Verletzt! Und noch was

I can’t really remember where I left off. And I can’t access the internet right now to check my blog because I haven’t got wireless, so, I will try my best. It’s been a little while for sure.

Let’s see now…. Not this past week, but the week before, I started this new class called “Global Environmental Governance”. I know. It sounds so perfect, right? Well, I think it will be very interesting,  but it is a “Hauptseminar” or, from what I can tell, defiantly not an easy elective choice for commerce students like myself! But with a title like that, how could I not participate? So anyway, I went to my first class where everything for the term was outlined, including the requirement of presenting on a topic. I volunteered to go first because: a) I wanted to get it over with. Like ripping off a band-aid. b) Apparently am not that nice to me sometimes. My topic was Principles of Sustainable Development. Some of the readings included the WCED report and the Rio Declaration, and 2 other articles by people I am assuming to be scholars. It was an interesting read, for sure, but I honestly had no clue what I was doing. There was no real outline for the presentation, so I met with my prof on the Friday before the Tuesday I would have to present to talk about it. Really confusing. But I thought I would at least be able to make a decent presentation and incorporate the things she required.  So, according to her recommendations, I went to the library to brush up on my Regime Theory (????), using some of the books she’d suggested.  This was a ridiculous process, I am still kind of baffled. Anyway, I got to the library and, you are not allowed to take your bag or coat in. No. You have to give your student card or some piece of ID to get a key for a locker to put your things in. You may retrieve them when you are finished perusing. But I thought this would be ridiculous, as I intended on just finding the books and checking them out. So, I asked the librarian if I could just leave my things behind the counter. Fine. Then, as I had never used the library system at the Uni Freiburg (…. nor at UBC… actually) I asked the librarian for some help. Okay, I don’t know what the big deal was, but she was seriously the most unhelpful administrative employee ever. Ever. I kept having to go back to her desk to ask her for help and she kept giving me ¼ answers and finally I just got her to show me exactly how to find the books. Which literally took 20 seconds.  I would have neeeeeever found it otherwise. And it wasn’t like it was any unreasonably strenuous activity for her. Just. Ugh, maybe you had to be there? So, I wanted to take out said books but it was only 1 or 2 in the afternoon, so of course I could not. 1 or 2… what does that have to do with anything? A LOT. Because you can only take out books on Fridays after 4pm of course! (??????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!) And they have to be back on Monday at 6 pm. Ridiculous. Sooooooooo I just sat there and went through the books for a bit, got some information I thought would be helpful, and left before 4. I wouldn’t have been able to take out the books anyway, actually, because I hadn’t registered with the Uni library yet anyway. You see, this is not automatically done, as it is at UBC. One has to go to this little building at the end of a parking lot behind the cafeteria on Rempartstrasse to do this. And they require proof that you are, in fact, a student living in Freiburg.  We did this on Wednesday, and it was, as can be expected, a little more challenging than it needed to be, because they wanted to see our passports, which we don’t really carry around on our person. 

Anyway. I got my information and went home to start working on this presentation. And that is what I did that weekend. I worked on my presentation. Friday night, Alicia and I went for a walk to the Seepark, and climbed up the tower that is there. Saturday night, I was skyping with Heather and telling her about how I had no clue what I was actually doing with this project and, bless her, she came by to help me.  So I am going to make cookies for her tomorrow.  I had “finished” my project before midnight and sent it to my prof as we had agreed, so that she might check it over. Then on Sunday, I met Monika to go to the Muenster, which was really nice. And then I went for a little bike ride around a bit of Freiburg and then went back.  And then I saw Alicia and she wanted to make some food so I went with her to her kitchen and Vlad stopped by and we were all just chatting. I thought it would be a neat idea to walk up the side of the cabinet while propping myself up with my arms on the counter. I did that and injured my sternum, I believe. Whatever it is, there was a really loud “crack” kind of where I think my sternum is and some pretty horrible pain. Moving at all was quite difficult.  And it still is very painful.  More on this in the next chapter.

