love of God, concede and go away already. Don’t make this harder (and more embarrassing) than it already is. You lost. Be a man. It’s time to face the music.  

Dear holidays  – I am hoping you’ll be able to make up a tiny bit for everything that’s been hard and awful this year. Even if we’re all doing things socially distanced. Let’s make it nice. Are you ready?

Dear fellow NaBloPoMo-ers – how are you doing? We’ve made it 2/3 through the month and it looks like you’ve all been doing a great job! 

What letters would you like to put out into the universe today?

I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2020

A week or so ago, I gathered some questions for a Q & A session on my blog instagram account (come follow me and never miss a post!). I know sometimes we have questions for people that we never get to ask (randomly), so I thought it would be fun to see what’s on your guys’ mind. I am going to answer these questions today. And if you didn’t have the chance to ask a question yet or just thought of one, drop it in the comments!

Have you ever considered creating a backup plan and return to Germany in the last 4 years?

Very good question. To be honest, Germany is – and has always been – a backup plan in my mind, but especially during the last four years. Jon and I have seriously talked about what we would do if Trump was going to be re-elected and we frequently talk about relocating (one of these days). I feel very grateful for the fact that I have a second passport and a “way out”, if it ever became necessary.

Are you and your hubs both working from home during this mess? How’s it going?

I am very lucky that I was able to transition to a full-time work from home schedule when we went into lockdown mode in March. My agency had a very generous flexible work schedule policy to begin with, but it really came into full force when we were all sent home to telework at the beginning of the pandemic. I have to say, it’s been going great and I’ve really enjoyed working from home (despite the circumstances that led to it). I wrote about it a little more in depth here.

What do you love about running?

Oh, there is so much to love about running. Running has become on of my favorite forms of me-time. I put in my ear plugs, listen to some music or a podcast, and go. I love being outside, seeing other people be out and about, and just moving my body. It clears my head like hardly anything else.  I know that when I am cranky, I have to get outside. 

Another reason, why I love running? It burns calories. I love and enjoy food and running affords me the luxury to eat some extra calories. I am not much of snacker, but if we’re having a good meal, you can bet that I am getting seconds. 

Most importantly though? Running makes me happy – more often than not, it puts a huge smile on my face. I just feel good after most of my runs (even though the run itself might not always feel good). That might seem odd, but that’s a fact. I feel strong, healthy, and capable and just physically and mentally in a good place after a run.

How did you end up in Northern California?

I wrote about how I came to California before, but this is the short version: I participated in an exchange program through my university in Germany and ended up spending 6 months here in Northern California. I originally wanted to spend a semester in New England, specifically Boston, but that wasn’t in the cards as my university only had an exchange program that could place me here in California, but it was truly the second-best option and I am very glad I came! This is where I met my husband and this is where I’ve lived for the better part of the last 16 years.

Will you continue to work remotely (maybe forever)?

The answer to this is: I don’t know. There is a lot of work in our agency that can’t be done remotely (mainly lab and fieldwork), but there’s definitely been talk on how to extend our work from home capabilities in the future. I think a lot of people enjoy the flexibility that the remote work has afforded them (me included) and while I do enjoy getting together with colleagues and collaborating in person, I would not mind keeping a part-time work from home schedule once the pandemic is under control and things return to normal. 

What’s your favorite part of your home?

Definitely our backyard. It’s been so nice – especially this summer during a pandemic – to have our own private little outdoor space that we could use to relax and unwind. I cannot imagine how hard it must have been for families to be in lockdown mode without having access to an outdoor space. When we moved from our house back into a rental situation, a private outdoor space was very high on my priority list. 

I hope I answered the questions to your satisfaction. If you have any other questions, let me know!

I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2020

I’m starting off this blog posting month by sharing 5 things you might not know about me; as an introduction for any new readers (come say hi!), and to share some new random facts for anyone who’s been around for a while longer. I have shared random facts in previous years, if you want to find out more (here, here, here, and here).

1. Hi, I am Sandra – but I go by San on the Internet. I grew up in Germany but moved to the US in my mid-20’s. I live in Northern California with my husband Jon, who I met during an exchange semester here in the States many moons ago. I wrote a little bit about my move to the US a few years ago, and about the decision to come to California in the first place. ,

2. I am terrible at making decisions. I’d like to think that generally I “know what I want”, but I often let other people make the decisions. I prefer not to impose my choices on other people, which often leads to other people imposing their choices on me. That is not a big deal when it comes to picking a restaurant for dinner (I am usually cool with almost anything), but is not so good when it comes to decisions that impact me more heavily than where I eat a meal on any particular night. Something I have been – and will still be – working on.

3. Things that (rarely) come up in conversation, unless your microwave breaks and you tell your friend about the dilemma about how much you rely on the microwave every day: yes, I heat up the milk for my coffee in the morning. I drink my coffee “café au lait”-style (with a milk-coffee ratio of about 40:60). And since I like my coffee hot, I have to heat up the milk. Makes sense, right? Tell me I am not the only one.

4. I theoretically like the idea of dressing up and wearing high heels every once in a while, but you’ll probably almost always see me in shorts and sneakers or sandals. I feel like I almost never have the opportunity to get dressed up, this year even less than usual.

5. I’ve been friends with my oldest friend since Kindergarten. We both ‘scattered’ around the world after high school, but whenever we get together, it’s like we saw each other just yesterday. I miss having friends close by with whom you’re at ease like that.

Share a random fact about you in the comments!

Dear Sunshine – it’s been really nice to have you around for a little longer than usual and I wouldn’t mind for you to show up again every once in a while throughout the winter months, but you also gotta let others take the lead a little bit.

Dear Rain – I don’t know if you’ve been on some tropical vacation or something and haven’t gotten the memo, but it’s past the middle of November now and we need you to come back and put Sunshine in its place. Please and thank you.

Dear coffee – I love you. That’s all.

Dear Holiday Season – I tend to embrace you and I am looking forward to you, but I don’t want to hear Christmas music, buy Christmas treats, or see Christmas tree pictures yet. If you’re an early adopter this year, more power to you. At this moment though, I am not quite ready.

Dear Trump –  Nobody really wants to know what you have to say, because there have been so many lies coming out of your mouth and really, you don’t know anything (even if you claim you are the expert in everything). Just STFU for a change. 

Der fellow NaBloPoMo warriors –  we’ve made it over half-way through the month already! How are you doing? Has it been easy, has it been hard blogging every day? Come on, let’s do this. I am convinced that we can finish strong!

What letters would you like to put out into the universe today?!

I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2019