Getting Settled

So. Kind of funny story.

I wake up this morning around 8:15. On Sundays, I'm supposed to be quiet until after 8:00, right? The house is still deathly silent. I tiptoe to the bathroom, do bathroom-y business, and flush the toilet.

Loud noise number one.

I then go back to the room, quietly shut the door, and begin to try to (silently) make some breakfast before getting ready for the day. So, I open a new box of cereal that I purchased at the grocer's the day before.

Loud noise number two.

After fighting (silently) with the plastic for a few minutes, I give up and have toast and jam. I open the drawer to retrieve a knife for the spreading of the said jam and then close the drawer. My hand slips. The drawer therefore kind of, sort of slams shut.

Loud noise number three.

I fail.

Okay, in all honesty, it didn't matter because I was being loud after the allotted quiet time. But still, I found it amusing.

So, to catch up, I'm now in my new living quarters in Celle. I'd like to give a special shout-out to Christiane and Siegi, who housed me for a couple of days before being allowed to enter the new place, which was (and still is...oh, it still is) being renovated. Nicest older couple ever. They helped me with so much. Okay, I'll stop being sickly sweet.

The flat is pretty awesome. It's small, and one bedroom (with a separate bath), and it has almost everything I need. All I need to do is purchase a hairdryer and perhaps an iron and board. The family Lierse is also very nice and accomodating, seeing as they invited me to eat with them for Mittagessen (beef, potato balls, and red cabbage, yum--I normally hate beef, but this was ganz gut) and to a concert where the son, who is twelve, played the piano. This afternoon, I also played in the backyard with Baroo, the dog, and Meerit, the daughter, who is seven. Meerit was a little shy at first, but by the end of the day she seemed to really like me.

So, yeah, renovations are still going on. Tjark (the father) finished the stairs and the light fixtures in the room today. I, um, can't really use my faucet or dishwasher, seeing as there is literally no plumbing. Also, I can't use the stove or the oven because they, er, don't work. I gathered that when I discovered paper and instructions in the oven. But, hey, the coffee maker works! Ah, coffee.

Germans are really talented with the piano. Just throwing that out there. I also live with a musical family. I feel strangely inadequate, and for the first time in years, I miss my clarinet.

Anyway, now I have peace and quiet. Tomorrow, I go to Klein Hehlen to talk with Katrin about my schedule. Then, I think Christiane and I will try to get my residence permit again (we're having a difficult time with that). This is the woman who also helped me get a bank account, showed me around the Altstadt, helped me with strange German groceries, and even took my dirty clothes to wash them over the weekend.

I don't know how I got here and became this lucky, but I have and did.