Personalized License Plates

Michael Surely you've noticed that in the USA there are cars with strange license plates. Normally, it's a number, three letters, and then three more numbers (e.g., "2ZAP438"), and unlike in Germany, it doesn't indicate which city the car is from. Instead, only the design and color of the license plate show which state the car is registered in. In California, it says "California," in Oregon, there are forests depicted. Additionally, each state has a slogan: Arizona -- Sunshine State. Hawaii -- Aloha State. Oregon -- where it rains all year long. Haha. Just kidding. But: Some license plates don't have the usual number-letter combinations, but simply read "CLINTON" or "ARNOLD" or "YEAH." It works like this: Just as you can get the license plate "M-AX 1964" in Munich by paying a fee to the vehicle registration office, in America, you can get any (I emphasize: any!) license plate for your car. This costs, depending on the design, between 20 and 30 dollars a year, which goes to a charitable cause. Now, I've always wanted to be the "PERL MAN," yes, in fact, Angelika once gave me a fake license plate with this inscription as a gift -- so I asked myself: Why not for real?

I went to the website of the California DMV and checked -- indeed, it was still available. You can also print out a registration form online, which you then send by mail to the central DMV office in Sacramento, California, and barely four weeks later, you receive a notification in the mailbox that you can pick up the license plate from a DMV office. I scheduled an appointment by phone, as I already knew that there is usually a long wait otherwise. This is done with an automated system, where you instruct a computer on the other end to find an appointment. You then receive a confirmation number, which you use to show up at the DMV office at the suggested time. The man at the counter almost burst out laughing when he opened the envelope with my new license plates, which had "PERL MAN" written in large letters. He asked if it referred to the rock band "PEARL JAM," and I explained to him that it was a reference to a programming language.

I also received a new vehicle registration certificate -- everything must be in order -- and went outside to attach the new license plates to the car with a screwdriver I had brought with me. Since then, I am the "PERL MAN." Everyone at Netscape knows who's coming. But there are others: The head of the computer maintenance department at Netscape, who has been around for a while and has earned quite well, drives a Porsche Carrera (which costs about $80,000 here) with the license plate "THX AOL" ("Thanks, AOL"). A former colleague of mine is a specialist in the Java programming language and drives around in his BMW M3 with "MMM JAVA" on the plate. Yes, you have to have fun. If you want to find out which license plates are still available in California, just check out http://plates.ca.gov/search . You'll see -- "PERL MAN" is gone, you were too late!

A New Kind Of Calendar

Michael Recently, I attended a full-day course on time management at Netscape, which I had signed up for. The company "Franklin/Covey" offers courses where you learn how to use their calendar system. You learn how to manage your time effectively, prioritize tasks, and distinguish between important and unimportant matters to achieve more in less time. It was an impressive presentation.

Typically American, the course was not just some boring lecture but was filled with, yes, I would even say, moving moments. For instance, when the instructor asked us to anonymously write on small cards what we would do if we had more time. Later, after we had almost forgotten about the collected cards, she played a video that illustrated how short life is and how important it is to focus on the important things. When the video ended, the screen went dark, but the music continued, and she began reading the contents of the cards. There were things like "If I had more time, I would climb Half Dome in Yosemite Park." "If I had more time, I would create the most visited website in the world." "If I had more time, I would travel all over Europe with my family." "If I had more time, I would write a science fiction novel." One of the cards was, of course, mine, and you can guess which one. Anyway -- I was moved.

And I liked the calendar so much that since then, I've been running around with a planner larger than A5, writing everything, yes, everything in it. It's really clever, this thing; I actually accomplish more now and forget nothing because everything is in the calendar. The essential point is that you don't separate personal events from business ones, so a wedding anniversary or a birthday gift is just as important as professional matters. For those interested: You can order the stuff at http://www.franklincovey.com , it's not exactly cheap, but very well made. Of course, it's only suitable for people with self-discipline who don't shy away from sitting down at midnight to check off the task list of the past day and go through the tasks for the next day, as well as creating a weekly plan with the most important goals once a week. Angelika also jumped on the bandwagon and is demanding the same calendar, which is only available in a specific store in San Francisco. Unfortunately, she hasn't yet added this task to a corresponding list due to the lack of a calendar system, so this project is still awaiting completion, but she's working on it... (Note from the newsletter editorial team: On Angelika's birthday on March 2nd, a small calendar was on the gift table...).

