Don't Worry, Be Happy 2011

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. – Matthew 6:34

Usually I don’t have any New Year’s resolutions, because I know I cannot keep them anyway ;) However, I make these words by Jesus Christ my resolution for next year and I’m determined to keep it!

12 Days to go...

… until Christmas Eve! This is the day we celebrate Christmas here in Germany. On the day before Hermann and I will travel “home” to my family. Even though we are all grown up now and two of us four children are married (one with children of his own) and no longer living “at home”, we are still celebrating Christmas almost the same way as we did when we were kids. This is mostly owing to my father who still puts up the Christmas tree (which in Germany is usually not put up until Christmas Eve), decorates it and places the gifts in his living room. None of us is allowed to enter the room before the evening. In the evening we first visit the graves of late relatives and light candles there and then we return home. Our father goes into the living room and rings a bell, the same bell he rang when we were children and then we all enter the room. I enjoy celebrating Christmas this way, it brings back my childhood :)

2nd Sunday of Advent

Blog Reduction

Until now I have run five blogs; that worked well in my “previous” life, but since we moved (the new apartment still requires a lot of work until everything will be completed) and especially since I have started writing books again I simply don’t have time for this any more. Therefore I keep the two blogs I get most feedback on: “Leben auf der Sonnenseite” and “On Life’s Sunny Side” (this one). There will be no more posts on the other blogs.

If you have got...

... any German speaking friends who like to read romance novels, please let them know they can win a copy of my novel on my German blog. They can take part in the competition, no matter in which country they are living. Thank you :)

Progress

Meanwhile our apartment looks more like a home than like a building site. However, it is not over yet. The two bathrooms, one of the two kitchens and some small things still have to be done. I’m still busy unpacking boxes, but I’m confident that I will make it before December. Looking forward to putting up the Christmas decoration, too :)

Also my debut novel is out, you can see it on the Amazon.de website and if you know German you can even read parts of it there ;)

Are You a Tortured Genius?

You Are 91% Tortured Genius

You totally fit the profile of a tortured genius. You're uniquely brilliant - and completely misunderstood. Not like you really want anyone to understand you anyway. You're pretty happy being an island.

Are You a Tortured Genius?

Blogthings: We'll Tell You The Truth... Someone Has To!

Okay, so if nobody will like my debut novel it is not, because it is badly written, but because I have been misunderstood. Very comforting ;)

In Our New Home

The moving part is now over, thank GOD! However, some rooms in our apartment are still building sites and cannot be used properly. Also we do not have a telephone / internet connection yet, so it is just mobile phone and (slow) mobile internet for the weeks to come.

Anyway, I like living in this little town (which is not even officially a town, but just a village). I have got more infrastructure than in the previous place (which was officially a town), a greater variety of shops and three supermarkets. I know that doesn’t sound much, but in Mühlheim we just had one little supermarket and a small grocery shop within walking distance. For the pharmacy and the post office I had to climb a steep hill. For everything except every day items I had to go to another town. Now I have got most shops (plus pharmacy and post office) within easy walking distance which is very convenient as I don’t have a car.

On Friday we officially gave the keys of the old house to the new owners, a very kind Italian couple who have been living and working in Germany for about 30 years and now wanted a house with a garden. After all it was Hermann’s childhood home and his parents had built it, so we were happy to get such friendly new owners who really appreciate it, especially the garden which had been my mother-in-law’s favorite hobby. The woman looked as if she could hardly wait to take gardening tools into her hands ;)

Today I take a break from unpacking boxes – start again tomorrow!

It's Official...

Our house is sold and we are going to move by mid-September.

My novel is finished, just have to do some editing. However, I will wait until after our move with the publishing as I have got too much work to do before.

Slow Blogging

As you have probably noticed, I’m not blogging very much at the moment. This is for two reasons: firstly it is summer and at this time of year I usually am not so much in the mood for blogging; secondly I’m just writing my first novel and that takes a lot of time and creativity, of course. So I will reduce my blogging. I will just post when there is something new I feel like writing about. Please be patient with me. In case you are looking for me you can still find me on Twitter and Facebook ;)

More Delays

While the problem with the loan is almost solved – we had to change the bank, though – there are now other delays, this time on the seller’s part. The house with the apartment we want to buy is owned by the town. Therefore they have to decide how the complex is now to be shared between them and us. Our architect had been very busy drawing up a plan and discussing it with the people involved. In the end the town council should have decided. On Monday they had their meeting, but it was not on the agenda – we have got no idea why not! The next meeting will be in four weeks’ time and if there is no other way we will have to wait until after that, before we can buy the apartment. So it will most likely be September (or even later?) before we will be able to move. Meanwhile I have doubts that it will ever happen at all!!! Who is next throwing stones in our way?

Waiting again

Right now we are waiting again – this time there is a delay regarding the loan. Just a formal thing really, but it seems to be a problem. Everything else goes smoothly at the moment, so we hope that the loan problem will be solved in time, so that we can buy the apartment as soon as the other formalities are completed.

Meanwhile the whole house selling and apartment buying business reminds me very much of a dance like this one:



You move forward, backward, to the side, in circles, and by this slowly reach the end of the line. A dance is much more pleasant most of the time, though ;)

More Steps Forward

We are still moving forward slowly but steadily with regard to our new home. Within the following two or so weeks the paperwork should be completed, so that we can hopefully sign the contract before the end of this month. Afterwards it is up to our architect and the craftsmen to get all the renovation work done while we are packing our things. This is probably not the greatest way to spend the summer days, but we are determined to move before the days are getting colder again!

A Small Step Forward

Today we completed the extensive paperwork which is necessary to get a loan. Now the agreement has to be drawn up. From our side we leave this part to our broker who has been doing an excellent job already, while we know nothing about such things, and he will then explain all the small print to us. So all we can do now is wait – once again. Not too long this time, I hope!

