Some thoughts for you:

I think that Claritin-D 24 Hour may have met its match in a beautiful old cat named Moritz. Whereas I can normally function just fine for a weekend in a cat household with Claritin’s help, I was suffering something fierce this past weekend during a visit to Hannover. Dang it.

I went to a party on Saturday night where everyone was dressed as a character from one of Quentin Tarantino’s films.  I think I may have been both (1) the only foreigner, and (2) the only person never to have actually seen a Tarantino flick. But I had a good time despite my lack of linguistic and cinematic talents.

Even though everyone has already read it by now, I am making headway in The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan. I am currently finding out more than I ever needed to know about industrial farming in America, which I guess is a good thing. I am looking forward to the sections on organic farming and hunting and gathering, to see how things compare. I am crossing my fingers that I am not doomed to a lifetime of unhealthy eating thanks to industrialization.

I may have underestimated Hamburg’s gloomy weather. I thought my Northwest upbringing would do me proud, and that I would be able to cope with Hamburg’s constant rain and gray skies like a native. Instead, six years of New York’s sunny (but cold) falls and winters may have done me in. I am having trouble motivating myself to get out and get to know the city better. Did I mention it is dark by 4:30pm? Not the perfect time of year to settle someplace new, but I am managing by drinking lots more coffee than usual. (Hey, maybe my Seattle instincts are kicking in after all!)