Karin's Adventures - 05_getting_settled

Mother's Day - second edition

noreply@blogspirit.com (Karin Brenig) — Sun, 11 May 2008 16:03:34 -0500

Tom's family is a lot bigger than mine, with six mothers (two of them grand-mothers and one great-grand-mother) living in and around Fort Wayne. Becky has the biggest house, so she hosted the family's Mother's Day brunch again.

We enjoyed delicious food, exchanged presents and flowers - and planned our next family get-together for Father's Day. My contribution to the buffet was homemade German bread and Bavarian cheese spread.

flood zone

noreply@blogspirit.com (Karin Brenig) — Wed, 6 Feb 2008 19:20:00 -0500

We've had heavy rain, snowfall and winter storms these past few days. Our back yard looks more like a pond and on my way home today I had to take a detour.

Anthony Boulevard was closed right before the bridge over the Maumee river because of dangerously high water levels. People living on Edgewater Road needed volunteers to help with sand-bagging.

A few more roads along the St.Joseph and St.Mary's rivers were also closed for the same reason. Good thing I know my way around town by now. I had no problem coming up with an alternative route home.

it was about time...

noreply@blogspirit.com (Karin Brenig) — Thu, 3 Jan 2008 18:00:00 -0500

....that I went to have my teeth checked and cleaned for the first time in over two years. I was prepared for the worst, but got away with *only* 150 minutes of scaling and root planing. Two old fillings will have to be replaced in May this year, which is going to be nothing compared to today's marathon session at the periodontist's office.

When my new dentist first examined the full x-rays she had taken, and probed into the deep pockets in my gums, she told me horror stories about bone loss and root decay as the inevitable consequences of my *severe* periodontal disease. Well, this was the first time she saw my teeth - so it's understandable that she was shocked.

The specialist, she had me see, found that it wasn't all that bad - at least my condition is stable (I knew that) and with good oral hygiene after today's procedure, I should be OK for quite a few years.

The two dental offices, I have seen in the USA so far, look very similar to the ones I'm used to from Germany. With one main significant difference: there is no cuspidor. My periodontist explained that OSHA had outlawed those in 1985 because they pose a high infection risk. Makes me wonder, how I survived all those years in Germany.

The other big difference is insurance. Coming from the government controlled public health care system in Germany to the *fend for yourself* system in the USA was an interesting experience. The attention you receive here from health care providers is excellent, but you also pay quite well for it - even with insurance.

Döner Kebap, the Greek/Mexican way

noreply@blogspirit.com (Karin Brenig) — Fri, 2 Nov 2007 12:40:00 -0500

Immigrants from Turkey brought one very delicious addition to Germany's fast food menu: Döner

A toasted pita bread, sliced open to form a pocket, then filled with shredded lettuce, turkey or veal scraped off a big vertical rotating skewer, tomato slices, onion rings and a spicy yoghurt sauce. I must admit, I really missed that.

Turkish food hasn't made it to the Midwest yet, but Greek food is available. Now, you can't tell the Greeks (or the Turkish) that you think their food is similar, but you can still enjoy a gyros sandwich as a substitute for Döner.

The bread is thinner, so it can't be cut, but has to be rolled around the contents. And for some reason they skipped the lettuce. The *King Gyros* restaurant, where I got my gyros sandwich for lunch today, is operated by Hispanics, like a lot of food places in Fort Wayne.

Life is good!