Meine Lieben,
Happy National Skunk Day!!! Yay! How do you celebrate it? I think it is pretty funny that there is a skunk day. I have never heard about that before but I think that there should be a day for every animal! But in general I think that we should celebrate animals every day of the year. And I mean every animal. Not just the cute ones. Animals make me smile, they make me happy and they are such an important part of my life. So celebrate them!
A couple of days ago I went for a hike and I saw so many animals, it was awesome. First I saw a chipmunk and chipmunks are definitely under the top 10 of my favorite animals. I have never seen a chipmunk in Germany, I guess they don't live there. I need to do some research. But I see them all the time in America and I am so in love with them.
And then I saw a monster. I swear. Do you remember the weird animal Lilly and Marshall from How I Met Your Mother had in their apartment? The cockamouse?
And I swear I saw a frogmunk. It was a mix between a frog and a chipmunk. It had the shape of a chipmunk but no fur. It had the skin of a frog and a frog head. But it was fast like a chipmunk. I only saw it for a second, then it hid behind a tree, jumped and then it was gone. But it was a frogmunk. I discovered a new species and I could not be any prouder.
I also saw a normal toad. And the best thing was that I saw a mother bunny with 3 baby bunnies. So cute. They just sat there but when I came closer they run away. I tried to convince them that I am a friend but they were too scared and I can understand them.
The bad thing was that I forgot my camera at home. I was so mad at myself. And I am sure that David thought I was completely stupid and crazy but that's okay.
I guess they fell in love and had babies. That's my only explanation.
I want to talk about a stereotype today.
My husband recently told me that he thinks that all Germans sound angry and evil. Nobody ever told me that before but it made me think. A lot. I mean, I live with that person and he thinks that I always sound mean and evil. That's terrible.
So, am I really like that? How do I talk? How do Germans talk? Do Germans talk in a different way when they are in other countries? I was a little helpless because that was a little bit of a shock to me.
I have to say that I do have a loud voice. I am not a quiet person at all. But I don't think that every German is like that. But I guess you can still be angry even when you don't talk in a loud voice. I don't know. I am so confused at the moment.
I have thought about Germans in general. I have never felt like they sound mean, angry, evil or anything like that. What do you think? I mean, I have watched Germans on American television and they always sound nice. Michael Ballack for example. He is a former German soccer player and now the soccer expert at ESPN. His English is awful but he talks in a very calm voice and sounds like a nice person. A couple of weeks ago I have seen a documentary about people at death row in Texas. It was from a German guy and he interviewed inmates. And he sounds nice. Very nice. I mean, he talks to killers but sounds like the sweetest person on earth. So are there any Germans in America that sound mean? I really don't know. I can't think of anyone.
So is it me? It must be me. I mean, there must be a reason that my husband thinks that Germans sound mean. At least when they speak English. My voice is loud. And yes, I am a very emotional person. I get even louder when something bothers me or when I am excited. Maybe that sounds mean?
I admit that I scream at the TV when I watch soccer. Because I am excited. Or angry. But that doesn't mean that I always sound like that.
So maybe the problem is that I always say what I think. I guess that's a German thing. I am always open about things and I tell people when something bothers me. Is that the problem here? Does that make me sound angry and evil? It's possible. I am used to behavior like that. My Dad and my friends always tell me when I do something stupid. Or when I say something that doesn't make sense. They tell me to shut up when I talk to much. They are always open and tell me how they feel about me. Even when it hurts. And I appreciate that. Because I always know what they think and that they don't tell me things just to make me happy. I know that Americans are always friendly and polite. So maybe it hurts them when you always say your honest opinion and don't care what people think about you. I really don't know. Do you guys have any ideas? Do you think Germans sound angry? I am thinking a lot about this topic and that's the only explanation I have. But it's possible that I am the problem.
