What's Happening?

December Birthdays

Happy Birthday to all my family and friends (including my new lovely Facebook Friends) who were born in December. Again you'll have to forgive me as I am doing this from memory. My birthday book is in the US.

So Happy Birthday to:

Cousin Jim Mihelcic - Dec. 3
Ed Raeker - Dec. 5

Barb Crain - Dec. 6

Martin Lubell - Dec. 7

Ian Quine - Dec. 8

Cousin John Mihelcic - Dec. 10
Grace Magill-Cuerden - Dec. 14

Cousin Joe Mihelcic - Dec. 15
Mike Bykov - Dec. 16

Carrie Bennett - Dec. 16
Dana Bailey Alexander - Dec. 18

Sharla Siluk - Dec. 21

Okay so that is all I can remember. If I have forgotten anyone please email me (jahays@pobox.com) or post it here in the comments section.

Sprechen Deutsche
My German class is officially over as of last Thursday (12/18). It was very sad to say goodbye but I made many new friends. My biggest hurdle I think was finding the time to study. In 8 weeks we got a ton of material tossed at us. I find it hard to pronounce many words for some reason. I can say them in my head but once they leave my mouth it doesn't sound quite right. The words I know and say more frequently sound great or at least that is what I've been told by my German speaking friends. This makes me feel pretty good. I plan to start up again in March when the weather gets a little warmer. I can't say I'll miss the commute.

Another Fine Outing with Friends
A few of my classmates and I had the opportunity to go out for some dinner. I went out with Teresa and Jia. We had good food and nice conversation. The following week more of my classmates and I went out including our instructor Astrid. We all had a nice time. The food was good and so was the company. Tomorrow I plan to go to Erika Roos' Opera with Beth Muellner. Beth is in town with husband Martin Lubell and their two children Julian (9) and Xaiver (7). Erika was in my German class and she happens to be a world famous Opera singer. I can't wait to see her. It will be a blast.

Here are some pics from my outing with Teresa and Jia.

Teresa and Jia

Jennifer and Jia

Teresa, Jennifer and Jia

Jennifer's yummy pasta dish.

Really yummy Tiramisu

Getting Lost in Berlin

The night I went out with Jia and Teresa I missed the last U9 train home. I thought my line was open 24 hours but I was incorrect. I didn't know about the night bus so I ended up taking another line to another part of the city hoping I could get another train there that would get me closer to my flat but once I got off I again found out that the trains basically stop running during the week between 1-4 a.m. So here I am all alone in a foreign train station in a foreign country not really knowing the German language. I was a little freaked out for about 10 seconds. I looked around and saw a guy looking around too. I asked him in German if he spoke English and he did. He helped me find a Taxi so I could get home. He was very nice. The Taxi driver was also very kind. I was able to talk to him more than I thought I could in German. He got me home in under 10 minutes. I got dropped off right at the door and 10 more minutes later I was snuggling next to my boy Logan who was nice and warm.

Bad Hair Cuts

Yes this is the superficial part of the post but I feel the need to vent. Lately I've been plagued with bad hair cuts. The last two I haven't really liked. I went today to get my hair cut and colored. The color is great (bye bye gray) but the cut, I'm not digging it. Prior to our move to Berlin I had really nice long hair and I decided I needed a change. What a mistake! Today I asked for a trim and got a weird looking something. Yikes!!! I think the thing to do is not to get my hair cut at all for at least a year or two and see where I land or perhaps I just need to find a new salon.