"Frank Kalder" <editor@haplif.de> wrote in message
news:2d9cd57b-2987-4a02-afef-4ea9e3cc4f58@o6g2000hsd.googlegroups.com...
Marika K. ~ e-glob, Washington, DC
Frank Kalder ~ GLOBAL HAPLIFNET
~
http://haplifnet.blogspot.com [US+EU Community]
- transatlantic daily -
. Russian Election
Of course you have followed the Putin and Russian election issue
Russia's authoritarian leader Putin remains in control.
Press excerpts:
http://haplifnet.blogspot.com/2007/12/russias-authoritarian-leader-putin.html
. What's Culture?
Mentioned e-glob:
http://groups.google.com/group/HAPLIF-BLOGGING_Deutsch/msg/417e27cc5cdb9ed2
&
http://www.politikforen.de/showthread.php?p=1806200#post1806200
. Discourse Behavior
Sort of two German "online affirmations" from Spiegel "forists"...
http://groups.google.com/group/HAPLIF-BLOGGING_Deutsch/msg/d0571f16febf19a4
&
http://www.politikforen.de/showthread.php?p=1804467#post1804467
. Intercultural Relatedness
The Rhinelander (who resides in the UK) has been using this quote:
"My Lords, do whatever you wish.
As for me, I shall do no otherwise than pleases me." (Queen Elizabeth
I, as I assume)
http://www.politikforen.de/showthread.php?p=1806290#post1806290
OHMIGOD! Brilliant! Outsource it! No startup costs, no production costs,
no nothing. Brilliant!
the above was a good discussion
FK reply:
http://www.politikforen.de/showthread.php?p=1806469#post1806469
. Ukrainian Model
The new girlfriend of Germany's ex-soccer-star Lothar Mätthäus (46) is
the Ukrainian model Kristina "Tschutschu" Liliana (20).
2 photos:
http://p3.focus.de/img/gen/0/l/HB0lcy51_Pxgen_r_467xA.jpg
http://p3.focus.de/img/gen/R/8/HBR8q0Hj_Pxgen_r_311xA.jpg
Lovely girl, amazing eyes
Article:
http://www.focus.de/panorama/boulevard/lothar-matthaeus_aid_227823.html
. Homeland
Yeah, that's true. I loved it dearly as a youngster.
And I'll appreciate this as my 'sweet homeland' forever.
You could see on the 'bikeway (around the entire lake) map' that the
isle of Lindau is situated in the east whereas...
. Kids
This leads me to a question about kids. Someone called me to ask my
advice
about taking an offered job. She made a big deal about how she didn't
want
to move because her child was having difficulty in adjusting to school
He's
about 14 I guess.
I hear this so often from parents about excuses about not moving to
improve
their own career. I really kind of don't get it. Because I only have
invisible children. Today they were asked to audition for the play
"Robinson
Crusoe" by the way, and I am very proud of them.
In the meantime, whenever I hear this from parents, it is inevitably
about
a child who they portrayed to me 10 years earlier as a child of unbounded
talents who is clearly a genius. So why are they having trouble in
school
ten years later.
You would think that taking them out of a school that they are having
trouble in would improve them altogether.
I also harken back to the time I was a teen. I wish my parents were
mobile
and that they had moved around more. This would have enriched my ability
to
cope in many ways.
I could be wrong because of course my invisible children are very mobile
and
happy to do whatever I want.
I traveled with my parents only around in many German federal states
as well as in Austria and Switzerland. With my friend's parents we
discovered the French Côte d'Azur and the Italian Riviera. Invited by
a general's family (the general's wife was my former French teacher) I
stayed several weeks in Roma. Thereafter I moved to London - and so
on...
well see then you parents equipped you for interacting with a vast variety
of people and cultures.
. Gloriousness
I guess you also saw the photos of Stein a.R., of the little chateau
Arenenberg's splendid interior, and of 'Rothenburg ob der Tauber'
which is in an entirely different area (Franken in Bavaria). I only
presented it in this context because it was mentioned within the
excerpted passage (pertinent to Stein).
very glorious
. Mount Vernon
I contrast this to my experiences yesterday.
We had dinner over my friend's apartment. She made a great meal that
included lobster.
Then we went to Mount Vernon to see a historic Christmas display of
President Washington's estate.
As we entered there was an adorable miniature version of the estate.
One of the placards indicated that a particular bedroom was the Lafayette
bedroom, because Lafayette was MORE than just a friend.
