innovation renovation

germans are smart, thorough, and logical.  i have noticed this to be completely true in most areas as i am beginning to grow accustomed to german technology.  the german way is often superior to the american way; however, with all the german technology i encountered and fought with this week, i learned a few things germans do not value: ease and time.

1. my phone.  the phone itself is great.  its exactly like the old nokia that i loved and couldn't part with until i spilt orange juice on it.  it even has snake!  and those of you who know me now i much i love snake and how good at it i am.  its one of my features.  i was looking through through the ring options, and all they had was techno.  no mozart, just glow stick loving beats.  its a nice excuse to have an obnoxious ring.  when i tried to text, i learned that you can't use predictive because its in german.  so i've got to do it the good ol' fashioned way.  the phone service loves sending me text messages (all in german of course which i don't speak) with phone promotionals and other news they think i'd like to know.  the phone totally redeemed itself by having snake.  i love that game.

2. the washer and dryer.  meaghen, the lady i live with, had to give me a 15 minute tutorial in how to use the german washer and dryer.  its completely digital with more washing/drying options than i know what to do with.  i thought it was really funny though because the quickest options on both the washer and the dryer were the only options in english: the super 15 and the quick 30.  i guess the germans know that americans don't like to wait.  i sat there messing with the temperature, repetition, time, and a million other things until i finally got frustrated and picked the american options.

3.  wireless internet.  i bought a wireless rouder for the house (so that i can watch tv online in my bed of course) and chris (meaghen's husband) and i have been messing with it for 2 days and cannot get it to work.  it has to be THE most complicated instructions.  there are no pictures, no diagrams, no step-by-step processes.  they were originally written in german and then translated to english, so i don't think a lot of the words and key phrases translated quite right.  gossip girl just isn't the same when sitting upright in the office.

4. garbage disposals.  they don't have them.

so enjoy life's simple pleasures you americans.  life is not that easy everywhere.