JG52

  Agreed.

A 28-year old female entered a private school in Nashville, TN today and killed three students and three adults before police killed her.  According to one report, she was a former student of the school and was armed with two assault style weapons and one handgun.   https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/03/27/us/nashville-shooting-covenant-school

@yeet, I'm glad I could help.

Take a deep breath and relax.  You are boldly going where thousands have gone before and you have nothing to fear.  Your gaining COR should have submitted you under the Military Exigency clause, which would give you conditional TESA status in a couple of days.   You also have the unmentioned benefit of being a dependent of your wife, so you still have SOFA status if you want a dependent ID card.   While you can onboard with your new company, you are not allowed to work and earn wages until your TESA application is approved and you receive your new DD Form 1172-2.  Your company is free to pay you to stay at home, but most DOD contracts with TESA positions have a clause that prohibits the Contractor from billing for your hours until you have full status and are able to work.   The Germans understand there can be processing delays when changing contracts.  You are in your 90-day tourist status while your application is being processed.  This will not count against you in future TESA applications as long as you document the unemployed time as "awaiting TESA approval."

  An easier and much less invasive way to verify the size of the conductors is to remove one of the outlets and check the diameter of one conductor.  Then do the same check on the other end of the cable in the power distribution panel.  If you're lucky, you might be able to see the information on the outer insulation jacket.   This won't rule out any dodgy installations with splices of different sized cables in the walls.

  I have Part A because it was automatic and free, but did not sign up for Part B.  All of the Medicare options are useless outside the US, and since I have no intention on returning to the US, I didn't see any point in spending money on something I will never be able to use.   When I retired here as a DOD civilian, I kept my federal health insurance.  In the rare event that I do move back to the US, I will not apply for Part B and will rely on my federal health insurance.   I think refusing Part B is not an option for retired US military who live overseas and are eligible for Medicare.  They are required to enroll in Parts A and B as a condition of retaining the TRICARE for Life coverage.

  From https://www.iamexpat.de/expat-info/german-expat-news/germany-phases-out-pre-2013-driving-licences-what-you-need-know   The following dates are of concern for driving licences issued before 1999: Born before 1953: Exchange by January 19, 2033 Born between 1953 and 1958: Exchange by January 19, 2022 Born between 1959 and 1964: Exchange by January 19, 2023 Born between 1965 and 1970: Exchange by January 19, 2024 Born in 1971 or later: Exchange by January 19, 2025 For licences issued on or after January 1, 1999, the deadlines are not dictated by year of birth; instead the year of issue applies:  Issued between 1999 and 2001: Exchange by January 19, 2026 Issued between 2002 and 2004: Exchange by January 19, 2027 Issued between 2005 and 2007: Exchange by January 19, 2028 Issued in 2008: Exchange by January 19, 2029 Issued in 2009: Exchange by January 19, 2030 Issued in 2010: Exchange by January 19, 2031 Issued in 2011: Exchange by January 19, 2032 Issued between 2012 and January 18, 2013: Exchange by January 19, 2033

  I don't know, but I think if the website had been hacked, it would have been taken down to fix the problem.  I think you are safe to change your password directly from FB, and if the option for two-factor authentication is possible, as @Krieg mentioned, I would use it.

I do not have, nor have I ever had, a FB account.  However, I receive emails like that several times a week from security@facebookmail.com in my Junk folder.   As a rule, I never click on a link embedded in an email.  Enough of them are spam links, that I ignore all of them, even if some are legitimate.  If I am curious about a notice that appears to be from my bank or investment accounts, I will go directly to those websites and check for any messages or notices.

  My wife is German and I am a U.S. citizen.  According to my Ausländerbehörde, I needed the A1 certificate just to submit my initial Aufenthaltstitel application.  I needed the B1 certificate for the permanent Aufenthaltstitel. 

  When I moved to Darmstadt, I signed the lease on an end unit of a row house.  The current occupants bought one unit of a duplex on the same street and were moving.  As I was walking through the house with the landlord the tenants mentioned the kitchen was going with them since they paid for it (which was true) and it was less than a year old.  I offered to buy the complete kitchen at the price they paid (about 8,000 DM) since it looked great and the appliances were still under warranty.  The wife was eager to take my money, but the husband flatly refused because he was sure he could make the cabinets fit.    When they left at the end of the month, they took the kitchen with them.  I had a new kitchen installed by Segmüller for about the same price the following month.  About three months after I moved in, I saw what appeared to be all of the kitchen cabinets and appliances on the curb in front of their house waiting for the Sperrmüll collection.  Everything was gone when I returned from work, but the husband no longer waved to me when we saw each other.

  That's not fair to the Neanderthals.

  When the boat is sinking, drill more holes in the hull to let the water out.   

Raquel Welch, dead at 82.   https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64657781

Here's a photo of the meat mixture cooking in the large casserole pan.  I couldn't add both photos to the same post because of the forum software limitations.  

I made @CincyInDE's cottage pie today, and it was delicious; however, I realized after I put them in the oven that I forgot to add the frozen peas to the meat.  I used my 8.9 liter casserole pan instead of the dutch oven to cook the ingredients before transferring the meat filling to smaller casserole pans for the oven.  The recipe can be halved and still serve four people.  When I make this again, it will be a half-recipe and I'll use the dutch oven to cook the meat.   Here are the two pans fresh from the oven.  Even with both of us going back for seconds, there was still plenty left over from one pan for my lunch tomorrow.  The second pan will be cut into quarters after it has cooled and will go into the freezer.      

  Who said romance is dead?  There's nothing that says "I love you forever" better than planning an exit strategy before the two of you begin.  Your wife is one lucky person.

  Not to downplay the Wagner Group atrocities, but "the baddies" reminded me of this Mitchell and Webb sketch:    

  That's for their attorneys and courts to decide.

  I don't have a dog in this fight, but will modify your last sentence to make it more appropriate for the situation:   "...a car insurance refusing to compensate a claimant because the insured person was speeding when the accident occurred."   In this case, the insured was involved in an accident while violating the law (speeding) and the compensation would likely be denied.  In the scenario you described, it appears the insurance company is trying to determine if there is any reason not to pay because your daughter might not have been in compliance with the laws in effect at the time.  In other words, you have to come to court with clean hands, else the court (insurance company) will not help you.

  To be clear, the neon screwdrivers work by using the person as the return path to ground.  Fortunately, the current flow is very low, but the possibility for false negatives exists if the person is not properly grounded. 

    In fairness, he doesn't work there, so he likely doesn't know a size 4 from a size 11 petite.

  Electricity in the home might be very rarely fatal until you start messing with it with no knowledge or concern for basic safety precautions.   You must have some impressive omnipotent powers if you can make this statement with such sureness.  I rely on my experience and observations, which includes being a licensed Journeyman Electrician in the U.S., with regards to my previous statement.  Even a reasonable amount of caution is no guarantee that accidental death or injury will not happen, but I suppose you know better.

  Ha Ha Ha!  I can't remember how many times I was offered attribution and exposure for the free use of some of my photos.  I'm not an Ansel Adams, but I have sold a few photos and licensed a couple for limited times, and it was good money while it lasted.  However, as I told one guy, I don't need the exposure.  You found my work, so will others, so if you want to use my work you have to pay.  He paid and I sent him the RAW image so his developer could make his own changes to suit the publication.