So, I think everybody knows that Cynde and I are going to New York to see Equus. Well.... we are taking another couple of days to spend some "girl time" in the Big Apple. I spent all morning to map out things we want to see and to plot them on a map. The itinerary still needs some tweaking, also, I'm not sure yet HOW to post it, but google maps gave me an embed code.... So here are our places of interest:

View Larger Map

I don't really discuss politics with friends, because, well, that can lead to heated discussions and fights. When you are friends, you sometimes have to agree to disagree. If I have a different political opinion than any of my friends, then that doesn't mean I don't love them any less. Also - real friends usually understand that. I also don't want to force my political (or religious) opinion on anybody. Having said that - this is a blog to throw some information out there - to give everybody the chance to make an informed decision when election day comes.

Personally - this information that I found makes me sick and I won't go near THAT checkbox on the ballot with a ten foot pencil!

This information comes from "Defenders of Wildlife" (click the name for more information):

Governor Palin is an active promoter of Alaska's aerial hunting
program whereby wolves and bears are shot from the air or chased by
airplanes to the point of exhaustion before the pilot lands the plane
and a gunner shoots the animals point blank. 

• Palin
  offered a $150 bounty for wolves to entice hunters to kill more wolves
  in certain parts of the state, with hunters having to present a wolf's
  foreleg to collect the bounty. 

• She
  actively opposed a ballot measure campaign seeking to end the aerial
  hunting of wolves by private hunters and approved a $400,000
  state-funded campaign aimed at swaying people's votes on the issue. 

• She
  also introduced legislation to make it easier to kill wolves and bears
  and which would have also removed the aerial hunting initiative from
  the ballot and block the ability of citizens to vote on the issue.

• The
  Board of Game, which she appoints, has approved the killing of black
  bear sows with cubs as part of the program and expanded the aerial
  control programs.

• The media is
  currently looking into reports that state officials implementing one of
  the aerial wolf killing programs illegally killed five-week old wolf
  pups just outside their dens.

It seemed like just an ordinary morning, until I stumbled over footage on MSNBC of the World Trade Center attacks. I knew, of course, that the anniversary was coming up, but - not working at the moment - I hadn't realized 9/11 was today. Mys sis' may be mad at me, because I should have been doing other stuff this morning, but I've been glued to the TV to see the morning unfold as I did seven years ago. Footage I've seen umpteen times. I mean, I lived through it. It is still as horrific as it was then, yet I can't seem to avert my eyes. And it's not voyeurism, sensationalism or that I am afraid or scared of more attacks. I really am not. It's just a monumental event that I - that we all - lived through and that I will never, ever forget. I will always remember what I did that morning, every little detail, like it was just yesterday. I now begin to understand the people who say they always remember what they did when president Kennedy was shot. Or how about my parents, who lived through WWII? My Dad lived through a horrific night in which all of my hometown was destroyed by bombs from fighter jets, when he was just a teenager. They call it "Brandnacht" - the burning night. Or my Mom, who would cringe every time the air-raid sirens were tested - even 40 years later. Yes, I can understand it now.

I'm looking forward to my NY trip in 4 weeks. It will be strange to see Ground Zero. About ten years before the attack I visited NY for the first time and sis and I stayed in the Hilton Garden that was located in-between the towers and which was, in fact, part of the two buildings. Nobody ever speaks of that building coming down with everything else. I've been there, I know what it used to look like and I know it will be very surreal when I see it now. I can't imagine it at the moment, but I will report back.

Right now.... a moment of silence,  please!

It is quite ironic that MTV gives out Awards for Videos they coincidentally never play anymore. (I didn't come up with that on my own. I read it somewhere.....) In addition to that, the music at their awards show usually sucks. I stopped watching it years ago. I may tape it only if I know that somebody I like is performing or presenting. That way I can fast forward to whatever I want to see .....

The last couple of weeks or so MTV has hyped up their promotion for the VMAs with the promise of the "Twilight Cast" being there to present an award. Well... reason enough for me to program the VCR. But alas..... another disappointment from MTV. You would think that the Twilight Buzz would have made Rob, Kristen, Cam and Taylor the prime target for MTV reporters on the red carpet. But no - the first missed opportunity. I actually watched the pre-show live, because nothing else was on. I couldn't even spot them somewhere in the background. Although, there are some great pictures out on the net.

He does like the "elegant grungy" look ... LOL.... and check out Kristen's legs in the next picture - do they ever end?

