On Wednesday, my department had our office party. The highlight and much-anticipated event was called "Horror Wichtel", which is similar to the White Elephant party game familiar to the U.S.. In this game, everyone brings in an ugly, kitchy, and outrageous object that has been lying around the basement or attic for so many years. But each gift has to be packed nicely! Then we rolled the dice and when we hit a six then we could pick out a gift. Once everyone had an unopened gift in front of them, we rolled the dice again and opened each gift one by one. Some of these gifts were incredibly ugly, thus perfect for this game! It was hilarious. Then we had 10 minutes to pass around the dice and could choose to switch with someone if we rolled a six. This caused frantic rolling and switching of gifts! I rolled a six 4 out of the 6 chances I had and so I had a total of 5 gifts in front of me.
The game can now begin: here are all the gifts laid out on the table in the conference room. Don't they all look so nice? What things could be hidden behind these nice packages?
The gift unwrapping yields surprises: a woman's faux leather handbag with a seemingly-homemade strap made of plastic beads, a full set of irregular wood goblets, an apple baking dish from the DDR times, two unmatching votive candle holders, a hideous octagonal dish with plastic easter grass and three odd egg shaped ornaments, a clay elephant mask, and others draw ooohs and ahhhs from us.
Hello Buddha! This was the gift I unwrapped. I actually kind of liked it but knew that it would be switched soon during the flurry of exchanges that would come soon. This buddha was made of solid glass and sat on a sand-filled cushion. It would make a great paperweight...but who uses paperweights nowadays anyway? What purpose do paperweights serve?
The exchange begins: Imagine this. People rolling dice, hoping to roll a six. If they do then they switch with someone else in order to get the gift they want. This continues round and round...
I choose this TREASURE as my first exchange. About this tree: it weights about 8 pounds, is made from (handmade) glass leaves and flowers, wire, ceramic, and metal. Nobody knew who brought it (secret) or who would possibly want such a outrageous object. This was by far the "best" present and I was quick to take it. But soon I changed my mind and switched when I rolled my next six to get...
...a copper sun (plate?) with a bird-shaped bike horn (imagine a dog's chew toy and how it sqeaks). Figuring the high price of copper on the commodity markets nowadays, this may be useful. But how would I carry that back to the States? On the next try I roll a six. Only 2 minutes left and I can choose from all the objects! Finally I choose...
A plastic replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa with a lamp inside! This is great! The bulb even works to create a soothing glow through all of the tower's little windows. But wait, there's a special feature...the bulb heats up a small imprint on the tower's roof and a questionably sweet perfume odor emerges. It's a scented tower!
Game over: After the ten minutes, everyone is pleased and shows us the gifts they are bringing home.
After some cake, cookies, coffee, and sweets, we all headed out to take the bus to a photography exhibit at the Martin-Gropius-Bau. "The Martin-Gropius-Bau is one of the most famous and most beautiful exhibition halls in Germany. It was built in Berlin by architects Martin Gropius (for whom it is named ) and Heino Schmieden in the Renaissance style, as an arts and crafts museum. It was opened in 1881 and housed the Berlin Museum of Prehistory and Early History as well as well as the East Asian Art Collection since World War I. The building was severely damaged in 1945 during the last weeks of World War II. It was classified as a historical monument in 1966. It was meticulously restored in 1978, and has become one of the most famous and most beautiful exhibition halls in Germany, hosting many international exhibitions." (Wikipedia)
It was a collection of Robert Lebeck's photos over his long career as a photographer for German magazines and other print media. My office had a private tour of the exhibit and we learned alot about the life, travels, and photos of this talented and lucky photgrapher. Afterwards, I headed back to the office to finish up some odds and ends. What a great day with the office!
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