I feel like an asshole. I had no idea that there was a shooting in Arizona until about ten minutes ago. To be fair, I was never the type of girl to know all of the news or keep up to date on CNN in the first place – even when I was in America. Whenever I had a morning class in college or had to work the morning shifts for whatever job I had at the time, I always got ready while watching either the local news station or the Today show. That is about the extent of my news watching prowess. And no, I don’t watch the Colbert Report or the Daily Show either. In fact, the most regular “news” that I got on a consistent basis came from the Weekend Update on SNL. Jokes aside, at least I knew what was going on in my own country thanks to the radio, local news channels, and, most often, Facebook status updates. Being stuck in Germany has its downsides, I guess, but really, do I have a worthy excuse? Not really. I could have been proactive. I could subscribe to news feeds from American papers or news channels. I could actually watch CNN, the only English language channel that I have available to me. But I don’t. And now I just feel like an asshole and know that it’s my own fault.
It’s funny because moments like this constantly make me realize how much I take for granted living in America. Not that Germany is completely lost on news stories – I’m sure they’ve covered the shooting here somewhere but I just don’t watch it because I don’t understand the language and I can’t read German. From this point on, I promise myself that I will be more proactive about knowing what’s going on in the world. I feel like an idiot and I don’t like that. And when I get home, I fully intend to pay more attention to this kind of stuff.
In other news, life is back to normal in the world of this au pair. The family is back from their 2 1/2 week vacation, the girls are back to school, and the world spins madly on. I’ve been outside about three times in the last three days. I went on a super duper walk when it was snowing the other day and then I went outside two more times to get my mail. Ha. It’s cold, I don’t have any money, I don’t have a train ticket, and I started reading Jane Eyre the other day which has sufficiently sucked me in. Pretty much everyday at about 1:30 pm, I lay in bed intent on reading and then I end up falling asleep until about 4. My bad. I get paid on Friday so I fully intend on 1) having money, 2) buying a train ticket, 3) seeing my friends before cabin fever sets in, and 4) eating something that definitely isn’t kid friendly. Because I’m getting tired of kid friendly stuff. Spaghetti, rice, cucumbers. Damn. It’s boring! And when it gets warmer (who knows when that will be) I also intend on running again. Which usually only lasts me for a week or two before I get bored. I will force myself to do my Berlitz language course though. I still haven’t made it past lesson 4. Ha.
So, for now, this au pair is a self-proclaimed hermit.
Hrmph.
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2 comments:
Honestly, you're not missing much. I know you feel like an asshole, but believe me, they're covering this story SO MUCH that I have heard it enough for the both of us. For 18 of us. Its sad, but as usual, they won't talk about ANYTHING else. Beating a dead horse with a stick basically.
There's something to be said for being a hermit. Enjoy the solitude :)
I didn't know there was a shooting in Arizona - and I live in Canada. That is how much I pay attention.
When they found Saddam Hussain I had no idea till the next day when his face was all over the free news papers on Campus. I felt like I was living in a bubble.
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