(What is up with the shoes? Seriously, I love Rob dearly and I'm all for comfortable footwear - I would walk barefoot all the time if I could - but could somebody please take him to a shoestore and get some new footwear!)

When they finally get to the point in the show where they are presenting, it's very short. They're squeezed in the aisle, not even on stage, it's very abrupt and the host is hovering over them. Rob's mic seems to not function properly, so the host cuts him off. Rob was clearly supposed to be the one to announce the name of the group who was next to perform, but he was cut off. So we didn't even really hear him. *sigh*

So all in all.... it seems that MTV was trying to boost their ratings by having the huge Twilight community tune in to the show in hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite vamp and cohorts. I'm sure they will feel the backlash of what Twilighters will surely conceive as mis-treatment of Rob, Cam, Taylor and Kristen.

I was disappointed, too. That MTV movies blog has been "stalking" them for so long now, giving us "Twilight Tuesdays" with every minute detail anybody could ever want from the movie set. Yet when they have a chance to truly give their fans something new and fresh, something totally their own - they fail miserably. I surely thought that they would make a bigger deal out of it.

Oh well.... I have a feeling we're never gonna get our MTV back!
 

Oh Boy! Lot's been going on. Been on the computer but no time to update.... LOL! Lot's floating around my head. So here it goes bullet style ... with lots of pictures!

Girly weekend at Cynde's - apart from us having a "non-fender-bender" on the way back home from the apple store - was immensely productive. But before I show of the "goods" let's review that "wreck". Why do some people have to suck so bad? The lights turned green. Everybody, including us, start rolling and all of a sudden the car in front of us slams the breaks. "Wham" - our fault, "of course", because we "followed too closely". How can you leave 3 car lengths when you just start rolling from a green light? But additionally - who doesn't even get out of their car to see what the damage is? The girl called the cops immediately! Argggghhh! Really? There wasn't even anything wrong - maybe a couple of scratches on the bumper, that was the extent of it. Why does there have to be drama? Exchange information and get it fixed, the insurance will pay! But noooooooooo! The funny thing was that while we were waiting for the police. There was another accident where the people did exactly that! Phsssssshhhh... some people suck!

But even that couldn't really overshadow our good mood over the new gadgets. On to the big news, which is, of course, as you've already seen: I got a macbook! Yay! Thanks to the severance pay I got with Delta the old lappie retired as well! I am so happy with it. I've been playing with it almost around the clock ever since I brought it home to Cynde's house. It was so bad Cynde started to become jealous. LOL! And so much that the pain in my right wrist is possibly from that. It got so bad yesterday that I went to get a brace for it (you know one of those you get for carpal tunnel - yes, thanks, it's a little better today!) Did it stop me from using the computer today? ....

Yeah.... we're the TwiHarryTech Freaks ... or HarryTwiTech Freaks (not my inventions.... it's Cynde's idea) or something to that effect. And no - I do not suddenly have the grandeur syndrome or whatever. Apple has a promotion going on - if you buy a macbook for school you get an ipod touch for free! Wohooooo! It was a mail-in rebate, meaning I had to pay for it - but I already have the rebate check in my hand! Furthermore I got a new scanner/printer for free! Is that awesome or what? I'm telling you - it feels like Christmas. As a matter of fact, I think this will be my Christmas present to myself. When I think that the Delta money paid for this, it makes the years of aggravation almost bearable.

And here is where the Twilight obsession comes into play. Notice the shirts (and ... btw the Harry books on the wall!) In fact.... everywhere I go I see "Twilight"

Of course, playing with the new macbook in the living room attracts attention. In particular by my 5 year old nephew, who now wants his own "phone" and computer. Heheee.... I think I've created a monster letting him play with the "photo booth".

This morning I watched Rygar play soccer for the first time. It was fun. They're actually pretty good already, although it consists mostly of them running after the ball - no strategy or anything. But they're sooooo cute!

And finally, a gratuitous "cat" shot. Silvester taking refuge in the freshly washed and dried laundry!

Okay... going back to setting up my contacts in my lappie.... between that and the calendar synching to the ipod I am going to be sooooooo organized. How will I stand it?

