For my Colorado Friend

We are a little bit late in our farming attemts this year. The youngest gardener has just finished sowing a butterfly garden. We are comforting ourselves with the fact that even if we only see the seedling before this years frost we will have gotten the garden plots a little bit closer to cultivation for next years attempts. I am reading all about overwintering crops that leave your soil airated and ferilized when tilled under at the beginning of spring. I am not sure if these will ever make it into my garden plots or not, but I have high hopes.

And these are some of my baby asparagus that have just been transplanted into their new homes. I have always wanted to cultivate an asparagus patch, we shall see if I can keep them alive. If they don't make it through the winter I suppose I will buy crowns next spring and won't be too much later in seeing the plant come to maturity than if these seedling make it. Although, I would like to be able to say that I started my asparagus from seeds!

There are six plots, all of which have been assigned a purpose. But, only three have acually produced any results this year. I will plant some winter harvesting greens in the end plot and see if I can make anything out of it. If not I will, at least, have had a grand time digging in the dirt.

Unfortunately, my corn was late in being sown, thus the miniature plants. I have enjoyed watching them grow though. Behind the little corns are a few tomato plants, artichokes, radishes (which are having a rough go at life), and a small patch of greenbeans (these have pretty much been deer food).

The rock wall is home to a clematis, which is mostly hiding in this photo, and provides the border to my carrot and salad greens patch. I might need to consider a different location for the carrots next year, or to plant a different variety because these did not take well to the quantity of clay in this garden area. Fortunately, some areas of the garden have much more fertile soil than others and I am still hopeful that one year I will have a successful crop of carrots.

The first of my crop to provide me fresh produce was the salad greens which I have been picking continuously since the middle of July. The ruhubarb was made into a fantastic cake to celebrate Daddy's birthday at the beginning of this month as well as chopped and frozen with some fresh picked strawberries in the middle of July, (at some point this will become a mouthwatering pie). The plant has had several homes around my garden over the last four years which probably explains why this was the first year it produced edible stalks.

The sunflowers and nasturtiums are my feeble attempt at beautifying the forest of squash behind them. As unattractive as squash can be at times I do love their nice addition to summer salads and zuchinni bread.

Some of these plants also happen to be winter squash which I have never grown before and don't even know if I like, but, I thought I'd give them a try. The plants came up just fine, whether or not they will bear produce is another story.

A few of the greenbean bushes did survive the deer attack last week and are just beginning to produce mature pods. I love the beautiful flowers that grace the plants prior to the tiny beans which are quite charming themselves.

And of course the hens (+ a rooster or two?) are quite happy. They love the new home Grandpa built for them over his visit at the beginning of June. I have given them an egg-laying ultimatum. Sadly, I don't think they mind one bit whether I think they need to be productive or not.

A Little on Thinking

Usually I'm a ponderer, spending long hours musing about life and all that it encompasses, contemplating the meaning of our many and varried existences. But, amidst the activites of my Austrian existence, I've found that I don't spend quite so much time pondering.

Sometimes it feels funny not to ponder, but at the same times it a refreshing feeling because for me the pondering frequently turns to worry and the worry eats at my brain filling my mind with fears about what this life has in store for me. There is a part of me, which I imagine makes up a part in every human brain, that can't let the pondering turn into wonder and instead turns the nonchalant musing into very real fears.

It struck me strangely this morning that it took me 20 years and traveling sevearl thousand miles from home to get to a point where worrying didn't make up a significant part of my mental exertions. They just are not present all the time, and it's not that there aren't things that I could worry about, there's plenty that could go wrong in any given day, its just that I don't care to worry. I came here with the mindset that this was all about the experience I would have here, and I wasn't going to let cares and feelings of dissapointment get in the way of my enjoying this opportunity. I was determined that whether the experience was good or bad I was going to find all the positive parts of my time abroad and relish the nuances of this other existence that would become a part of who I am.

Perhaps the lack of worry stems from knowing what I am doing here and seeing the end before it is here. It's like running in the mornings, when I have a certain amount of time to fill I am always anxious about how long I have been gone for, but when a distance is the goal and I can work towards reaching the U-Bahn station rather than filling up 45 or 50 minutes, I enjoy the process of running because know how the process will unfold itself. It is like that here, I know that my end goal is a plane that will take me home again, and I spend my days working towards that, I go to class and do my best to learn and absorb the language I am here to study, I go out with friends and all the while I know that each day, just like each step of my morning run, brings me closer to the flight home. Knowing the end, or at least believing that I know the end, allows me the peace of mind to take each part of this journey one step at a time and savour the uniqueness of each moment.

Stadtpark

It was beautiful this morning, the air brushed pass my face as a gentle breeze sauntered down the ally that takes me to the U-bahn. I had qietly ran down the stairs this morning, trying to keep my feet from stomping against the concrete steps that send footsteps echoing through the corridor. Then I was out in the morning air. The world was just beginning to wake up, down the street a construction crew was beginning again their task of repairing the intersection that has seen one too many automobiles trundle across it. There were a few mothers pushing strollers down the sidewalk while holding tightly to a toddlers hand, and, if I listen hard enough past the sound of construction, I coul hear a solitary bird beconing to its friends to wake up and join the morning chorus.

