Tag Archives: mattresses

Hessen, Purchases

What a difference a new mattress makes!

After I did my blog writing yesterday, I was sitting in my steamy office pouring sweat, rather impatiently waiting for our new mattress and air conditioner to be delivered in two different shipments. I had moved the old air conditioner to the bedroom, until the new one got to us. I have since moved that AC back into the office, so my sweaty days are over, for now.

The mattress arrived first. I had already completely stripped the bed by 1:00 PM, when the two guys arrived with our new bedding. We were expecting to have to schlep it up the stairs, but the delivery guys kindly did that for us.

Once the new mattress arrived, Bill and I wrangled the old mattress off the bed, cursing the fact that, for some reason, it didn’t have handles on the sides. We pushed the old mattress into the hallway, and then while Bill unwrapped the new one from its plastic, I vacuumed up all of the dust, dirt, hair, and trash that was under the bed since we moved in back in 2018. It was pretty gross, though not quite as gross as it was when we moved out of Jettingen in late 2018.

We put the new mattress on the bed, and worked up a sweat putting the cover, foam topper, and feather bed on it, then the sheets and duvets. I sat down on it and was immediately impressed by how much better the new mattress is. For one thing, there’s no “hill” in the middle of it! We do have the old box springs, but that’s okay for now. We’ll check back again to see if they get any in at AAFES so we can replace those, too.

About an hour later, the new AC showed up. We did have to haul that upstairs, and it wasn’t easy. But, we managed to get it into our bedroom, and Bill set it up quickly. It’s much quieter than our old one, and does a good job keeping the room cool while we sleep.

This morning, Bill was noticeably well rested and in a good mood. It occurred to me that once you get to our ages, things like mattress replacement should be a priority. Good rest is essential for good health, and better work. I did wake up a time or two last night, but I don’t think it had more to do with the mattress than my need to pee.

The new air conditioner is a bit more compact than its predecessor and came with a remote control that works well. I think the other AC also had a remote, but we bought it as a floor model at a Media Markt in Nagold. So this new machine is a step up, and well worth the money. I’m too old and crotchety to wake up hot and sweaty… and given that menopause is upon me, it’s even more important to have an AC. I know the AC will probably be tucked away for the winter a month from now, but to me, the money to be comfortable for the last few weeks of summer was very well spent.

The air conditioner came from Amazon.de. I’d rather not give Bezos money, but sometimes, the logistics are just easier with Amazon. This was one of those occasions. I had to give the driver a six digit code to accept this shipment. I guess they’ve had problems with people taking stuff that isn’t theirs. I didn’t have to give anyone a code when we got our new washer and dryer in 2023.

Now, it’s time to do something about my OLD Mini Cooper, which is long overdue for retirement. Stay tuned for that update.

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Hessen, Purchases

Home furnishings upgrade…

Today is a long awaited day in our house. We’re FINALLY getting a new mattress. The one we’ve been sleeping on, I bought at a Haverty’s in Fayetteville, Georgia, back in September 2009. Mattresses are supposed to be replaced after about ten years, but we’ve had this one for almost 16 years. It now sags on both sides, where we’ve been sleeping.

I put off getting a new mattress because we live in Germany, and beds are differently sized in Europe. And if I was going to buy a new mattress, I wanted it to be a really nice one. AAFES doesn’t have the greatest selection, especially in Europe. But the sagging finally got so bad that I told Bill to go to AAFES and see what he could get there. He bought their most expensive Serta mattress, alas, without new box springs. They didn’t have any of those.

The new mattress is supposed to be delivered today, so I just stripped the bed, which was quite an ordeal. To cope with the sagging, I put a foam topper on our old mattress, which helped a bit. It’s also heavy and bulky, and takes up a lot of room on the floor.

I also bought us a new air conditioner. The one we bought in August 2018 in Nagold went on the fritz this week. It’s been hot as hell, and although we don’t know what the future holds in terms of where we’ll be living next year, I don’t think I can bear weeks of being hot at night. I put the older AC in the bedroom, as it’s still working fine. Then I ordered a Dreo air conditioner from Amazon, which is supposed to get here today. I’d rather not buy from Amazon, but logistically speaking, it was the most practical choice. So, hopefully, it will work well, because as I write this, I’m pouring sweat. My office gets super hot this time of year!

Last night, we went to the wine stand. I got a few photos… We talked to Hannah, our American neighbor, who said she’s applied for German citizenship for herself and her kids. Her partner is a veteran, so it’s a bit more complicated for her to switch nationalities. I really can’t blame them, given how the United States is going right now. Hannah speaks fluent German and has many local friends. I think it’s a good decision for her to just stay here. Wish we could do that.

Below are a few obligatory photos. It was nice last night. Not too crowded, and there was a lovely breeze. I got a few photos of Bill in his new Guinness t-shirt. The Germans running the wine stand joked with him about it– “We have no Guinness here!”

