| 12 January 2008
Amberg/Weiden – Well, Hillary Clinton isn’t the first one! On March 2nd its time for the local elections here and there are lots of women running for mayor and other positions this year and some towns actually have pure women lists such as Schwarzenfeld in the county of Schwandorf with Gabi Wittleben as the head of the list running for mayor of the coalition of independent parties in Schwarzenfeld. In Eschenbach county of Neustadt/WN Hannelore Ott already made it into the city council 12 years ago as the head of a 100% women list and is defending her position again this year. And the list goes on with too many to mention. According to the article women are represented in official positions pretty well in the Upper Palatinate, but it fails to mention percentages,…so I guess we have to take their word for it.
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| | Gabi Wittleben Hannelore Ott
Maxhütte-Haidhof – Criminals of the stupid kind were obviously in action in Maxhütte-Haidhof. A relative and her ex-husband stole 16 500-Euro bills from a depot of an 81-year old. To cover up the theft they put back color copies of the bills…Well the elderly woman was suspicious (There is a story Mom could tell you about color copied bills too ) and took them to a bank….the Amberg police arrested the couple….They spotted them in the crowd with the big “L” on their forehead I guess ;)
Grafenwöhr – the “Big Red One” is coming back from Schweinfurt. One and half year after they left the 3rd brigade 1st Infantry Division in Vilseck the 2nd brigade is coming back to the neighboring Grafenwöhr and the mayor Helmuth Wächter is happy for obvious reasons. I wonder if the troops and their families are just as happy to come back to the “big dust bowl” too? But anyways, the “Dagger-Brigade” with 3700 troops that just came back from Iraq (Well, maybe they wont mind the dust bowl that much) is starting to move this month. Head commander of the US Army in Europe General David McKlernan said that this was done within the goal optimizing Army posts. They will save money with the shipping in and out of troops to the training areas, true that! So now there are two brigades stationed in the Palatinate: the 2nd Cav Regiment (love the Cav!) in Vilseck and the “Dagger”-Brigade in Graf. There are also communications-, ABC-defense, logistics and MP units in the area. The number of US soldiers could top about 10 000 after the recent move. |
| | General McKlernan
Regensburg – Some action in the German Army too. A change of command at the Division of Special Operations in an unusual setting – in the courtyard of the castle of Earl of Thurn and Taxis. Major General Hans-Lothar Domröse handed over his command to Major General Hans-Werner Fritz on Thursday. Monday Domröse will be head of staff of Headquarters of the International Peace Troop ISAF in Kabul/Afghanistan (Man that was a mouthful, even for a dog!) (Richard would you proof read that for me please?! )
The change at the head of the DSO (Division of Special Operations) is in tune with the international operations duties of the German Army says head of the Army Lead Command Lieutenant General Wolfgang Otto. Among other operations the DSO was providing security during free elections in the Congo in 2006.
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| | Weiden – For a change of pace we are talking about tourist marketing now. Weiden had a growth in tourism of 7.5%, which is quite remarkable. They came from all over Germany, Czech Republic and the USA. Percentage wise Weiden made the best cut of all county free cities in the Palatinate. Head of tourism in Weiden Petra Vorsatz says it is the massive marketing Weiden is undertaking and it has paid off. From January until October there were 64 047 overnight stays in Weiden. The summer alone showed a growth of 13.5%.
Vohenstrauss – If minerals is your thing there is a museum nearby to admire all kinds of minerals and semiprecious stones (is that the same?) (Well, I am not a jewelry guy, but my sister sure likes to play with rocks!) . Ursula Ochantel took over her parent’s collection of 50 years and includes about 4000 pieces. Herself she has been fascinated with minerals and precious stones and their properties. Some of her samples come from a depth of 9101 meters, but you just have to see for yourself. Too bad I cant go myself…I wouldn’t take my sister thou, she likes to chew on rocks…that is baad for your teeth, but she’s just a silly dog. The museum is open from 9-6 Mo-Fr, and 10-13 Sat. If you come in a group it is fine, just call. The museum is on Amselweg 10 in Vohenstrauss (there are arrows in town) the phone number is 09651-1413.