This led to speculation about what the phrase "father of our country"
really
means.
We decided that George and Martha might have really been swingers and
that
Lafayette and they probably often menaged.
Then, we moved on to a waiting spot under tents. Important because it
was
drizzling rain.
There we were treated to cookies from a recipe by Martha. And also warm
apple cider to deal with the wind.
We listened to a small singing group perform carols that might have been
sung at that time in history.
Finally, they allowed us to move forward.
The guide gave us a letter of introduction to give to Martha Washington
so
that we would be admitted to the estate.
It turns out that the US was founded on bureaucracy from the first day!!!
A little girl carried our letter of introduction. An actor playing the
slave caretaker accepted the letter and submitted to an actress playing
Martha. She offered to share her recipe for cake.
There were no tannenbaums in the house because that tradition did not
arrive
to the US till the 1800s. Turns out, from Germany.
I'd seen Mount Vernon before and may have mentioned it somewhere before,
but
never had I seen it at night.
Nor at Christmas time but in the summer, so this was a new experience.
They took us to the kitchen to show us the Christmas pie. What an
extraordinary grotesque thing. It was taller than a typical cake. It was
made of dough and stuffed with foul. They would take a small bird, like
a
partridge, then stuff it in a larger bird such as a duck. And then keep
adding larger and larger birds. The birds were stuffed matreshka style
in
a
very salt saturated dough that was meant to preserve the pie. The pies
were
then sent to England as gifts to relatives.
YUCK
They also made some weird wines. Here, from turnips.
Also, after the tour, we got to see a demonstration of dancing from that
era. It was probably the minuet but I couldn't hear what was being said.
I
noticed that it wasn't much different from the Electric Slide.
Very nice story and
www.mountvernon.org a great historic estate.
HEre's the link from that page about the history of the miniature
building
http://www.mountvernon.org/mountvernon/pressroom/index.cfm/pid/859/
here's a picture
http://www.mountvernon.org/learn/collections/index.cfm/pid/114/
this shows fashions that Martha Washington wore
http://www.mountvernon.org/learn/collections/index.cfm/pid/626/
They don't have a copy of the bonnet that the actress who played her
daughter wore
It was shaped like this but in a plain white color
http://www.calicoannie.net/Pictures/sadiebonnet.jpg
This is very close to the burka as far as I am concerned.
I imagine it contributed to very many trip and fall accidents.
It's like horse blinders
. Miss World 2007
http://unterhaltung.t-online.de/c/13/59/10/82/13591082,tid=t.jpg
The first Chinese Miss World is Zhang Zilin from Beijing...
http://unterhaltung.t-online.de/c/13/58/96/98/13589698.html [diverse
galleries included].
. 1001 Nights
Here's an "exotic" gallery of Lambertz:
http://unterhaltung.t-online.de/c/13/57/15/80/13571580.html
[13 artful photos]
. History of Streaking
Photo gallery:www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/0,5538,26872,00.html
Is this art or fun - or both?
Or what could it be 'named'?
yeah maybe
It's just harmless fun,
I had a friend from Roanoke who had streaked on every single East coast
campus at one of their football games. He's a professional, a lawyer,
but
I
don't think he'd call it art. He's a poet too, so I think he calls his
poetry art. but not his streaking
I thought the Spiegel might have considered those photos as art.
. Spencer Tunik
New York photographer Spencer Tunick, best known for staging photos
with hundreds, often thousands of naked people in public settings, ...
his largest photo shoot ever ... in Mexico City. It featured an
estimated 6,000-9,000 naked Mexicans and took place in the Zócalo,
Mexico City's famous city square, which once was the center of the
Aztec Empire.
http://laughingsquid.com/spencer-tunick-plans-giant-nude-photo-shoot-in-mexico-city
This may be fun for the participants and is, supposedly, real ART.
I've seen some of his stuff before but I didn't imagine you were talking
about the photo. Most photos are pretty much art
and if a streaker wants to call his performance art, I won't object
Just my friend doesn't
here's an article about a young lady for whom staying put and not moving
with her family was a benefit
Notice how this relates to George Washington and me (Alexandria where I
lived and also where George lived) as well as a connection to you in a way
Truly international stuff
mk5000
http://www.skatetoday.com/articles07/120307.htm
What a Year for Wagner
Ashley Wagner
Dec. 3, 2007
Article & Photo © J. Barry Mittan
It's been quite a year for Ashley Wagner, with personal bests coming
throughout the year in both juniors and seniors. She started 2007 by
winning
the bronze medal in junior ladies at the U. S. Nationals. Although she had
placed fourth in 2006, she had never reached the top three at any level in
skating at Nationals until that time.
