The Blue Boy

Country:Ireland
Company/ Theatre: Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival 2011 / Brokentalkers, Dublin
Language: English
Author: Brokentalkers
Director: Feidlim Cannon & Gary Keegan

seen on the 22.06.12 in Wiesbaden at the "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description:  THE BLUE BOY is a synthesis of the arts: acting, dance, video, live music and performance. It deals with the Irish Ryan report on the abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. The production gives a voice to an entire country that concealed abuse in Catholic institutes of education for decades. Seven performance artists raise the question of guilt. They speak for the tortured victims, leaving no member of the audience untouched.

what I liked: It was a very powerful evening. Not theatre in a conventional sense, more a collage of dance theatre, film excerpts music and rhythm. Listening to Gary Keegan talking about his personal family history and e.g. showing the yardstick his grandad used for measuring the bodies of dead schoolboys in order to find the right coffin...chilling without showing anything graphic.

what I didn´t liked: nothing

verdict: A resounding performance that makes you thinking and draws you right into that long and pitchblack chapter of Irish history that still is far from being finished. Made me read up on certain aspects and is still "speaking" to me a week later.

Olay Olay Olaz

The popular P&G skin care range in Germany is called "Olaz", in the UK it is "Olay". What has happened here? Has someone got into troubles with a German and an English keyboard??

"As the company began to market the product internationally, it was decided to modify the name of the product in each country so it would sound pleasing and realistic to consumers. This led to the introduction of Oil of Ulay (UK and Ireland), Oil of Ulan (Australia) and Oil of Olaz (France, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany).

"In 1999, it was decided to unify the brand under a global name. Thus, Oil of Ulan and Ulay became Olay on a worldwide basis, except in German-speaking regions and Italy, where it remained Oil of Olaz. In the Netherlands and Belgium, it was renamed just Olaz."

Apparently the name Olaz is more pleasing to German ears than Olay...strange indeed.

Freitags-Füller 7

Manchmal suche ich wirklich Stunden zu Hause in meinem Chaos bis ich etwas gefunden habe, oft auch erfolglos.

Im Moment gehören Mandel mit Himbeersauce, MonChéri und Limette auf die lange Liste "Lieblingseis".

Ich höre gerne auch mal gar nix, mit Großbaustelle nebenan ist das nämlich schon Luxus.

Positiv ist das das Thema EM nun erstmal passé ist ; negativ ist das noch lange Wochen voller Olympia Hype anstehen..

Beim Italiener bin ich nur noch sehr selten da ich mir die meisten Sachen selbst auch schnell kochen kann.

Überlege heute die FlipFlop Saison zu starten, denn gestern war mal Sommer.

Was das Wochenende angeht, heute Abend freue ich mich auf daheim sein, bißchen bloggen und bißchen aufräumen, morgen habe ich meinen obligatorischen Mainz Trip mit Markt Einkauf geplant und Sonntag möchte ich den Tag mit dem typischen Sonntagsprogramm verbringen (Wald, Friedhof, Kochen, Kuchen, Gammeln, Baden, Lindenstraße)!

cherry cherry lady

may I introduce? My new favourite bag!
It´s red, it´s new, it´s from Deichmann, real leather and costs only 39.95€.

So happy I didn´t splurge on the red Longchamp bag recently cause I think I do like this bargain even more. Loads of stuff fits inside, it smells expensive and is just a very pretty cherry red but comes in other colours as well.

Glossybox 6/2012

I´m aware that this is getting really boring now but: another mediocre box. Not good enough to have me raving about it, not bad enough to make me cancel my subscription. Definitely lacking a certain "something" again. The box itself looks different this time, it has the colour and structure of sand while the paper and the "thingies" are blue. I like those little touches but if the content is nowhere near up to expectations those details simply crepitate with the angry comments of disappointed customers.
Have a look for yourself:

• Alessandro nail varnish "Sunshine Reggae" (good, unfortunately bought yellow just recently)
• Emmi-Nail SOS Feile (unfortunately I don´t use nail files at all)
• Kryolan Satin Powder "silver" (yeah, useable but could end up messy and very shiny)
• Shiseido Benefiance Daytime Protective Cream (will get used, goes with last months softener)
• Tiroler Nussöl sun oil (reminds me of my granny, amazing that still exists!)

plus:  the pointless Glossymag and a canvas tote which I do actually like and will use.

