German woes

I'm taking an intermediate German class. After we were a third through the first term, our first teacher disappeared to a full-time job, and our new teacher came. Let me describe her: she is about 6 feet tall, size 6, obviously a runner, and sweet as a summer's day. She is also made of steel and carries an invisible whip made of smiles. You can't decide if you should fear her or take her out for coffee.

I come home from this evening completely exhausted. The exhaustion comes from having had some concepts of grammar I've had in my head for 30 years completely turned on its side, taking my head with it.

Turns out that what I've always fondly called an adjective in English isn't always in German - sometimes it's an adverb. And it wasn't even the subject of the exercise, this dismantling of my understanding; the point was a review of German declinations. Take this example:

The beautiful woman (die schöne Frau)
The woman is beautiful (Die Frau ist schön).

Now, we always learned in school that in sentences where the verb is essentially, "to be", the verb is essentially an equals sign and there's no real predicate - what comes after the verb is equivalent to the subject. And you can't really modify "is" in English. We also learned that anything that describes a noun is an adjective. So in English, both "beautifuls" are adjectives. Turns out that "beautiful" in the second sentence is, in German, an adverb. I'm told this should be clear to be because it's not declined (the "e" missing from "schön" in the second example). But I'm really still trying to get my mind around the concept that, in German, you can modify "to be".

This is made the more earth-moving to me by the fact that I took my first German course in 1991, and you'd think that maybe, just maybe, I'd have gotten this concept down 17 years ago.

I am not well tonight. Wait, I just modified "to be", didn't I? Now I'm really not well.

On top of that she inflicted upon us a particular kind of German academic torture called a "diktat". Not like Dictator, but like dictation. The teacher reads a text, perhaps slowly (yes, this time), perhaps repeating phrases (no, this time), which the students have to write out. German kids start this in first grade; it's actually a subject appearing on their report cards. Being the person I am, I had to ask, WHY? Supposedly, she explained (indirect speech is one place German has English beaten), it trains the children (and childlike foreigners) to write things down automatically, without stopping to agonize over punctuation and spelling.

We wrote the short paragraph and self graded this mini exam (my 10 errors put me far from the leaders in the class, but I suspect some fellow students of undercounting). She announced that she was giving this to us because, when she asked if we had understood every word in the text, everyone nodded immediately. Once again, being the person I am, I had to point out that I had understood the paragraph and all the words in it; my problem is simply atrocious spelling and lack of any sense of German punctuation rules. So sadly, I learned something, but not apparently what my teacher was trying to show me.

Why here and not there?

I've been wondering why, given my last post, in Germany we have a female Chancellor (Bundeskanzlerin) - Angela Merkel - and it wasn't that big a deal (although a historic first) while it's a gut wrenching ordeal with allegations of sexism and female inadequacy in the U.S.

I think a big part of it is that she comes from the East, which had, during the communist era, more of a tradition of working mothers. But I think perhaps a bigger factor comes from the way the German system elects its politicians.

When Germans go to the polls, they vote for an individual (who has a party affiliation) to represent their district, just like in the U.S. However, at the end of the day, officials determine not only the winner of each individual race, but also the overall proportion of votes cast for each party in the election. Each party (as represented by the candidates) that receives at least 5% of the vote, receives seats in the assembly so that the overall proportion of the seated reps is brought into line with the vote. If a party has more elected representatives than would be indicated by the overall vote proportions, those representatives are still seated (the "overhang"). If fewer representatives are directly elected than the proportional vote calls for, the parties appoint representatives from a previously publicized list. The executives, such as Merkel, are usually then elected by the assemblies (although in the national elections, the parties usually publicize who they'll put forward for the executive spot if they win).

So, coupled with the fact that the parties put forth directly elected candidates, plus their opportunity later to fine-tune the representation, means that the parties, if it's a goal of theirs, can further the role of women in their party. Now, when I look at lists of Moers representatives, I see some women in there who list their profession as "Hausfrau". So I believe the parties are working to bring some parity to the representation.

Well, now, once you have the women in the pipeline, it's inevitable that one will eventually rise to the top.

Contrast that with the U.S. system - because every representative is directly elected by the populace, each race is again a struggle to overcome whatever societal prejudices exist - whether gender, race, religion, orientation, or one I haven't heard of yet. Yes, direct representation is a near-holy tenant of the American system, but here you can see how it can actually hinder the promotion of underrepresented groups. Of course, this process in Germany means that the parties have a lot more control over who actually gets seated - which could be a disadvantage.