Crazy About Sneakers

Michael I am known for only wearing sneakers these days. Of course, not just any cheap shoes from the supermarket, but top high-tech sneakers from Mizuno. Forget Adidas. Forget Nike. Forget Reebok. I hereby declare the "Mizuno Waverider" as the shoe of the season. Of the year. Maybe even of the decade. I need to elaborate a bit on my sneaker obsession. Here in America, everyone wears sneakers, from teenagers to the elderly, it's completely normal. And if you work in the software industry, sneakers are more than just footwear. If you're a programmer, you wear sneakers. Period. If you work in sales or marketing, you don't. Just like in Germany, where people distinguish between those who wear ties and those who don't. The latest insider term, by the way, is "Marketroid" for marketing people, a mix of marketing person and "android," meaning robot. Just a side note.

Back to the sneakers: More than a year ago, I bought a pair of "Mizuno Waverider" and was absolutely thrilled. Sneakers have a life cycle of about twelve months for me, so I recently set out to buy a new pair as the old ones were slowly reaching the stage of decay. But, oh dear! The darn sneaker chain "Footlocker," which usually offers a pretty good selection, simply didn't carry the model anymore. So I desperately tried to remember which branch of the shoe giant I had bought the pair from back then. And then it hit me: at the Valley Fair Shopping Center in San Jose, where we shopped with Sylvia and Richard at the time. One weekend, when we were once again hanging around the South Bay, we drove past this shopping center, and I persuaded Angelika to take a look inside -- and lo and behold: there was still a small "Footlocker" that even had a pair of "Waveriders" in stock. Eagerly, I asked the salesperson if they had a pair in my size 10 1/2 (size 44 in German standards), and he disappeared into the stockroom, shortly returning with just such a pair. Even though I had arrived in "Mizuno Waverider" sneakers of the same size, I quickly tried on the new ones, and, behold, they fit just like the old ones. I was thrilled. Cautiously, I asked the young salesperson if he also had a second pair in the same size. Again, he briefly disappeared into the stockroom and brought out a second pair. I rejoiced. He asked if this was the best sneaker model of my life, and I said "yes." The joy was certainly great, and I think the salesperson was allowed to take the rest of the afternoon off. I thought I heard champagne corks popping in the stockroom as we left the store. By the way, my new Perl book will have a small Mizuno logo on the cover with the note "Written in Mizuno Shoes." Oh yes. Well, you believe anything.

Schafkopf in the Valley

Michael I had already told you about my colleague Dieter, who lives in Santa Cruz and also works at Netscape -- you know, the one with the Bavarian flag in his cubicle. It turns out that Dieter also knows Christian, who came from Bavaria to the USA with Siemens and now works at Netscape. Among the two thousand employees at Netscape, there are, believe it or not, three Germans. We all met for lunch at a Mexican burrito place, and it turned out that Christian also studied at the Technical University of Munich and often played cards in the cafeteria during his studies (he studied almost at the same time as I did) -- which your dear narrator, ahem, also loved to do. So we planned to find a fourth Bavarian, Ernst from Siemens, and persuade him to play Schafkopf in Silicon Valley. A pub was immediately chosen: "Hardy's Bavaria" in Sunnyvale, where a Bavarian is the host and, according to insider circles, you are allowed to play cards -- possibly the only pub in all of America where that's possible.

For three weeks, emails went back and forth, and there was always someone who couldn't make it. Then finally, on a Monday, suddenly everyone was available. Only problem: "Hardy's Bavaria" is closed on Mondays! So we played at Christian's house in Cupertino. For those of you in the know: Sauspiel 10 cents, Solo 25, runner in Solo from three, in Wenz from two, everyone can double up, no color Wenz, with stock if no one plays, shot takes over. A successful evening... and now Christian has set up the mailing list schafkopf@netscape.com at Netscape, where it's decided when the next game round will take place.

So, if you're ever in the area and know how to play Schafkopf, sign up. I can only say that I play as well as ever, and I was able to keep up with the skilled card players who even counted points and (!) trumps, even though I still play "by feel." There's nothing like a six-year intensive college training! An American colleague at Netscape recently asked me how long it takes to become a reasonably good Schafkopf player, and after some thought, I replied that it would take seven or eight years of continuous training. Indignantly, he turned away! No patience, these people. But honestly, it's really true. You learn the rules faster, of course, but to actually win, it takes more. Much more. Oh, yes. Ha! I can tell you...

