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| Angelika/Mike Schilli |
Angelika The traditional German company AEG goes bankrupt. In the spring, Steffi Graf's father is charged with tax evasion. Germany wins the European Football Championship in England. The Olympic Games take place in the US metropolis of Atlanta and are overshadowed by a bombing attack. In July, the German spelling reform is adopted in Vienna. In response to the invasion of Iraqi troops into the Kurdish protection zone, the USA launches a military strike in September. In November, Bill Clinton is re-elected as US President for another four years. A new store hour law comes into effect in Germany: stores can open their doors to customers from Monday to Friday until 8 PM and on Saturday until 4 PM. Deutsche Telekom AG goes public. In August, we get married. Michael's book "Effective Programming with Perl 5" is published. Michael flies to San Francisco on November 9th and starts working as a software developer at the startup company "Black Sun Interactive." Angelika organizes the move. On December 9th, the wooden crate is packed for the shipping container routed to America. On December 23rd, the moving company picks up the remaining items for storage. There is freezing rain in Munich at the time. Michael finds an apartment in the Noe Valley neighborhood. On December 30th, Angelika lands in San Francisco.
Angelika In February, the controversial exhibition on the crimes of the Wehrmacht opens its doors. In May, a part of the famous Amber Room is found in Bremen. The summer brings the German cyclist Jan Ullrich the Tour de France victory. Munich actor Helmut Fischer ("Monaco Franze") dies at the age of 70 in Munich. The former head of state of the GDR, Egon Krenz, is sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison. In September, the Bundestag decides on the reform of child law to largely equalize the rights of legitimate and illegitimate children. Roy Lichtenstein, one of the greatest pop art artists, dies in New York. In October, Siemens celebrates its 150th anniversary, and the German Bundestag passes the pension reform. Angelika attends English classes at City College. The moving boxes arrive in San Francisco. Angelika fails the practical California driving test on her first attempt, but succeeds on the second try. In September, Angelika starts as a volunteer at the Tenderloin Childcare Center. Michael switches to AOL as Black Sun completely closes its office in San Francisco. Angelika enrolls in her first photography course. Michael writes the first edition of the "Perl-Snapshot," a column that continues to run monthly in the Linux Magazine to this day.
Angelika The currency union comes into effect: In Germany and other EU countries, people will now be paying in euros. In February, the American Senate acquits US President Bill Clinton of the charges of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Monica Lewinsky affair. In April, the Bundestag holds its opening session in the renovated Reichstag in Berlin. Two teenagers from Columbine High School in Littleton near Denver enter their school with guns and kill 12 students and a teacher. In the summer, Steffi Graf retires from professional tennis. Germany is once again governed from Berlin, 10 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The autumn brings Günter Grass the Nobel Prize for Literature. The year 1999 ends, and the feared Y2K computer problem does not occur. Angelika completes earthquake training. We buy our car, "Perlman." Michael runs for the first time the "Bay-to-Breakers" city race. Angelika starts working as an assistant in the darkroom at UC Berkeley Extension.
At the beginning of the year, the CDU donation scandal involving Helmut Kohl and their hidden accounts is in full swing. In February, "Snoopy" and "Peanuts" creator Charles M. Schulz dies in California. American researchers completely decode the human genome. In May, the World Expo "Man-Nature-Technology - a new world is emerging" opens its doors in Hanover. In the summer, agreements for the compensation of Nazi forced laborers are signed. Germany introduces a new work visa, called Green Card. November brings the world an unprecedented US election thriller. Only after more than a month and some legal wrangling over which votes can be counted, when, how, and how often, is the new American president determined: George W. Bush defeats Democrat Al Gore. Meanwhile, Friedrich Merz debates the German leading culture. The first cow tests positive for BSE on German soil. Our visa needs to be extended.