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| | Weiden – If you are on the other hand interested in water closets instead here is your thing. That’s the place were I do my reading too anyways, yes, dogs read too (It is more with the nose to the ground though ) Mayor Lothar Höher thought it would make an interesting exhibition, but in a shopping center!! Well, at the City Center in Weiden you can examine the history of the toilet. Well you don’t have to hold your nose; most of it is black and white photography with one actual outhouse (picture). One interesting piece of information though…the UN proclaimed 2008 the International year for basic sanitary facilities distribution (= everybody should have a pot to do his business in), …are you serious? …alrighty then.
It turns out that 40% of the world population doesn’t have a proper place to “go”…You want to know what people use in some countries to fertilize their rice fields with? Yes, fresh from the source! We don’t eat much rice anymore in this family!!!
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| | | Weiden – Here is some cultural education that doesn’t stink. In Bavaria anyways, on the 6th of January (Three Saints Day) the catholic church has a tradition to send out “Sternsinger” (kids 7-13 from their community) dressed as the Three Kings to sing at peoples houses (whoever opens the door) and collect donations for local and other charities for the needy. In Weiden this was the 50th year and almost 300 singers were on their way in the cold from door to door to do some good. Among money they also received some snacks that they ate together at the end and collected almost 50 000 Euros this year which topped last years collection, bravo! |
| | | Neustadt – and here is another example of kids helping their community. The students of the Neustadt Gymnasium (school for higher education) presented 1379 Euros to Elisabeth Wittman, manager of the organization “Lichtblicke” (glimpse of light) from the student’s own money, including money they made with a Christmas concert in December. The money goes mainly to local kids that cant afford everyday things. One 6th grade class of Richard Wölfl alone collected 300 Euros. |
| | | Floss – The Anglers Club is looking back to a successful year with record fish this year. Of course there are no pictures of the fish to prove it, I guess fishers all over the world are the same where the fish just keep getting bigger with every time they tell the story? In Germany it is called “Anglerlatein” The club was founded in 1971 and has 24 junior fishers this year (what makes you a senior fisher?) and 303 members total. The biggest fish they caught this year was a marble carp weighing in at around 50 pounds (that’s a lotta fish sticks!!!). |
| | Mantel – Some more cultural education and where do I start…In the States there is Mardi Gras in Louisiana right? Well all over Germany there is something like that called Fasching in the Palatinate and right now it is the season until Ash Wednesday…well it has to do with the church calendar..Are you still following? Ok, so the two major churches usually have their clubs, groups etc. (it’s a German thing the whole club, organization, group thing…. everything has to be organized) (it is really bad in small towns!) (Must be the German contribution to the US ?! ) So, the catholic and the Lutheran Churches have their party clubs (teens or adult) (basically) and they meet, where else, in a guesthouse/pub (“Wirtshaus”) on a weekly/monthly basis. So the Lutheran (adult one) club of Mantel is meeting since 1957, and it originated from the church band meeting after practice in the guesthouse “Kellerhaus” nearby Mantel. They called them the “Xantl Stammtischfreunde”. So one year they decided to have an annual ball during “Fasching” season and called it the “Xantl”-Ball, which is kind of famous in the region (Mom remembers hearing stories about it, I think there is a relative in the picture below!). One important thing, they are guys only, but of course for the ball the women are more than welcome. Back then rules were strict and the girls couldn’t go there by themselves, so each girl was assigned a guy that had to pick her up and bring her back home safely, but sometimes the “homecoming” group changed the configuration. Teens under 16 wanted to come to the first ball too, so the club had to apply for permission at the local county. Back then the guys still showed up in suit and tie at the Postsaal (Post Hall) and the gals in long dresses. They had to bring wood and coals for heating themselves too.
Well, it is time for the 50th Xantl-Ball on Saturday January 26th. It will start at, well it didn’t say what time, just sometime in the evening! But there will be shows performed by members at 9.30. 10.30, and 11.30 pm of course, the band “Noisy Crack” is playing and admission is 6 Euros.