After the crazyness the first few weeks, things have seemed to calm down a little. In the beginning I really didn't know where up and down was. My brother-in-law was at school the whole time and sis was relying on me for babysitting (and cooking, and laundry... ) - which is totally fine. I live here rent-free and board free after all! It's only fair! But for a while there I couldn't really tell that I wasn't "working" anymore. When people asked me how it was, not having to go to work anymore, I couldn't really say.... LOL

Now it seems everything is starting to fall into place a little - I got my GA driver license, got the car registered and got my first piece of junk mail. I guess I have truly arrived! I'm starting to get into a routine of getting up, walking the dogs (my exercise as well), trying to get on the computer to sell stuff on ebay, then sometimes picking Ry up from school, cooking, laundry and homework. It'll get a little more hectic again once Hal is gone to school again but I think we'll get it figured out. The beginning was sort of in panic mode.

Of course, poor Sierra, one of the dogs, cut a pad in one of her paws today. So no walks for 5 days! She has her paw bandaged and can only go outside for... you know.... with a plastic bag over her bandage! *sigh* poor thing! Don't ask me where and how she did it, she was fine on her walk, but was bleeding when we got home, so obviously she stepped in something. .... Add "giving the dogs their antibiotics" to the list of things to do. LOL!

I do get to play a little on the computer, it's more than before, but still not nearly enough.... LOL. That may change soon as I should be able to get my laptop in a couple of weeks (maybe this week....). Have I mentioned yet that I love the new desktop my BFF Cynde gave me?! It's AWESOME! Nice and fast, with a flat screen.... YAY! Aaaand I'm loving that new "social browser" Flock. If you're like me and you have YouTube, Facebook, Xanga etc. .... check it out. It allows you with just one click to jump to your other accounts, or see all your people in a sidebar. It's cool! I was sceptical in the beginning, because I thought it would leave that sidebar open and take space away from me in the browser. But the you can open and close the side with one click.

I'm having movie theater withdrawals. I thought, now that I'm here I could drag sis to the movies more often, but that has so far failed. Well... there hasn't really been anything on - or rather they were all at the same time. I could just go by myself, but I know she wants to see the movie too, so I don't want to leave her out. But it's hard to coordinate to go together. Does that make sense? Hmmmm.... And they don't have a Regal theater here. It's all Carmike. What's up with that?

The Olympics are over - let the new seasons of shows begin! I can't wait. There is nothing else on TV. I guess they are now waiting until after the National Conventions.

Can't think of anything else right now.... but I will.... sooner or later!

I already have 6 tattoos and I firmly believe that if you ever get one there is something in the ink that makes you addicted. I want at least 6 more. All my tattoos have meaning to me. Well... the first one was a test to see if I could stand the pain and the ink - that I'm not allergic. So it is very small. But it sort of has meaning. It is a Native American Symbol that means "keeping away evil spirits". Then I have 4 different eagle tattoos, or better Bald Eagles. The Bald Eagle is one of my totem animals. And my newest tattoo is a Harry Potter inspired tattoo that I designed myself. I got it last year after the final book in the series came out.

I do want another eagle - a Thunderbird. And one of my eagles has to be covered, because it is too small and doesn't look good anymore. I'm covering it with a Pacific Northwest Native American Eagle. I want a triquetra  on one arm (celtic - I think I was celtic in a former life - for the holy trinity) and a really romantic cross on my other arm. I want a little Lion King (that is my favorite Disney Movie ever - I am a huge Lion King fanatic). Lately I've been thinking about symbolic Lily, which also symbolizes the trinity, but is also present in the coat of arms of my hometown. I want a dragon (in a sort of tribal design) - probably on my upper thigh. I want a picture of my first cat. Once I finally get the logo for my future animal sanctuary finalized I want that as a tattoo as well. And.... since I'm such a "Twilight" fanatic I've recently been thinking about designing something around that. But I'm not sure how yet. Wow... I just counted... that's 9 more... oh well.... I told you it becomes addictive. But  I think it is sort of nice to mark important things, milestones, or just other things that are special to me with permanent art on my body. I love that ultimate commitment.

People ask me all the time whether I think that I won't regret that Harry Potter tattoo when I'm 80 years old. And I can honestly say - NO. I did not get it on a whim. It was something that touched me very deeply and will be with me for the rest of my life. So will this tatoo. And when I'm 80 I will still wear it with pride - and if something makes a stupid remark about it, I will explain it. That's it. Tattoos should not be acquired on a whim, because it's a fad - one should think about it, about the design, the placement, the artist. I've tried all mine out before I made them permanent. And I did not get them the day they "popped into my head".

So... I went  a little overboard on this featured question. But obviously it's a subject I'm very passionate about. So there you go.....

   

I just answered this Featured Question; you can answer it too!

