The Contemplative Turtle

I made this in my first pottery class as my animal totem

Although I'm still not talking about my age again (ever!), my birthday continues to be celebrated. My friends surprised me with a birthday party on the 23rd, and gave me the most marvelous gifts for body, mind, and soul. Yesterday, I received two more gifts: my very own Eisstock (a game in which I still continue to amaze my colleagues and friends with my prowess):

...and The Original Recipes of Bushnell's Turtle. Bushnell's Turtle, what's that? Glad you asked!

The *original* Bushnell's Turtle was a submarine used in the Revolutionary War. A couple in Iowa City called their restaurant Bushnell's Turtle - Home of the Original Submarine (as in sandwich). Although this eatery closed in 1994, it has achieved cult status, chiefly due to the cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. When he left Iowa City in 1985, Mr. Breathed drew an editorial cartoon featuring Bloom County characters Opus and Binkley sitting on the downtown fountain (not the new one, the one that looked like three ladies peeing on the ped mall... do a google picture search for Iowa City Fountain and it will be the first result). In the cartoon Opus the Penguin was waxing philosophic about leaving Iowa City, with a soliloquy that went something like this: "Iowa City... How will I miss thee? Let me count the ways... I will miss the swellest public library west of the Mississippi, the wild women of Barbara's Bakeshop, the obscenely yummy hot turkey sandwiches at Bushnell's Turtle, and the criminally obnoxious name 'Things Things Things. Yes! Yes! I will miss everything about Iowa City!" To which Binkley responds "Except the water... the water tastes like Spic'N'Span." (The original cartoon hangs today in the Iowa City Public Library, natch).

Sadly, none of the businesses that Mr. Breathed and Opus raved about on the front page of the Press-Citizen are still operating.

These two gifts (the Eisstock and the cookbook) represent the two places which have had such a profound influence on my life. Iowa City has always been the center of my universe, where family and familiar converge. But Austria is still where I feel most at home.

Last year, as I was about to leave Austria for a summer in Iowa City, I had a dream. As with all my dreams, it was taken directly from life. I had just attended a graduation ceremony where the students gave their form teacher the class turtle named Einstein. In my dream, I was carrying the terrarium and it tipped over. Einstein was ripped in half, and I kept trying to put him back together, with no success. Dream interpretation, anyone?

Turtle has been my nickname since I was about 13. I was sitting on the front porch in a beanbag chair waiting for my best friend to arrive. I threw the beanbag over my shoulder to carry it inside and Robin (who not-so-coincidentally gave me the Bushnell's Turtle cookbook) said I looked like a turtle. In what ways have I embraced this totem? Well, turtles carry their homes on their backs, and I've proved that I can live with very few possessions. Like a turtle, I am slow and deliberate, almost to a fault. And turtles protect themselves by pulling their head and legs into their shell and waiting until the threat has passed.

Like Einstein the turtle, I guess that I am feeling torn between my two worlds. When threatened with making a potentially rash decision, I would rather pull in my head and close myself off than actually face the many uncertainties that lie ahead. Uncertainties like whether I'll still have a job in the fall, will I make it as a writer, should I apply for Austrian residency on the off chance I could get a job here? But decisions need to be made soon, and the only way to make them is to meet them head on.

In memoriam, Kent W. Parks, January 10, 1964 - February 7, 1993.

And All That Jazz!

How do I keep getting so far behind in my posts?! I think I'm going to have to condense some things!

GLÖCKLERLAUF
Every year on January 5, there is a parade of lights and bells in Stainach. The participants are dressed all in white and wear giant bells around their waists (like Krampus). On their heads they wear enormous luminarias in the form of astrological symbols, flowers, stars, coats of arms, which are illuminated from inside with real candles, not with any artificial light source. It is by far the most romantic custom I've experienced in Austria!

SUPPENEINLAGE (video link)
The junior business league at Stainach sponsored a cabaret on January 8. The comedian started the show with the premise that his wife had divorced him and now he had to cook for himself. He talked about all the fad diets that his wife had been on, all of the weird health kicks she'd subjected him to, and statistics about world hunger. All the while, he is standing on stage slicing vegetables and making soup. At the end of the performance, everyone in the audience gets a bowl of the soup he's cooked. Ingenious!

RAUMBERG BALL (pictures and more pictures)
January 10 was the most anticipated ball night in the Enns Valley. The Raumberg Ball takes place at the boarding school where my roommate, Rob, is an assistant. The students transform the school and its classrooms into a paradise of discos, bars, and "exhibition halls" (pun intended... ask me about my wardrobe malfunction!) There were 3000 people there, and only two rooms were "smoke free". At the end of the evening I felt like I had passively smoked an entire pack of cigarettes! Saw lots of students, friends and colleagues, all dressed beautifully. It was quite an experience, but I think I prefer other venues for my dates: long walks, ice skating, quiet cafes, concerts, and....

EISSTOCKSCHIESSEN!
Last year I was introduced to Eisstockschiessen, which is an Austrian variation of curling. In my ever-increasing circle of friends (see below) there is one family with a curling alley in their backyard. I've been several times this winter, and evidently my success last year was no fluke... I'm actually pretty good at this! I also understand a lot more about the game. There are two teams. Both teams stand at one end of the alley, and the captain of each team tries to hit a 5 inch wooden block (known as the "cat") with an Eisstock (a flat disc of wood or plastic weighted with metal, and gripped by a handle on top. Looks like a big parcheesi piece). This determines which team shoots next. The object is to slide the Eisstock across the ice and come as close to the block of wood as possible. But because it's not fixed, the wooden block can wander all over the ice, often repositioning itself closer to an opponent's Eisstock. Strategy comes in when you have to hit your opponents' Eisstöcke out of the way so yours is closest to the cat. Got that? There will be a test!

(l-r: Susi, me, Judith, Sebastian, Gerry, Yvonne, Raimund, Anita)

FRIENDS
Last year I lamented the lack of people my age in the Enns Valley. This year my handler, Bernhard, introduced me to his adult evening class in Aigen. These are students who will take their English matura in July. In exchange for speaking English with them, gently correcting their grammar, and giving advice on their special fields, they invite me to dinner, plays, day trips, concerts, and other excursions. They have also lent me their cars, welcomed me into their homes, and made me feel like part of the family.

BIRTHDAY
I am never going to talk about my age again. Ever.

That having been said, Wednesday Irene made potato gulasch and invited Rob, my yoga teacher and a close neighbor to celebrate. Thursday two of my classes made cakes for me, all of them sang happy birthday, I had a special birthday lunch at a colleague's house, and then bought myself a printer/scanner/photo printer to go with my new Canon IXUS 80 IS camera.

P.S. I MAY NOT HAVE RECEIVED YOUR LETTER!
On January 8, an Austrian postal truck burned. A few days later, I received slightly charred envelopes with an apology from the Austrian postal service.

I'm beginning to see how I've gotten behind in my posts. I've been busy, busy, busy!