This Weeks Adventures (written 9/12/2008)

The last few days have been great! On what I believe was Tuesday, but may have been Wednesday, I was riding the train, and pulled out my scriptures to get my reading done for the day. While I was reading a man sat down across from me that was playing a game that had very loud music. I was a little perturbed, thinking something like he MUST have done that just because he saw that I was studying, but I chose not to get upset, to put away my book or put in my i-pod or even to look up at him in a disgruntled way. I though about doing all three of these things, by the way. But instead of that,I just kept focusing on what I was reading, and smiled a little at the way people are sometimes.

So, after a while he asks, "Is that a bible?" Of course, he asks it in German. Graydon gets people who will talk to him in English. I, on the other hand, have not really had this luxury, and it's frustrating. :) So I answered, no, it was the Book of Mormon (and I said the name wrong, of course) and then he interjected "Is that like a sister to the bible?" And I said yes. I then explained in extremely broken German the background of the Book of Mormon. And here comes the best part: THEN I GAVE HIM A PASS-ALONG CARD!! Whoopee!! I'm dancing, in case you couldn't tell!

And it's funny, but in both my experience an in Graydon's experiences, we've both had to explain that the Mormons and the Amish are not the same thing. :)

So I come home, and GRAYDON GAVE ONE AWAY, TOO!! This is such a happy thing! He will actually have to write something on here sometime, so he can explain all the gory details.

On Tuesday I saw the sisters in the plaza by the Hauptbahnhof. Actually, the whole district was there, but I talked to the sisters. They're my buds. I love them. They remind me of Emily. Who is now only a few miles away!

We are still looking for an apartment. Yesterday Gabi & Dieter helped me fill out the forms to be added onto the waiting list for Housing that they are in charge of. The Studentenwerk, where I have to take all this, is far away from the train, so I do a lot of walking to get there. So I went there yesterday morning early, and was told, 'Sorry, no-can-do. You are married, and Graydon is not a student at Stuttgart, therefore you cannot even apply to be put on the list. But even if he was a student, the waiting list for married student housing is 1 year.' So they didn't even take the papers.

I left determined not to get down, and said to myself, "I need ice cream. I don't know where to get ice cream! I need a Jamba..." When I couldn't find a little ice cream thing at the grocery store in town, I bought gummy alphabet letters and chocolate instead. And then I went to the bakery and got myself a sandwich. And four Laugenbroetchen, which are pretzel-rolls! That are tasty! The rolls were supposed to come home with me to Graydon, but only two of them survived the journey. Here is a reason: My class starts at 1:30 p.m, and goes to 6:45. And I got to where my class is at 10:45 a.m. because I left early so I would be sure to have enough time talking to the lady, and needed no time at all.

So last night I came home and wa relating the story to everyone, and told them how I had needed ice cream, but didn't know where any was, so I found alternatives, and then Dieter and Gabi told us that yesterday was their 43 wedding anniversary, and so they took us to an italian ice cream parlor and we got ice cream! And it was DELICIOUS! The owner was there, greeted us all and was very charismatic. Gabi said he always greeted eveyone. He was a great, funny guy.

And then we came home and were exhausted. The end! :D