What do you think?

-the d.h.

Raven Mothers

Interesting article today in the NY Times about the German working woman's dilemma - whether a mother or not. It confirms earlier posts of my own debunking the widely held belief among American women that German women are better off, family-balance-wise. A SciAm article I read recently found a statistical link between the level of support for working mothers in Europe and the country's overall fertility rate.

Wage Gaps for Women Frustrating Germany

One hears occasionally of private daycares opening up, but folks and the government don't seem quite to know what to make of that trend yet...

But it's one example of official government policies (maternity leave, equal rights, prohibiting the question about being pregnant) being ahead of societal (and business) norms. I've heard numerous comments from German friends that confirm a lot of the trends mentioned here, and I personally know just one mother working full time - even the occasional single mother seems only to work part time. And that one mother has told me a) she couldn't do it without the extensive support of her own parents, b) her in-laws only accept her working because her husband is partially disabled, and c) she chose not to have more than 1 child so she could continue working...

Granted, we live in a relatively well-off area; but that just means that most women here, if they absolutely don't have to, don't make the effort. Because they don't want to, or feel they can't ? - that's the question.

A bit of history

Life in Germany was hellish immediately after the war, improving to merely miserable in the following few years.

A friend of my dad's asked for some help with some old German documents she had from her own parents. One of the documents was an old postcard sent to her father in Boston from post-war Germany. With the aid of my mother-in-law, who had to learn the now-archaic script in school, I present the translation. Thought you might be interested.

The postcard comes from the Rheinish-Prussian British Zone, and is stamped as having gone through the military censor for civilian mail.

Honored Herr Cöhnen!
I received your card some time ago, must unfortunately share, that Father didn't survive the war's end, he died already in June 1940, and Mother in March 1945. A brother the youngest fell, my sister-in-law is living in (her) parents' house. 2 brothers-in-law are still in Russian prisions. I myself was released in August as malnourished. I can tell you, Herr Cönen, that was a war. Is good that Vater didn't experience all that, what there is today, such has Germany never experienced. You must see our city and the misery/squalor. When you want to know more about our hometown village I am happily ready with information. In closing once again greetings to your wife and children from beautiful Wanlo.


The original German... is full of misspellings, reproduced here (I didn't include them in the English). Or maybe it was dialect at the time, but he does spell Coenen several different way. He must have been a neighbor; the families obviously knew each other well, but not well enough to use first names (i.e. not intimate friends)

Wehrter Herr Cöhnen!
Habe vor einige Zeit ihre Karte erhalten, muß ihnen leider mitteilen, das Vater das Kriegsende nicht erlebt hat, er is schon im Juni 1940 gestorben, und Mutter im März 1945. Ein Bruder der jüngsten ist gefallen, meine Schwegerin wohnt im Elterlichen Haus. 2 Schwäger sind noch in russicher Gefangschaft. Ich selbst bin im August als Unteränert entlassen worden. Ich kann Ihnen sagen, Herr Cönen das war ein Kreig. Ist gut daß Vater das nicht alles miterlebt hat, und was ist heute, so was hat Deutschland noch nicht mitgemacht. Ihr müßt nur unsere Städt mal sehen und das Elend. Wenn Sie noch mal näheres über Ihr Heimat Dörfchen erfahren wollen, bin ich gerne für Auskunft bereit. Zum Schluß nochmals herzliche Grüße an Ihre Frau und Kinder aus dem schönen Wanlo.
Grüß,
Herr Göbels
(Aus Wieksrath - Niers)

Not the only clueless one

Every so often, amidst the general clueless feeling you get living in a foreign culture, you see someone else slogging through the same morass of novelty and confusion*, and you think "Ok, so I'm not a complete idiot".

Last year, on P.'s first day, I intrepidly led my kids and in-laws through the village to the "Protestant church behind the school" as it was described to me. Now, in all your German classes, you learn that there's a Catholic church, a Protestant church, and the Islamic church representing German culture. It's usually impressed on Americans that there's just one Protestant church, instead of the innumerable variety we have in the states. Imagine my surprise to discover the church deserted. A bit of reconnaissance led to the discovery that they meant a Protestant church 1/4 mile down the street. We hot-footed it over and made it in before the first blessing. All the Germans seemed surprised at my mistake - they had said, after all, the Protestant church, not the FREE Protestant church. When I asked how a foreigner would know that "Free" wasn't just some name like "Sacred Heart", they admitted it would be confusing.