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| | 25.September,2007
Dream Job Dance Therapy
Dorothea Deubzer who has multiple sclerosis founded the association “dance4help” (www.dance4help.de )and an action day is planned. |
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| When the doctor diagnosed her with MS, she wasn’t surprised at all. The skilled radiology assistant already had a hunch since Eastern that that’s what she had, but she wont let the condition get her down. As the chairwoman of the new association “dance4help” she wants to educate people about the condition.
Lets get back to April of 2006: During the holidays Dorothea felt numbness in her face. “I did have a slipped disc, but knew that that wasn’t the reason.” In August she saw a shadow in her eye and that was when examination after examination followed until she had the sure diagnosis. By then she had already educated herself with the help of the Internet and figured out the condition according to her symptoms. She found out she had had symptoms for years and besides that a friend of hers with MS encouraged her to see a doctor.
Not surprised
“I wasn’t surprised or shocked. “On the contrary; she told herself to never give up.” She granted a women’s magazine a big interview about the condition and dove back into her hobby as always: dancing.
Her dream job is to get trained to be a dance therapist. Years ago she got retrained to be a media designer and considers dance a good way to balance out the mostly sedentary occupation. “Exercise will be good for me,” the petite red head is convinced. Besides that a positive attitude will help in spite of two flare-ups within two weeks in January. Because of them and an inflammation of a vision nerve she is on leave from her job now. In spite of it all she remains optimistic: ”psyche and attitude can affect a lot.”
She doesn’t believe in keeping it to herself and visits self-help groups and informs family and friends-especially because she is fatigued a lot. It is called the fatigue-syndrome. She doesn’t want people around her to think that she just has to sleep more at night.
In conversations with acquaintances it turns out that people just don’t know enough about MS. The condition can take four different paths. “A lot of people can live with it relatively well – and dance as well.” To combine the both, the normal life and dancing, the Weiden native together with other dance enthusiasts founded a club at the end of June called “dance4help” and already gained recognition to be a non-profit organization.
The association wants to Support the research (for not yet curable diseases) and regional self-help groups, help with the creation of special clinics and offer a helping hand to patients and loved ones. Besides Deubzer there is Sylvia Vézard as assistant manager and eight more members helping out.
Helpers and Sponsors wanted
Saturday September 29 they have planned an action day at the Evangelische Vereinshaus. Between 10.30am and 6 pm there will be lectures, info stands, dance entertainment and lots more in terms of education, (relaxation-) therapy and natural medicine. That is what they need volunteers and sponsors for. The contact number is 0170-4866421. Starting at 8 pm there will be a dance party.
The overall director will be mayor Kurt Seggewiß. Guiding you through the day will be OTV moderator Harald Rippl.
The 42-year-old and her crew not only want to be a spokesperson for people with MS, but also feel as disadvantaged people, says Deubzer. That is why she is also working on a guide for handicapped in the Oberpfalz. |
| Program for the 1. Action Day of “Dance4help” on September 29, 2007 at the Evangelische Vereinshaus
10.30 Welcome by mayor Kurt Seggewiß and first chair woman Dorothea Deubzer
10.45 Dr. Angerer “new MS therapies” (head of neurology, clinic Weiden)
11.30 Trial course dance therapy
12.0 Performance Rueda (dance school Rueda (dance school Vézard,
www.tanzfactory.de )
12.15 Trial course LineDance, Salsa/Bachata, Sambafox)
13.00 Dr Hieber “nature medicine from a doctors point of view”
13.45 Trial course Sitztanz (dance while sitting)
14.30 Trial course QiGong (QiGong teacher Manfred Spiske, Taiji and QiGong school
Bayreuth) www.chi-bayreuth.de
15.15 Performance ??
15.30 Nurse practitioner Winterl “alternative treatment methods for MS and other
autoimmune diseases” www.elke-winterl.de
16.00 Trial course “drum magic – nurturing your soul through drum rythms and
power songs” (Daniela Kurz)
16.30 Perfomance of “Oriental Dance” (the group Eshta)
16.45 Trial course oriental dance (Konstanze Lindner)
17.30 Benefit concert “das Ballhausorchester” www.das-ballhausorchester.de
Moderator for the day: Harald Rippl
Throughout the day a MS touch area, maybe a wheelchair obstacle run and info stands of
-DMSG (German MS society) and people with MS from the self-help group
“Regenbogen” ( www.dmsg.de www.ms-regenbogen-opf.de )
-physiotherapy and rehabilitation practices
-nurse practitioners
-pharmacies
-medical supply stores
-“redesign for handicapped”- apartments, house, car etc.