In two weeks, the mattress in the featured photo will be headed to a German dump somewhere, along with other stuff we want to get rid of. Amazingly, Bill forgot to add a few items, including the aforementioned air conditioner. I would have had Amazon take it, but the specific model of air conditioner I bought didn’t offer that service, for some reason. Maybe we can get the other air conditioner to work somewhat and use it in Noyzi’s room…

Weirdly enough, even as saggy as it is, I sleep better on that old mattress than I do on most hotel mattresses. Hopefully, the new one will be an improvement. I’m tired of sleeping in the valley.

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Hessen

We tried out Akropolis Restaurant in Erbenheim…

Although it is Memorial Day weekend, Bill has been working on a project at his job that took him away yesterday morning. To make it up to me, he decided to take me out to dinner at Akropolis Restaurant in Erbenheim, a suburb of Wiesbaden. We had never been to this restaurant before, and it had been awhile since our last Greek food repast. I was all for going out last night at first… but then, as the weather got gloomier and it threatened to rain, I kind of wished we were going to stay home and snuggle. Nevertheless, we went out, anyway.

Bill was fretting about the parking situation at the restaurant, which is located right next to a train stop. He needn’t have worried. There’s a little dirt lane by the restaurant where people park their cars, free of charge. The restaurant also has a very small lot with a few spaces specifically marked for patrons. We arrived just as the train was stopping.

The restaurant was doing a brisk business when we arrived last night. We had a choice of two tables. There was a two top by a stained glass window, or a three top by the wall. We went for the three top and used the extra chair for our jackets and my brand new purse. Below are a few shots of the neighborhood near the restaurant. I was eerily reminded of Vaihingen, near Stuttgart.

I really liked the art in the restaurant, especially where we were sitting. I even took a couple of photos. I was less impressed by the music, which was too loud for my taste, and sounded like Greek pop. I also didn’t like the chairs, which were well cushioned, but uncomfortably narrow, and they all had armrests. Granted, I am overweight, but so are a lot of other people… I’m sure if I was uncomfortable, other patrons have been uncomfortable, too. There was a larger man sitting behind me whom I’m sure didn’t like the chairs, either. That said, I guess I need to take more walks and drink less beer. Maybe my ass will get smaller.

The tree art was especially interesting. It was textured. I’d like to hang that in our living room.

Bill ordered a bottle of wine and a large bottle of sparkling water for us to share. For dinner, I ordered pork gyros with potato “chips” (more like soft medallions) and t’zatziki. Bill got the bifteki, which was a mixture of chopped beef, lamb, and vegetables stuffed with cheese. Both dishes came with a small, simple salad, which I really appreciated. Bill finished his dish, while I took about half of mine home. Maybe I’ll finish it today or tomorrow.

When it came time to pay, there was an issue with the credit card machine, which, for some reason, wouldn’t accept Bill’s card. Fortunately, he had enough cash to pay the check. I think it came to about 77 euros, or so. We killed the pain with a house shot of ouzo.

It was still daylight when we got home. We enjoyed the rest of the evening inside, listening to music. Today, it’s kind of cold and rainy. I liked the Akropolis Restaurant fine, although the chair was uncomfortable. After awhile, I didn’t notice it that much. If we go back, I’ll probably order a different dish, as the gyros were a little too seasoned for my taste.

I’m not sure what we’ll do today… perhaps we’ll visit post and price new mattresses. We REALLY need a new one, but our bed is an American king, and it’s hard to find those on the German economy. We bought our first bed and mattress together at the PX on Fort Belvoir, about 20 years ago. We still have that mattress. And we bought another bed set and mattress at a Haverty’s in Georgia back in 2009. That mattress is in dire need of replacement. It’s like sleeping in two valleys. But it may be a real pain to buy a mattress from AAFES (the PX), because it will probably have to be ordered, and that will take awhile. Plus, there’s the issue of getting it set up– I’m not sure if they offer a white glove service. We’ll investigate it, just the same. My back needs a break.

Below are a few photos I took of a beautiful yellow rose bush in my neighborhood. I love how Germans take care of their gardens and have so many beautiful flowers in the spring, even though it wreaks havoc on my allergies…

I also replaced my beautiful green leather purse this week– the one I bought in Florence, back in 2022. The strap on it needs repair. I ordered a brown version of the same purse from the same retailer in Florence, Pelleteria Fratellini. I like the brown purse, and it will probably go with more things… but I really love the green one. We’ll have to get the strap fixed. They didn’t have any green ones in stock when I looked last weekend.

I was amused to see that one of our neighbors was apparently getting rid of a desk. I happen to have an identical IKEA desk that I inherited from our very first German landlord in Ammerbuch. At the time, he worked for IBM, but he now works as a mental health therapist in Tübingen. We really liked him. Before we met our current landlord, he was the best landlord we’d ever had. I think he and Bill have a lot in common. I hope he’s doing well.

This desk is just like mine, except it’s in better shape. My desk was originally purchased by our first German landlord.

Well, that about does it for today’s post. Very soon, I’ll be planning our trip to Lithuania for my birthday. That will be exciting, because Lithuania is another country to cross off our bucket list. It will be the first time either of us have visited.

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