Kultur 11 - Reid Lott

All of the articles except one, Germany's Real Divide, contained a theme of East vs. West. Real Divide really stuck out because it tackled the differences in culture from a different angle. The differences between North and South aren't so much economic and political, but rather cultural and full of stereotypes. The North-South divide in Germany reminded me much of the existing North-South divide in the United States. Just like in America, Southerners are stereo-typically relaxed, talk funny, and aren't as small; Similarly, Northerners are arrogant and up-tight. These stereotypes seemed so much like the stereotypes in the United States that I had to re-read parts of the article.

The most intriguing of the rest of the articles was the Timeline. Since the timeline only included key events, it was interesting to see what events were chosen. Most of the major ones were social in nature—Elvis, riots, etc. Also, I did not know about the terrorism and chaos that existed within the German borders at that time. After reading about the deaths of many high-ranking officials and about the terrorism, I understand better the tension that existed between the sides.

AMD 5 - Reid Lott

Ich sah zwei Deutsche Musik Vidoes und las lyrisches Gedicht zweimal pro Video für diese AMD. Erst, ich sah Meine Stadt von die Toten Hosen. Das Musik war gut, aber die lyrisches Gedicht war sehr einfach. Bevor ich las die lyrisches Gedicht, hatte ich das Video ohne die lzrisches Gedicht gesehe. Denn ich las die lyrisches Gedicht auf Deutsch und auf English.

Es gibt ein bisschen falsch Übersetzungen (translations) auf die Englishe Übersetzung. Nachdem hatte ich die Gedichte las, sah ich das Video ohne Gedichte noch einmal. Toten Hosen war ganz gut, aber ein bisschen zu viel Rock für mich.

Nachdem hatte ich Toten Hosen gehort, hörte ich Vielleicht von Madsen. Madsen war auch gut, aber die Toten Hosen ist wahrscheinlich besser als Madsen. Ich weis nicht, aber ich sah nur zwei Videos.
Ich sah Vielleicht zweimal und ich las die lyrische Gedichte einmal, wie Meine Stadt. Meine Stadt ist einfacher als Vielleicht, aber Vielleicht ist interessanter als Meine Stadt, weil Meine Stadt ist nur über ein Düsseldorf.

Kultur 10 - Reid Lott

The "Dinner for Who?" article struck me as slightly odd, as the actual film "Dinner for One" is in English and not shown regularly anywhere else except for Germany. Even though the skit was performed elsewhere, it seems strange that it is really only popular in Germany. Since Germans find it hilarious, it should be expected that it would be played often and transformed into the tradition that it is now. The comparison to "Sound of Music" was also interesting because I did not know that "Sound of Music" was not popular outside the States.

The "Booze Brothers" article definitely shocked me. For me, Father's day has been a day in which my father did not do much at all and as a family, we did stuff for him. In Germany, it is not so. Since this day coincides with the drinking holiday of Ascension Thursday, fathers typically go out drinking. I found it difficult to make the connection from Ascension Thursday to drinking until the article detailed the timeline, in which all religious aspects were lost by the late 19th century. This holiday reminded me of St. Patrick's Day in America, but instead of college kids drinking, it was the fathers.

"Sorry, we're closed" made me think about consumerism in the States and if we really needed to shops on Sundays. Since I am so used to being able to shop on Sundays, the idea of having Sundays off from shopping struck me as unusual. I think that I could be able to refrain from shopping on Sundays, but it would be difficult. The small window of time to shop in during the weekday would also be difficult. Due to transportation issues and my schedule, I usually go grocery shopping late at night, usually between 11 and midnight. If Meijer was not open 24 hours each day, I would not be able to do this. As such, I would have to make some major changes to my grocery shopping habits.

AMD 4- Reid Lott

Ich sehe Das Quiz für dieses AMD. Das Quiz ist wie die amerikanishe Spielshow Who wants to be a Millionaire, aber mit nicht so viel Geld. Das Quiz hat fünf ´vetoes´ und zwei Personen spielen stattsdessen eins Person und drei "lifelines." Das Quiz ist sehr gut, und ich habe zwei Fragen verstehen.

Erst habe ich Das Quiz video nicht gefunden, aber ich finde eins am Youtube. Mann kann die Episode hier (Part 1) und hier (Part 2) sehen.

In diese Episode, Hans und Michael, die Musikeren sind, spielen für 300.000 Euros. Sie haben 50.000 Euros gewonnen. Es gibt ein Frage über Leonardo DiCaprio und es gibt ein Frage über Maos "kleine rote Buch." In Part 2, Hans und Michael singen für die Menschen.

