steven n fettig's Jitterin' Thoughts

Here starts the Jitterin' Thoughts of Steve. You can tell from the URL what my name is, but as far as this blog is concerned... it's just me, Steve. I plan on using this almost as a means of emancipation from the chains of technology I have surrounded myself with. You would think that with an average of three computers (between laptops and pda's) on my person at any one point in time (along with a cell phone) that I would always be talking or communicating... Yes, that may be the case, but it is always to the wrong people about the most unimportant things! Well, not always, but most of the time.
I and my wife have so much going on - all the time - that rarely do we have the time to really spend with friends and go through the normal cathartic process of discussion. Yes, one of my best friends lives but a block away, but I still get over there less and less. Yes, that will change, but in the mean-time, it is frustrating. So here begin the thoughts of me. Maybe you'll find them interesting, maybe not. I really don't care. I wanted to use the net to express my views, so here I go.

20:41

Here I sit... Three computers in front of me, Honey Brown in the corner and wonder when it is all going to end... I mean the work. This is getting ridiculous. I've been going nonstop for what feels like years, but actually has been about 5 months. I keep telling myself - "don't complain! You've got a fine break coming up!" Yes, this is true, but at the same time, not so true.
My wife and I are crossing the ocean once again to her homeland and we have 10 days of running like mad trying to catch up with everyone that we haven't seen for a year and a half. Again - not complaining - we have been busy and it is mostly our fault that we haven't been back and that communication sometimes is limited...
Damn - it's Saturday, it's almost 9 and I still haven't had dinner. Enough of this computer schtuff. Time to eat.

I'll probably have something more interesting to say with food in my stomach.

    Well, I actually got some sleep. 12 hours to be exact - well, at least close to that. It has been quite some time since I have actually been able to sleep solid for that long. Most of the time it is 6 or 7 hours and then I'm awake.
    Anyway, I decided to check out the Frankfurter Allgemeine (a German newspaper) - www.faz.de - and see what the latest news is in Germany and who happens to be on the front page? Jimmy Carter.
    What do I think of Pres. Carter winning the peace prize? Not much. I can't imagine that there weren't better candidates out there and I cannot agree with giving someone like Carter a peace prize for "attempts" at winning peace and not actually attaining it. I think the peace prize should be awarded to those who have definitively succeeded in bringing greater peace to our world. Carter has not and will not as long as he continues to go against US foreign policy. I am not saying that I agree with US foreign policy all the time, but the fact is that one would do better for peace in the world (specifically relating to Carter and his position in the US) by tyring to influence internal decisions and the process by which those decisions are made. It is ridiculous in my mind that we give a person an award for the "feel good" idea well-intentioned actions and yet not those who have actually done something that has had a real effect.
    This is yet another example of our society being more interested in the looks of a person than the actual actions and effects of those actions.

    I was driving to work a while ago thinking about a conversation I had with a friend in Germany. It crossed my mind that even with the el cheapo rate of US$.07 per min. offered from IDT, I am still paying double what my German friends pay to call me. A while back I did some research into why this is the case - want to know why? (If you don't, you may gladly skip the rest of this babbling.) Because the FCC charges a USF fee - that stands for Universal Service Fund. Basically it was designed to give all the schools, libraries and other public institutions who didn't have the funding "free" internet service. Now, while I understand very well the desire for internet access, I don't see how the Federal government can justify stealing my hard earned money, just to shovel it off to some school in timbuktu for internet access. Firstly, the internet is not a right, it is a priviledge to those pay for it. Secondly, it is unfair to burden those of us who use the telecommunications services more than others with the price of paying for yet another government beaurocracy. Thirdly, I already pay unbelievably high property taxes to my own school - I still don't understand why it is my responsibility to provide for anyone outside of my own community. Okay, those of you who think that it is, I simply don't agree. I moved to a community out of free will and chose to put up with the tax burdens this community imposes upon me. At the same time, I have a say and a voice in my own community regarding the on-goings of local government. When a federal agency - for which my votes have little impact - decides to impose fees upon people nation-wide for spending that will effect local communities and not national institutions, I feel it is unjust and plain wrong.
    It is most ironic because of what was originally viewed as an inexpensive form of communication, e.g. the internet, has become a very expensive burden upon those who pay the price for telecommunications.

