Ok, got one important errand done today. Next up I have to get ready to head up to the northern 'burbs to pick up some soda.
Nearby, there is this old brew pub I used to hang out at in the days before I stopped drinking. The building is still there but the owner sold it last year and there hasn't really been any updates as to what has been going on with the place since the new owners took over. So I'm planning on sneaking over there to take a few pictures of the building. 😈
Meet the People Who Keep Vintage Rail Cars Rolling Across America
About two dozen classic carriages around the country offer time travel by train. by Justin Franz July 6, 2023
"...In the 20th century, especially ...after World War II, rail was not only one of the most logical ways to get around the country...it could also be one of the most exquisite. Lounge cars offered plush, window-side seats so passengers could enjoy the passing scenery. Sleeping cars offered a comfortable place to rest through long journeys. Dining cars churned out meals that are a far cry from today’s airline food—rather, they could be on par with what was served in the nation’s finest restaurants. That golden age of luxury rail travel was brief. As the interstate highway system expanded & commercial air travel took off, passenger rail service began to decline in general, and luxury forms were among the first casualties..."
The view from our hotel room was delightful this afternoon. Yesterday, the sky was grey, cloud-filled. But today, the sun and blue sky emerged. #SanDiego#vacation
Everyone wants to go where the view is, but the thing is, the view isn't in just one place.
Lots of people hike Angels Landing Trail in Zion National Park, because there's a fantastic view. But if you step off the trail and take another, less well known one, you still get the view.
The sound of the sea, the kiss of mist, rocks underneath my feet: I wander through Nature's remote places -- not in a hurry, not in a rush -- and find solace from the raucous sounds of strife that modern life calls reality.
But here, this is reality, one that I would like to learn more about, and wonder over, and simply be in.
May the artwork take you on a peaceful yet bracing walk along the beach, where you can walk barefoot through the surf. And may you set aside any worries or cares in exchange for a feeling of freedom and well being.
People thought I was just a German more than once because of my fluency.
I was flustered when someone was pointing out who could speak what languages and our very gracious host, @ics said "Sie ist Taylor, sie spricht beides" (She's Taylor, she speaks both--as in both English and German ), I was really quite flustered.
I moved here with two suitcases and less than an A1 in German but a decent groundwork. Now just three years later and I am somewhere between a B2 and C1?!
I just picked up a German Translation of Dune. I struggle with it but I can read it, understand it and suck up vocabulary from it like a sponge.
At this point I've run out of reasons to explain . All my friends are German, my Girlishfriend is German, my boss speaks no English, I'm highly intelligent and highly educated. I'm stuck in a position of speak German or don't speak at all even if I speak mostly Denglisch at home. But even still these reasons fall short of my progress. I worked and I worked and I worked and for the first time the vast majority of my vacation I spoke German. I was understood in at least 4 states in several different dialects.
Now finally is my integration and humor and German catching up in ways that are conversational and mostly not too difficult. It's a huge relief. I've got a long way to go but so much behind me that I feel an extreme sense of relief and that fluency and full integration are a possibility for me. phew