Just doing my part

Just like Mrs. S over at Snarkolepsy I'm doing my part to ruin the earth.

I ordered this cake pan along with a couple other things from Target.com. Not only did the rest of my order ship completely separately, but I got the pan, which is less than 2 inches thick in this HUGE ASS box.

Of course, 95% of the box was stuffed with those air filled plastic pillows.

WTF is up with that??

But I'm totally excited to try out my new cake pan. Look, it makes CAKESICLES!

Geek vacation!

Where would us dorks choose to go on vacation?

Where we can all be geeks!

LegoLand!!!

A pretty good deal for this time of the year. I think we paid about 511 Euro for 3 nights at a nice hotel, and two day passes to the park for all three of us.

This is why we don't go on many holidays, Sarge has a heart attack whenever we have to shell out for vacations. He's been watching our savings grow, and whenever we make a large purchase, I think it physically hurts him.

The he had a second heart attack when I reminded him that we would probably come home with another 100 Euro in Legos.

I hope they have all the Star Wars figures!

The small things

I felt pretty good about myself yesterday. I managed to rip about 10% of my CD collection onto iTunes. Yeah, yeah, big deal..

Sadly this all took alot of research on my part. Seriously.

First I ripped about 4 CDs to the Real Player program on my computer. Then I realized that was not going to work so much. So I actually had to go search the help files. Ok, find the Windows Media Player and start ripping there. Hmmmm...open iTunes and see if I can start transferring stuff there.

WHAT?!?!?

Copy my CD's straight to iTunes? DOH!!!

Yet, it does not end there.

For some reason each song was taking about 3 minutes to copy. This is going to take forever!! What's that? Window's Media Player is still open?

Well, look at that, it's just blazing through now.

So yeah, that took up most of my night.

And crap, a single episode of Mythbusters takes 8 hours to download!! 8 HOURS PEOPLE!!

Like I told my friend Mama Bird, the internets are not the only slow thing in this house.

Awesome!

Spending time at the German hospital I tend to notice the little changes. No, this is not a picture of a weird European toilet. It is a Dyson Airblade!!
I love most things Dyson, Dyson himself is pretty freaking cool.

Of course I took a video of it drying my hands, but I could not get it to load on Blogger. Boo!

You can actually see the skin on my hands rippling! Crazy!

Question of the day

So.

If a person...say...ME, has pulmonary embolisms, granted very small ones.

What does it mean when blood tests show hemophilia?

LOL, WUT??

AAAAAaaahhhHHHH!!!!

New toy!!!

Now if I can figure out how to use it.
For real, no user manual.

Busy

Well, one of the excuses I have for not updating this blog is my hands have been pretty busy.

I started making cakes for friends on their birthdays, which turned into referrals to others for cakes for parties and other occastions.

I have a little side business going. I've even started an un-anonymous blog to direct people to when they are intersted in seeing past cakes.

My cakes!!!

I'm getting a little worried about making cakes this summer though because the weather is turning very humid. Fondant tends to get a little weird in humid weather.

But, my goal is to be able to buy an iTouch at the end of summer. Only 4 more cakes to go before I reach my goal!!

Heh!

Hmmm... this picture is kind of small, but...

One of those things you might only see in Germany.
Tweens on ponys riding down the sidewalk...huh.

Decisions...decisions...

Today Piko deGallo and I were discussing next year's costume for the Star Wars mini-convention held here on base.
She wants something a little more girly than last year.
And we cant decide between

Queen Amidala's Parade gown

Or Senator Amidala's Lake Dress.

Oh my, both are pretty difficult dresses. I'm thinking I'm glad we started discussing it early.

I'm sure further updates will occur. I'm thinking I might document this one in a tutorial of sorts.

She also wants to be Xena for halloween...WOW.

FYI

This is the cake I want for my birthday.

It's an AT-AT cake, YO!!

This one is by Jennifer Luxmore of Sin Desserts.

I seriously want the motorized Lego AT-AT too, but it's about $200. I just can't justify that level of Geekdom.

Snip! Snip!

From this...

To this...


In eleventymillion teeny tiny little steps!

Fun but frustrating, I almost want to make another one, because I'm sure it will come out about 40% better than this one. I just don't have enough time. This one is going on a cake tomorrow morning.

I also need a pair of very sharp fine pointed scissors. What I dont need is another hobby.

I'm Bleeeeeding!!!!