Kultur 9 - Reid Lott

The article Bureaucracy Gone Awry really detailed how detailed German records are. The idea of carrying around paper copies of certificates of everything seems pretty strange to me. Most of the important certificates that I have have copies online, so there is no need for a physical copy. Other certificates, like basic certification for Microsoft Office proficiency, carry so little value that there is no need to keep them. I can see why certificates can help determine the experience and qualifications of a person, but just like every job search, there are certain intangibles that applicants can't show through paper.

The article Love Thy Neighbor caused me to chuckle several times. The author hints at this a lot, but doesn't  outright say it, so here it goes: the best way to solve a problem is to go to your neighbor directly. Although this idea may be colored by my American experience, it is much easier than dealing with thousands of court cases each year to define what "excessive" really means. Knowing that this phenomenon is cultural, however, means that it will probably exist anyway.

In contrast with the typical German articles was Welcome to America.  Although this reading was optional, it contrasted well with the other articles. For instance, it compares the amount of bureaucracy is European politics to that of American politics. The article falls very short of making an actual argument, however, as it does not consider a third "test" country to use as a standard of comparison. The article leaves open the option that red tape is not proportional to size of government or that the correlations occur at non-standard intervals. 

AMD 3 - Reid Lott - PUR!

Für diese AMD habe ich PUR gehört. PUR ist eine rock Band aus Deutschland. Ich habe drei Musikvideos, jede zweimal oder dreimal.

Die erst Musikvideo ist Irgendwo gewesen. Klicken Sie hier für die Musikvideo auf Youtube. Irgendwo ist gut, aber die Musikvideo ist langweilig. The chorus is:

Irgendwo in dieser Welt (Somewhere in the world)

 Liegt ein bisschen Glück versteckt (A little luck stays hidden)
Irgendwo woho (Somewhere)
Irgendwo in dieser Welt (Somewhere in the the world)
Liegt ein bisschen Glück versteckt (A little luck stays hidden)
Und ich wünsch mir so (And I wish that)
Ich hätts für mich entdeckt. (I would have found it for myself)

The chorus ist einfach.

Die zweiter Musikvideo ist 1001 Nacht gewewsen. Klicken Sie hier für die Musikvideo auf Youtube. 1001 Nacht is nicht so Rockish als Irgendwo, aber sie ist solala. Die Musikvideo ist nicht ein treuer Musikvideo, besonders sie ist Fotos von PUR. 

Die dreiter Musickvideo ist Ich Lieb´ Dich gewesen. Klicken Sie hier für die Musikvideo auf Youtube. Ich Lieb´ Dich ist ok, aber es gibt nur bisschen worts. The chorus is:

Ich lieb´ Dich, egal wie das klingt (I love you, exactly what it sounds)
Ich lieb´ Dich, ich weiß daß es stimmt (I love you, I know that is true)
Denn ich lieb´ mich bei Dir, ich lieb´ mich an Dir (Because I love myself with you, I love you)
Ich lieb´ mich in Dir fest, wenn Du mich nur läßt (I love you, even if you stop loving me)

1001 Nacht ist gut, aber Ich lieb Dich ist besser, und Irgendwo ist best.

Kultur 2- Reid Lott

While I was growing up, the windows were always open when the weather was right. Even in the summertime, if we could simply get away with leaving a window open instead of using A/C, we left the window open. Nothing bad even came from this, so "Draftphobia" seemed pretty strange to me. The belief that drafts cause pneumonia, fly, colds, and other problems could be true for airbourne illnesses, but I am pretty skeptical about the claim for non-airbourne ilnnesses.

What effect does this have the health of Germans? Thanks to the order of selections, the question of German health was answered in "You Have What?" I have always been skeptical of medicine, but my mother convinced me last year that the common medications are nothing that could harm me or cause me to form dependence, which stands in contrast to the German's homeopathic route. (The University of Michigan actually had a college of Homeopathic Medicine in the 19th century until the administration realized how ineffective homeopathic medicine was.) The variety of diseases unique to Germany seemed odd, though, especially considering that most diseases are restricted to regions irrespective of country boundaries. This leads to the idea that it is a culturally-based phenomenon, but maybe I should take some herbal tea to rid myself of that idea.

In regards to university, I was both amused and skeptical to here about the low cost of living as a student in Germany. Firstly, I assumed that this must be a huge burden on the country, and secondly, that this would encourage more people to pursue an education. Well, I guess I was right. Unfortunately, the lack of pressure to finish degrees and low cost of living creates "eternal students" and the low surcharges associated with hiring student employees means that the job market for those that have a degree is smaller. Like all seemingly good policies, this one, too, has its downfalls.

