Today, I'm posting on my other blog, http://birdswithpersonality.blogspot.com

History Lesson

The other day, I was on assignment to the Soldiers & Sailors Hall. To get an overview of the museum, I received a tour by the curator. He told me that they wanted their showcases to tell the human story behind the historic events. Apparently, it works because I was compelled to talk when we came to the Berlin Wall exhibit. I was shocked when my guide told me that kids nowadays ask him, "What's the Berlin Wall?" It seemed so much a part of my younger life that I never expected it to fall. I told my guide that back in the early Eighties, I had been to the wall on the West Berlin side and two months later I saw the Brandenburg Gate from the East Berlin side. Life in a divided country was certainly different than what Americans are used to. For example, there were only three corridors to drive to West Berlin. We were even told what reading material we could take along on the bus so we wouldn't get into trouble. Of course, I didn't need any reading material to go to West Berlin because I didn't go there to read. Why would I when the pubs are open all night? Nowadays, I wouldn't even make it till 11 o'clock, but that's a different story.

The days are just packed

I have had a very busy week so far. On Monday, I took the plunge and booked a flight to Germany this summer. First, I had to confirm dates with my family. And because there are no more direct flights to Germany from here, I had to find connections that would neither give me too little nor too much waiting time for my next leg. I am not fond of sitting at some airport for over four hours, but I also don't want to sprint through an airport to catch my flight. So, the new flight to Paris is out because it only gives you one and a half hours to catch a connection and immigration and customs take at least one hour in a perfect world. After checking all my options I decided to use one airline for the first leg and come back on another airline. Now, I just hope that none of my flights get canceled as was the case the last time I traveled.
Yesterday, I was working on a new assignment and had a great time doing it. It was good to be photographing again and museums are always happy for the publicity. I also had a letter to the editor in yesterday's Post-Gazette and received a very positive response so far.

The eyes have it

The car radio played Shout and the cat on the backseat howled. Playing the radio is absolutely essential when I take Roxy for a ride because there is only one reason I put her in a car: We're going to the dreaded V-E-T. This time, the problem is that she has two ulcers (aka scratches) in her eyes.
To help our other, big cat with her arthritis, we had put a litter box upstairs so she wouldn't have to climb stairs. That plan backfired because 1. Big cat still went downstairs most of the time out of habit; 2. The floor was a mess; 3. Roxy started sneezing soon after we brought up the litter box. Then her eyes became watery and she rubbed them. I had to get an emergency appointment at the vet to check her eyes. Now, I have to find some clay based litter so we can get rid of her allergies once and for all. Will old cats learn new litter? I'll keep you posted.

Birding

Today, I'm blogging about birds at birdswithpersonality.blogspot.com