*This will be a picture-heavy post. My apologies to those with slow connections!*

thanksgiving 1987

In
that spirit I wanted to write my today's blog. Not to morn the loss of
my great friend Anette, but to celebrate the fact that she was on this
earth for 42 years, and that I was privileged to be a part of a good
chunk of those. Anette was a year older than my sis and her sister is 3 years older than her, same as my sister and I. We all grew up in the same part of our home town and our parents crossed ways a lot and knew of each other. So we all had a lot in common. We did NOT however, go to the same schools, so it took a while for us to finally meet and become friends. But when we did it was one of those "for a lifetime" things. There was a brief period of time, where a man tried to push a wedge between us and it looked like he succeeded for a while. But, didn't I say it was "for a lifetime"? It really doesn't matter who made the first step. It may actually have been mutual, and we picked up right where we left off. And from them on we were "The Three Stooges". Joined at the hip, inseparable. People ask me whether I don't miss Germany - "no", I say, "not Germany - but I miss Anette."

A big part of our life was the Carnival Club. In Germany we celebrate Carnival (Mardi Gras) and we take that very seriously! Yes, there are clubs, and they have dance groups, marching bands, there are parades and there are shows, there are maskerade balls, dancing and heavy drinking. Anette and my sister were in the "Damengarde". This is a dance group made up of only young women, in sort of a military uniform getup, with cheerleader like short skirts and they perform showdances to march music, with lots of throwing legs and such. Well.... let me show you:

1987 (anette is 3rd from right, my sis 6th)
 
1989 (my sis holding the flag and anette next to her)

walking in the parade 1987

During that time period I wasn't a part of the Stooges yet, I had my own personal issues, like getting married to the wrong man, being self-absorbed and ignoring my true friends. But once my life fell apart, Sis and Anette were right there to catch me and put me back on my feet. We became, as I said inseparable. Everybody knew this. We celebrated holidays together. Thanksgiving is above. Here is Christmas 1987: Anette and my sis:

and here on new year's eve 1987/88

That's a really good characteristic of Anette. Always in the middle of the fun, with that smile on her face, not afraid to make an a$$ of herself!

halloween 1988

And here are the Three Stooges in action. Even on a "night in", just hanging watching TV, we had to have a party and clown around.

are we cool yet? (oct 1990)

And then another time of trials started. The above already mention man had to go back to America. Anette was going to visit him, to see where they stood and whether they thought they wanted to continue a long distance relationship until he got out of the army - or what? So we threw her a "going-away-party" Notice a theme here?

november 1990 at the rainbow club

She came back married! And she came back to dissolve her household and move to the US. So we threw her another "going-away-party". In earnest this time. This is in her parent's party room:

april 1991

and a few months later we visited her in Oklahoma

When hubby got out of the army he moved back to his home state of North Carolina. Another visit to Anette. This time Sylvi went by herself.

may 1992

and out to dinner

All I'm going to say about Anette's marriage on this blog is that he was very controlling and emotionally abusive. If you haven't picked up on that yet - we didn't right away either, but it started becoming more obvious. But when Anette came to visit Germany you sure couldn't tell....

in good spirits

line dancing at the rainbow

with friends troy and coco

On that visit we tried to make her see, tried to show her that she still has a life in Germany and friends who love her. That it is not a failure to end a marriage in which one person does not keep his promise. But just as I did not listen to her and my sister when I got married to the wrong guy - there was no convincing her. All we could do is to be there for her and offer our support. So we did.... we took her on a vacation. In September 1992 we went on a vacation that is STILL the best trip I ever took. 10 days in an RV driving through the Southwest. And I got to do it with my two best friends - my sister and Anette! There are so many funny stories from this trip, it would be a whole other blog. The memories will last for a lifetime!

out to dinner

death valley

anette and I at hermit's rest at grand canyon

great scenery, isn't it?

lunch break

And then we visited Anette one more time at home. This is her dog "Hooch" (de puppy ) When she eventually returned to Germany this was her biggest regret. Having to leave her dog behind. But he was just too big for city living and a small appartment.

On our trip we had lots of opportunities to talk and offer "counseling". I think something was finally sinking in and Anette was seriously considering leaving this toxic relationship. But what we all didn't know was that there was a little bun in the oven. And this is the best thing that came out of the whole mess. Little darling Robin was born in May 1993. And we did not hesitate to visit shortly after in August of 1993:

And this time I came back by myself in 1994

an inside joke between me and Anette - the streetsigns....