Last week, helping to set up the coffee and cake for the new parents attending the 1st graders' welcoming ceremony, a family, from appearance, dress and accent probably African, approached the principal to ask where the chapel ceremony was being held. Apparently they'd made the same mistake I had. I sidled over and assured them I'd make the same mistake. The principal, showing her lack of understanding, looked at me like she couldn't understand anyone else making such a boneheaded mistake.

Amazing how sometimes I can feel more solidarity with people from a half a world away than with the Germans I've lived with for years, just because we're both outsiders, in that moment, together.

- the d.h.


* Look what happens when I try to get literary - it gets messy.

Back to school, Part II

Hello again, dear Reader (and I do realize there is just one of you... Hello, Aunt Anne).

Fall must really be here, despite what the calendar says. It's dark now by 9 pm! Oh, the joys of living so far north...

P. has adjusted to being back in school relatively smoothly. He does have more periods this week - a total of 21 45-minute periods a week, with as many as 3 help periods. The 3 help periods are for Math, German, and Reading & Writing. I don't yet know how those last two differ; we're to learn at a parents' evening next week. P's presence has been requested in German help this week.

Do I like the primary school system here better than in the US? Hard to say; there are pros and cons. As said before, the practice of keeping the same teacher for 4 years can be either a pro or a con. At least the teacher knows the children very well when, at the end of primary school, they make the potentially life-altering decision of which school the children are suited for - Gymnasium (roughly equivalent to a U.S. high school); Realschule (a high school with the goal of getting the students out into apprenticeships) and Hauptschule (very basic schooling; ends at 10th grade).

Ok, so I'm not really thrilled at the idea of a fate determining decision for my kids at the age of 10. But we'll work with it when the time comes.

I also have a hard time with the variable length of the school day. It should be pointed out though, that all the Germans I know find this completely normal, so it just might be me. On some days, school starts at 8:10; others, 8:55, and lasts from 3 - 5 periods for P. If it weren't for the after-school program, which I use partly to smooth out the days, I'd be in trouble (I admit it - I might forget my child one day because I mixed up days!). There also seems to be a lot of changes in schedule - adding a period here, subtracting there, based largely, it seems, on the availability of teachers and funding. I may have that wrong however; there might be deep and profound reasons P.'s schedule changed 6 times last year.

However, I really like the fact that they have started off putting these extra help periods into the school day from the start, and that there seems to be no stigma among the kids that anyone is in one of these sessions. The teacher changes that part of the schedule often - a child might be in Math Help for 3 weeks, overlapping 2 with Reading/Writing, etc.

I also have to give kudos to the after-school program. Really, it starts before school, as they are there from 7:30 for any kids who have later class-start. Then it goes to 4 pm, which really is a bit short for full-time working parents, but it's a start. In between they have homework help, games and crafts with their "teachers" (in quotes only because the Germans don't call them teachers; the term they use, Erzieher/in*, is more like "educator"). Soon they will be offering special interest programs in the afternoon - from exploring the woods to puppet theater to kid yoga - they are constantly on the lookout for new ideas and leaders. At some point I'd like to work with the older kids on English, maybe starting them on Dr. Suess or something like that.

Meanwhile, A. has enthusiastically reentered Kindergarten (a combination of Kindergarden and Preschool in the US). After some real program problems last year, it would seem that the Kindergarten is getting its act together. I, however, never satisfied, am picking a fight with them about how they are structuring the lunch program. More on that later.

the d.h.


* Off subject, but: German professions almost always have a masculine/feminine form - like teacher / teacheress.

Back to School

Back after a vacation....

Tomorrow is the first day of school. Peter is entering 2nd grade. He's not so sure he's looking forward to it yet, so we'll see what he says Monday afternoon.

Now, I know all you parents in the U.S. have noticed how different primary school is these days, with all the new standards and testing the methodologies. Here the whole kit and caboodle is different - with pro's and con's.

