The Ups and Downs of Living Overseas...

Well, the last couple weeks have been an emotional roller coaster....hence, the lack of my updates...just too much to process. There have been some family issues back home that have made me quite homesick and the project is in an intense phase and we have been working with Bryan in the studio until 3 or 4 am. So many little things seem to go wrong or not fall into place which causes quite a bit of frustration, and in the middle of all this Bryan has had to find a new place to rent for a studio because the work space he has been using for the last 6 years is no longer available. Things seem to be on an upswing though...the casting process is done, a postive has been made and also a negative of that postive....and then a negative of that postive again....I think....hard to keep track!! AND now the mold is being completed to hold the epoxy-resin and then, finally into a pressure chamber and then... voila! We have completed the first of 12 statues! Wow...its a crazy-detailed process....and I HOPE it goes smoothly....
On the lighter side...we have had many moments of hilarity during our exhaustion:
At german lessons for instance:
Ben had to say a sentance saying: "The brush belongs to the woman"
This is what he REALLY said: "The breast belongs to the woman"
Later he had to say: "After work I go home and peel 10 potatoes"
This is what he REALLY said: "After work I go home and poop 10 potatoes"
Good times....we have been having fun too. During our late night work session with Bryan we are sure to lighten the atmosphere by having fork-lift races, making jokes, and playing with high pressure air-blowing tool (I have no idea what to call it!)...you would be amazed at the shapes your mouth can take in the 'wind'...sooo funny. When we upload the pics I will post some.
Take care everyone!

Before you see these pics....a few words: these do not do us justice! Unfortunately during the most exciting action we were too busy with holding down the person in the air or running after the parachute....
This is Guido ( I think) in the air. And some of the guys holding him down.
This is Ben's cousin Remy. He and his wife have been so much fun to get to know. And they have the CUTEST little 7 month old girl.
Remy again....
Ben also had his new camera out that day and took some footage, so i am hoping he can soon compile some footage and edit together a video for our blog!

Summary of parasailing:

1. Attaching rope to Bryan in parachute
2. Attaching other end of rope to Ben, Guido and Johanna on the ground
3. Wind picks up, pulling Guido off the ground
4. Johanna falls down
5. Rope slips up to Johanna's armpits, pulling her clothing upwards
6. Ben falls down
7. All three of us being dragged by Bryan in the parachute
8. Wind dies down....momentarily
9. During this brief window of 'opportunity', Johanna tries to escape the rope by trying to pull it over her head
10. Wind picks up again
11. The rope didn't quite make it over Johanna's head....
12. Instead the rope tightens, forcing Johanna's hands to be trapped around ears on either side of her head...
13. Johanna is dragged across half the field by her head.
14. Life flashes before eyes all she thinks is "what a dumb way to die...Death by Rope....my Dad will kill Ben"
15. Finally wind dies down and dragging ceases.
16.Ben freaking out and rescues Johanna from the rope.
The End.
Sooooo....As I thought, parasailing was a little crazy, but I got to fly too! And it was so much fun. Although, my body is a wee bit sore today. And the grass stains will never come out of our clothes!
I highly recommend parasailing...but only with a trained professional!

Army Update

So. We think we're ok now. Well, we are hoping. We learned from Ben's Dad (who was a cpl. or sgt. in the Swiss army back in the day...) NOT to say we're leaving the country in December because Ben will just be forced to serve immediately. So, we sent the forms back in and asked for a deferral until Fall 2008. Which shouldn't be a problem. But if we want to come back again, it may become an issue. So we are hoping everything will still work out as planned. And hopefully there's no Swiss "CIA" or something to track us down be reading this blog and foil our plan!
Tomorrow we are going to a visit an old castle in the hills and go Parasailing (is that how you spell it?). Bryan has an old parachute and we can get up about 50 ft in the air......I don't really like heights. But to fulfill my "Haablie" obligations, I may give it a try......But the Bryan + Ben combinations scares me even more than heights....we'll let you know how it goes!

Houston....We Have a Problem....

Ok....more like, Friends We Have a Problem. Really we do....We got something in the mail today that poses a problem, that may prevent us from accomplishing our necessary goals while we are here. Ben has been DRAFTED. To the ARMY. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Apparently, Switzerland has mandatory Military time for every Swiss citizen. That means they have have to be in Rekrutenschule: AKA boot camp for 3 months every few years. This way Switzerland keeps up a trained army of millions that can be mobilized within 24 hours. So on March 15th Ben is supposed to go in to be "categorized" into the area he will be trained in. This doesn't work for us. This doesn't fit into our plans. I don't care how much Ben wants to be a Sniper. So we must find a loophole to get out of this. It used to be that if you couldn't speak fluent German your were exempt. Now they have an English division. Sooooo...if anyone has any great ideas as to how we're going to get out of this...you should let us know...

Fasnacht & Fire: The Swiss Must Be Crazy

Hello All! Well, its been a week since our last post and we have some new pictures to share. My birthday was so much fun. We had originally planned to go away for a weekend but instead opted to stay in the Liestal area because it Fasnacht Season! Fasnacht is an interesting festival....and no one could actually tell us what it was about so I did some research. Fasnacht is an ancient tradition dating back to before the 1300's! It is a masked carnival with many marching bands and colourful costumes. The festival originally started as a day(s) of indulgence before Lent. Besides colourful parades in the afternoon, there is also the infamous Bonfire Parade, where burning wagons are pulled through the town center, with sparks flying everywhere. It was definitely a blast to be in the crowd...and actually a bit scary.....you will see why:
A Lot of people came out for the afternoon parade....it was hard to find a place to stand.

One of the Many musical groups.
These confetti 'guns' were awesome, they blew tons of confetti over the whole crowd. After the parade the streets were literally packed with confetti.
The costumes had amazing detail and were all hand made. Some of them were pretty scary, actually.
One of the marching bends dressed as old-school pilots.
This how this parade works: there are candy and flowers and oranges, and beer for free BUT you have to go up to the edge of the float to get anything. And if you are brave enough to do so, it is likely you will get "Confettied". This is a man getting completely covered...it was hilarious.
This is right before the parade. Ben took a timed exposure of the street. You can see all of the confetti on the ground too.
This is one of the traditions: individuals carrying a bundle of wood on fire. It seemed sort of dangerous...the sparks and flames were right next to their head! Everyonce in a while someone would stop, throw off their helmet and dance around wildly until one of the firemen doused them with water.
A group carrying the wood-bundles.
One of many burning wagons pulled by men
This picture shows the street a bit more lit up.
The flames were so big on some of the wagons and as they were pulled through the streets it was very hot for the spectators! The first wagon that went by us they somehow kept veering closer and closer to the crowd. When it went by us the flames were literally a foot away and we had to turn and push our way into the crowd behind us. You could smell our jackets getting singed! After that, the wagons kept more to the centre of the street thankfully.
One year, the flames were so big that some buildings were scorched. I can see why...
Well, it was fun time and great birthday celebration! A day to never forget. Hope you are all doing well, Tschuss!