TQE | That Queer Expatriate Expatriate, not ex-patriot: I'm a progressive liberal and queer American in Berlin, Germany. My roots in include 18 years in Denver, 6 in Laramie, Wyoming, 6 in Bloomington, Indiana, and 6 in Weimar, Germany. Sense a pattern? Don't want to leave a comment on this blog? Email scintillatingme at gmail.com, username "elmadaeu"
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It’s Harvey Milk Street!
I’m currently in San Diego – here to see some ex-expatriates who used to live in Berlin – but also to have me time.
Indiana is always a minefield for me – a good minefield, but a minefield nevertheless. Despite having moved away from Bloomington some 8 years ago, I [...]
Earlier this week I learned that Pret A Diner, a pop-up restaurant, would be opening at the end of the week. As a subscriber to a newsletter, I was invited to join opening night, or, using the same special email address, priority access to reservations over the rest of their six week run.
After agreeing [...]
I have an American credit card that I use for making large purchases as my US credit limit is far greater than my German credit limit.
Tonight I was looking at my current statement, the design of which has been altered, probably to comply with new US laws. At least I assume US law has [...]
Greetings from the 'hood!
This morning my sister and I got up early and headed out to go shopping—it’s nicknamed “Black Friday” because it’s the day that merchants in America go from losing money to making money—at least that’s what the newspapers say.
I call it Black Friday because that describes the light when [...]
I have to give the VR Bank Weimar eG credit—they’ve got chutzpah.
Just over a week after I discovered that they had cut my credit limit to 500€ a month because their payment cycle happened too fast for one of my reimbursements and I, briefly, had a negative balance, they sent me a letter SHOUTING [...]
Today I finally got my new Mastercard.
It only took four weeks after they promised me a new one in two weeks.
It’s good to be in the plastic again, and tomorrow I’m going to Leipzig to go dancing! It’s time to celebrate, even though in a week I’ll be in Berlin: dancing, partying, and [...]
Letters Home is currently one of the best German expat blogs out there; and he recently flattered me.
Ian in Hamburg said I was going for a niche, particularly the “gay expatriate” corner of the blogging world.
Strange because I’ve felt that my blog’s readership would be greater if I picked one thing to focus [...]
The Miserable Dienstleistung of my German Bank has forced my hand on a number of fronts—like curbing my wanderlust this weekend.
I now know that it takes only 3 weeks before my urge to go kicks in and I want to go, but thanks to the Miserable Dienstleistung, I’ve had to use my American card [...]
Here’s a place where American banking services are better: credit cards.
It was on 11 January that my bank, the VR Bank Weimar eG, sent me the letter informing me that my credit card details were stolen and that my card would be frozen, that I should destroy my old card, and that a new [...]
I visited the bank today, and it seems that it wasn’t just my credit card information that was stolen, but rather a database was stolen that contained the credit card information for a number of my bank’s customers.
Had they included that information in the letter, I wouldn’t have panicked.
My new card should be [...]
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