Immer noch Sturm

Country: Germany/Austria
Company/ Theatre: Thalia Theater Hamburg/ Salzburger Festspiele
Language: German
Author: Peter Handke
Director: Dimiter Gotscheff

seen on the 20.06.12 in Wiesbaden at the "New Plays from Europe" festival

description: Home and heritage, tradition and personal deliverance, these are the driving topics of Handke’s monumental soliloquy with his ancestors. On an associative journey of thought to early 20th century Carinthia, Handke goes back to the apple orchards of his family, which he knew when he was a young man. A lyrical “I”, played by Jens Harzer, fabricates relationships and spins dialogues between himself and his relatives, in an attempt to approach the elusive notion of origin. The excellent acting company absorbs the audience into a highly poetic text.

what I liked: the actors where magnificent (but, you sort of expect that from the Thalia Theater, don´t you?!). Jens Harzer, who won "Best actor of the year" was brilliant in his very own and casual but mesmerising way of speaking. Was the first time ever I came across Austrian/Slowenian history so therefore worth the concentration.

what I didn´t like: It was long...and it was getting boring. The last monologue of half an hour was nearly unbearable to watch as I couldn´t sit, listen or concentrate anymore.

verdict: An interesting play with fantastic moments but all in all too lengthy.

PS: The performance started at 19.30...the one and only intermission started at 22.10...an elderly couple, type grammar school teachers, walked past me while he got a tin of Red Bull out of his bag. His comment "I have never drunk this before but now..." That´s what I call a dedicated theatre lover :-)

BCNU

Country: Denmark
Company/ Theatre: Teater Grob, Kopenhagen
Language: Danish
Author: Anna Bro
Director: Mia Lipschitz

seen on the 20.06.12 in Mainz at the "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description: For young girls, the Internet is the realm of unlimited options and exciting promises. Here, all that counts is what you claim to be. But what if your analogue life is more fantastic than any Cyberworld? What if your soul mate turns out to be a fake? Then the Internet becomes a merciless place that will never forget. Before she knows it, the young girl is tangled in a web of rumours, lies and intimate photos. A Cybertale of friends with odd obsessions, absurd nightmares, lost innocence and our anarchic online-world.

what I liked: The idea to make a proper fairy tale out of that typical present-day story. I liked the way stage design, costumes and props fitted together. Nice to look at, all elements together created a perfect one hour.
what I didn't like: It was not very intellectually challenging and would make a perfect play for teenagers. Girl goes out, experiences bad things in and through cyberspace and finds peace by going into nature with a good-hearted boy.

verdict: Although first I felt like I got lectured too much, I liked it. Short, pure, and simple. And the Danish language was actually fun and didn´t sound as "snatchy" and choking as it can do sometimes.

Déjà là

Country: France
Company/ Theatre: Image et demi, Paris.
Language: French
Author: Arnaud Michniak
Director: Aurélia Guillet

seen on the 21.06.12 in Wiesbaden "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description: It’s a terrible world! Society is so unfair! Four friends drinking heavily in their Paris flat all agree on this. And they also agree that something must be done. And that they themselves don’t have the time or the means to do anything is equally clear. Songwriter Michniak and young director Aurélia Guillet paint a trenchant portrait of what happens when the impulse to save the world clashes with a total lack of drive.

what I liked: hmm, nothing. Not even the sound of the (imho beautiful) French language helped.

what I didn´t like: there was no real plot, it was an endless repetition of the same slogans. One long hour of phrasemongering without a hint of irony or any visual excitement .That exactly might have been the intention but it was unbelievably boring to watch.

verdict: The idea behind this play doesn´t sound that bad after all but the implementation was just uninspired. If that is all the current French theatre has to offer then I´m feeling quite sorry for them.

