Dear Reader

I have no fun excursions to report on, nor do I have any beautiful photos of the last few days of work and relaxation, I am simply saying hello, and that things are coming along quite nicely, thank you very much. I find myself strangely very content today. Recovered from a few days of a mild common cold and ready to go to work this evening (as a kindermädchen, of course), watching the rain outside, I feel pretty happy. I've got some language-exchanges set for the next few days, in Russian and in German, and my brain thanks me for this workout. Brad and I are planning our winter vacation; we have pretty much settled on Denmark and Sweden as our destinations, and though it will be frightfully sad to be apart from my family for the holidays, it will be, surely, a winter wonderland in Northern Europe, the likes of which are not available on the west coast of the United States. It may be a winter wonderland of unforgiving sleet and ice, but will be lovely nonetheless. New Year's on the Baltic Sea!
It's autumn here in Berlin, to the extreme. The leaves rain through the air in a way that most Californians are pretty much unfamiliar with, and I must look like a crazy person as I stare at the cascades as I stumble down the sidewalk; the Germans, after all, are used to the seasons.
All in all, all is well. Welcome to November.