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- Category: German culture and food
One of the best parts of German culture is the Apotheke, the pharmacy! Not because of the prescription drugs, but because of the products you can buy there. And the freebies--don't even get me started. I once bought some facial care products and make-up and they gave me a HANDBAG. A HANDBAG!!! I still have it. Die Tasche ist fantastisch! I even got a tea candlelight holder one year and since it was Advent/Christmas, the candle holder was in the shape of a star. Ja, das habe ich auch noch.
Every time you go to the Apotheke they give you things for free! Wunderbar! The Apothekerinnen und Apotheker are extremely knowledgeable and sensitive to your questions, so go ahead and ask all your questions. It's all about service and care in the Apotheke, that's for sure.
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- Category: Writing German
Discussions begin, lawyers are called, and lawsuits are filed. All of it is about a comma. (See what I did there?)
The Oxford comma is so important to people that spouses actually have discussions about it. They've talked about everything like where to live, how to manage their finances, and how many kids to have, but years later they find out only one of them uses the Oxford comma. [Cut dramatic music.] It's like now the real stuff of marriage has come to the forefront:
to use the Oxford comma or not?
In English class I was taught the following: when you write a list of three or more items and the list needs differentiation, or might sound confusing, then you insert the comma before "and." Ergo:
Maria asked Bartholomäus, her teacher, and husband if she should use the Oxford comma.
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- Category: Speaking German
Es war einmal…that I called my German Landlord to ask to get something fixed in the apartment. Although I was in a fantastic mood that day, it only took about 20 seconds for that phone call to change my German speaking habits forever…here’s why:
Nicole: Hallo, Herr Müller!
Herr Müller: Hallo, Frau Warner!
Nicole: Wie geht’s Ihnen denn?
Herr Müller: Ach ja, wissen Sie, nicht so gut. Am Wochenende habe ich im Garten gearbeitet und etwas hat mich am Fuß gestochen! Die Stelle ist angeschwollen—es war riesig! Und mit Eiter gefüllt* war’s auch. Aber jetzt war ich beim Arzt, ich habe eine Spritze bekommen und es wird schon besser!*
Nicole: (inner reaction): Oh Gott, oh Gott! Warum hat er mir das erzählt! Das wollte ich alles gar nicht wissen!
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- Category: German culture and food
If you've been hanging around this blog for a while, which some of you have, you'll know how excited I get when it's German week at ALDI. Apparently it just was, but I missed it, as there was no more regular Frischkäse when I arrived, only the Meerrettich kind, which I don't like. Schade.
This week I did a huge Einkaufstour and went to ALDI and filled up the cart. Käse, Champignons, Paprika, Toilettenpapier, Taschentücher, Bratwürste--ich habe echt alles eingekauft.
When I reached the check-out there were only two people ahead of me, and one, a young man, was carrying only three items. In his hands he held a package of blueberries, a package of raspberries, and a huge stack of styrofoam plates.
"I'm just going to hold my items," he explained, "so go ahead and use the whole belt."
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- Category: German vocabulary
Americans take a staycation und die Deutschen machen Urlaub auf Balkonien!
Although Germans are legally entitled to a minimum of four weeks of vacation per year (many have five, and some six), not everyone takes off to the mountains, to another city, or to another country. Many Germans have Urlaub zu Hause, or more aptly put: Sie machen Urlaub auf Balkonien!
When you take the word "Balkon" and add the "-ien" ending to it, it sounds like the ending of places that you'd like to take a vacation in. Spanien, Kalifornien, Brasilien, Mauretanien...Balkonien.
It doesn't take much to create a beautiful space at home to enjoy your own piece of Balkonien this summer. If you're not going anywhere, take a few tips from the Germans!
Pflanzen Sie Pflanzen!
Plants make everything nicer, and Germans are so good at the container gardens. They're good at all the gardens. (Seriously, have you seen the National Garden Show, the Bundesgartenschau? It'll knock your socks off.) So put your balcony and your time auf Balkonien to good use and plant a Kräutergarten like I did this week:
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