Things I’m Having A Hard Time Living Without

I can certainly live without things but I would prefer NOT to…and here are my reasons why. I encourage you to pay close attention, take notes, tie a ribbon around your finger to remind yourself that you all have it really good back in your own home countries. My life without the following feels incomplete BUT I do have backup, luckily which counter my complaints of course!

I’ve got exactly 30 days  as of today until I land on the mushy ground of America. Put me there RIGHT now! Now that I’m getting down to the finish line, I’m getting excited and overly worked up about the fact that the East Coast is indulging in delish Fall treats and I’m stuck in a place that doesn’t know what Starbucks Pumpkin Latte is or what a Pumpkin Pie is. HELP!

1. Gossip Girls 

You all know just what I’m talking about. A night were you get all dolled up, put on the greatest pair of stilettos you own, a new dress, and the works and you meet your favorite girlfriends out for sushi dinner and gossip for ages over Martinis of every kind. The more you knock back the more stories and emotions flow. Finding out about which idiot brought their mistress to their own wedding only to divorce their wife a few months later, or the trashy girl from high school that has way too many kids with way too many different men, or maybe it’s the latest crap your ex is up to. Although none of that is important but it’s just stuff to talk about and we all can relate. We talk about our relationship problems in a “safe” area (bars are always so loud they swallow and hide your words forever) and every guy that tries to hit on us only pushes us to band together and give him a nice glass of icy glare with a splash of the cold shoulder. Why?? Because it’s god damn GIRLS NIGHT OUT, Bitches!!

           Remedy: So how to we fix this little problem? Easy…FACEBOOK. Everyone, including myself, writes all sorts of personal stuff on The Book nowadays and not only can I stalk my girlfriends (yes, I admit) I also lurk behind my laptop to see who’s having a baby, getting married, breaking up, divorcing, being annoying, biting their nails, wearing bad outfits which include visors (STOP IT!), and who is overly obsessed with their special someone (this might be me). Thank you Facebook for feeding me with the gossip I need to sustain myself until I get back to the states for a visit!  Speaking of Facebook….please go to my Blog Page and like it. And if that is too complicated, on the right hand side here there is  button to “like” it as well. THANKS! 🙂

2. Martinis

Pomegranate, Very Dirty, Chocolate, Apple, Apple Pie, Banana Split, Cosmopolitan, Flirtini, Gingerbread, Gummy Worm, Key Lime Pie, Kiwi, Hello Kitty, Melon Ball, Watermelon, and Pumpkin (DAMMIT!)

These are all things we are aware of. Those girly drinks (and some of them MAN-tini’s) that are FABU and absolutely mouth-watering. I used to partake in these tasty bits quite often back in the states…trying every one on the menu if necessary. If I asked for a Martini here….Do you know what I would get? Actual Martini & Rossi. This is like a strong wine or so I’m told. I’ve never had it because I’m boycotting. Here’s the situation, I’m DYING to make all the Martini’s I love for people here so they can see how awesome it is. They see them in the movies and Sex and the City shows…it’s just unfair. Anyway, I would LOVE to make these but there are no such things as flavored vodkas, think Three Olives Brand or other special liqueurs like the Pumpkin Spice that I need to make the Pumpkin Martini. Lord have mercy….this is going to be a long few years without those babies.

I’m positive as soon as I get back to the states I’ll be throwing those back like Homer does to his donuts or cookie monster to his cookies…or is it vegetables now?

Remedy: WodkaBull – aka Vodka RedBull…..AMEN. Of course they also have wineries up the ying AND the yang and a realllllly good bottle of wine costs about 8.00 Euro…that’s like $11 bucks and some change. Can’t beat that!

3. Care packages

My mom was always giving me stuff and sending me home with food from her fridge (leftovers are the BEST). We would go shopping together all the time and hang out, have a Panera Bread lunch date, all sorts of mommy daughter bliss. When I see my mom on Skype, it’s just not the same. I can’t hug her. I miss my best friend. End of story.

Mommy and Me

Remedy: As there is no replacement for that kind of hole in the heart, Care packages are fantastic!! Or cards. Or letters via snail mail. All of this is great. When I get the box the first thing I do is look at my mom’s handwriting…I would recognize that anywhere. Then I open the box and smell the inside. I know what you’re thinking but I’m always hoping I can smell a bit of home in there. As I look through all the things I imagine her buying them and thinking of me. It’s such a nice surprise. Each little thing, even if it’s just a sticker or a lollipop, it means the absolute WORLD to me. And….to be able to read instructions or the packaging in English is a treat too.

4. Streaming Music

You know those moments where you’re angry because your download is slow or for whatever reason your favorite homepage isn’t working? Yeah, that’s how I feel every day. As the majority of you are participating in the newest fads such as Spotify or the older one Pandora….I don’t have access to these. Nope. Not at all. Germany has some weird problem with streaming music and this has caused me some very serious heart palpitations! Even YouTube is complicated and most of the time as you all post the coolest new videos on Facebook I can’t watch them. “This video is not allowed in your country.”  Listen here Maestro…this isn’t my country however as an American citizen I think I should have the right to watch whatever I want whenever I want. Who do I have to bring down?

Remedy:  Stereomood. This is fantastic for me. For those of you who are new to this fad – it’s uploaded music from other users and categorized under a certain mood. So when I’m feeling like sunshine, I head on over to the sunshine channel. When I feel like punching babies in the face, I head over to child abuse channel. No that’s not a channel option but you get the idea.  It’s my savior. Although most of the time the music annoys me like mosquitos buzzing in my ear, at least it’s something. The possibility of hearing new music excites my loins.

5. Televise My Life

No really….give me a reality show.

Here we have massive amounts of channels on the TV and all sorts of shows I know back home. One problem…they are all in German. I do try to pay attention sometimes but most of the time it’s annoying and I give up. We have the British version of CNN and BBC which is great but can bore me very easily once they get on their kicks about the financial outcome of the world and all that nonsense. I couldn’t care less. I’m focused on my own financial situation…can’t possibly care about everyone else.

Remedy: There is a God and she seriously knows just how to please me. She has granted me with free streaming video of the latest shows the day after they air. Indeed, I can find this on services such as Sidereel or XBMC (Thanks Bro!). This plays a giant part in my life. I couldn’t go a day without knowing I had access to Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, and many other terrible Reality shows.

6. Vanilla Extract

For those of us that bake we know the importance of  Vanilla Extract. It’s like the piece to the puzzle that can never go missing otherwise it makes the entire puzzle look like crap. Get what I’m saying? In Germany there is no such thing. I keep trying to figure out how they make their cakes but I’m dumbfounded. When I realized there was no such thing as Vanilla here I about died. They have some sort of really oily based, almost buttery type of Vanilla flavoring in tubes but this is not the alcohol smelling Vanilla we know. It does NOT work. I was once on the verge of disaster without this stuff…and then…..

Remedy: I make everyone who comes over here (old colleagues and the like) bring Vanilla Extract with them. Our last buddy that stopped in brought me two large bottles of it (Thanks to his wife) and I’m happy as a clam. I can bake till my heart’s content without crying about it.

Until next time, Readers!!! xoxoxoxoxo