Shortly after that Anette and family moved to Germany in light of him not finding any work, and they thought they might have a better chance to make a decent living there, with her family being able to lend a little help with the baby - and it being easier for Anette to find a better job. So this is her, back in Germany in her old appartment on her 30th birthday in 1995.

25th sep 1995

and robin now 2 years old

Another German party opportunity - "Kerb" - originally to celebrate the
founding of a church building, it is now a beer and wine fest with a
parade and a carnival like get up around the church.

robin didn't like the marching band

Anette would eventually kick her husband out. And nobody could have imagined and foreseen the deep scars that he left behind. As a result of the emotional abuse, the self-confident, outgoing Anette I knew "all of a sudden" had vanished. Anette was extremely self-conscious, had no self-esteem and suffered from agoraphobia and panic attacks. Her emotional problems also manifested themselves psychosomatically. Her ekzema was a direct link to her emotional state. And here is where I now place the blame for the intestinal cancer as well. I know medical scholars will probably disagree with me, but I know my Anette. She was one of those people (like me  ) who would keep everything inside. She did not want anybody to worry about her and wanted everybody to be happy. So she put on a brave face and ingested her troubles. Is it any surprise that something like that would happen?

If I have any regrets about moving to the US, it is that I couldn't be there for Anette the way a friend should be. I know she knows we were there in spirit, always just a phone call or an email away. But it is still hard to be away from "family" this way. Because by then this is what she had become. I truly thought of her every day - and maybe we even communicated telepathically.... well.... Sylvi more than me. She went through chemotherapy without too many complaints and was even "cancer free" for a little while. But her first checkup afterwards was not clean. She had to go in for chemo again and this time she was really down about it. But as always she put on a brave face again - for everybody else's benefit. Looking back now, I think that she already knew, deep down, but she didn't let on. The signs were there. She kept asking when we would come to visit, she wanted her daughter to go visit her sister (who by the way, lives in the US as well), who is Robin's godmother. And just 2 days before she passed I received my package of German Harry Potter books and movies, that she had been holding for me, until I could pick them up on my next visit. I didn't even have a chance to thank her for them yet. "Thank you Anette! The movies are perfect. It's just amazing how you taught yourself all that stuff on the computer. You are so smart, I was so proud of you. And lucky to be able to call you my friend." 

the last time I saw her in 2005 on Robin's 12th birthday - way too long ago!

Robin - oh Robin. My heart aches for her. Robin is like a niece to me. As a matter of fact, I always introduce her as such. When Anette made her sister Yvonne Robin's godmother I was very upset. Now, that I have my own "real" nephew and am his godmother, I can understand it better. But nevertheless Robin is like a niece to me. I can't even begin to imagine how this is for her. I lost my Mom when I was almost 30 and it was hard enough. But at 15 you still really need your Mom. I know Yvonne, and I am 100% sure that she will take good care of her, Robin's cousins are like siblings to her anyway. But it is still not the same. Nothing can replace your Mommy! I want to go and hug her and hold her forever. I want to take all her pain from her. Yet I now that's not possible. Anette, I vow here and now, that I will stay in contact with her and your sis and that I will everything in my power to help her through this and lead her on the right way. I'll make sure she doesn't get any strange ideas....

"Anette, I know that your first doggy Struppi picked you up once you crossed over to the other side. All your sorrows, and pains are gone now. I hope that you are partying over there - just like old times. Say hello to my Mom and my Dad and check on Bonnie, Clyde and Anastacia for me, would you? Oh.... and save a few Rummels for us! PS: If you come and pick on us, would you do it in a way so I know it's you - like sneezing when the horses are still miles away - or by playing an AC/DC song on the radio ...... "

Robin, now at 15. - so BEAUTIFUL!  I believe this was taken right before Robin's US trip!

If you are reading this, thank you! Please send your prayers, good energies or whatever your spiritual preference to Anette's family. The funeral is on Thursday and it (-please excuse the choice of words-) kills me that I can't be there. Oh... I know that Anette is not there, she doesn't care where I think about her, but to give emotional support to Robin, Yvonne and Anette's parents. .... and now I'll go and cry into my pillow. Thanks for celebrating Anette's life with me!

Somebody at Summit Entertainment is NOT stupid - and VERY fast. I bet they were laughing.... and will be laughing all the way to the bank.......

This is the late breaking news from Summit (from an email they sent!):

- BREAKING NEWS! -

Twilight has some great news, and we wanted you to be some of the first to know!

Twilight will be in theaters THREE WEEKS SOONER than originally
planned!!! It will open in theaters everywhere in North America on

November 21, 2008!