Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving in America anyway. Here we are having carbonated apple juice to celebrate, and tomorrow we'll have a dinner with all the teachers.

We're in charge of the potatoes. Jacob's going to make them, and he's very confident that they will be very tasty. He likes to mix milk and butter and taste until they're just right. Sounds good to me. I'm just going to show up.

So last night I had a turning point in my language learning. I dreamed in German. First time. And I know I dreamed in German, because I'm told I spoke out loud. I said, "Vielleicht" which is German for maybe. But the funny part is I didn't say it in a regular voice. Jacob says I said it exactly in the voice from Tales from the Crypt. Jacob thought I was awake and I was telling him something, and he said, "What did you say?" And I snapped awake and said nonchalantly, "Yes, I was talking to the Eltern (parents)."
An important step in becoming fluent...

More observations on the German culture:

A demand for order is everywhere, which as Jacob remarked, may be because there is a serious lack of order. The word "Ordnung" is one I hear every day.

A need for privacy. The Germans seem to keep to themselves and dearly value keeping personal information to themselves.

A different definition of helpfulness: Their "help with whatever you need" means referring you to a website. Punkt.