Peter will have the same teacher as last year. Frau P. will remain his teacher until the end of fourth grade. We're very lucky - she's a wonderful teacher so far. But the downside of this system is obvious - what if you get a lousy teacher?

I feel like there is a lack of a new beginning with this system - remember the feeling of the first day of school? To Peter this seems like it's just a return to routine - although, because of school renovations, they are getting a new classroom.

Tuesday the first graders will come for their first day, and all the older classes will be there to welcome them - literally greeting the kids and their families as they approach the school after the ecumenical service at the church near the school (NOT the 'Free Protestant church, but that's another story). The little kids, carrying their 'school cones' (Schultuete) full of goodies, will then be treated to a show.

After that, school really starts up. Another difference between my American schooling and here is that the school days often have different lengths. Last year's first grade class had 19 periods (Germans call them hours) per week - and that obviously doesn't divide by 5 days evenly! Also, as Peter progresses through the grades, more periods will be added.

I have to note that traditionally, it is not the custom to eat lunch at school. It's expected that the children will be met at home by their own Desperate Hausfrau with a hot lunch. Most schools don't have any kind of cafeteria (although the renovation added one to our school). It's not yet clear to me if they'll be offering lunch to all children whose schedules keep them past, say, 1pm, or just to the kids in the after-school program.

It will be interesting to see what happens if we have an August heat wave !

Regime Change Begins at Home

Yours truly will be vacating to Holland for a few days on an impromptu trip with the in-laws and children. As such I won't be able to indulge in my second favorite Independence Day activity, after roasting marshmallows to a crisp: hearing (via internet radio) NPR's traditional recitation of the Declaration of Independence. It's worth a read, despite the 18th century prose - and worth thinking about especially in this election year:

(From the National Archives, http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html)

The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated:

Column 1
Georgia:
Button Gwinnett
Lyman Hall
George Walton

Column 2
North Carolina:
William Hooper
Joseph Hewes
John Penn
South Carolina:
Edward Rutledge
Thomas Heyward, Jr.
Thomas Lynch, Jr.
Arthur Middleton

Column 3
Massachusetts:
John Hancock
Maryland:
Samuel Chase
William Paca
Thomas Stone
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia:
George Wythe
Richard Henry Lee
Thomas Jefferson
Benjamin Harrison
Thomas Nelson, Jr.
Francis Lightfoot Lee
Carter Braxton

Column 4
Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Franklin
John Morton
George Clymer
James Smith
George Taylor
James Wilson
George Ross
Delaware:
Caesar Rodney
George Read
Thomas McKean

Column 5
New York:
William Floyd
Philip Livingston
Francis Lewis
Lewis Morris
New Jersey:
Richard Stockton
John Witherspoon
Francis Hopkinson
John Hart
Abraham Clark

Column 6
New Hampshire:
Josiah Bartlett
William Whipple
Massachusetts:
Samuel Adams
John Adams
Robert Treat Paine
Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island:
Stephen Hopkins
William Ellery
Connecticut:
Roger Sherman
Samuel Huntington
William Williams
Oliver Wolcott
New Hampshire:
Matthew Thornton

Medicine in Germany

A few (English) tidbits lately about some aspects of medical care in Germany:

End of life: A healthy but elderly woman with no family, fearing ending her days in a nursing home, commits suicide with assistance. (NY Times)

Underpaid doctors: NPR reports that one way health care costs are kept down is buy strictly budgeting doctors' pay. (National Public Radio)

Mary's favorite employer, Frontline, does a piece on how various countries care for their sick, including Germany. (Frontline)

My (limited) experience?
Expect waits. Usually the wait is about 1/2 for a pre-arranged appointment. Calls on the day, to deal with an urgent sickness, result in a request to come in at a certain time, but don't be fooled - it's not really an appointment, just an attempt by the office staff to manage the stream of walk-ins, and you can expect to wait a LONG time - I've personally had 2 hour waits (with sick kids!). I'm told that if we had "private" insurance, we'd get quicker service.

Doctors do everything. This was one of the first things I noticed - the doctor performs all the elements of the exam - blood pressure, temperature taking, weighing, shot administration, etc. Only a few things, such as blood taking, are performed by specialists in the practice. I see little evidence of any equivalent of Nurse Practitioner or Doctor's Assistants here so far. That being said, there is also very little of the preliminary "checkup" that occurs at every US doctor's office I've ever been in - weighing, blood pressure taking, temperature measurement, recent medical history update. There seems to be the assumption that if you have some concerns, you'll speak up.

