Greetings from Lake Michigan

Phew, it's been a busy year so far! Between buying a house and trying to make it "ours", working a new job and finding my place in a large organization, and settling into everyday life as a married couple there really hasn't been much time to get away. It's made me extra appreciative of this little trip "up north" right now! Lake Michigan is GORGEOUS and it's funny how it still seems to be a hidden gem. Plus we have this bad boy for a little while, so we're definitely riding in style...






BOOM!!

My last day at work - Pt. 2

After 2 years and 10 months of working here in the US, I am leaving my current company today. I owe this company a lot. I started working for them as an intern at their headquarters, which happen to be in the town where I went to university. I would have never guessed that I would still work for them 7 years later. That they would bring me here, to the US. Open so many doors for me, in Germany AND the United States. Enable me to meet my awesome husband!!! Teach me so much of what I know about the industry (automotive electronics). Let me meet so many kind and talented mentors, colleagues, customers. Etc etc etc.

7 years is a long time, especially when considering that I was still "green behind the ears" when I started working there. I'm an emotional person (you have probably guessed that by now). Change can be hard on me sometimes, all the goodbyes, all the flashbacks of memories in this place or that. But I really am excited too. I have a chance to work in a field I am really excited about and personally think that it's the coolest thing since... ummm... cars?

So there you have it. The circle is closing. I started this blog when I was about to move here to work for this company, and now I have grown -personally and professionally- and well, here we are. Having another Last Day at Work. Closing this chapter, and opening another (still here in the Metro Detroit area).

See you on the other side!

The wedding post

Aaaand....... it's a wrap!

On the weekend after Labor Day we had our big wedding by Lake Michigan. It was SO MUCH FUN!

My favorite part was seeing our friends and family all in the same place, getting to know each other and having fun! It made me so happy! I think the magnitude of this might be hard to understand unless you know that these are folks we have known at different times in our lives, living in different places/states/contexts/countries/continents, and most didn't know each other before our wedding day. It was truly magical!

And to think that during the planning process I was daydreaming about skipping the whole shebang and going with a courthouse wedding only. Boy are we glad we didn't!

Quick husband+wife stroll on the beach during sunset. One of my favorite shots from the day.

You might remember how enamored I am with Lake Michigan. We really wanted to get married there, so we found the perfect spot with a private beach, AND the weather played nice - perfect, actually! It enabled us to stay outside on the deck all day and all night, taking in the beautiful views of the sunset (and later the moon) over Lake Michigan. This was the plan all along, but I didn't dare wish for it in case I jinxed it. Thank you universe!

It was a truly wonderful day, and I am so grateful that so many people were able to make it out there, just to celebrate with us. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to everybody who helped make it happen! Six brave souls even traveled all the way from Germany to Michigan, including my grandma who recently turned 80!

This post is getting long, so I will tell you about being married some other time. For now I will say it's AWESOME and leave it at that!

Michigan in Fall

My gosh, fall came hard and fast this year! We barely got any typical late summer days where it's warm and sunny and the nights are crisp and cool. Instead, it went straight to COLD, day and night. Meh.

Not being a fan of cold and snowy winters, fall makes me melancholic and anxious. This summer really passed in a flash and the weather has pretty much been messed up since last winter. The only cure to the "fall blues": walks in the sunshine and admiring the beautiful fall foliage.

I really love our neighborhood! It's so cozy, quiet, and homey :)

PS: Speaking of Michigan, the Michigan Singalong (which I wrote about here) can still be viewed here: Pure Michigan Singalong. Go check it out!

Michigan pride!

I can't believe they took the video down. You'd think with a big production like this, they would have cleared copyright issues beforehand. Disappointed :(

EDIT: Here's a different source for the video. Hope it stays up :)

Check out this video!

It just looks like all the teams representing the different Michigan cities/location had SO MUCH FUN! I remember singing in choirs/choruses and it was always a blast and I miss it so much. Besides performing in musical groups, I've also participated in quite a few public events like demonstrations, flash mobs, raves (it was the 90s, OK?), yoga, and the energy participating in a large group event like that has always been fantastic and very moving to me. So yeah, I might have teared up a little when watching this video the first few times. I guess I'm a softie and/or I have developed a little bit of Michigan Pride :)

Back to the video, I think they did an amazing job with it and I'm sure it was a blast to film/produce/perform. IT'S ALWAYS A GOOD TIME!!

PS: Just one question, where is South Haven?!?!

Happy Opening Day!

Better late than never...

Thursday was Opening Day (of the baseball season, to all non-American readers) and that's kind of a holiday for me now :) I took the day off which meant I have a four day weekend. I'm using my time to dive into the yoga -- and watch baseball, of course. I've kinda missed it during the winter :)

I hope you are enjoying a long Easter weekend, too!

PS: Go Tigers!!!!!

Currywurst Pommes :)

A friend of mine finally took me to one of my favorite places to eat Currywurst. Thank you!

Yummm, Lil' Turtle is also enjoying this German delicacy :)

OK, OK, I admit it's not the most healthy dish, but it tastes awesome. I'm sure the Americans would appreciate it as well, if somebody brought it over the Atlantic for them to enjoy! Hmmm, maybe it's my destiny to open Detroit's first Currywurst place... ;)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, dear friends and readers! I hope you get to spend the holidays with your family and loved ones.

We will have a family dinner (BF's family) and then unwrap our presents tonight, on Christmas Eve, just like in Germany. Here in the USA most families seem to unwrap presents on Christmas day morning (December 25), but my boyfriend suggested we unwrap tonight, just like I'm used to from home <3

Hugs to All! Enjoy the holidays!

