I hope everybody had a great New Years Eve party and a good start in the year 2007.
In the last time I haven't written very often in my blog and now I will do it more often. In the last months I had problems with my internet connection and since two weeks I have a very fast broadband internet connection. I have a guilty conscience because I haven't answered comments from my friends and visited their blogs.
I took many photos with my new SLR camera and now I will show some of them.
On 26th November I took these two sunset photos at the river Elbe and you can see it was a beautiful evening. Five minutes later when I drove home, I had a car accident and a Russian guy drove with his car into the rear from my VW Golf. I had a slight whiplash injury and the rear from my car was damaged, but now is everything repaired.
I tried out different technics with my camera and this is such a experiment. I called the photo "Brothers In Arms". You can see my Zippo lighter and three different kind of ammo in the background. Every American and German soldier know the Zippo lighter , the .223 Remington(5.56 x 45 mm NATO), .308 Winchester(7.62 × 51 mm NATO) and the .50 Browning Machine Gun(12.7 × 99 mm NATO). The US Army use these things and also the German army, the Bundeswehr. Mauser*girl gave me some advice and I will change the pic with Photoshop in the next time.
My dad is very sick since a long time, on 24th December he came into the hospital and he had a seriously pneumonia. Some years ago when he still was in the military, the doctors diagnose lung cancer and they removed one lung. Therefore is a pneumonia very dangerous for him and we was very worried about my dad. We went every day several times to the hospital and in particular on the Christmas days. In the moment he feels a little better. I used very often my dads Mercedes, because I have some problems with my Golf and in addition I have no snow tires. On 29th December I washed the car, relax a little at the river and took these photo.
I think everybody remember the story with the slipped disc in my back and it was still painful in the last weeks. On 4th January I have a appointment in the Endo hospital in Hamburg and I have to stay there for 3 or 4 days. The doctors will check out everything in my back and decide about an operation. When they make the surgery, certainly in the end of January and then I have to stay there for some weeks.
Usually you could watch my photos in full view when you click on the pics, but it didn't work and I don't know why...
In the moment I have no tume and I will write tomorrow or on Tuesday more.
I wish all my friends a great New Years Eve party and a happy New Year!!!
On 4th October I got a great phone call. Nearly two months ago I offered my photo "German Tornado" to the biggest German newspaper Bildzeitung and I have thought they aren't interested. Here can you see the photos in my blog. The newspaper assistant told me, perhaps they will use my photo and I get money for it.
On Friday 5th October, by the way it's Jen's birthday, I bought the newspaper and I saw my photo. You can see my photo in about 4 million newspapers in whole Germany!
Here can you see the article, my first sold photo.
I got 500,- Euro(about US$630) for the photo and 50 percent from the following receipts, when the newspaper sell the photo to other newspapers. That made my day and now I'm very happy.
Usually I should save the money, but I think I will fulfill a desire for me and buy a digital SLR camera. The Canon EOS 300D was always my favorite, but Canon not sell the camera anymore and I wouldn't buy a second-hand camera without manufacturer guaranty. Now is the Canon EOS 350D(8 megapixel) or Canon EOS 400D(10 megapixel) my favorite.
Since 9th October is these post in my drafts and now I submit it. I was depressed and therefore has nobody heard from me, Jen was the only friend who got a email because she had birthday. Jen told me again and again I should try to sell one of my photos and I think it's a big chance that it happened on her birthday.
On Friday the 3rd November I got the new Canon EOS400D with the mail and it's really a great camera. Unfortunately I couldn't take many photos yet, because the weather is very bad in the moment.
Here can you see my new SLR camera. :)
On 18 September 2006, Heinrich "Heinz" Trettner, the last living German General of the Wehrmacht died in Moenchengladbach, one day before his 99 birthday.
During the world war II served about 18 million soldiers in the German army and only 7,313 awards of the Knight's Cross were made, only 883 received Oak Leaves. The Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes(Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross) recognized extreme battlefield bravery or successful leadership.
On 24 May 1940 received Heinz Trettner the Knight's Cross when he was Operations Officer(Ia) on the staff of the 7. Fliegerdivision(parachute troops) commanded by Generalleutnant Kurt Student. Heinz Trettner was Generalmajor(major general) and commander of the 4.Fallschirmjaeger-Division(4. paratrooper division) when he received as 586. soldier of the German army the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 17 September 1944.
On 19 September 1907 Heinz Trettner was born in Minden. In April 1925 he entered the army as Fahnenjunker and later he became Squadron Officer in the Reiter-Regiment 18 in Stuttgart-Cannstatt.
From 1932 till 1933 pilot training at the Braunschweig Flying School and he became pilot.
From 1934 till 1935 he was Adjutant of the Kitzingen Flying School and from 1935 till 1936 he was Adjutant of the Magdeburg Flying School.
From April till October 1936 he was Adjutant and Chief Personnel Officer(IIa) on the staff of the Higher Air Commander III in Dresden.
