I'm Flying to the US in ONE Week
Assuming everything goes smoothly, I’ll be boarding a flight to Boston next week.
I’m looking forward to seeing my mom and visiting the beach in Rhode Island. I don’t think I’ve been to the beach in my homestate since before we moved to Berlin and I’m hoping for one September day during this trip that’s warm enough to go swimming in the Atlantic.
I’m also looking forward to seeing some of my close friends, including a couple of people who read this newsletter. (Hi lovely cose friends! Hope to see you really soon!)
But what I want to write about today is a couple of truly silly things that I’m looking forward to doing during this trip:
- Drinking Pumpkin Beer: I know I live in a country renowned for its beer, but the German beer scene is traditional and, dare I say, stuffy. You’ve probably heard of the “German Beer Purity Law,” which limits the ingredients that can be included in a beverage labeled as beer. There are some good German craft beers, and I think the caliber of the most basic German beers is higher than the caliber of basic US beers, but… I miss the New England craft beer scene! I like my beer with all kinds of random extra flavors and ingredients! The weirder the better! I just looked up the menu at Aeronaut Brewing Company in Somerville, MA, which E and I used to live a block away from, and they have a beer on tap right now called “Passionfruit Velvet Oblivion!” It’s described as a “milkshake ipa!” What does that mean?! I have no idea! Sign me up! I know that I said I’m hoping for warm September days so that I can go to the beach, but I am also hoping for ~Fall vibes~ so that I can drink pumpkin beer.
- Working Out with my Mom: This past winter, I mentioned to my mom that I was trying to exercise more often. I was already doing yoga sometimes, following along to youtube videos, but I wanted something more energetic. I was hoping to sweat away my bad moods and my mom recommended her favorite exercise videos on youtube: Team Body Project. They’re very encouraging and not too focused on weight loss. One of the instructors, Daniel, is especially corny and gives motivational speeches about how we’re ‘winning’ just by showing up and “moving our magnificent bodies.” He often talks about being thankful for and honoring the bodies we have now. Also, he’s Australian and I like listening to his accent. Anyway, I started doing Body Project work-outs once or twice a week and texted my mom to let her know and she replied, “I do a Body Project work-out every day,” which, wow, way to brag, bit of a rude text to send someone who was excited about one work-out per week… But, in all seriousness, I’m looking forward to joining my mom for her daily work-out (at least most days!) because I’m grateful to her for introducing me to these work-outs. We’ve already been sharing this experience from a distance and I’m looking forward to sharing it in person.
And that’s a wrap on issue #20 of On / Off, which means this newsletter is going to turn off for a couple of weeks. It will be back on for another 10 issues starting on Thursday, September 23rd. Thanks for reading!