GROWING OLD TOGETHER

Each week we are in town we try do things with the other couples on the weekend, going out to dinner on Friday or Saturday night and having people over for dinner on Sundays.  Getting to know the other senior missionaries is one of the best things about serving here.  One thing that has surprised me is the number of couples for whom this is their second marriage, with the husband’s first wife having passed away.  It has not only reminded me of my mother’s passing over 46 years ago but has also helped me recognize just how fortunate I am to have Eileen still with me and being able to serve this mission together.  

This last week I had a cultural experience that I will try not to repeat.  I needed to get my hair cut and went with one of the other elders to a barber shop he has been going to.  I was surprised that the elder was having his hair cut as it was not very long.  My barber did not speak much English, so I showed him on my phone the length I wanted my hair cut in centimeters.  The first thing he did was run the clippers up the side of my head giving me the shortest cut I’ve ever had!  I came out looking like a white haired TinTin cartoon character, complete with the rooster top on my forehead.  After going home, Eileen took the kitchen shears and removed the fluff of hair on my forehead and then tried to even out the top.  As I look around, a lot of German men have their hair cut this way.  Eileen’s hairdresser calls it “the army cut.”  We ordered a haircutting kit on Amazon.

In addition to each of the Area humanitarian couples being assigned to cover certain countries, we each have a function or specialist assignment.  Ours is Emergency Preparedness/Response.  This past week we have started working part-time on Area satellite phone systems and the flooding in Spain.  That assignment, along with our projects in Austria, Germany, and Italy are keeping us quite busy. 

Russell's hair looked kind of similar to TinTins.  We called it the Rooster Cut.  Definitely the worst cut he has ever had. 

After a very heavy snowstorm on Monday, it felt wonderful to get out and walk. There are beautiful walking and bike trails near our apartment.

Elder and Sister Moore (lower right hand photo) were originally called to be the welfare/self-reliance couple in Sicily.  They were asked just a couple of weeks ago while in the MTC,  to spend 3 months in Turkey as MLS (Member Leader Support) and then 3 months in Sicily, alternating in this pattern throughout their mission.  They flew from the MTC to Italy and then went on to Turkey. It requires a great deal of faith to have that much flexibility.  We are grateful for the technology which allows us to talk with them, along with Davide who is the area manager in Italy.  We were able to discuss future projects in Sicily from 3 different countries and the sound was loud and clear. 

We go to church at the International Ward on Porthstrasse. It is right next to where we used to live.  Our apartment was on the far left, 7 floors up.

Parking spots are extremely rare and tight in Germany.  If you had a Mercedes would you park it this close to the pole? We parked in this lot in order to go to the city offices and continue the registration process. It will require several visits with lots of paperwork in order to become official in Germany.

                               

Recycling is a big thing here. Our garbage can has 4 different slots for different sorts of recycling. Here     is   a photo of how you are supposed to recycle glass according to the color - white, green or brown                                                                                                 glass.

   

Our dryer doesn't have a vent to the outside. This water container is full of water after each batch of clothes is dried.  We need to empty the water for the dryer to work. 

It is a mystery to us which of these cycles to use on the washer and dryer.  We usually scroll through the cycles until we find one that takes less than an hour.  Some of the cycles are as long as 4.25 hours for the wash and 4 hours to dry clothes.