I hadn't been to the station in the early morning yet, and was surprised at how many people there were, all waiting to catch their ride into the city center and work. I switched U-bahns at the city center and got out at the Stadtpark. It was beautiful. For two days now I've seen the glimpse of trees beconing me from above the station as little shards of light sneak between the open-roofed tunnel and the U-bahn. I scampered up the stairs and out into the light and fresh air, the park was gorgeous, many pathways winding their way between trees and shade gardens, a playground here and there waiting for a child to come and occupy the swings. I started out just walking and slowly eased myself into a fast jog around the park. It was fantastic, I ran around the park and then started jogging though the pathways that intersect and wind through the features at the center. After a couple of trips around I slowed to an easy walk for one more time through the park, taking time to admire the trees and grass, breath in the fresh air and take not of the beautiful landscape around me. There is a pond on the far side and I watched as the ducks plunged their heads into the water looking for food for their breakfast. My stomach started to knot into pangs of hunger and I started to head back to the station. The 45 minutes went quickly and, all too soon, I was back on the U-bahn headed towards my apartment.

The second carry on is a God-send, don't forget it.

I hadn't really wanted to bring the second carry on bag, but giving in to my human nature that likes things, I packed the carry on bag with clothes and a laptop, a quilt and a few other items that I could not fit in my checked luggage. I never thought that I would need those items separate, but I sure did. I have never had such a confusing set of travels before, so many flights to catch and reschedule and wait for, and then the missing luggage at the end was really just the icing on the top of the cake. It is exciting being in a different country without belongings, I am not a big fan, but I'm finding my feet.

This morning I headed off to registration and now am once again in the waiting mode, classes won't start until 2:15 this afternoon for me. I'm making a list of all the necessities that I will be wanting because there is a small supermarket down the road and I am going to make it a visit and get things for living here, namely food and a few toiletry items that are with my checked luggage.

My advice to all you summer travelers, bring an extra chance of clothes in your carry on luggage, if you don'y use them at least you were safe and you will sure by glad if you do end up spending more days traveling than you anticipated.

Greeting from the airport

The day finally arrived an I'm off, headed to the thriving European metropolis. I cannot believe that I'm finally on my way. The airport is a funny place, full of normal people off to experience new things or headed hope from their adventures, just waiting. You watch a gentleman walk rapidly down the fast walk, each step traveling him seven feet down the walk way instead of three or four. There is a guy sprawled across a whole row of waiting chairs, snoring quietly, perhaps he should have caught a few more winks last night. . . or perhaps not. The potted trees growing towards the sky lights look odd in their sterile environment, people passing them without giving them a glance; there is a constant whir of machinery running the escalators and fast walks. Every so often a voice from the loud speaker calls out a name or flight number, reminding every of flight times and gate numbers, eventually those announcements will be for me. Periodically, a plane alighst on the runway out my window, a reminder that the people around me are not here to stay, we really are all going somewhere, we will sit next to each other in a crowded plane for several hours and then each go on our own separate ways, nodding to the stewardesses as they welcome us to our arrival city, perhaps pausing to readjust our carry on luggage to rest more comfortably against our shoulders and backs. The in-between moments are good, a little pause to gather our wits about us before we dash off to our connecting flight or consult a city map to find out where we're going. Soon I will be on the other side of the big pond, exploring a new place, meeting new people, reconnecting with friends who have been gone for months. I can't wait.

A Recipe for Adrielle

Easy Chocolate Truffles
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese
3 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 packages (12 ounces) baker's semi-sweet chocolate, melted chocolate chips may be used but I prefer the bars of chocolate, it mostly depends on what you have handy at the time and how much you want to make.
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
ground nuts, unsweetened cocoa or coconut, toasted

BEAT cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add sugar, beating until well blended. Add melted chocolate and vanila; mix well. Refrigerate about 1 hour. Shape into 1-inch balls. Roll in nuts, cocoa or coconut. Store in refrigerator.

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES
CHILL TIME: 1 HOUR

Variation: to flavor truffles with liqueurs, omit vanilla. Divided truffle mixture into thirds. Add 1 tablespoon liqueur (almond, coffee or orange) to each third mixture; mix well. You can also use mint extract but you will only need about 1/2 teaspoon for each third that you flavor this way.

Aufwiedersehen- 'till we meet again

Dear friend, your presence these last months has been a pleasure. Our friendship started at the library when I was assigned the task of waiting for my sister's German friend whom I had never seen before. A little bit anxious I pondered two questions all through work, "How will I know who I'm looking for, and I don't know and German how will I talk to her?" I got off work and headed for the east entrance; there you were, bicycle in tow. We were pretty quiet then, neither of us exactly sure what to say to the stranger sitting next to us. But everything changes when you spend a day biking over gravel logging roads that weave their way through coastal mountain ranges; the stranger transforms into a friend. Though beaten by the sun and the hard climb, we gained each others trust and respect.

In the last 11 months I've had the pleasure of laughing with you frequently, and sharing the many joys that have found their ways into both of our lives. I am so excited to see what brings you to the states next and look forward to enjoying much more of your company in person and from a distance. From bike rides over coastal mountains to evenings watching movies or chatting late into the night, you have been a great addition to the wonderful individuals I call family and I will cherish your friendship always.

Love, Bethany