Work Week

I wish we had pictures to show you because my words just won't do it justice... but I'll try.

All of the staff at BFA are supposed to put in two weeks of summer work, to help get all the stuff done around here that schools in the States hire crews to do. Like paint and put in flooring, and make curtains, and stuff like that. This week, Adam and I are putting in the first of our two weeks.

Monday we drove our dear friends to Frankfurt airport and then back. About 7 hours in the car and nothing to show for it except an empty travel mug and sore bums.

Tuesday we joined the work crew. I helped move furniture out of a dorm that is getting some new beds, desks and schranks (free standing closets, since they don't really do the built-in kind here). Well, in order to get rid of the old furniture, we had to take it apart. And since it was going to the Recyclinghof (no dumps here, everything gets recycled) anyway, we just had to bust it apart. So, with hammers and pure brute strength, we tore it all into pieces.

Adam was working in the basement of another dorm removing carpet. Apparently this carpet was attached to the ground with cement or super glue or some magic compund that makes it impossible to remove. After removing the carpet with a shovel, he and some other very strong men moved debris from a building project going on and helped tear down very solid German-engineered walls.

Today, we had more moving of furniture... loading a moving van, driving, and then unloading said van. I spent the afternoon packing up the pantry of a dorm. Imagine flats of tomato sauce, gallons of ketchup, and the largest rubbermaid you own full of brown sugar. That's what I was packing.

Adam painted. and hauled furniture. and generally worked very hard, doing very tiring things. We come home exhausted, filthy, a little beat up and hungry. It is about all we can manage to make dinner and plop onto the couch until it is time for bed. I think I am building some muscles in my arms though, because, wow are they sore!