*Toilet Paper*

I think this "new easy and fast to open" toilet paper is hilarious. Was it ever difficult to open toilet paper? And are people that desperate to open a new pack of toilet paper that they need a serated corner? Notice how whoever opened the package didn't even use the easy-to-open corner.



Speaking of toilet paper, did I ever tell you the story of how Elder Dixon put some toilet paper in the shopping cart and Sister Dixon, who can't read much German, but who understood the word "Recycling," yelled, "Eeeew! We can't buy recycled toilet paper!" (She thought it had been used as toilet paper before. Ha ha.)

*Alu Folie*

Aluminum foil in Germany is noticeably thicker and thus stiffer than the stuff I always saw in the States. Maybe the American stuff isn't really aluminum anymore? Who knows.

*Tortillas and Hash Browns*

It's a little difficult to find tortillas or frozen hash browns in Germany.

Good thing you can easily make tortillas with water, salt, and Schweineschmalz (lard):



The hash browns just require you to peel, grate, and pan-fry potatoes.

But on the other side, good luck finding marzipan, zitronat, and quark in the U.S.

*Bureaucracy*

When I applied for a student visa, I had to open a locked account that only allowed me to withdraw a certain amount each month. That account has long been at 1.50 € because the bank can't close it without permission from immigration office. So I emailed the office and asked for a letter saying the account could be closed so I can have a free, online, non-student account. Here's the answer:

Sehr geehrte Frau Glauser,

die Aufhebung der Sperre für Ihr Konto habe ich verfügt.
Bitte holen Sie das Schreiben für die Bank an der AUSGABE unserer Behörde zu unseren Öffnungszeiten persönlich ab.
Die Gebühr beträgt 10,00 €.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen

I have to pay 10 € to get 1.50 € and the peace of mind that comes with one less bank account. Typical.

Should I go to the trouble of picking up the letter and paying? :D

*Je . . . Desto*

It took me a long time to grasp the way to say things like this:

The more I read the more I want to read.

or

The less I (fill in your own words here) the less I (and here).

etc.

And I'll tell you why. The words that Germans use in these cases sound ridiculously non-German to me. They sound Spanish or something. And I could never remember which word came first.

Here they are:

je

desto

The leo.org dictionary (my lifeline) defines "je . . . desto" as "the . . . the." Yeah. Confusing without an example. So here's one for your enjoyment:

Je mehr ich lese, desto mehr ich lesen will. (The more I read, the more I want to read.)

*Telegraphic Sentences*

Because German verb conjugations have more forms (or it's my opinion anyway), in German, you can leave off your subject and it's already understood who did what. I like it but I've noticed it's left me writing some telegraph-sounding emails to friends in English:

Am finished with the book. Thought it was great. Hope you also enjoy it.

(Bin fertig mit dem Buch. Dachte, dass es super war. Hoffe, dass Du es auch genießt.)

:D

*Sleds*

Since we've had -19 degrees Celsius around here (about 2 degrees Fahrenheit) that won't let the powdery snow go away, I've seen sleds everywhere. People pull their kids around on them. But where do they sled when Leipzig is so flat? I finally saw some kids going down an artificially-built hill that supported the train tracks. It was pretty steep and I was impressed.



Anyway, everyone has sleds that look like this. It surprises me a little. Since they're all raised up like that, isn't that a little more dangerous for the kids? I guess I'm just still wary since my sledding accident on January 1st, 2009.