Top Ten

Top ten of albums that come to my mind spontaneously:

1. Bright Eyes: I'm wide awake, it's morning
2. The New Radicals: Maybe I've been brainwashed, too
3. R.E.M.: Automatic for the people
4. Pet Shop Boys: Behaviour
5. Paul Simon: Graceland
6. Queens of the Stone Age: Songs for the deaf
7. Stereophonics: Performance and cocktails
8. Nick Drake: Pink moon
9. Badly Drawn Boy: Have you fed the fish?
10. Ryan Adams: Gold

Back in town

Business as usual again. Monday, work, tons of E-Mails. But nevertheless good to be back again after one week of laziness. The trip back (650 mls.) is exhausting and for the rest of the weekend sleeping was a priority.
I think Emma still recognized me and she has made a lot of steps in her development during the week. Last night our little "ricochet" lay in her bed crosswise and smiled at me at 2.30 a.m. A little exercise at night seemed to amuse her. After all we could go to sleep again........
The weekend was unbearably hot in Germany, almost 35° C in may! Beergarden and swimming weather. But now it's raining again, refreshing at least. And it keeps me from washing the Italian dirt from the car.
I realized, that it would be nice to speak more languages. My little Spanish knowledge helped me out sometimes but I would love to speak Italian, too. French would be nice as well. At least I have the chance to pratice my English a bit.
Now I'm heading home for my favourite food: Potatoes, carrots and curd cheese.

Long Hello and Short Goodbye

A message from the beach in Italy. I'm here with some friends on the camping site "Baia Verde", close to Punta Ala, Toscana.

What is to do here:

• Missing Tina and Emma.
• Read 300 pages of J.J. Connolly's fabulous novel Layer Cake in one day.
• Live on air, beer and coffee.
• Make up stories of past vacations and juvenile times (or crimes).
• Complain about having tons to do, like eating (see beer, etc.), showering, lying in the sun, killing moscitos etc.
• Read my magazines of the months of march and april at last.
• Celebrate my birthday on sunday (presents: a cake and the "Bild am Sonntag"-newspaper)
• Sleeping sometimes a lot, sometimes a little
• Watching amazing sun sets.
• Enjoy sun, ocean, landscape........................

Thanks to everybody, who didn't forget me and has sent me birthday greetings.

Back to Germany on friday.

Sommer, Sonne, Sonnenschein.....

......zieh ich mir furchtbar gerne rein.
The sun is back in Germany at last. Hope I will see it in Italy next week, when I go on vacation with some buddies in the famous region Toskana. Nothing but T-shirt-suntans, minute-head-stands, six-pack-beer-cans, all-night-through-deep-sleeps and dark-blue-oceans. Starting in 24 hrs.!

The alias is "Academic Circle" (see links). That's because one of the folks only got off two years ago, when he told his boss that he would go on an "Academic Circle" with former fellow students, with academic lectures and speeches of the participants. The boss agreed and the name was born.

Sure I'll miss Tina and Emma. I hope Emma will still recognize me, when I come back. Maybe she thinks: Who on earth is this good-looking stranger? Perhaps I'll marry him in twenty years. Right now carrying me around and cuddling would be sufficient.

Next message from Bella Italia!

May the force be with you!

A lot of coverage of Star Wars at the moment, as you can imagine. I'm not so deep into it, but you cannot avoid the hype.
Maybe I should go and watch all six parts together. Afterwards I'll be dizzy, insane or maybe turn into an Ewok.
Interesting that George Lucas wrote the screenplays with a pencil. If anybody just would have had an eraser in his hand and some evil thoughts in his mind...................may the force be with you!

Applause for the French people who had the courage to stay at home and fight for their free Whit Monday.
Not like the Germany who acted like sheep, when the Penance Day was cancelled some years ago for some ostensible financial reasons. Now they are discussing about the Whit Monday as well as ideas to put our national holiday (October 3rd) on a Sunday every year. Thank you very much.
Holiday divide the year into sections and guide you through the year. They give you the chance to stop once in a while and reflect your situation. And to start with new power and new ideas. So beware of the red pencil!

By the way, I have one week off next week, I'm going to Italy (see links Academic Circle!).

Dreams are my reality

First of all I have to put my statements about little Emma into perspective. Most of the time she is lovable, but she can be a pain in the ass, too. Especially for her mom, who calls herself the entertainer. She is not the fastest baby concerning physical abilities. This is said to come from her dad. Sometimes she seems to be discontent with this situation, but she is not trying too hard to change it at the moment.
When she is carried around (her favourite amusement) she's smiling and looking very clever. I hope a part of this comes from her dad, too.

Last night I dreamt, that my sister was on the "Who wants to be a millionaire" show. She came up to the one million Euro question and suddenly I was asked by Günther Jauch, the quizmaster, to join her and answer the question together. I did and we passed the test. Unfortunately I don't remember the question, and I don't remember where the money is.
Now I'm thinking about what this means. Should I apply for the show, should my sister apply for the show? Should we apply for another show together? Should I buy a book of Sigmund Freud to interpret the dream?

When I think of Sigmund Freud, I think of the novel "The Hotel New Hampshire" of John Irving. One of my all-time favourites. So funny, thrilling, diverting and crazy. A recommendation for sure, as well as his other books.

As I like Hip Hop music I am very annoyed, that some right wing German Hip Hop bands are advancing. I don't like battle rap, especially when it's racist and sexist. So beat it, to all of these bands. Let the good bands from Stuttgart (Die fantastischen Vier, Afrob, Max Herre) and Hamburg (Fettes Brot, Eins Zwo, Samy Deluxe, Beginner) rule. Peace.

What's going on?

First of all it's still far too cold in Germany for the month of May! We had 3°C this morning and I had to use the ice scraper for my car. Hard to believe we had almost 30°C about a week ago, when we had the baptism of little Emma.

On Thursday starts the famous fair "Erlanger Bergkirchweih" for the 250th time! For me it is the 36th time, after all. I was born on the first day of the Bergkirchweih in 1969 (we call it Bierprobe, beer test), an me and my parents have been there each and every year. Well, with this birth date, you have to. See you at the "Entla's Keller"!
I will start on Friday because on Thursday I'm going to a reading of Harry Rowohlt. He is a famous German translator, whiskey drinker and actor (role of a homeless in the TV series "Lindenstrasse"). Gonna be a long night.
So viel zu tun und so wenig Zeit.

Our daughter Emma will turn 5 month next Monday. On time for Whit Monday. She is starting to make a lot of sounds and likes to hear herself "speak". She starts right away, when she awakes in the morning, looking cute with her sleeping bag. Our little Kardinal Ratzinger (ratzen means sleep in German dialect).

The newspapers in Germany were full with comments about the 60th anniversary of the end of WW2 and the inauguration of the Holocaust Mahnmal. Still our history occupies us much. But that's how it should be.
Unbelievably, still some fools glorify these dark times. We have to fight them!

Good day to everybody out there!

I'm starting today and I'm curious, how it's gonna be.

I never thought of having a blog before my sister-in-law Catrin had one. She lives in Edmonton, Canada and right now she is visiting us in Germany. That's becauce we had the baptism of our little daughter Emma. She is almost 5 months now and our little sunshine as well.

Emma, my wife Tina and me, we live in Nürnberg (Nuremberg).

I haven't decided yet, whether to write in English or in German, but we will see. Right now I think English is more widespread than German. And to brush up my English a little bit can be helpful anyway.

I'm looking forward to this new experience and I hope to get in contact with a lot of people. See you soon!