So the blood thinning treatment progresses apace.

I go in to the hospital twice a week to have a Quick Test done, I guess to check my clotting, or lack of.

Yesterday, two funny things happened.

One, I took Her Doktor's secretary some chocolate chunk brownies. She almost fainted, and asked me for my recipe. I told her I would just bring her some boxes of Dunken Hines brownie mix. I've never seen brownie mix in the German stores. I'm hoping that this will grease the wheels a little and cut my wait for asessment down to 45 minutes instead of an hour and fifteen. They have the warmest office waiting area ever. I think I've fallen asleep three times out of five.

The second funny happened with my Phlebotomist. After taking my wee bit of blood, she put the "plaster" on my old insertion site, and not the one she had just made. I didn't notice until I ran up two flights of stairs and my arm inside my jacket felt wet. Holy crap! It was not dripping from my fingertips or anything, this was just a needle prick, but it was still a mess. My friend Mrs. Major said I should have faked a fainting spell. Maybe I should take the Lab some brownies too.

DILF

So I found out yesterday that one of the 3rd grade teachers thinks Sarge is "hot". She spotted him at one of the Police Week demos at the school.

Huh. Okay...

Don't get me wrong, I find Sarge super-duper hot.

He's a 9 to my 6.

Don't you agree?


He would be even hotter if he actually washed that pan after cooking his breakfast.

Public Service

This week is National Police Week.

National Police Week in Washington D.C.

Take some time to support your local cops (even if you don't like them 80% of the time). Many of them, like my Sarge, often have to put their lives on the line in dangerous situations. Some die in the line of duty, and much of the money raised during Police Week events goes to support families affected by such tragedies.

You never know when you might need one.

And yes, Sarge's favorite doughnut is the one with pink icing and sprinkles, just like Chief Wiggum.

As we were driving to school yesterday morning Piko de Gallo and I are listening to the one American radio channel we get in the car.

Of course the topic is OMGSWINEFLUOMG!!!!

This is what I hear, and I'm pretty sure I heard it correctly.

"This does not affect mission status travel, however, if you're planning on traveling to Mexico to say, have your baby, you might want to abort that."

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! WUT?

And of course, obilagtory OMGSWINEFLUOMG macro.

Just in case anyone is wondering what 175 EUROS looks like.

Here ya go



Yeah, woo-FRACKING-hoo, more drugs for me. Maybe this time I will take a picture of the belt of bruises I get from having to inject myself with an anticoagulant twice a day.

Probably not, that's not an image for public consumption.

When discussing my blood thinning treatment Herr Doktor tells me:
"If you have bleeding, you MUST come in."

Well, I'm no medical expert, but DUH!

Not Perfect

What do you suppose it means when one of your supposed closest friends says:
"Well, we all can't be perfect ALL the time."
Directed at you when you are discussing a funny and fantastic fail of a project.

I wish my "Classic" girfriends were here. Friend "Lite" are just not cutting it.

Not a political statement

OMG!!

Best cake ever!!

Before cutting


After cutting.
SHAZAM!!!



I used this tutorial, but made my cake the regualr way, not with the soda. And frosted with home made buttercream frosting.

Yummy! And superduper cute.

Deligate!

I'm a very do it myself kind of person. Not saying that I can gut a house and rebuild it, but with projects and tasks, I just like to take care of it myself so I know it's going to get done.

Well, being out of commission I had to deligate several events to other people. The first one went off without a hitch, as I knew it would.

Today, I was supposed to host an event. GAH!

The reason I like to take care of things myself is that I know what needs to be done, and I can make decisions myself. I hate getting three phone calls asking me "Should I do this?", "Is this how you want it done?", "Is this going to be ok?".
No, no, and NO!

If I hand over a project to you with some guidelines and say "This is what I usually do, but this time it's your show, so do whatever you feel like doing." I'm not saying call me and email me all day long to get ideas, and approval for what is now YOUR event. I'm saying "This is what I usually do, but this time it's your show, so do whatever you feel like doing." Make a damn decision yourself and leave me alone. People won't care that the event is different from the last time as long as there is plenty of NOMS.

I handed over this project so that I could get some rest. Not so I could be stressed out even more.

Freedom!

Well I'm out.
This is how I judged the time.
I was able to see two new Sundays of Post Secret.
And, four instalments of Multiplex.

That's a pretty long time.

Now it's just outpatient treatment.