Carpooling

You guys all know that I lived very close to my office previously. It took me about 5 minutes to drive to work (without any traffic lights it would be more like 2 mins). Now that I've moved, that has changed a little. It takes me about 35-40 minutes each way, every day, ugh! Not so awesome for this spoiled European. (I am used to either walking or cycling to work/school.)

I didn't have high hopes that I would find somebody to carpool with... while people do carpool here in the US, I thought that a 35 minute commute is NOTHING for Americans and that nobody would be wanting to carpool for such a "short" distance... wrong! I actually found a colleague who was willing to. He was tired of driving so much and lives only 5 mins from our new house :)

We're aiming to carpool for 2 out of the 5 work days, yay! (Gotta go to yoga straight after work for the rest of the days!)

Full circle

It's my blog's first birthday today... Happy Birthday!

Photo from ABC Cakeshop & Bakery


These last few days have really felt like I've come full circle in the last year. It's winter again, just like when my journey started. I've been packing boxes again, just like I did a year ago. This year has been quite the ride, and it's been hard at times of course, but it's also been AWESOME! I am SO SO SO glad I took this job and opportunity to move across the ocean.

It's going to be my birthday soon, and then Christmas, so normally this would mean seeing my family and friends. But alas, not this year. This has definitely caused me some heartache. I have been away from home often, even as a child (boarding school), so I felt basically as prepared as one can feel before moving across the ocean to live on another continent. I had never been away for more than a year at a time though and now I can honestly say: I know what "homesick" feels like.

My new friends and friends who feel like family have been wonderful. I have really enjoyed having them around for holidays and special occasions, but... on occasion it makes me miss my family even more. Never fret though, as a trip to Germany is in the works. It will not happen before 2012, but oh well! I will enjoy the anticipation until then :)

Anyway, I am proud of myself and happy and grateful for all the new friends and old friends, and family, and supporters, and helpers I have had this past year.

♥ Thank you so much, All! ♥

Snow

Right on time, on the last day of November, we got our first real snow.



Hrml, not a fan :-/



The cool thing is, my baby car gets to stay in a garage now, so no more scraping or digging out in the mornings :)

Thanksgiving

Better late than never, right? :)

Last week I celebrated Thanksgiving, not for the first time, but for the first time in a while and for the first time with my boyfriend and his family. We kept it small, but sweet, and everybody worked together to prepare the wonderful foods... and they were fantastic!

Cutting the birdie (which was huuuuge)!

All the other goodies including my favorite: stuffing!

The table before the eating extravaganza started ;)

Scary!

Happy Halloween, peoples!

Go Tigers!! :)


Got to work this morning and it was positively spooky: the lights were flickering and only few people had power in their cubicles, so we spent a couple of hours in the dark...

How very Halloween-y ;)

Plymouth Segway Rental :)

I did something really cool last Saturday. I finally got to ride a Segway and oh man, was it fun! I am totally going to do this again!!

The place we rented the Segways, Plymouth Segway Rental, offers 1-hour tours of the park by Plymouth. Our guide was fantastic and the area is really nice. We got lucky with the weather: it was cold, but sunny. Did you know you can ride through shallow puddles, gravel, grass, and uneven terrain? I didn't! I thought we'd be staying on paved roads, but these Segways can definitely handle rougher ground. Fun! Try it when you get a chance!

This is how I roll

I've mentioned it a couple of times... work is kinda crazy at the moment. I don't know when I have to work the next day and where. I'm just kind of on stand-by and the 60-hr week last week didn't help either... blah.

Anyway, this is the result of my vagabond lifestyle...

Why yes, I do have a laptop, a case of water bottles, an oscilloscope, yoga clothes and yoga towel, random food items, dress shoes, and more electronic measuring equipment in my trunk. Doesn't everybody?

Two yoga mats and yoga clothes drying on my improvised drying rack. When I go to yoga and then
straight to a customer, I hang up my wet, sweaty clothes on the hangers... not ideal, but better than having them rot in a bag in my car for 10 hours.

Yep, just trying to make it work...


PS: I'm trying my new blogging app for the first time. Hope this post doesn't look wonky.

Summer's last Hurrah (or: Fall in Michigan)

These past few days, we were blessed with gorgeous weather. (70 degF = 21 degC, for all metric unit lovers.) After the humid and hot summer, this felt like heaven.

Not only did it feel good, but the clear and sunny days and crisp nights turned the trees into a million different colors, all beautiful... look and see!

 

 

  
Across the magic lake...

Michigan from its best side <3

Take me out to the Ball Game! --- No, really!

Yay, I made it to a baseball game! My first ever! If you remember, I've attempted to go before, but the game was cancelled due to bad weather.

I've come to appreciate baseball in the last couple of weeks, so I was pretty stoked :) It helps that the Detroit Tigers are a pretty good team too!

Detroit Tigers vs. Kansas City Royals

Scoreboard at Comerica Park (Believe it or not, but I even know what all the numbers mean!)

Me with the hot dog... hey, it's a tradition :)

Amusement Park Yoga :)

Hi All! Just a quick pic from my fabulous week of vacation awesomeness :)) Yay!!! (Can you tell I'm loving my week off?)

PS: This is me in Camel Pose in front of one of my fave rides at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH.

Vacation!!!

After eight months of work, I finally have a week off :))) And you can all take a wild guess about where I went on DAY 1......

Gosh, I love South Haven, MI <3

More South Haven...

That's hot.

My car's thermometer showed me a 3-digit number for the first time: 100 degF = 37.8 degC... nuff said.