Fahrradvergnügen

I'm still here, dear readers, and still getting good work done, and still doing well. But I keep trying to distill complex ideas (probably imperfectly processed ones) into blog form with limited success. So today, instead of a complex idea, I bring you a single word: Fahrradvergnügen: the pleasures of doing things on a bicycle. (The literal English is the slightly cryptic, vaguely racy "bicycle pleasure.") And this is what I have been enjoying on the machine pictured above. It's old, and the materials are simple, but it's all still functional and likely to remain so, as I was reassured by the technician who looked it over when I got the tires replaced. This undertaking was necessitated by the rear tire suddenly giving out one evening. The aged texture it thus revealed (and the experience of hauling the bike to the nearest bus stop) convinced me that replacing both simultaneously might be advisable. This misadventure notwithstanding, the Fahrradvergnügen has been considerable. The bike paid for itself in the fares it saved me while I waited for my student pass to be processed, and it gets me about 90 minutes per work day of enforced fresh air and exercise. Not only that, but it gets me all sorts of independence. I can get where I need to go without worrying about train schedules! I can explore the countryside! I can sail right past any hecklers and oglers! And thanks to German culture and infrastructure, I can ride my bike in designated lanes (not always, but often) and park it in designated racks... or, in a pinch, simply hitch it to a lamppost.

O Brethren of Song!

Parish church, Finthen

This past weekend saw me out and about with the choir I've joined--or, more accurately, with the choir that's adopted me. I've only had a few rehearsals, so while I've shared the intimate experience of singing together with everyone, I'm still learning names. So a weekend of double performances was a good way of immersing myself further in the choir as well as our repertoire. Our first appearance was at the yearly meeting of the incorporated choirs of Rheinland-Pfalz. The short version of explaining that is: choral societies! Lots of them! Organized by region! Or, as my seat neighbor explained it to me: "This is German culture for you... German culture the way many Germans don't know it anymore. It still has roots in the countryside, but you don't see it in the cities so much."