Wohlfülbox die Zweite

Heute ist die von mir schon sehnsüchtig erwartete Wohlfühlbox von der Internet Apotheke medpex bei mir angekommen. Und was soll ich sagen, ich bin wieder extrem beeindruckt! Seht selbst:

• Layenberger Your Whey Nuss Nougat (Portionsbeutel)
• Wick Limette & Salbei Hustenbonbons (3 Stück)
• Odaban Fuß- und Schuhpuder (Probe)
• elmex Intensivreinigung (Probe)
• Lipgloss mit Kirsche von Claire Fisher
• DermaSel SPA Dusche Granatapfel
• Vichy Thermalwasser-Spray
• Doppelherz Vitamin D 600 I.E. EXTRA
• Eucerin Sun Allergie Creme-Gel LSF 50 (Probe)
• Antistax Venencreme

So geht das Glossybox, pah! Und alles für schlappe 5 Euro. Alleine 5 Originalprodukte im Gesamtwert von 27,69 plus die vielen wirklich ordentlichen Proben. Das meiste ist gut gebrauchbar, das Eiweißpulver nun nicht so und über Vitamin D muß ich mich auch erst schlau machen aber das sind ja Kleinigkeiten.
Also, wenn ihr auch noch eine Box wollt dann zögert nicht lange :-)

Freitags-Füller 6

Wenn ich könnte wie ich wollte, wäre ich wahrscheinlich im Bett mit der Bettdecke über dem Kopf angesichts der unzähligen Möglichkeiten (das hatte mich nach dem Abi schon überfordert).

Früher war es meine Lieblingsbeschäftigung, heute habe ich eine regelrechte Aversion dagegen entwickelt ihn langfristig zu planen, den Urlaub.

Nein, wir werden nicht Fußball oder die die Olympiade anschauen - nicht in diesem Leben und im nächsten schonmal gar nicht.

Ich hätte es vor Jahren noch nie vermutet aber mittlerweile mag ich Eier, Speck, Tomaten und Pilze zum Frühstück.

Es ist immer schön wenn ich in Deutschland bin und mich wieder mit einigen Freundinnen treffen kann, wer hätte gedacht das ich mal so populär sein würde. Ist doch was dran mit dem "sich rar machen".

Mein neues Kleid von C&A war günstig, sieht (meiner Meinung nach) gut aus und ist auch noch extra bequem.

Was das Wochenende angeht, heute Abend freue ich mich auf das irische Theaterstück (endlich mal keine Simultanübersetzung für mich, yeah!), morgen habe ich natürlich wieder Theater geplant und Sonntag möchte ich mit einem Beitrag aus Deutschland das diesjährige Festival für mich abschließen...freue mich schon auf´s nächste !

Melnais Piens

Country: Latvia
Company/ Theatre: Jaunais Rīgas Teātris, Riga
Language: Latvian
Author: Alvis Hermanis
Director: Alvis Hermanis

seen on the 14.06.12 in Wiesbaden "New Plays from Europe" festival

Descriptions: Latvians are different. That is what the company of the Jaunais Rīgas Teātris learned when they set out to investigate the essence of Latvia. They found it in the countryside – a place where life is indeed different. A place not affected by the regimentation and classification of EU-regulations. Not yet. Because another result of their research was this: Once the last Latvian grandmother has given up her last cow, this will be the end of the essence of Latvia. An amusing evening of theatre – not least about cows – by Alvis Hermanis’ inimitable company.

what I liked: the way the actresses switched from being a woman to being a cow, as weird as this might sound. They must have really studied cows behaviour and movements otherwise that performance wouldn´t have been so fascinating to watch. Really beautiful images were created on stage too, the focus of the whole evening was much more on the visual side than on the spoken word.

what I disliked: I´m a sensitive soul when it comes to describing scenes that involve grime, blood and slaughterhouses. How good here I could simply turn down my receiver and listen to the foreign sounding Latvian...great to have ears that can switched on/off!

verdict: An opening performance that was new and fresh, nice to look at and could rely on really good actresses - but all in all it didn´t blow my socks off...