-healing stones
Exhibitions of creative works, created by people with MS and other autoimmune diseases.
The end of the informational part will be around 6 pm and the stands will start to pack up at that time too.
Admission is free.
8pm dance party
Different types of dance categories (classic, Latin-American, etc.)
Open buffet
Large dance competition “the best waltzing couple of Weiden”
Several performances of regional dance groups
Tickets 4 Euros, 5 Euros at the dance. |
| September 15, 2007
Grafenwöhr/Hohenfels – After the recent arrest of three terror suspects in Oberschledorn the security measures were not elevated according to the newspaper “Der Neue Tag”. According to the spokesperson of the police district Niederbayern/ Oberpfalz Thomas Plößl the police is in constant close contact with the US authorities….Who would have thought you could make a bomb with disinfectant?! Actually, if you would like to read more about the plot check out http://www.stratfor.com/products/premium/read_article.php?id=295036 …it goes into some detail |
| | | Wiesau/Marktredwitz- the mayor of Wiesau, Toni Dutz, repeated there is a need of two more VoTech colleges in Wiesau and Marktredwitz in an interview with Radio Ramasuri. He pointed out the synergy effects (huh?) of both places in a letter to the minister of cultural affairs Siegfried Schneider. A poll at the already existing schools brought in the necessary requirement in numbers of students (=there is enough interest in more schools). In Wiesau business academics could be added on to the vocational school and in Marktredwitz technical academics are planned. |
| | | Amberg/Sulzbach – Thieves stole 35 trash cans along the Autobahn A6 (what?!) The plastic 240-liter cans were set up along the rest areas “Laubenschlag” and “Oberpfälzer Alb” in both directions. Because the theft occurred during all of the day and night times the police department Amberg is hoping for information from witnesses. The damage is about 2500 Euros. Hmm, lets see….35 trash cans ….I have no clue what you would do with that…do you? |
| | | Plössberg - Fire in a biogas installation became tricky business for the fire department…not to mention the fact…doesn’t that smell like 500 skunks having a nervous breakdown?? Or is that the gas that doesn’t stink? But luckily nobody got hurt…or sick?? The police department is investigating. |
| | Ermdorf-Soon you can visit excavations at Ermhof near Sulzbach-Rosenberg. It turns out they found the remains of probably the oldest church in all of the Oberpfalz dating back to the 7th or 8th century….I faintly remember that….Over the winter the excavation site is being covered up and secured and next spring the construction of the documentation site Ermhof will get on the way. Already, today there are thousands of pilgrims to the early historic site.
Tirschenreuth-The renovation of the market square in Tirschenreuth is ready to start. Mayor Franz Stahl dug the official first hole. Next to the new landscaping the pavement and drainage is being renewed. The new market square is supposed to be finished by November 2008…unlike that Frankfurt airport…maybe we should take that hint from our terrorist suspects and we should blow it up and start from scratch. Don’t tell them, but I think I’ll use the Munich airport next time!!!
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| | Altenstadt -In a collision with a wild boar on A93 near Altenstadt two people got slightly injured. A 49-year-old woman was going in the direction of Hof when the animal ran across the road and into her car. Four more cars couldn’t avoid the pig and ran over it also. The damage was 6500 Euros (I do have the Euro symbol on my computer somewhere, I think, I wish I could find it!)…I never would have imagined a wild boar would be worth that much! I wonder who got to keep it afterward, hmm.
Ok, this is a little crazy and I would categorize it under “hmm, we don’t really need this, but lets give it a name anyways” – the “Goldsteig” (gold path) and the “Erzweg” (ore trail) received the seal of approval to be a “quality trail of hikable Germany” (yeah). The Goldsteig is about 660 km long from Marktredwitz to Passau and is therefore the longest mapped hiking trail of Germany (it pales in comparison with the Appalachian Trail, I think…hike that) The “Erzweg” runs from Sulzbach-Rosenberg to Pegnitz. Criteria for the selection are trail constitution, nature quality, cultural quality and the signage (the most important criteria, don’t you think?)