Angelika In 2001, for the first time in the history of the Bundeswehr, women can join armed troups. In April, the first tourist flies into space: American Dennis Tito spends 20 million dollars on the experience. In June, representatives of the federal government and the energy industry agree on the gradual phase-out of nuclear energy. The so-called same-sex marriage law comes into effect in Germany. The Jewish Museum in Berlin opens ceremoniously. On September 11, the USA experiences the worst terrorist attacks. Terrorists fly two planes into the World Trade Center in New York. The towers subsequently collapse, killing 3,000 people. Another hijacked plane is directed at the Pentagon. The fourth crashes near Pittsburgh. Osama Bin Laden is considered to be the mastermind behind the attacks. Shortly thereafter, letters contaminated with anthrax spores appear in the USA. Several people die from inhalation of anthrax. In October, the first American airstrikes on Afghanistan occur. Bin Laden's terrorist organization is to be dismantled. In November, Gerhard Schröder calls for a vote of confidence and ties it to the vote on the Bundeswehr's participation in the anti-terror campaign. In December, the lowest temperature since the beginning of weather records in Germany is measured at Funtensee in the Berchtesgaden National Park, -45.9 Celsius. Michael visits Germany for the first time in over four years. Angelika has a photo exhibition with her photography group at the San Francisco City Hall. We start learning Japanese. Michael runs the San Francisco Marathon.
At the beginning of the year, the Euro replaces the familiar Deutsche Mark as cash. In Cuba, the USA establishes a detention camp called Guantanamo Bay for Taliban and Al-Qaeda terrorists. In February, Salt Lake City in the US state of Utah welcomes athletes from around the world to the Winter Olympics and tries to shed its image as a conservative Mormon city. In April, a 19-year-old former student of the Gutenberg Gymnasium in Erfurt kills 17 people in a school shooting. At the FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea, the German team makes it to the finals but then loses to Brazil. August brings a once-in-a-century flood on the river Elbe, causing significant damage in eastern Germany. Chancellor Schröder manages to defend his chancellorship in the fall, although the SPD and the Greens win with only a slim majority. In Washington and the surrounding area, the sniper John Allen Williams keeps the population on edge, randomly shooting people from his car. In November, Germany mourns the death of Spiegel publisher Rudolf Augstein. At the end of the year, it is announced that former US President Jimmy Carter receives the Nobel Peace Prize. In April, we receive the American Green Card. We discover Japan in May. Starting in September, Angelika works as a substitute at the Tenderloin Childcare Center and no longer as a volunteer.
Angelika In January, the doctor's visit copayment is introduced in Germany. Patients must now pay 10 Euros per quarter when visiting a doctor. An American probe lands on Mars and sends the first images back to Earth. In the spring, photos circulate worldwide showing American soldiers torturing prisoners in the Iraqi prison Abu Ghraib. In May, Germany elects a new Bundespräsident. His name is Horst Köhler. In California, former US President Ronald Reagan succumbs to severe Alzheimer's disease. In October, Opel's parent company General Motors announces plans to cut 12,000 jobs, most of them in Germany. In November, Democrat John Kerry loses the presidential election, and George W. Bush remains in office for another four years. In the summer, we move one street corner away to a two bedroom apartment. Michael resigns from AOL on September 1, 2004, and starts at Yahoo! on September 27.
Angelika Former Bundespräsident Johannes Rau dies at the age of 75. In February, the bird flu virus H5N1 is detected in dead swans on the island of Rügen. In March, Bavaria is buried in snow. Due to his involvement in the September 11 attacks, Zacarias Massaoui is sentenced to life in prison in the USA in May. The new Central Station opens in Berlin. During the celebrations, a 16-year-old stabs 41 people. The bear Bruno causes a stir. He is the first wild bear on German soil in 170 years and is later shot. In June, it's "A Time to Make Friends": The FIFA World Cup takes place in Germany. The German soccer team, led by coach Klinsmann, achieves third place, and the host country presents itself to the world with charm. In the summer, Joschka Fischer ends his long political career, and Rudi Carrell dies from the effects of cancer. Germany narrowly avoids two terrorist attacks: two bombs hidden in suitcases on regional trains do not detonate. In August, Ulrich Wickert leaves the "Tagesthemen" after 15 years. In the fall, the Bild newspaper publishes photos of Bundeswehr soldiers posing with human bones. In the US congressional and Senate elections in November, Democrats regain control of both houses. Schwarzenegger is re-elected in California. Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman to hold the position of Speaker of the House of Representatives. US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld resigns a day after the election. In Germany, bribery payments at Siemens come to light. In May, we travel to the northernmost state of the USA: Alaska. In December, it's Utah's turn. At the end of the year, Angelika leaves the Tenderloin Childcare Center after 9 years and moves to an early intervention facility to work with an autistic child in an Asian neighborhood of San Francisco. The second decade of what was originally planned as our one-year stay abroad has begun.
To our loyal readership, we wish a merry Christmas from the bottom of our hearts!
Angelika and Michael
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