Sûrname 2010

Country: Turkey
Company/ Theatre: İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi Şehir Tíyatroları
Language: Turkish
Author: Yiğit Sertdemir
Director: Yiğit Sertdemir

seen on the 18.06.12 in Wiesbaden "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description: A theatrical declaration of love for Europe’s trendiest metropolis: Istanbul – European capital of culture 2010. 20 actors and a multitude of larger-than-life puppets enact a turbulent review, ranging from contemporary urban crowds to historic folk festival. In turn bizarre and funny or critical and thoughtful, but always powerful and vibrant, the past and present appear closely linked in this dynamic and vital international metropolis.

what I liked: It felt like a christmas panto from a very different culture. I liked the puppets, the variety they came in and the creativity. Some looked a bit scary but I certainly enjoyed leaning back and being surprised...
what I disliked: There was not much point in the plot in my opinion. It was all used as a reason to show all the different puppets and ideas but I wouldn´t say that it is a great new "play" as such.

verdict: Maybe I just missed the intellectual point again but for me this was more kids birthday party than critical and exciting new play. Nevertheless I enjoyed it...but left feeling a bit unsatisfied.

Nasza Klasa

Country: Poland
Company/ Theatre: Teatr Na Woli im. Tadeusza Łomnickiego, Warsaw.
Language: Polish
Author: Tadeusz Słobodzianek
Director: Ondrej Spišak

seen on the 17.06.12 in Wiesbaden "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description:  OUR CLASS relates ten exemplary Polish biographies. Of people who begin their school days together, who fall in love, hide and protect each other. Some of them, however, will turn to murder and betrayal. This is Poland’s difficult history, tossed back and forth between Soviet and Nazi rule, between Catholicism, Nationalism, Judaism and political ideology. Before the backdrop of a historical event, Słobodzianek sketches the complexity of human behaviour in extreme situations.

what I liked: the actors! So much talent, such stunning performances! It was a joy to watch them all the way through, especially towards the end Marcin Sztabiński and Karol Wróblewsk raised the bar high.
The simplicity and lack of decorations, effects or theatre blood was perfect too...in some of the more gruesome scenes it would have been hard to watch otherwise. I certainly learned more about Polish history by just watching it.

what I disliked: it was a tad too long. And at a certain point in the play I thought "Enough now, how much evil do you want every single character to go through?!" In the program the author said that he wished to create a catharsis so I guess that explains why. Another minor problem was that it was not easy to listen to the translation when they all were singing and shouting on stage - Polish is quite a loud language...

verdict: Leaving the theatre I felt a bit overwhelmed by the play and was not too sure about it. But after a few days now I find myself thinking about it quite a lot still. Would make a great novel and a great film too...but only if the same magnificent cast would do it! So far my favourite evening of the festival.

Burundanga

Country: Spain
Company/ Theatre: Sala FlyHard, Barcelona
Language: Catalan/ Spanish
Author: Jordi Galceran
Director: Jordi Casanovas

seen on the 15.06.12 in Wiesbaden "New Plays from Europe" festival

Description: Life could be so simple, if only people didn’t lie. Far from it! Nothing other than a truth serum causes things in this offbeat political comedy to get out of control. Berta just wanted to find out whether her boyfriend was cheating. She never dreamed that he would reveal his militant underground life and the organisational structure of ETA, the Basque separatist movement. For the next 90 minutes, five Spaniards speaking different native languages desperately try to spread a protective mantle of lies back over the facts. If only they could make sense of each other…

what I liked: It´s a comedy, it portrays fairly normal people, there´s nothing arty or overly intellectual about it. The way it deals with the ETA in a humourous way was clever and refreshing.

what I disliked: The play was fine, my receiver for the simultaneous translation was dodgy though and kept turning itself off. Still managed to miss not too much. Strangely, even the language didn´t annoy me as much as I expected (note: I´m one of the few people who absolutely cannot stand the sound of the Spanish language) though I found the Catalan more pleasant to listen to. What I was missing a bit was background informations about how much the (Catalan) characters understood of what the Spanish one said on stage so the contrast of the two languages got lost in the translation.