As part of a history course last year, I studied the German university system in the 19th Century. The ideas of free education and format were similar to the ones in the article. Also, America adopted many of the structural ideas and that is why the lecture-discussion and seminar format is shared between the two cultures. The idea that students are upset over having an increase in fees is reasonable, but considering the low cost already, it seems that they are demanding a little too much. All-in-all, the education system seems to be doing alright in Germnay.

AMD 2- Reid Lott

Für diese AMD habe ich der empfohlen blog, "Wisdom begins in Wonder," lesen. Ich habe "Basil and Chives," "Accordian Man," "Nyquil and Jazz," und "Missing Guacamole" gelesen. Der blog ist sehr informativ   über Deutsch Kultur.

In "Basil and Chives," bescriebt Becca dass Frieburg sehr schön und perfekt ist. Becca wird für elf Monaten wohnen. In die erst Woche hat sie eine Sparkasse eröffnet und City Permit gehattet. Sie hat fünf bewohneren, und sie sind alles freundlich.

In "Accordian Man," bescriebt Becca dass am Sontag alles Businesses closed sind. Bei die Kirche hat Becca die Obst kaufen. Später wird sie der Schnupfen hat.

In "Nyquil and Jazz," gibt es Herbst. Becca mag Herbst in Michigan besser als Herbst in Detuschland. Sie fahren nicht gern allein, weil sie nicht so gut Freiburg kennt. Sie hat ein Party gegangen, und dann sie hausaufgaben machen.

In "Missing Guacamole," sagt sie dass sie Europe liebt. Sie beginnt das Tee gern. Sie sagt auch dass Russians ein gut Party geben kann.


The blog was overall pretty fun to read and was different than the other AMDs that I have done. I tried doing my best to pick out parts of the conversation that I could understand from each post and put them in German.

Kultur 1

The last time I went back to my hometown, my mother and sister took me to Aldi to grab some groceries. At first I was not sure of the store, but with the incredibly low prices (I got two loaves of good bread for 20 cents each) and adequate quality, I was satisfied. When I read "Bargain Buys," I was reminded of this experience and I could relate to it very well. Now, the only thing that was different was that there were not any rotten fruit in the American Aldi and fewer people.

As far as American foods that Germans enjoyed, I was surprised to find Jerky on the list, but not twinkies. Jerky was common where I grew up because there were a lot of hunters and it was common to eat venison jerky. I have not seen as much jerky in Ann Arbor, so I figured it was only a rural thing. I was not surprised about the twinkies because of there prevalence in media and recently in news with the bankruptcy of Hostess.

I've always been warned about driving dangerously, and that rule seems to apply very much so in Germany according to "Take it from a German." Although the driving is by nature dangerous there, every move is regulated. Fortunately, turn signals are required, which would be nice to have in the United States. There also seemed to be a tension in the article between aggressive driving (don't go too slow on the Autobahn, competitive parking) and a sense of calmness (don't give anybody "the finger," be respectful to the environment).

With the articles in the book, "Einkaufen" seemed to complement "Bargain Buys" very well because it showed what caused the rise of these low cost markets and the alternatives. The popularity of soccer was not surprising, although the concept of no interscholastic competition seems very strange to me. The ability of anybody of any age or level to find a league to play in is really cool, though, as America does not have quite that system for any sport.

AMD 1

Für meine AMD habe ich spiele in www.spiegel.de gelesen. Ich habe fotos von Handball gesehen.

In this article, I saw the word "damit" a lot, which is a new word from this Kapitel. Der Artikel sagt, dass das Deutsche Mannschaft gegen das Spanien Mannschaft in Barcelona gespielt hat. Germany and Spain tied (ein*zehen) in the quarterfinal match in the Handball tournament.

Then, I read this article about the USA soccer team in German on the same website. Das USA Mannschaft muss gegen das Ecuador Mannschaft spielen. The USA team is significant to Germany because the coach of the USA team is Jürgen Klinsmann, who is German. Das USA Mannschaft spielt das Ecuador Mannschaft am 29. Mai. Das USA Mannschaft spielt der deutschen Nationalmannschaft am 2.Juni in Washington in der USA. The German team plays in America one other time, Miami to be specific.

Also, at the end of each article, there is a link to the Speigel Online Facebook page, which I checked out and "liked" out of consideration and because I like these articles.

Test

Mein Lieblingswort ist Wissenschaft.