Angelika America still does not have a new president. In Germany, you are surely observing this election thriller while shaking your head and perhaps with a bit of schadenfreude, because it is indeed fascinating that a country that always prides itself on being a leader in this and that cannot manage to count votes accurately. Although the German press has reported extensively on the presidential election, I would still like to add a few details, as some classic American phenomena are emerging.

Michael Recently, I was in Dulles, Virginia, for a few days to take care of some things at AOL. On the way home, when our flight was delayed and we wanted to quickly grab some lunch, my colleague Chris and I came across a tavern advertising its beer with an "Oktoberfest" sign. Next door was a McDonald's, so we quickly decided to combine food from one place with a drink from the other. Suddenly, a group of German-speaking gentlemen rushed by -- and I couldn't believe my eyes, among them was the actor Armin Mueller-Stahl! You know, the gray-haired guy with the mustache who also appears in many American films (like "Night on Earth" by Jim Jarmusch, for example). He also had noticed the "Oktoberfest" sign, slowed down, and went back, seemingly intending to grab a beer, but then changed his mind and took off again. And that in Dulles, Virginia! I wonder what he was doing there?

Michael Now for some local news. Those who have purchased the new album "Warning" by the world-famous group "Green Day" may have wondered what the following lyrics mean:

Michael To our wine section: Paula Bosch from the Süddeutsche Zeitung has not yet responded, so our tips don't seem to be completely wrong. Here comes the next one: On one of our excursions through Sonoma Valley, we stumbled upon an excellent Zinfandel wine. And I am not afraid to shout this to the world: The St. Francis, "Old Vines", Zinfandel, 1998 is so powerful, it will knock you off your feet. An extraordinary aroma of raspberries and vanilla. As mentioned before, this is, of course, red Zinfandel; no sensible person drinks the pink stuff. Ideal for dishes with garlic or other spicy foods. It costs $22, not cheap, but the money is well spent.

Michael Now my topic of the day: Freedom of speech in the USA! The Constitution here has several additions, the so-called Amendments. The First Amendment is labeled "Freedom of Speech," which is truly worth discussing here, as verbal expression in the US is not as restricted as in Germany.

Michael Last week, I spent time under the living room table with my unscrewed computer. Recklessly, I had bought new hardware from an online retailer. For the insiders: a 30 GB hard drive and a Netgear RT314 router. Now I'm in seventh heaven, and Angelika is also surfing the internet at top speed from her computer, as the little router simply turns one DSL connection into two. And one more unfortunate piece of news: our newspaper vendor can no longer get the Süddeutsche Zeitung from his distributor. This hurts a lot because we used to shell out $4.50 every Saturday to read the magazine that comes with the Friday edition. Tip for visitors: you could make us very happy if you bring us one, two, or many SZ magazines, it doesn't matter from when, they're just timelessly good.

Michael Angelika gave me a digital camera for my birthday, and now I spend all day taking pictures of the silliest things. Whether I'm shopping, at work, or having lunch--the camera is always with me. For those wondering where I'm skillfully eating lunch with chopsticks in the photo above, I'll tell you straight out: In Mountain View, there aren't many good restaurants, but once a week, my colleague Hoang and I visit one that's also incredibly cheap: a Chinese restaurant on Castro Street, whose name I can't mention here, as I don't want millions of newsletter readers showing up--after all, even a superstar like myself needs his privacy! I'll just say this: there are roasted ducks hanging in the window. They have the best noodle soup with duck in the whole world. Unfortunately, the photo is a bit blurry because Hoang was laughing while taking it, the old goof. Oh well, it was fun!

Michael And since America is always slightly ahead of the rest of the world, at least in the consumer goods sector, we want to introduce you people of Europe to something special. And so the newsletter's top product section was born. Products that you can't buy at home yet, but that might soon make their way over. Then you can say, "I already know it, I don't need it, I read about it in the newsletter a year ago!" when someone proudly shows off a newly acquired product.

Michael During a lunch break, I once stopped by the 'Nijia' supermarket with my Japanese colleague Rika and had her explain the products to me. On one hand, there were things I already knew from restaurants, like 'Edamame' (soybeans served as an appetizing starter or snack, which you boil, salt, and then pop out of their bean-like pods), Miso soup (fermented soy mixed with hot water and usually enriched with seaweed and tofu chunks), and on the other hand, there were products that were new to me, like dried shrimp that you eat like potato chips from a bag and that smell like fish food for an aquarium. When Angelika eats them, I feel sick. Then there's cold coffee with milk and sugar from a can, the product's name: 'Boss Sharp'. Super delicious!