Alles Gut - for real, Germany is awesome and I keep smiling!

So I want to preface this post by stating that I have not seen the sun in nearly 10 days.  In addition to this, it's been raining and inching closer and closer to freezing every day.  That being said, I am just about as happy as I have ever been. 

I by all means do not want to use my blog as a forum to have deep philosophical conversations.  Really, despite spending a lot of my free time being intorspective, I've reserved blogging to primarily my observations about the peculiarities of Germany and the people I meet.  Today, however, I do want to write a little bit about how I've been feeling.  I guess the thing I really want to say is that this adventure of mine is quickly proving to be the best decision I've made in my life. 

A year ago, had I not seen the sun in 10 days, I'd be groveling along feeling sorry for myself.  Funny, because today I have been smiling all day.  Weather usually gets me bad!  I mean, of course the gray skies and rain have been taxing on me, but today I can't stop thinking about how freaking happy I am.  Granted, I am still faced with a lot of uncertainty.  I'm anxious about jumping through all the bureaucratic hoops ahead of me to legally ensure that I can stay here for the duration I've intended.  Additionally, I want to be successful in learning the language, continuing with my educational pursuits, and making friends.  But something that has become blatantly clear to me is that back in the states I often let negativity and doubt reign over my life.  I frequently was second guessing myself, assuming or preparing for the worst and really had no appreciation for how unbelievably fortunate I am.

So here I stand.  My 7th week in Germany and I am feeling great.  I've stripped my life of most of my material possessions--bar the two suitcases of clothing I brought over, an iPod and my new kindle (which is freaking awesome by the way)--and I'm as happy as I can ever remember being.  I don't want to say there is a moral to my story but I think I have learned a valuable lesson.  That is to remove yourself from your daily grind.  I realize not everyone will have the opportunity to move to a foreign country to reflect on what their life was, but everyone can take a chance.  Do something you've always wanted to do and do it big.  Stick it to the naysayers and live your fucking life!


To all my friends, family, and loved ones back home, I miss you all.  Your support and encouragement is as much to credit for my success and happiness here as anything.  Thank you all.