verdict: A funny and easy-going comedy with good (looking) actors and without any lenghts that probably will never become a timeless classic but entertains well right here and now. I found it deeply exhilarating to see something funny and conventional again embedded in the all the festivals abstractness and avant-garde.

küçük hediye

Die liebe Gänseblume war vor einigen Wochen im Urlaub in Istanbul und hat extra ein paar Souvenirs mitgebracht um sie an eine Leserin/einen Leser ihres Blogs zu verschenken.
Ich bin die Glückliche und habe mich sehr, sehr gefreut als ich am Montag das liebevoll gepackte Päckchen wieder entpacken durfte.

Als erstes muß ich sagen, daß ich selten ein so gut duftendes Paket erhalten habe. Liegt an der tollen Seife :-) Desweiteren gab es ein paar rotgoldene Ohrhänger (besitze bisher keine ähnlichen also passt das sehr gut), ein Buchzeichen das wie ein türkischer Teppich gewebt ist, ein kleines Täschen/Etui im ähnlichen Stil und ein ordentliches Paket mit türkischem schwarzen Tee.

Wenn das alles keine Lust macht auch mal nach Istanbul zu reisen dann weiß ich auch nicht.
Herzlichen Dank liebe Tine! Werde alles nutzen und mich weiterhin daran freuen :-) Und wenn ich es dann auch mal in die Türkei schaffe, dann kannst du gerne eine Bestellung bei mir aufgeben.

My Pointe Exactly

I recently did mention that as soon as something is linked to ballet I have to buy it.
It may be the name, a picture of a ballerina or simply a shade which reminds me of ballet slippers.
How good that OPI now brought out their collection "NewYorkCityBallet"...do I really have to say more?! Don´t think so...

the colours are:

• My Pointe Exactly (a light grey)
• Don´t Touch My Tutu! (a milky white, transluscent)
• Care to Danse? (a light lilac)
• Pirouette My Whistle (big silver glitter)

Freitags-Füller 5

Ein kleiner Schritt entscheidet auf Beachy Head über Leben und Tod.

Eben habe ich zum ersten Mal überhaupt Marmelade selbgekocht, wenn ich mit dem Ergebnis zufrieden bin, dann werde ich das nun öfters nachmachen.

Und das das Rezept fürs Sonntagsessen stammt von Tim Mälzer den ich manchmal leiden kann, manchmal irgendwie anstrengend finde.

Zu Hause trinke ich eigentlich alles aus der Flasche also fällt mir nicht viel ein zu: in einem großen Glas.

Der feine Unterschied zwischen billig Parfums und edleren fällt mir immer wieder auf.

Sie geht mir am wahlweise Arsch vorbei oder macht mich unglaublich wütend, die Fußball-EM.

Was das Wochenende angeht, heute Abend freue ich mich auf das spanisch/katalanische Stück bei der Theater Biennale in Wiesbaden, morgen habe ich den üblichen Marktbummel und Eis essen in Mainz geplant (da ich ja auch unter der Woche "frei" bin mach ich an den Wochenenden nie viel spannendes - zu voll überall) und Sonntag möchte ich zum ersten Mal etwas mit Mangold kochen bevor es ins polnische Theaterstück geht!

just one cornetto

One of the best things of the year between mid-february and the end of october? The Italian ice-cream shops in Germany are open. Selling a large selection of proper Italian ice-cream, several different cafés in each city, everything still comparatively reasonable priced. I just can´t resist it...

In the UK you can´t really get proper Italian ice-cream. Some posh places try it but the results look artificial, are overpriced and simply don´t convince me. The average ice-cream van driving around normally only sells ice lollies and soft ice. How bland and boring...

Sorry, but that´s just not good enough! I want choice, variety, freshness, exciting new and traditional flavours and want to indulge in different combinations every time. And all that for less money than all the half-hearted attempts on the island. If you would know what you are missing!