Internet Connection in the Space Age

Electric toothbrush

Michael And here's some more exciting news. You've all been waiting for this. Sit down. Here it comes: We bought a new electric toothbrush. "Oh my, oh my," you might say now, but it really is exciting: The company "Sonicare" manufactures an electric toothbrush that moves its brush head so quickly that it creates ultrasonic waves. I bought it right away at Costco, only a hundred dollars! Brush your teeth with it for two minutes and you'll feel like you've just come from the dentist, who treated you with that thing that always goes "eee-eee-eee." I keep licking my teeth all day, it's that good. Buy it immediately! More information is available at http://www.sonicare.com .

New Year's Eve 2000

Angelika Enough with the commercial chatter! Here comes Angelika: Surely you've already heard that San Francisco was also spared from the predicted catastrophes and entered the new millennium well (including the narrators). Due to the astronomical prices everywhere and the announced crowds, Michael and I stayed at home for our traditional fondue in cozy togetherness. It was lovely! At midnight, we could watch the gigantic fireworks from our window (with the music "I Lost My Heart in San Francisco" playing in the background, of course). The whole city was glowing.

It's pretty clear that we can never move out of our apartment because the view from our window is simply priceless. It was also funny when, at 11 PM, our Mexican neighbor rang the doorbell with his daughter and a canister of tequila in tow to toast with us. He had smuggled the plastic container in his suitcase from Mexico, where he was on a home vacation with his family. Michael was initially worried about going blind from the moonshine, but -- as you can see -- we survived the wonderfully smooth tequila just fine. On New Year's Day, Michael was on call for AOL in the morning, meaning he had to be reachable by phone to log into the company via our home computer in case any Y2K problems would arise. But, surprise, surprise, nothing happened, and no one needed the top hacker. As compensation, there was an extra day off, which we will use in March for a long weekend. Hooray!

Regarding New Year's Eve: The New Year's Eve surprise package was won by Martin Weishaupt. He managed to solve the November quiz question, "How do you say 'thank you' in Tahitian?" Many of you guessed "merci" because Tahitians speak French as an official language -- but we were looking for the expression in the native language: it's "mauruuru," as you can find out with a quick internet search. We warmly congratulate the lucky winner!

Photo News

Angelika As part of one of my courses at Berkeley University, an exhibition took place again in January and February: Two of my photos were hanging on the wall. This time, they were cleverly arranged black-and-white self-portraits that showed some skin without revealing too much. I found it highly amusing, and of course, I won't spoil the fun by providing photos. That would be going too far!

Mayoral Elections And Same-Sex Marriage

Angelika Because today I particularly want to focus on political topics: The mayor of San Francisco will continue to be Willie Brown -- challenger Tom Ammiano lost the runoff election on December 14th (see November newsletter). I find that very unfortunate. I would have preferred Tom Ammiano as mayor. It's a real pity when you aren't allowed to vote yourself. That's when you realize what a privilege it is to be able to vote. I have long been in favor of allowing foreigners who live in a particular country for an extended period to vote, at least on a local level. And I don't mean this just in relation to the USA, but quite generally. I am also firmly convinced that elections in the USA would turn out completely differently if all Green Card holders (American permanent work and residence permits) were allowed to vote (just a quick reminder: even in the USA, only American citizens are allowed to vote).

But that's just a side note. Back to Tom Ammiano: It is suspected that he couldn't succeed in the election because, for many voters, it was too much that he openly acknowledged his homosexuality. It's like saying: We are liberal, but a homosexual mayor is a bit too much. I'm not sure if that's true, because San Francisco is known as the stronghold of the homosexual movement, and Tom Ammiano already holds a high political office in the city council, which he continues to hold. On the other hand, unfortunately, one hears and reads more frequently about discriminatory attacks against homosexuals lately. Especially the American political right (and I'm not referring to right-wing extremists here), which is strongly supported by various American churches, has declared war on the homosexual movement. In my opinion, this is because conservatives feel extremely threatened as homosexuals suddenly demand the right to marriage and family. For years, the homosexual movement in San Francisco and elsewhere was more about being tolerated and accepted--but also distinguishing themselves from the bourgeois society. Nowadays, more and more same-sex couples want to marry or have decided to have children through adoption or artificial insemination, meaning they want to start normal families.