...oder so sieht's aus :) I guess only most Germans or those with a good understanding of German will understand that one (on top of it being difficult to understand, I don't even know if I spelled things correctly)!
Well, it has been quite some time since I last wrote. That is primarily due to the fact that I am not currently on the North American continent. I am in Germany with Steffi, visiting friends and family. It has been a fantastic trip thus far, but... anstrengend (tiring). I absolutely love being here - the food, the culture, oh ho! On the other hand, it has been a long time since I have taken this much time off from work - 1 1/2 years to be exact - and it is very different. By this Tuesday, I was almost ready to go home. It wasn't that I actually wanted to go home, but there are certain things that one becomes accustomed to that tend to make traveling difficult - like our home office that we are not far from completing. I am finding that I spend definitively too much time in front of the computer or the television, when we are home in the States. Not that it really would be less here! No, probably just as much or more. I mean though, me, Steve Fettig, spends too much time in front of electronic devices. (As I write, I'm laughing, because I'm even reading books on my Palm or Pocket PC device - and prefer now to do so over paper - mainly because of the portability and I tend to read 3-5 books at one time.) I am amazed because within a week's period of time, I have already finished 3 books. (Books that I will comment on as I have more time to write and finally get back to normal life when we get home.) I don't think I have read 3 books in the last year! What I am leading to is this. We, in the western world, spend way too much time putzing with electronic crap - whether repairing, playing or simply vegetating - and probably are going to pay for it later. I am really relating to my generation (generation X, Y and Z). Case in point - I used to read obsessively. Okay, that wasn't always good, but now I have gone to the other extreme and find myself completely drained from the vegetation cycle I get myself into - whether sitting in front of all of my computers or the television - it has the same effect, I'm drained and not revitalized. Other than when I am writing or reading on my computer (I guess I can add writing emails to the mix), I tend to spend way to much time on "fixing" or "trying" new things. What a waste.

    I'm going to make a conscious effort to change that a bit. I really do want to get on with my education (3 years in the running to finish 12 credits from Hillsdale College to finally get my BA) and learn some more. While being here, I get this sickening feeling that I have been spending so much time concerned with immaterial ventures (ventures that have often brought me no further into the future than before I started them), that I have forgotten to look at written text, work on writing some of my own, look at a painting, doodle myself, converse with my wife, or simply listen... and the list goes on. Thank goodness I haven't had my head in the sand for too long.

    In the end, anstrengend is exactly what I needed. Whip me out of the daily grind and see something different. Now hopefully, I can follow through with stopping at least some of what I mentioned before!

    Think of the above entry as a jingle in a commercial... While writing that, I felt like Homer, circus music in the background, trying to come up with something brilliant.
    Ooh Hah... Kung-Log is great for any of those who blog and use Macs and Movable Type... Man, I wish I had tried it out before I left for Dootsch-land. I would have actually had something to say while on the road :)
    Then again, you may be thinking... oh good, he didn't have easy access to the net and therefore didn't fill the net with more drivel. Ce la vis... (sp?)