Frühlings Erwachen

Musik: Duncan Sheik
Buch/ Texte: Steven Sater basierend auf dem gleichnamigen Drama von Frank Wedekind
Theater: Musical Inc., Universität Mainz
Premiere: 1.6.2012
Regie: Steffen Storck, Frederic Jenewein

Inhalt: "Deutschland 1891, irgendwo in einer kleinen Stadt erleben die Schüler Wendla, Melchior und Moritz die aufregenden Turbulenzen des Erwachsenwerdens. Mit ihrer generellen Neugier auf sexuelle Themen und ihren gezielten Fragen werden sie von den Erwachsenen allein gelassen. Die bürgerliche Moral schiebt immer noch den Storch vor. Auf sich allein gestellt, geraten die Jugendlichen in ein verhängnisvolles Fahrwasser mit lebensgefährlichen Strudeln."

gefallen hat: die großartige Leistung eines "Laien"- Ensembles. Überwiegend guter Gesang, abwechslungsreiche Choreographie, durchdachtes Bühnenbild und viel Spielfreude und Energie. Erneut Hut ab!

nicht gefallen hat: Leider leider so einiges. Dies hat jedoch fast ausschließlich damit zu tun, daß ich vom Musical an sich alles andere als überzeugt wurde. Als erstes finde ich die Bezeichnung schon nicht gerade passend, Schauspiel mit Musik wäre passender. Die Handlung findet statt, dann kommt ein Song. Nie ist er besonders in die Handlung eingebunden und die wenig dezenten Handmikros verstärken den Effekt noch zusätzlich. Dadurch geht das Ganze ziemlich schleppend voran und zieht sich arg in die Länge. Durch den hohen Sprechanteil fällt es leider auch stärker ins Gewicht das wir es hier nicht mit ausgebildeten Schauspielern zu tun haben - im lustigen und schwungvollerem "Pinkelstadt" war dies absolut nicht aufgefallen. Die Songs sind ok, haben aber keinerlei Ohrwurm Effekt und sind auch nicht besonders rockig. Wie so oft sind die ins Deutsche übersetzten Texte oft hart an der Grenze zur Peinlichkeit..."The bitch of living" klingt einfach eleganter als "So´n verficktes Leben".

Fazit: Auch wenn die Thematik noch nicht viel von ihrer Brisanz und Aktualität eingebüßt hat, so hat mich "Frühlings Erwachen" in der hochgelobten Musicalversion enttäuscht - kann nicht verstehen wie dieses Stück soviele Awards gewinnen konnte. Schade für die motivierten Leute von Musical Inc.

Secondhand Treasure IX

those lovely old birthday cards I bought in order to hang them on my dressing room wall...I wish one day I could take the whole box of old postcards home from the junk-shop and spend ages reading every single one of them - daydreaming and fantasizing about the wonderful or average, exciting or tragic lives that are hidden away behind them...

where: Snooper´s Paradise, Brighton
price: 50p each

Glossybox 5/2012

with a bit of delay as I only just returned from the UK yesterday, my may 2012 German Glossybox.
Not overly impressed, not for the 15€ it now costs...but still I have the hope that next month will be brilliant, fingers crossed :-)

Jane Iredale Forever Pink - a teeny tiny transluscent lip stick, nice and cute product but nothing I had ever heard of before and would definitely not rebuy for 37,00€!!

Korres Aloe Shampoo - I like Korres so looking forward to try this one.

L´Oréal Paris Nude Magique BB Cream Blemish Balm - a sachet, no need to say more. Really interested in trying this one as I already like the Garnier BB Cream a lot but, a sachet?!

Lubin Gin Fizz - smells absolutely gorgeous, reminds me a lot of "A scent by Issey Miyake" . Never heard of the brand before though so I´m not sure I would buy it as I have no idea from where.

Sexy Hair bigsexyhair Spray& Play - not tried it yet but will. If this makes big sexy hair out of my 5 dull chives of hair I will be well impressed ;-)

Shiseido Benefiance Enriched Balancing Softener - a posh product that smells expensive too. Just still not sure what use a softener really has...will use it but will it have lots of effect without Shiseido products to follow?