I have to inject myself twice a day with an anti-Thrombosis medication.

Fun times.

Paging Dr. House

Ok, so I came in with Pneumonia, they found "some" pulmonary embolisms.

Now it seems I have Legionellosis!

The Pneumonia was more than likely caused by the Legionellosis, but does not cause the pulmonary embolisms.

Differential diagnosis?

The best part was calling the germophobe secretary at the school I substitute at to let them know I had to contact public health.


PS.

Just lucky like that

That's me.
I'm in the hospital this week. No worries, just a touch of Penumonia that led to some tests that led to something else.
So here I am.
For a week.
Yay me.

That is not the bit of luck I'm talking about.

What is it about me that compels people to tell me things???
My roomate right now is a 50 something German local who speaks excellent english. We communicate well.
Too well.
I learned over the course of one evening that she is from the local area all her life, she has two grown children, likes to go out dancing, does not love her husband, has a boyfriend in a city 2 hours away. What?!?
Wait, it does not end there.
Boyfriend is also married (he is a sweetheart from her school days), he has three daughters (she showed me pictures), and the youngest (16) is pregnant!
Hell.
I suppose it gives her some relief to talk about it, since she knows I don't know them, will never meet them, and who would I talk about it to?? Well, other than the whole world on my blog, but who the hell reads this? I don't want to know this stuff, but I'm too polite to tell her to shut up. Plus, she translates for me, and got me apple juice when I had to drink that nasty stuff in preparation for my intestinal examination.
It is all very strange. I have spent my week catching up on my reading (3 books so far), and watching old seasons of CSI and House. She has spent it on the phone, IM-img, and sending notes to her sweetie. It's disconcerning, as she is old enough to be my mom, yet acts like my daughter.

Somewhat entertaining, and distracting, obviously nice, but strange.

Finally!!

So.

I have been trying to get a picture of this basically since we moved here.

Backstory: Since our vehicle is registered with the district of Bitburg our license plates all start with BIT. Naturally, since I am immature and inapropriate I laugh every time I see a car that contains the call letters BIT**CH###. I have never been in a position to take a picture, always driving or speeding down the Autobahn, never the passenger. UNTIL TODAY!!!

Awesome.

Hinamatsuri!

Happy Girl's Day!!

It's like a little army of "KAWAII" coming to take over the world!

I used this tutorial, slightly modified, to make the little girls.

Piko deGallo has a summer birthday, and I always feel bad that she never gets to take cupcakes to school. I had a summer birthday, and I never took cupcakes to school either...hmmmmm....projecting much?!?!

All Signs Point To: NOT GOOD.

Yeah. Throw me a pitty party.

So far it's not shaping up to a great New Year. Not that there has been catastrophic hapenings in the deGallo household. It's just an abundance of small things that are bringing me down.

First of all, Sarge's health seems to be going. He's getting cold after cold, and never seems to recover. That bacterial infection in '08 seems to have messed with his immune system in a big way. That's more of a bummer for him though.

Second, Girl Scout Cookies. Oh how I hate to love to hate them. Given the smallness of our community everyone knows about 5 or 6 people selling. I hate to be the 10th person to ask someone if they want cookes, but I have 98 boxes to get rid of, and I'm not buying them all. Luckily Sarge is a cop, and we all know cops love their cookies....Just kidding, they love doughnuts.

Third, friend drama. THIS is why I'm normally an Antisocialist. And really, it's not a problem with my friend, it a problem with her husband. See, he takes umbridge with the manner in which my husband does his job. That is that Sarge actually DOES his job and does not let them cheat and slack. And that is my problem how?!? I don't know why Friend's Husband(FH) has to complain to me (EVERY TIME I SEE HIM), I guess we all know I'm actually Sarge's boss at work too?? I can see the end of this as being me no longer being able to be friends with this gal because FH can't separate his work from his wife's friendships. So, are crap friends better or worse than no friends?

I'm a little grouchy today.

Oh yeah, and not a fabric store to be found in my area.

And, why does spell check on this thing never work?

Happy New Year!

Coming out of my cave today.
Something interesting and post worthy finally happened.
Check out the fireworks we bought in the German grocery store!

This was just small spinning things, and sparklers. So I guess I can understand the name. And, as it turns out our kid is kind of a budding pyro. She set most of these off herself.
You can imagine it was a pretty noisy night.
Next time we're geting some of those rockets that were as big as Piko de Gallo.