Witzig... wir sind schon 10 Tage unterwegs gewesen und ich bin erst jetzt wirklich müde. Übrigens, ich schreibe vom Hotelzimmer in Kopenhagen! Wir waren eigentlich auf dem Weg nach Hause - d.h. wir sollten heute mittag von Kopenhagen nach Chicago fliegen (erst sind wir von Hamburg nach Kopenhagen geflogen) und dann 'türlich wären wir heute abend schon zu Hause. Tja. Ich sitze in einem Hotelzimmer in Kopenhagen. Warun? Weil sie das Flight wieder übergebucht haben :) Warum smiley? Weil ich habe schon vermutet, dass sie den Flug übergebucht haben - weil sie das genaue in Chicago (auf dem Weg hierher) gemacht hatten und ich habe von der Frau am Schalter mitgekriegt, dass die ganze Flüge seit September dauernd übergebucht sind - ja, und im endeffekt wollte ich doch einen Tag in Kopenhagen bleiben. Es fiel mir ein als wir am 16. (Okt) hier gelandet sind, dass ich nie in Kopenhagen war - und die Stadt sah wirklich bewundernswert aus als wir darüber geflogen sind. Jetzt haben wir (wenn es morgen nicht stümt, wie im Südeuropa, bzw. Süddeutschland) die Chance ein bisschen von Kopenhagen anzugucken bevor wir abfliegen mussen. How nice is that?
Ich bin aber richtig müde im Moment. Das Hotel hier ist zwar schön aber die Vouchers für das Essen sind, also, wie sagt man nett auf Deutsch... nicht befriedigend. Das Essen war nicht gut - einfach gesagt. Dafür, dass das Hotel gut ist, hat es mich überrascht, dass das Restaurant war erstens nicht weiter als ein nettgebautes McDonalds - man sass nett und die Bedienung war auch aussreichend - und zweitens, ich möchte erwähnen, dass das Essen nicht allzugut war.
Wir werden sehen, was uns morgen bringt. 10 Tage Urlaub... nein, 10 Tage besuchen, hinfahren, essen, weiter irgendwo fahren, essen, trinken, essen, schnacken, hinfahren, bisschen schlafen, essen, kurz rum sitzen, hinfahren, trinken - ja Partie!!! - bisschen schlafen, hinfahren, weiterfahren, weiterschnacken, weiteressen... You get the picture. Ich mochte es auf jeden Fall - ich hatte doch jede Menge Spaß! Es war doch wunderbar Familie und Freunde wieder zu sehen (ich könnte sogar ein Buch über mein abend am Freitag schreiben) aber ich bin jetzt müde (wie ich schon angedeutet habe) und werde demnächst ins Bett gehen. Jetzt ein Tag Erhohlung in Kopenhagen. Man kann sich doch nicht beschweren. I wish others had it as hard as us...
N'abend und Tschüß!

Back on the mainland and back to the daily grind in the good 'ol US of A. I think Steph and I are both happy to be back though... Sometimes home still remains home no matter how much you like another place.

Quick thoughts:

-> Read the Dalai Lama's new book "Der Weg zum Glueck: Sinn im Leben finden" or in English "How to Practice: The Way to a Meaningful Life" (the German version was actually translated from the English version anyway). I happen to be reading it in German, as I picked it up at the bookstore in Hamburg Airport before leaving to come home. For anyone - regardless of whether you are Christian, Buddhist, Hindi, Jewish, Muslim or whatever - it is really inspiring. I am not finished with it, but within the first 1/4 of the book, I have found many items and words of wisdom that relate to life regardless of your religion or background. I find his thoughts straight-forward and meaningful. I must admit a fascination with the Dalai Lama and have been reading his books for a few years now. I will try to put a better "book report" on my site when I finally finish, though.

-> I love my Toshiba e740, but just found out it was recalled... this sucks. I hate getting used to a device only to have to lose it for a given amount of time.

-> Word for the day: demüttigen (check out www.travelang.com or bablefish.altavista.com if you want a translation). The best thing Steffi and I could come up with was, demoralizing, as a translation, but that isn't totally correct either.

-> I do love Europe, but I'm also scared that the US is becoming or trying to become like "old country." I don't want to be like the Europeans (in some respects yes, but economically and politically, no) and hope we continue to remain who we have been - and hopefully get rid of much of the barnacle-like waste that has invaded our judicial and executive system over the past 8 decades.

Good night and until next time. Guten nacht und auf wiedersehen.
Thanks for reading. Danke fuer's lesen.

Oh, one other thing that relates to my statement on the Dalai Lama's new book: Before you get mad about something or someone, please make sure you actually understand and know what you are mad about. I made an ass of myself this evening in this regard - even after reading bits of wisdom regarding controlling your anger and knowing "die Begrundung des Leidens" (the cause of your suffering) - and regret it. It wasn't worth it. Luckily, I think I only really harmed myself, but it certainly didn't have a good impact on my significant other. We live and learn...