What's up doc?

About a billion weeks ago I promised an update of what's going on here. The biggest news is that I've started a new job. I won't go into much detail due to a) doocing reasons and b) boring my reader(s) reasons, but here's the lowdown: it's in the same area I was working in before, i.e., international relations, it's a step up on the ole career ladder and it's a permanent position. Woo hoo! No more nail-biting come contract renewal time. So far I'm liking it; my supervisor's great and actually entrusts me with responsibility, confirming my sneaking suspicion that I am, in fact, a grown-up.

In other news, the Guitar Hero and I saw The Who in concert last week and it fucking rocked. They played for two hours straight, playing all of my favorites as if the playlist was designed by me. A part of why the concert was so great was that the average audience age was 45. 45 year old Who audience members simply don't get sloppily drunk, push through the crowd rudely or act cooler-as-thou, making for a happy concert experience for crowd-hater Cocoa Puffs. I did not have the need to kill any obnoxious jackasses and that lifted the concert up to best concert ever status.

This weekend the Guitar Hero's in Berlin on bizness and hanging with Mr. Highsteaks so I'm chilling with Friskie and hiding from the mountain of ironing that's threatening to overtake the bedroom. As a part of my procrastination measures I've baked scones and chocolate chip banana bread and straightened the kitchen. I even vacuumed, for crying out loud. Alas, there are a number of items on Mt. Wrinkly that would like to be worn next week so off on the expedition I go.

WTF?

Why in God's name would people submit themselves to 'treatment effects' like these just to lose some weight?
Color me strange, but the possibility of spontaneously shitting my pants just makes fitting into a size four so not worth it.
And seriously, what's the point of wearing those XS jeans if everyone can see your adult diapers underneath?

City o' freaks

I have lots of things to post about, all of which I hope I'll get to at some point. But for now, just a random observation: why is it acceptable in Hamburg to take a piss in public, as in piss on the sidewalk, in broad daylight? Today I was sitting outside my favorite cafe having a cup of coffee and some delicious chocolate cake. I had a new book of short stories, a super table and all the time in the world - the set-up for a wonderful and relaxing afternoon. And what happened? Immersed in a E.M. Forster story, I heard the sound of liquid hitting the pavement. I looked across the street expecting to see someone watering flowers or perhaps someone pouring out a bottle of water. Instead, a hobo-like person had his or her (not clear which, and frankly, don't want to know) pants pulled down and taking a piss while standing in the middle of the sidewalk. Keep in mind it was round about 3:30 in the afternoon on a fairly busy street. And no one blinked an eye. I would think this was just some random occurence, but it's the fourth such incident I've seen in the past 2 years. That may sound random to you, but keep in mind I spent over 25 years in Kansas as well as two years in the Rheinland and never experienced anything like that. Did I miss the day in German class when the cultural acceptance of daytime sidewalk pissing in Northern Germany was discussed? 'Cause I just can't seem to find it in my heart to be ok with that. Guess I really am a closet conservative.