Okay, so, I had sent my prof my presentation on Saturday night, yah? Well, I had really hoped to had gotten it back on Sunday. It wasn’t anything huge, but I got her reply on Monday afternoon,  basically saying that I had to redo…. basically everything. So, grand. I had her recommendations (which were much more… concrete this time around), but they still didn’t make a lot of sense to a business student like myself.  But I tried to figure it out and did the best I could and missed capoeira class (which was probably a good idea anyway, given the sternum).  The next morning, I went to the computer facilities well before class so I could print out my speech and a handout for the students. And to go over my presentation again. I felt pretty organized, sort of. But I actually was not, because my class on Tuesdays starts at 10 am not 11 am, as I had, for some reason or another, conveniently decided. I got a text from Heather at 10:15 asking me if I was going to show up.  Um, yah? Of course. Wait…. AH! Good thing class actually just starts at quarter past, and that the computer centre is so close to where my class is held. Anyway, I still showed up a little late and had to give a presentation on a topic I really didn’t understand for over an hour in front of my class. It was GREAT. And they asked questions- not just the students, but the prof and the assistant. And I answered them, to the best of my non poli-sci ability and stood there, trying to concentrate on what was being discussed, but also thinking about how I would make up for my ECTS credits, should I not be allowed to take this course due to my insufficient abilities. But all bad things must come to an end and this was no exception!  And it sounds as though I passed, which is wonderful.  After class, Heather and I attempted to study for an Environmental Policies and Green Business in Freiburg exam and then met with our friend Muzi and went grocery shopping at Alnatura. Then, I went home to meet Alicia, because she said she would go to the clinic with me to see if I was all in one piece (which it seems I am not, because there’s kind of a bit indent around my sternum where I don’t think there was before. But I can’t be sure, because I’m kind of boney anyway.). But she was sleeping and wanted to continue sleeping, so I just went to the clinic and got sent to a 3 or 4 different departments about 11 different times, because all the admin at each department were convinced I was supposed to be in another ward. Then I got to talk with a really nice secretary and my insurance from UBC worked! It was great! I didn’t have to pay anything up front =) And then the AMS just takes care of it from there, I think. Have to look at that again. Then I met a doctor who seemed pretty unconcerned and told me that I am a young woman and should be fine, but just in case, I should come back if it does not get better.  Then I went home and….. then Wednesday happened….. Oh yah, Wednesday. Okay, well, I was supposed to meet my friend Andie for coffee on Tuesday, but I couldn’t very well do that because I was at the clinic, so we rescheduled for Wednesday.  *exciting news: I booked my train ticket to Singhofen!!!!! I’m going to go visit my family on the 11^th of December =) I can’t wait! I also got a BahnCard 50, which means I will get 50 percent off all train ticket prices in Germany. Yes, it cost a lot, but I went over some banking and I have been living pretty cheaply thus far. Und, es lohnt sich.**** Aaaaaanyway. I met Andie for coffee at 4 ish. We went to this cafe in the Uni and then sat in this auditorium called AudiMax (i think. The students are actually camping out there and protesting against the German university system because they have to pay a whole 500 Euros to study each semester. And some other stuff that’s actually valid.) and chatted. I think it was supposed to be a semi-date, but I think I will pretend it wasn’t because I’m just not interested. (Sorry for crushing your dreams, Mum.  Your daughter is not interested in a nice German boy she met at a Christian youth group. (Seriously, that’s how I know him!) Um, plenty of fish, right? Riiiiiiight.)    And then when we were leaving, we met some of my Canadian friends by chance, which was really hilarious because…. Eszter was there and she is just so funny. And also because… hmmmm… how to explain this…. well, okay, another girl who was there, who this other guy who likes me very much, went out with because they met when they were a little bit drunk and drunk people just do dumb things, and I guess he thought it proper to ask her out once sober, but I am pretty sure they are done (according to him) and…. can you see what I mean by it being odd? The whole situation? Yes? No? Maybe? Egal.  Then I went home and can’t remember exactly what I did, but it probably included wasting time on the internet and doing homework.

Thursday….. hmmmmmm…. oh yes. Well, I can’t remember much of what I did at all on Thursday, but I do remember I went for a walk around the Seepark with some other people in my Stockwerk (part of the building) and felt very proud of myself for associating with the Germans.  Then I hung out with Alicia and Vlad and we did homework (well, Vlad and I did. Alicia drew Vlad doing homework). 

Friday: My Vauban day. There is a “super eco-friendly” part of the city called Vauban and I had always wanted to bike there and check it out, see what kind of neat shops and things were there. So I did that and the shop selection was quite disappointing but no matter. I probably just missed a whole bunch of them. It was such a beautiful day though! It was really sunny and so so so so warm! I didn’t even have to wear a jacket or mittens or toque or scarf while biking. It was like June in Vancouver, just amazing. I also stumbled upon this student hippie commune along my travels. I am very happy to not be so interested in that all anymore. Well, not interested, but, part of it. It’s just so…. I don’t know. Ineffective? I think being able to hold one’s values and integrate into society regardless is very important. And, others should be able to take you seriously, too, which I think is difficult sometimes, when people are so alternative and extreme. Anyway. Good on them in any case.  Then I biked back to the Innenstadt and went grocery shopping and to the Weltladen, a fair-trade store I buy very expensive (but ethical!) bananas at. And then went home, and met a friend from my Stockwerk along the way, and I went with him to Lidl to get dish soap and then went home and intended to study, and Alicia came by and asked if i wanted to go with her to Lidl to get food, so I went with her and saw Vlad along the way. And we stood in line at Lidl forever…. and then…. I went home and attempted to learn but didn’t for a good while. And then I did. And I think this post is getting a tad long, so, I will be signing off soon.

Today (tentatively planned):  Avoid doing laundry until tomorrow. I think this is actually practical, because there is a big party on our Stockwerk this evening and if people are smoking, I don’t want their disgusting smoke fumes to get in my clean laundry. So there. I am also definitely going to get out of bed at some point and go back to the clinic, because I am in lots of pain.  And I am also going to study more and take some more notes for my essays, which I would love so much to be finished before I go back home for Christmas.  Thennn….. is the Stockwerksparty. I have to “man the bar” from 1 til 2 in the morning. So maybe I’ll have a nap today as well.

 

But I will definitely stop writing this entry now. Chau!

 

<3 gemmer

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