Then the 16-year-old won the bronze medal at the World Junior Figure
Skating
Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany, in her first and only appearance at
the event. World Juniors was a homecoming of sorts for Wagner, who was
born
in Heidelberg, while her father, an Army lieutenant colonel was stationed
in
the country. She is already a seasoned traveler, having moved nine times
with her family. They finally settled in Alexandria, Virginia, near the
Pentagon, where her father was actually working when it was attacked on
September 11, 2001.
Wagner opened the 2007-08 season by finishing fifth at Skate Canada in her
first ISU senior Grand Prix appearance. Then she came from behind to win
the
bronze medal at Trophee Eric Bompard Cachemire in Paris for her first
senior
Grand Prix medal. "I'm really excited about this season," Wagner said. "It
was time to move up to seniors and I hope it goes well. I'm just hoping to
show everyone that I am a senior lady and that I can skate with the big
dogs." In France, competing against World champion Kimmie Meissner and Mao
Asada, she showed she could indeed hold her own against the best.
The year 2006 was also a good one for Wagner, who burst on to the
international scene by winning three events in late 2006 -- the Triglav
Trophy, the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Courchevel, France, and the ISU JGP
in
The Hague, Netherlands. She capped off 2006 by finishing second at the ISU
Junior Grand Prix Final in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Wagner started skating in Eagle River, Alaska when she was five. "There
was
nothing to do there in the winter and I was driving my mom crazy," Wagner
recalled. "So I had a choice of ballet or skating and I wasn't going to do
anything in pink shoes. I've actually started ballet now though because
people were telling me I didn't look as mature as other skaters so I'm
trying to improve on that."
Wagner's younger brother, Austin, also competes nationally for the U. S.
in
intermediate men. "It's nice to have him skating at the same rink," Wagner
stated. "We both go to Mount Vernon Recreation Center. I usually have
about
three and a half hours on the ice, five days a week and another hour or an
hour and a half of off ice practice. I do Pilates and I like to run after
practice but I don't do anything else special. I used to do karate as a
kid
and got up to a yellow belt."
Shirley Hughes has trained Wagner for the past six years. "Being a
military
brat really affected my skating," Wagner said. "This is the longest I've
ever been in one place and it's really helped working with Shirley."
Wagner
landed her first triple salchow at 13, but thinks her triple lutz is her
best jump.
"My lutz is the best but I can tack a triple loop on the end of anything,"
she said. "My triple toe is not amazing yet. I'm working on making every
jump better as well as improving my skating skills and the quality of the
jumps. I'll have triple loop-double loop, triple flip-double loop-double
loop, and a triple lutz-triple loop in my programs."
Jill Shipstad-Thomas choreographed Wagner's programs for 2007-08. "Both of
my programs are new this season," Wagner said. "The music just sounded
right
to me. I like to use music that tells a story to entertain the audience,
not
boring repetitive music. So far I've always changed both of my programs
every year because I get bored with them after a year and want something
fresh."
Wagner's short program is to music from the soundtrack of "Henry VIII" by
Camille Saint-Saens while her free skate is to "Tango Jalousie" by Jacob
Gade and "Mambo Jambo" by Perez Prado. "I'm using 'Bye Bye Blackbird' from
the Broadway musical 'Fosse' for my exhibition program," Wagner said.
"It's
a nice upbeat song that's kind of fun to skate to." Off ice, she listens
to
anything that's alternative and upbeat, like the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
To relax, she likes to hang out with friends, go shopping, and watch
movies.
"I like cheesy romantic comedies, definitely not horror," she said. She
also
collects Russian dolls. Her father brings them home to her as gifts on his
international business travel. Her family has a cat, a frog, and two dogs
as
pets, including her German wirehaired pointer, Millie.
Wagner is a junior at West Potomac High School, from which she walks to
the
ice rink every day. "I hope to be a sports medicine doctor," she said.
"But
skating affects when I'll go to college. I've always been kind of
interested
in medicine. I watch the Health Channel a lot. I think it would be a
chance
to combine skating with a career."
For further information, Wagner has a website at
www.figureskatersonline.com/ashleywagner/
