And life goes on…
Hello again to all my friends, family, and anyone who bothers to read my blog. I have been very busy lately. When I last left you I was working towards an election and subsequent campaign. That has since passed, and the election resulted in me not being elected. Which is all good, because in the meantime, due to a variety of reasons, I moved to Offenbach into a new apartment. With an official residency in Offenbach I no longer qualify to participate in Frankfurt politics.
Life is how it is, and in a pandemic world I am happy to be healthy and safe. I love my new apartment, my location and my neighbors seem so far to be very nice. No complaints here. I live in Offenbach again, as I said, in what Germans call an "Altbau" or older building. That means tall ceilings and sometimes difficulty heating. Having moved here with two suitcases I am slowly accruing furniture and other belongings, but my new apartment is still surprisingly empty.
I have had quite the adventure the past month though, as on the 1st of April I started nursing school. The end of February and following month of March was fraught with flying paperwork, appointments, apartment hunting, and subsequent moving. I was quite ready to take a bit of a break, and my jogging routine took quite the hit. I had a short vacation in March, where I spent most of my time relaxing, organizing my new apartment, and getting to know a new person in my life a bit better.
Considering the third wave of the pandemic is in full swing here in Germany, outside of the first day, I've been spending my time participating in online classes. That equates to rolling out of bed at 7:30am, splashing water on my face, making some french press coffee, then Webex'ing it up at 8am.
Plus, let's not forget, I am participating in a German Ausbildung (Apprenticeship program). That means I go to school and meet my practicum needs with my current employer concurrently. But the really important point here...as someone who participates in an Ausbildung, I am still provided an income.
Normally that income is considered an "Azubi" or student income, and normally lands just under 1000 Euros a month. However I also qualify for something called the "Wegebau Förderung", which is a financial incentive provided by the german government to assist older students (over 35 I believe), so they can live in relative stability. That means that my income has remained the same as I attend nursing school.
Once I complete this apprenticeship program, I will be given the title of Pflegefachfrau. The program itself works like this. Normal university or community college in the US is a collection of courses, separated into terms, with vacations between. The apprenticeship program, as it is associated with my employer, is divided almost equally between school and work. A little less than half the year I will be working (almost the same as before), with my employer. When not working I attend school. That means I go to school for 8 weeks, then work for 4 to 6 weeks, then school again for 6 weeks, then work...and so on. Each chunk of school and work isn't always 4, 6 or 8 weeks, it's divided kind of haphazardly. Those reasons are so that all healthcare employers within the area aren't inundated with students at any one time.
I hope that made a modicum of sense. The short and long of it is that I am retaining a monthly income while furthering my education. This is all made possible by the social democratic German government. I fully recognise the multitude of cultural and historical differences between my old homeland and my new one, but this is a luxury that I am fully going to enjoy.
I always regretted during college that I couldn't concentrate more on my studies as I was always having to work. Having the ability to simply study without having to worry about maintaining basic living standards makes life much different. It makes my future seem...simply...easily manageable. It reminds me how truly blessed I feel to be living in Germany.
Anyways...my next blog will be about...the German's love of "Ruhe" (quiet), and all the lovely regulations that exist, not to mention cultural peculiarities that adhere thereto. Ciao ciao ya'll!