From November 1936 till September 1937 he was Adjutant and Chief Personnel Officer(IIa) on the staff of the Commander of the Legion Condor in Spain and also at the same time Commandant of the Staff Quarters of the Legion Condor.
From September 1937 till January 1938 Squadron Commander in Kampfgruppe K 88(bomber group) of the Legion Condor in Spain.
January 1938 till June 1938 General Staff training at the Air War Academy in Berlin.
From July 1938 till June 1939 Operations Officer(Ia) on the staff of the 7. Fliegerdivision(parachute troops) commanded by Generalleutnant Kurt Student.
January 1939 till December 1940 Consultant in the Inspectorate of Parachute Troops in the Reich Air Ministry.
From June 1939 till December 1940 Operations Officer(Ia) on the staff of the 7. Fliegerdivision.
December 1940 till April 1942 Operations Officer(Ia) in the General Staff of the XI Fliegerkorps(Air Corps) commanded by General der Flieger Kurt Student.
From April 1942 till September 1942 delegated with the post of Chief of the General Staff of the XI Fliegerkorps commanded by General der Fallschirmtruppe Kurt Student.
September 1942 till October 1943 Chief of the General Staff of the XI Fliegerkorps commanded by General der Fallschirmtruppe Kurt Student.
October 1943 till May 1944 delegated with the formation and leadership of the 4. Fallschirmjaeger-Divison.
From June 1944 till May 1945 Commander of the 4. Fallschirmjaeger-Divison. The 4. Fallschirmjaeger-Divison served in Italy and fought against the Allied beachhead at Anzio-Nettuno. They fought in the area of Rome, Florence, Sienna, Rimini and Bologna.
On 3rd May 1945, Trettner's division was surrendered in the vinicity of Vicenza and Bolzano. From 3rd May 1945 till April 1948 was Trettner a prisoner of war in American and then British captivity.
In November 1956 he entered the Bundeswehr(the new German army) with the rank of Generalmajor. From November 1956 till September 1959 he was leader of the Logistics Department of the NATO Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers in Europe.
From September 1959 till February 1960 he was at the disposal of the Leader Staff of the Army/Federal Ministry of Defense, detached for training to the staff of the III Corps in Koblenz.
March 1960 till September 1963 he was Commanding General of the I Corps in Muenster.
From October 1963 till December 1963 he was detached for training to the Leader Staff of the Armed Forces/Federal Ministry of Defense.
January 1964 till August 1966 he was General Inspector of the Bundeswehr, the highest-ranking general in Germany.
In August 1966 he retired from the Bundeswehr because he wouldn't agree with some decisions.
He became the following decorations and awards:
- Combined Pilot/Observer Badge in Gold with Diamonds from the Luftwaffe
- Spanish Breast Star to the War Cross in September 1938
- Spanish Campaign Medal in December 1938
- German Spanish Cross in Gold with Swords in June 1939
- Iron Cross 2nd Class in May 1940
- Iron Cross 1st Class in May 1940
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in May 1940
- Kreta cufftitle
- Wound Badge in Black in March 1944
- Mentioned in the Wehrmachtsbericht(Armed Forces Communique) in June 1944
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with with Oak Leaves in September 1944
- U.S. Legion of Merit, Commander in November 1964
- British Royal Victorian Order in May 1965
- Greek Order of George I, Grand Officer in July 1965
- Merit Order of the Italian Republic in August 1965
- Merit Order of Germany, Grand Merit Cross with star and Shoulder Sash in January 67
- French Legion of Honor, Grand Officer in December 1969
I have met Heinz Trettner in the year 1998 during my army days as paratrooper in our barracks. He was about 90 years old, but in good condition and very kind. On the parade ground we commemorate the soldiers killed in action, listening to the military songs "Rot scheint die Sonne" and "Ich hatt einen Kameraden".
Some days ago my friend Adrian tried to access my blog from work and it wouldn't let him. The reason was the inappropriate content of firearms in my blog. What the hell? Now I will answer the call of duty and write something about guns. hehe
The pictures are my former guns. The first one is my Mauser 98k rifle, it was produced in the year 1943 in the company Mauser and was the standard rifle from the German soldiers in world war II. The second gun is my "Derringer" muzzleloading pistol in caliber .44 Usually is the trigger hidden and on the right side you can see the pistol in cocked position. The pistol is small but very powerful and it's much fun to shot such a "Derringer".
I have some links about guns and here can you download manuals and watch some videos of guns in action. The website surplusrifle is really great, there can you find informations about many guns and disassembly and reassembly instructions.
As example to loading my German 98k rifle, disassembly-reassembly and bolt disassembly-reassembly.
Here is a video clip of Mail Call with R. Lee Ermey and I think everybody know him as Drill Instructor Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in the movie Full Metal Jacket.
If somebody has further interesting links about guns, please send them to me and I will add them in my journal post.
Now I have inappropriate content of firearms in my blog.