+ the new Glossy Mag - it´s thin, 1cm too tall to fit into the actual box which is simply stupid, has enough content to have it fully read in less than 3 min and is already in the recycling bin

+the GlossyBox blush brush which I find useful and good, I´m not a brush snob at all

All ok and nice but no full size at all which is a bit of a let down. At least I can make use of everything.

Yankee Candle Union Jack

As much as I dislike items that have any connections to the German flag I'm a sucker for the Union Jack.
Unfortunately it only comes in the large housewarmer jar so there was a bit of a risk in buying it blind...


"Introducing the limited edition Yankee Candle Union Jack Housewarmer Jar, a stunning new fragrance for summer 2012 designed to celebrate everything British. A timeless addition to the 2012 Housewarmer collection, Union Jack is a Yankee Candle exclusive, offered for a limited time only and part of the Yankee Candle Collectable Programme. Infused with pure, natural fragrance extracts, Union Jack is a stunning fragrance reminiscent of British gardens and delicate rose petals, designed with a striking label featuring the Union Jack, Flag. With the London 2012 Olympic Games and Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee ceremony taking place in 2012, Yankee Candle will be paying tribute through the launch of this unique fragrance."

Now I've tried it and know: I don't really like it. It smells of roses, nothing else. And as much as I like roses in the garden, the artificial scent can easily cause headaches. Nevertheless I will use it up now and light it from time to time...at least it looks good :-)

Freitags-Füller 4

Seit gestern weiß ich wie nah Ham House an Richmond liegt.

Erst einmal gegessen mangels Angebot in meiner Gegend aber trotzdem würde ich behaupten: Ich mag Frozen Joghurt.

Erst wenn man selbst ein Problem/eine Krise gemeistert hat, merkt man wievielen anderen es genauso geht und man es vorher einfach nicht sehen wollte.

Fascinators auf Hochzeiten und Pferderennen finde ich gut.

Was mal Laster waren sind es auch heute noch, habe doch keine Disziplin.

Ein blühender Lindenbaum riecht für mich nach Sommer. 

Was das Wochenende angeht, heute Abend freue ich mich auf meinen Rückflug nach Frankfurt (wobei ich mich darauf nicht wirklich gefreut habe) , morgen habe ich in Mainz auf den Markt gehen, beim Thai essen gehen und nachmittags ganz omahaft in einem Kaffeehaus den 30. Geburtstag einer Freundin mit Torte und Kaffee zelebrieren geplant und Sonntag möchte ich Spargel essen!

picture perfect

In march I finished university in Germany, finally.
As much as I struggled and hated it and quit and started again -  as soon as I had my certificate I started looking for new opportunities. Being free is a fantastic feeling but only for a while...and sometimes you need the pressure of a deadline in order to enjoy reading Harry Potter again.
Becoming a full time student at an English university looked promising and exciting (you can e.g. study "Victorian studies" - how great does that sound!?) but, with the fee rise, it was simply too damn expensive. I couldn't justify that in the slightest.
Studying in Germany again was another option but that would have made me stuck in one place again, I really don't fancy working through timetables and calendars again for weeks in order to work out when to see my husband, cat and house again.
This limited my choice to distance learning programs. And I found something!

The Open College of the Arts in England. Starting by doing a photography course.

It's "only" a college (but works together with a university so can offer a BA hons degree which I'm aiming at) and open to everyone but so what!? I'm a bit worried that I might learn much on the arty side and less on the technical one but, again, so what, I will never find out if it's the right choice or not if I'm not trying right?! I want to learn more, become better, get assignments that force me to do things out of my comfort zone...
Not exactly cheap but: look how fantastic the course material looks that arrived with a courier yesterday ;-)
Excited, and will keep you posted :-)

Will work on a MA as well from autumn on but that's a different story I will write about later...

God save the Queen

here some impressions of the long Jubilee Weekend. Made me really proud to be British despite being German :-) I simply adore the Queen and everything royal...
You can see the Queen and Prince Philip, if you look closely there are Prince Charles and Camilla as well and Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice. And if you look very closely Will, Kate and Harry are there too :-)