In this light, the so-called "Knight Initiative" should also be seen. As you may know, a new president will be elected in America this year. Therefore, primaries are currently taking place in various states. On March 7, it's California's turn. This date is not only used for the primaries but also to vote on so-called "propositions" (comparable to referendums). Propositions are numbered for brevity, and you see signs everywhere promoting "No on 5" and "Yes on 42." The Knight Initiative ("Proposition 22") was introduced by a senator named Knight. Knight wants voters to support the inclusion of the following sentence in California's law books: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

Now, it must be noted that neither in California nor in any other American state is same-sex marriage currently legalized, meaning the statement is actually redundant. Therefore, critics believe that there are two entirely different motives behind the Knight Initiative. Firstly, there is a concern that other states might legalize same-sex marriage in the near future (this could indeed happen in the state of Vermont), and then California would be obliged, under current law, to recognize a marriage between two homosexuals, for example, one that was conducted in Vermont. Hence, the idea of the Knight Initiative is to explicitly state once again that only a marriage between a woman and a man is valid in California. Secondly, many fear that the Knight Initiative aims to undermine, so to speak, the achievements that same-sex couples have in most cities in California even without a state marriage, such as the ability to adopt children, or for the same-sex partner to be considered like a married spouse for health insurance (a common practice in all Silicon Valley companies and in San Francisco), as well as visitation rights in hospitals, meaning being regarded as a family member, etc. Incidentally, Knight himself has a son who openly acknowledges his homosexuality and publicly opposes his father's initiative. This raises the suspicion that the father cannot cope with the fact that his own son is homosexual. It's all very sad. The Knight Initiative is also heavily financially supported by the Mormon Church (among others), which is known to be very wealthy in the USA. Money plays a crucial role in getting referendums passed. This financial involvement can indeed have consequences, as churches are largely exempt from taxes. They are not allowed to actively finance political initiatives with their church funds. But that's just an aside. One can only hope that California voters will vote against the Knight Initiative. We will let you know in our next newsletter. (Editor's note: Shortly before the newsletter went to press, voters voted 60% in favor and 40% against the proposal. The sentence will therefore be included in the legal text.)

Presidential Elections

Benetton and the death penalty

Angelika Currently, the advertising campaign of Italian textile company Benetton is a hot topic here. Benetton is known for shocking the world with extraordinary and provocative advertising campaigns. This time, photos of death row inmates in U.S. prisons are making their way around the globe. Benetton aims to draw attention to the issue of the death penalty in the United States. The focus is not on whether the inmates might be innocent, but on the general question of whether a state has the right to use death as a form of punishment. The prosecutor's office in the state of Missouri has already filed a lawsuit against Benetton, and the American department store chain "Sears" has decided to stop offering Benetton clothing in its stores.

I just hope that Benetton remains steadfast. Anyone who wants to view the photos can find them at www.benetton.com. Here, too, reference is made once again to the election campaign. No presidential candidate can "afford" to be against the death penalty if they want to win. George Bush, the Republican presidential candidate and governor (similar to our German Ministerpräsident) of the state of Texas, recently rejected the clemency request of a woman over 60, whose death sentence was therefore carried out. It really felt like he was using that for his campaign. By the way, Texas is also the state with the most executions in 1999. A very macabre and sad first place, although Bush certainly sees it differently. It really makes you anxious and worried when you consider that he is very likely to become the next President of the USA.

Who Wants To Marry a Millionaire?

Angelika And then we were allowed to witness the pinnacle of tastelessness on American television. However, this will certainly not prevent German broadcasters from producing a similar show for the German market, since every American show has always been copied, no matter how bad it may be. The show was titled "Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?" and was broadcast by the American network Fox. Fifty women competed against each other. The prize was to marry the super-rich bachelor in front of the camera. One of the rules is that none of the women are allowed to have met or even seen this potential husband beforehand. The final round is, so to speak, the highlight of the show. This is when the identity of the multi-millionaire is revealed for the first time, as he appears on stage and proposes to the woman he likes best among the finalists. And then, of course, they get married right there on the spot. It's legally binding, as the show takes place in the state of Nevada (where Las Vegas is), where such things are possible.

I emphasize once again: The woman only knows that the man has money. Game rounds include, for example, women parading on stage in bikinis while Mr. Multimillionaire awards points. Family members and friends are also allowed to give points. In hindsight, the whole thing might not have turned out to be such a brilliant idea after all. The ratings were huge, but Mr. Multimillionaire had already faced a lawsuit for beating up one of his girlfriends. His wealth is also smaller than stated. It seems the network didn't do its homework properly. The marriage will definitely be annulled. The American media were on cloud nine, as they could report on this event for days. In the end, the jilted bride agreed to do an interview with "Good Morning America." And she actually said that she only participated to get a paid vacation (she meant the honeymoon). How stupid can one be? And was the show's title perhaps: "How to Train to Be a Prostitute?" For those interested in the story: A rich selection of "links" leading to reports from various news agencies can be found at http://pw1.netcom.com/~warnerwa/rockwell.html .

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