Computers - A lot more is computerized here. The doctors are mildly surprised when I hand over American doctors' records, which are handwritten, if you can call it "writing" at all. I don't know if the push toward computerizing the records came as a result of any push from health insurance ("sickness accounts"), but at each visit we do hand over an insurance card with a little chip on it with all our insurance information on it.

Pass Books - for a lot of things, such as children's exams or immunizations (adult too) there are pass books every doctor expects you to have. Not a big deal not to have it, I've found, although the pediatrician did go to a lot of trouble to translate the kids' immunizations into German.

Doctor's hours - are much shorter here. I imagine some of that is because of the house calls mentioned in the NPR account, but I do know most doctors also have hospital obligations, and as such need time to be off with those patients too.

Drugs - very small co-payments, usually, and no co-pay for children under 12, but over-the-counter meds are more expensive. That's partly because they are literally over-the-counter - you go to the pharmacy, describe your problem to the pharmacist, and he or she then suggests a remedy. Consumer help shows advice you to ask for a cheaper alternative to what's suggested; the pharmacist, also a salesperson, is under some pressure to sell you the more profitable items. I recently did this with my allergy meds and saved 40%. Prescription drugs are somewhat subject to "formularies" like in the States; that is, the insurance companies dictate certain brands for certain conditions.

Insurance - I've heard of doctors who won't accept the public insurance any more as they can obtain better payments for the (more expensive) private insurance which ~10% of the populations buys. I have also read that the private insurance gains you access to better specialists

My Overall Conclusion - the system is efficient but overtaxed, with far more need than available physicians (at least judging by the waiting rooms). Germany's population is rapidly aging (NY Times again) so I don't see that changing soon.

Get a job...

I am taking a German course. Why? Because I speak German about as well as Latke from "Taxi" spoke English. Ok, a bit better, but I definitely miss feeling like an adult when I talk to the neighbors. Interestingly, one of the items we read recently in class claimed that without any formal study of the language, your language abilities become "fossilized" after about 2 years of use. That is, you'll continue to add vocabulary, but your grammar and such won't improve further. Perhaps a bit of self promotion on the part of the textbook publisher, but I felt myself that I'd reached some plateau after 1 1/2 years here; that's why I signed up for the class.

But that's just background. I'm really trying to avoid doing this weekend's assignment, which is writing a cover letter for the class. I've decided to "apply" for a job as an English teacher. I've already prepared a resume, with substantial help from the husband, for another, ill-fated application, and I've noticed in these two exercises some differences to the U.S. system that I thought you might find interesting:

• German employers expect to see a picture of you on the resume. Online advice tells me they take this very seriously; a professional portrait is advised. My teacher says they look at this to get a feel for the person behind the resume, as well as to check out age, fitness, professionalism, etc. Considering how at one U.S. employer we were instructed NEVER to indicate age, race, gender etc. on our interviewing notes, it seems odd to me that these are things the employers here want to know right up front. However, I can see why it would be to the business's advantage to know about these things, though it raises hackles on my sensitized "Equal Opportunity" self.
  
• The German resume wants to know every detail of your life. It's not called a Lebenslauf ("life's course") for nothing. This includes all schooling, including elementary school, and marital and family status.
  
• It should be noted that they still want all the above information on 1-2 pages at most (and only more than 1 page if you're really special). So great creativity is required to get past the trivia and fit in the interesting bits of the resume.
  
• Addenda to the application usually include transcripts for high school, college, etc., as well as copies of any certificates that you've hyped in your resume. German companies don't waste time calling around to see if you're telling the truth - they want the proof upfront.
  
• German companies provide departing employees with a sort of report card of their performance to show later employers. The husband tells me they have certain stock phrases to indicate how beloved you were. Unexplained gaps in this record of employment would be very poorly viewed by potential employers who might believe that you were trying to cover up a bad review.
  

The cover letter contains more or less the same kind of information and themes you would find in an American example. There are actually business letter standards defined to which you really need to conform for an application cover letter. Non-conformance to them would be akin to misspelling the name of the company in the letter; it's considered a basic test of competence.

OK, I'm out of comments on this theme now. Back to the homework. Desperately yours,