Waldershof - Embroidery isn’t just for women. Manfred Harrer is proof of that. He has been running his business in Waldershof for the last 27 years. He is doing orders for several clubs and soldiers in Kabul are also part of his regular clientele. As everywhere though it is hard for his small business to compete with the large businesses which is why their talent decides whether they stay in business….I wonder if they do any hand embroidery? |
| | | Amberg - Watch out for crossing emus in Amberg…you know, those ostrich-like birds! Five of them escaped there and they have last been seen around Neumühle. The owner of the birds hasn’t been able to catch them yet…I wonder how you catch them birds? It probably takes more than a butterfly net |
| | Munich-According to the industry report 2006 the Oberpfalz is continuing her upward trend in the industry…really? By the end of last year the industry in the Oberpfalz has 1.1% more employed. Especially structurally weaker areas has positive results. The county of Amberg-Sulzbach had 144 more jobs, Amberg 193, Neustadt/WN 77 and Tirschenreuth county 39 more jobs,….but…in Weiden and county of Schwandorf the job numbers in the industry went down.
Weiden- you don’t have to know how to draw to be an artist. Christa Thiems is using her computer to create pictures for eleven years. Since she got diagnosed with MS she is using photos she took before in her pictures, photos she took on her travels on bike through Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. Her computer paintings have already been on display in several Bavarian cities, as Irene Kassubek underlined during a vernissage at the City Gallery at the Old School House (Städtische Galerie im Alten Schulhaus). A few of her pictures even traveled to an exhibition to Albano in Italy. In part the expositions took place in connection with the art forum of the German MS association.
Maria Weber on the other hand already showed her works of art as part of exhibitions for the Weiden art association (Kunstverein Weiden). They are as diverse as the materials she uses. Next to “snowflakes” she uses felt, clay and metal.
At the City Gallery you can see her felt-people that introduce centuries old textile techniques “techniques that never need modernizing” as Irene Kassubek points out. She said a special thanks to the lady of the house Petra Vorsatz, who provided the space for the exhibition (She is such a nice lady, I met her at Ingrid’s birthday party , ok, not me but my Mom)…Maria Weber also uses her techniques for therapeutic reasons: the handling of sheep’s’ wool has a calming effect; it will stimulate inspiration and creativity. (I think a sheep would stimulate my inspiration too…..Bubba stop that!) You can have a look at the art pieces until September 29. Opening hours are Monday-Friday, 9-12 and 2 pm – 4.30 pm. Saturday and Sunday from 11-5pm. |
| | | Weiden/Neustadt -Recycling just got easier. No more piles of paper everywhere because now you can order the blue container (240 liters or 1100 liters) free to collect your paper in…and it will be picked up at your house. Every tenth order wins a gift certificate for a premium car wash. Orders will be accepted at phone: 09605/92020 or at www.bergler.de or www.die-blaue-tonne.de |
| | | Weiden-The International Ceramics Museum will present a new guest object on September 23 at 11 o’clock from the Egyptian Museum in Munich. The relief block of a desert lion from the Nubian Kingdom Meroe (310 b.c to 350 a.d.) will be introduced with a color slideshow and a festive exposure. Admission is free |
| | | Weiden-And some more creative stuff! The Maria-Seltman-Haus (local senior center, but really offer interesting stuff here! I am kind of a senior citizen? Can I come too?) Anyways, starting September 19 they’ll offer two wood carving courses in cooperation with the local community college. Participants will be introduced to simple figurine carving (simple? What’s advanced?) The goal is to carve a nativity set. Course leader Karl-Heinz Hilgenfeld will work with you if you’d like to carve something else (how about carving a turkey? ) the classes for beginners and advanced carvers start at 3.30pm and 6.30pm and will take place at the Albert-Schweitzer-School. Fee is 33 Euros and to register call 0961/381091-1. That sounds like fun, I would do that. |
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