Weekly Top 10 (16-22 Feb 2009)

Follow up to my previous and first Top 10 list.

1. I like lists. I've always had a thing for lists. To Do lists. Want To Do lists. Packing lists. Places I want to go. Things I want to learn. Books I want to read. I have a list of the general description of each box I had shipped. So I guess it's not surprising that I have taken such a liking to these random things lists. Which partly explains why I am still at this random things list for another week.

2. I went skiing for the first time in 9 years and 2 months. The first and last time I went skiing was Christmas 1999 and into the millennium new year. That was in Andorra. I didn't really ski that much then either. I think I only actually went on the slopes for about 3 days in total. I wasn't bad really, and I quite enjoyed it. I got an instructor the first day and she took me through the ropes and the moves and the baby bunny slopes. I did quite well. And towards the end of the day, the instructor commented that I didn't have a single fall all day. At which point, of course, right on cue, I fell.

The last day did not end well. I got talked into getting on a slope that was way, way more challenging that what I was ready for. But of course, if you're on the top on the mountain, you have nowhere else to go but down. So, I had to ski down the best I could. And when I couldn't handle the stress and the fear anymore, I took off the skis and walked down. So, my first skiing experience, did not end on a good note.

Needless to say, I was not jumping for joy at the prospect of putting on another pair of skis. My clearest memory of the last skiing experience was the last day. I did want to do it though. Because I remembered (somewhere in the back of my mind, that I had like it at first). And it's silly not to go when it's so accessible to me here. People travel from so much farther away to come here to ski. I couldn't not go! So I did.

I went again last Wednesday. I had to skip class for it. The skiing place is about an hour from where I am. We got a half day ticket and skied from 1pm to 5pm. It was a bit nerve-racking at first. The slope was a bit steeper than I would have liked it to be, and there were more people that I would have liked. So what with having to learn how to turn so I don't crash into trees or fall off the edge, I also had to learn how to dodge people and to make quick turns so I don't crash into someone else, and watch out for people zooming past from behind. And, I was overtaken by 3 year olds on skis!!

And so to avoid the people, we went of a different slope. It was much quieter but not as wide. That caused problems for me. Because it takes me several moments after deciding to turn and trying to turn, to actually turn. And when the slope isn't that wide, I didn't really have the luxury of extra moments to figure out why I wasn't turning. So I couldn't slow down enough and ended up careening down the slope. That was the only time I fell. And I escaped with a bruised wrist and a bruised ego.

Overall, it was good fun. I got the hang of it again after a while, I think. And will definitely go again.

3. I just watched Episode 16 of Season 5 of Grey's Anatomy. My thing for Grey's has long since overcome my thing against piracy. Most people know this about me, I think (but not that I expect people to necessarily remember) - I do not support piracy. At all. ALL my DVDs and CDs are original. I am even uncomfortable watching someone else's pirated DVDs. EXCEPT, when it comes to Grey's. I have been keeping up with Grey’s within a few days of every new episode being broadcasted in the States. I rationalise that I am compelled to resort to illegal viewing because the legal means are not available to me right now. There are no legal means by which I can have access to Season 5, so I have no choice but to resort to illegal means. And I am comfortable with this, instead of simply waiting for the legal means to present itself, because when the legal means does present itself, i.e. the Season 5 Box Set DVD is released, I will certainly make my purchase and contribute to the pockets of those who produced it.

4. I have stopped buying stamps…for now. The amount of money I have spent on stamps is shocking. But I am quite pleased with my collection. Hence, I keep talking about my stamps. It is really, very much in the forefront of mind. One of the things I am looking forward to most about receiving my boxes is that I will have access to my stamp collection!

5. I am often bored in class. It’s interesting and sometimes fun. But it’s rarely a challenge and is not as cerebrally engaging as I would like it to be. I think my cerebral activity is reduced to perhaps one tenth of what it was before. I need to find something to engage my brain!

6. I have yet to enter a German cinema. I have to admit I am not thrilled at the prospect of only understanding a fraction of a film I am watching. But I suppose I will go at some point. Right now, there is no real need as between O and me, we have enough DVDs to last quite a long time. Some days we watch up to 3 films, depending on what time we start watching.

7. I am getting more headaches now that I did in the last ten years. I wonder whether it’s the cold? I used to get migraine type headaches when I was in 6th Form. But that stopped after that I think. Over the years, I would get headaches once in a while, usually associated with lack of sleep or working for exceptionally long hours. Lately though, I seem to be randomly getting headaches. I am not sure why.

Also, I think I have hypercondria. But is it hypercondria if I don’t feel it all the time, and I don’t really fret about it? For example, having discovered a new mole, I think ‘it might be cancer’. But having had that thought, I don’t actually do anything about it. And I forget about it until the next time I notice it again. But so anyway, I have been getting headaches, and I wonder if I have a tumour or an aneurysm or something...

8. I miss diving. But I miss the warm tropical water off a boat laying around in a bikini kind of diving. Living on a tropical island kind of diving. And coming back after a dive and having beer on the beach kind of diving. Not the cold water dry suit lake kind of diving. Not that I have done the cold water lake kind of diving yet. But I think I will soon. But I realised it's not really something I am looking forward to with much enthusiasm. So I guess what I have realised is that I enjoyed the diving holiday which includes the whole package: being on a boat, living on an island, walking around in a bikini all day, diving in warm waters, colourful corals and fish. I really miss that.

9. I have been adopted as an FC Köln fan. This comes from the weekend in Köln before and the fact that I am actually a Liverpool fan. After a few drinks on an evening in Köln, it was decided that since the colours of Liverpool and Köln are the same, I am therefore a Köln supporter. I don’t have any strong feelings about it either way, so… Oh, I was also told that I am not allowed to support Bayern München. Apparently, there’s the equivalent of the ‘Anything-But-Man-United Club’ about Bayern over here.

10. One of my teachers (I have three) commented that I have been travelling a lot since I have been in Germany. It comes from the fact that I have been missing from class almost once a week because I was in Köln, Kiel, England, skiing..etc. Missing class had not been a big deal – refer to point #5 above. And she has a point. To add to the list, I was in Köln again on Saturday for Karneval. But since that carries forward to Monday and Tuesday, I guess I will put that in next week’s list.