Guten Tag Bitches
I'm back from Deutschland and I am so full. Full of wonder at the beautiful German countryside; full of joy to be back home; and of course, full of schnitzel and wursts.

It was such a bittersweet trip. Steve 's mother became very ill in July. He had to move her into a nursing home. He had to take care of closing up his mother's apartment. I went along to help and support. One should never tell a ladies age but I will say that Steve's mother is an octogenarian. She suffered a stroke and is now confined to bed. Life can be a bitch. You live so long and then what? Illness, pain, suffering, and death.

I know all this sounds dark and dramatic but you should know that our trip was anything but dark. As a matter of fact, it was literally brighter there than Chicago. It was sunny and 80 degrees nearly everyday. It rained one day and was overcast another but the other seven days were brilliant.

Speaking of dark, this was my second trip to a German speaking country. I performed in Austria in 2004. Unlike my Austrian trip, no one called me a "Nigger" or "Scwhartze" while I was in Germany. Although, everyone in town knew that I was there. I teased Steve daily that he should try to blend in more with the locals like I was doing. Of course, there are plenty of dark skinned Germans like this cutie or this homophobic jerk. The US military has been based in Germany for over 60 years plus there are Africans and Turks. But not very many(honestly, I didn't see any) in Kelkheim, the small country town about 20 miles from Frankfort, where Steve and I stayed. It should be noted that my outrageously nappy hair ruled me out as military personnel.

I didn't see a lot of Brothas in Germany but I did see (and eat) a lot of food and beer. I quit drinking back in July, except for Champagne, but I suspended that choice in order to partake in some of the greatest libations on the planet. There is nothing like a good pilsner and a schnitzel. And of course, there are the many wursts, hams, and sausages. I also enjoyed many pommes frites, dumplings, and spaetzle. And the plus was that I only gained one pound while I was gone.

Being in the country didn't give us very many night life options. I watched a lot of German TV. Many of you are saying, "don't you watch a lot of TV now?" And the answer is yes, but this was German TV. Many of the programs were dubbed American shows but I loved seeing the German produced shows. Although, the German dubbed version of "High School Musical" was a revelation. I also watched a lot of German MTV which included the UK version of "Pimp My Ride." That was delightful. And I fell in love with German Hip-Hop. In particular, I discovered the great and soulful sounding Jan Delay and hip and street Kool Savas.

To be continued