Guest Blogger: Cornelia Miedler, Author of "LAlien - From the Austrian Alps to the Hollywood Hills"
Happy Sunday everybody! As I mentioned last week, I am on the search for guest bloggers! There was a lot of interest which is fantastic! Every week I want to feature a different person living in Vienna. This is the very first guest post of Operation Tubetop and the guest blogger is Cornelia Miedler; author of "LAlien - From the Austrian Alps to the Hollywood Hills". Please check out her post which includes an excerpt from her book and enjoy!
‚LAlien-From the Austrian Alps to the Hollywood Hills’
When I tell Europeans that I lived in Los Angeles for ten years, I often get asked if it’s really like seen on TV.Baywatch, Beverly Hills 90210 and other shows have shaped the opinions of what it’s like to live in sunny Southern California. Great bodies, Prozac-happy people and shallow conversations? Sure, but also an international community, a lust for life that is not found anywhere else, and a the beautiful Pacific ocean with it’s incomparable sunsets.
In my book, I talk about my experiences as a new Angelina who moved from a farm in the Austrian Alps to the City of Angels. I share my experiences of attending university, joining the workforce, meeting celebrities and the California lifestyle. I also share some very personal stories of my marriage, my divorce, losing a loved one and dealing with health issues.
Here is a short excerpt:
A Green Card was the most coveted document by immigrants. It allowed me to stay and work in the U.S. It also provided me with a Social Security Number. This number was the most important identification needed in America. It basically proved your existence and was needed for everything – from making a dentist appointment to opening a bank account. The Green Card also permitted me to leave the country and come back without a problem. In order to be able to apply for a Green Card, I was required to take some medical tests and take those medical records to the interview. I had to go to a government-approved immigration doctor. I chose the doctor from a list I was given by the lawyer. It made sense to pick the one closest to my home and that I could reach by public transportation.
I took the Big Blue Bus down Lincoln Boulevard and walked up to an unassuming building. To me, every building on the street looked the same: a shoebox with a door and windows. I opened the door to the doctor’s office and a gust of wind entered the waiting room with me. The breeze stirred up some dust in the corner and a dust ball the size of a grapefruit rolled from one side of the room to the other like a tumbleweed in a Western town during a standoff between cowboys. I was disgusted. On the right side of the waiting room, there was a couch on which a toddler was jumping and leaving white footprints on the black leather. The father of the boy had his face buried in a magazine. I was shaking and crossing my fingers that I was not going to catch a disease here. I didn’t have to wait long before I was called. The doctor explained to me that I was going to get several vaccinations and that she was going to draw some blood for an HIV test. I followed her every move. If she was going to put the syringe down on the germ-infested cabinet with the needle exposed, I was planning on storming out! This office was so filthy. She gave me the vaccinations first and then drew the blood. I looked the other way. Watching blood come out of my arm was not something I wanted to see. For days after, I watched the spot where the needle had entered my arm to look for signs of an infection or a sepsis.
About two weeks later, I got the call that the results of my HIV test and the papers stating that I received all the necessary vaccinations were ready for pick-up. I went again to the doctor’s office from germ-hell and paid the fee of several hundred dollars. As the receptionist handed me the envelope with the test results, she informed me that I was not allowed to open the envelope. I had to hand it to the immigration officer unopened on the day of my interview. Then she gave me a serious look and said, “If you know that you have HIV, you may want to tell your husband before the interview.” I looked at her in horror. “I’ve heard of some surprises for some partners at those interviews with a lot of tears.” Dazed and confused, I thanked her for her advice and left the office.
LAlien is available on Amazon as paperback, hardcover and eBook:
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