so i started reading a 288 page novel in german. i understand like 95% of it. that makes me cool, right?

i also saw this online and had a hearty laugh.

Thieves make off with $26,000 of beer

WEST BEND, Wis. - Authorities are hoping to break up what must be quite the party after beer thieves made off with almost $26,000 worth of suds from a delivery truck.

A semi trailer loaded with cans and bottles of Miller beer was stolen from a trucking company in Richfield, according to a Washington County Sheriff's Department report. The trailer was found four days later - sans beer - at an Oak Creek trucking firm.

The trailer had been dropped off at the Millis Transfer Co. sometime on Feb. 17 for delivery to a beer distributor in Menomonie, authorities said. Later that night, the trailer was discovered missing.

Company officials didn't report the loss immediately because they thought a driver must have picked up the wrong load.

The sheriff's department is investigating with Oak Creek authorities and Miller officials, said Sheriff's Capt. Dale Schmidt.

The missing product, valued at $25,788, included:

_ 384 24-packs of Miller Genuine Draft cans

_ 560 18-packs of MGD 12-ounce bottles

_ 980 18-packs of MGD 12-ounce cans

_ 40 24-packs of Miller Light 16-ounce plastic bottles

I bought the first season of Grey's Anatomy this afternoon and i plan on spending the rest of the weekend enjoying the drama, the humor, and the overall goodness that it is.

i also forgot to mention in my last post about decorating my cafe/bakery/publishing house with my freelance photography. cuz it's good.

so while stuck in the back corner at work tonight, i took the four hours as an opportunity to speak german to myself. it has been a couple weeks since i've had the opportunity to speak real, actual, fluent German with anyone and i realized that i missed it. i also came to the conclusion that, out of all of my friends, i'm probably more fluent in a second language than 95% of them. who are the other five percent? i don't know— but i thought i'd leave the option open. perhaps beth, but i haven't actually witnessed her speaking fluent german. only a german/english mischung online. (beth, prove me wrong.) i thought that skill was pretty amazing in and of itself.

as of late i've also had this amazing urge to be an entrepreneur. what kind of business? well, i want to get into publishing and design books when i'm done with school. but i really think it would be amazing to start my own publishing company. to be at the helm of something great would be a dream. i think i'm a good person and i'd treat people well. i want to have fun, and i want to take people along for the ride.

however, i also love food. i visited this amazingly chic bakery in copenhagen last month and sat and read for a couple hours, just enjoying the warm atmosphere, the great decor, and completely ignoring the constant rush of customers satiating over delicious baked goods. i'd love to open up a bakery. or a cafe. so, a cafe/bakery/publishing house that deals with German speakers. yeah, it's a pretty niche market, but i think i'd have some success.

at work i also came to the conclusion that i'm the most fashionable tech geek. who can beat my combination of a powerbook, ipod, RAZR, and upcoming sweet ass digital camera? no, beth. you can't. you're not even in my league.

it seems like the only opportunities i've had to watch the olympics have been the super lame events. case and point: 90 percent of the time i come across the olympics it always seems to be curling. CURLING. it seems like the olympics is just a non-stop game of curling. i think my big gripe about the winter olympics is that a majority of the sports are just too over my head. i know nothing about the luge, bobsledding, snowboarding, curling, the skeleton. they're sports i can't relate to. see, the summer olympics have the basics: running, jumping, swimming. everyone can do those things.

winter olympics, i've got some advice for you: tone it down a notch. some suggestions for less extreme sports— snowman building, snow flake counting, competitive apple cider drinking, etc. when that time comes, let me know and i'll watch religiously.

on the eve of my fist day of work (albeit it is technically the third first day of work at this place, unfortunately), i feel like i'm living a life i don't want. or at least, one that i can't brag about. life back home is great. i love being around my family, but should i feel ashamed for being 21 and living at home? i help my mom out every. single. day. i guess i earn my keep. but 99% of my friends are still in school, plowing head on with their futures and aspirations, and i feel like i'm standing still and watching them race off to the horizon. but maybe the whole germany fiasco was a blessing in disguise. undisputedly, it has helped me refocus on what i want and helped identify what's important to me.

today's biggest predicament was figuring out where to go for coffee with my cousin tonight. apparently cafés in town are lame and are not open past 7 on a sunday night. we settled for commercialized, overrated coldstone creamery. i, however, ordered a mixture of fruit flavored sorbets. i refused to give into the "creamery." besides it's practically false advertising to call the f'ing place coldstone creamery and serve sorbets. it's probably just for the 29092% of americans who are obsessed with losing weight. suggestion: they should walk to a farmers market and buy fresh produce instead of driving their cars to get cream-based ice cream. can life be too simple?

fyi- i've decided that helvetica neue light is my "it" font for the time being.

in recent days i've felt more adult than ever before. nothing noteworthy to bring about this change, but i think it's just my overall mindset. since coming home i've had this overwhelming urge to join habitat for humanity or some other aid organization. i have no clue why. perhaps it has something to do with just being back in the States. i forgot about how much more courteous people are to each other here. i must say that it is something i really did miss while i was away. i saw something on tv the other day about how college students could spend their spring breaks helping hurricane katrina victims. i'd like to do something like that.

maybe it's just the fact that i'm more self confident now. i think i'm finally satisfied with myself— and now that i'm happy with me, maybe it's time to make others happy. this is just random typing on a website. a far cry from actually doing anything. granted, i doubt i'll ever be able to help anyone in a huge way, but there certainly is the possibility to do little things for people from day to day. i like holding open doors for people, doing something unexpected for my family, exercising patience and understanding. i like being a good person.

fyi- i also bought a new bike yesterday. i rode down by lake michigan and listened to matt pond pa and it was a great ride. it breaks my heart that there's a blizzard today. i anxiously await warmer temperatures and snow free roads.

i've been meaning to start a new blog since discovering that elke still reads my old one.

i'm a graphic designer and i have basically no clue how to design this website. screw web design— i'm sticking to books. keep your fingers crossed and maybe one day this blog will turn into something better. until then, don't hold your breath.

happy valentine's day.

-michael