One Step Back, One Forward

The potential buyer doesn’t want the house now – the heating contractor made a quotation for a new heating system which everyone regards as far too high (we knew it before, that company is notorious for it) and which he cannot afford. So now we will take up a loan which we pay back when our house is sold, so that we can at least move forward and buy the new apartment. We hope to be able to do it sometime this month, so we can move before my birthday (July 24). Of course, the apartment needs some renovation, but that should not take too long. In the meantime I will dedicate myself to the task of packing up all our stuff, the mere thought of which horrifies me – at least until I can actually start with it.

Our weather is still like autumn, but at least I’m feeling a little better now and I do not think that it was gastritis; instead I had a migraine for the past two day, but that is over, too, for now.

So I see my life in a brighter light again ;)

Frustrated

I’m in a state of frustration these days.

Firstly, because the decision whether our house will be sold soon or whether we will have to take up a loan is dragging on and on at the moment. The potential buyer is waiting for a quotation by the heating contractor and what his bank will say on the quoted price or something like that. Hopefully we will know more before next weekend.

Secondly, because the weather has suddenly decided that it is autumn, so we are having rather low temperatures and lots of rain. According to the forecast it will remain like this at least until Friday. We had switched our heater off already, but now it is on again and I only hope that we do not have to buy any more oil!

Thirdly, because I’m not feeling well and wonder whether it is gastritis or just the weather – could be the weather, as I’m reacting extremely sensitive to it, but until either I or the weather get(s) any better I cannot tell.

Strange World...

Why is there so much hatred against Israel? It is a small country, the only democratic one in the Middle East and constantly in danger of being overrun by its neighbors most of whom deny this country the right to exist. Despite its faults and political errors (which are not worse than those of most countries in the west none of which is in such a dangerous situation) it should have the sympathy and support of all democratic countries and people. Instead one gets the impression that Israel must be one of the worst human rights violators in the world and the biggest threat to world peace! This is completely incomprehensible to me - unless, as a German journalist once put it, Israel is said to be the biggest threat to world peace, because it is a thorn in the side of those who are really the biggest threat to world peace, but naming these people / countries is politically incorrect and dangerous, too... It is not dangerous to demonstrate against Israel, because they do not send their terrorists out for suicide attacks on civilians in western countries - others do and therefore it is probably better to appease those by bashing Israel!

London Impressions April 2010

Home Again

On Friday evening we returned from our London trip and meanwhile I have also returned home mentally (after our trip to Armenia last year it had taken weeks to get my brain set on “home” again). We had a great time and I was happy to see the town again after 22 years (I do not count a very short visit in 2005 when I wasn’t able to see much of it). Many things have changed, but the megacity atmosphere which I enjoyed so much during my year there was still the same. Also the weather was nice most of the time (except one day with rain). Hermann was very impressed and found London “addictive” – I completely agree on that ;) If there is one place I would really find it perfect to live it is this crazy megacity!

Our House

It is "inofficially" sold now, and we hope that it will be "official" very soon. Before this will happen, though, we will enjoy a week in London, so I now say Happy Easter already to those who celebrate it!

Waiting...

After having resolved on taking up a loan to buy our new apartment everything is now on hold again. The reason is that last Monday we had visitors who are very likely to buy our house. If they do we don't need the loan. We hope that they will finally decide in the course of this week, because we can hardly wait to move forward and therefore we need to know as soon as possible whether we will have to take up the loan or not. Our plans are to buy our new apartment in April, so that the necessary renovation and maintenance can be started soon and we will be able to move sometime in May or June and enjoy the summer in our new home already :)

Getting Started

Even though our house is not sold yet we now decided to start the procedure to buy the new apartment and have it renovated, so that we will be able to move sometime in May or June, depending how long it takes. Of course we have to take up a loan until our house is sold, but that is far better than remaining here probably another six months or longer being unable to plan and probably even risk to lose the apartment we are intending to buy. If we were still living in the house towards winter we also would have to buy heating oil again. So there would be many disadvantages and almost no advantages (or none at all) if we stayed here.

Spring Cleaning

By the beginning of last week, as the snow had started melting, I suddenly felt like doing spring cleaning. That is, my mind felt it, but my body was on strike again for four days due to low blood pressure. On Thursday afternoon I finally felt well enough to start. Meanwhile it is almost finished, except for the windows, but as it has now become colder again (for tomorrow they are even predicting snow) this has to wait. I’m not going to catch myself a cold for clean windows!

A Tragic Story

I read through this book almost without putting it down. It is the beautiful but sad memoir by Turkish human rights lawyer Fethiye Çetin on her grandmother.

Here is the description from the cover:

When Fethiye Çetin was growing up in the small Turkish town of Maden, she knew her grandmother as a happy and universally respected Muslim housewife. It would be decades before her grandmother told her the truth: that she was by birth a Christian and an Armenian, that her name was not Seher but Heranuş, that most of the men in her village had been slaughtered in 1915, that she, along with most of the women and children, had been sent on a death march. She had been saved (and torn from her mother’s arms) by the Turkish gendarme captain who went on to adopt her. But she knew she still had family in America. Could Fethiye help her find her lost relations before she died?

There are an estimated two million Turks whose grandparents could tell them similar stories. But in a country that maintains the Armenian massacres never happened, such talk can be dangerous. In her heart-wrenching memoir, Fethiye Çetin breaks the silence.

Another Week...

… has gone by – time goes too fast sometimes. I have been busy with several things, particularly with a new website I’m creating for an elementary school. The principal is a member of my former church, and as obviously none of the teachers or parents at the school is able or willing to create a site and I have also created the church’s website he asked me if I was willing to do it. Of course I said yes! I don’t know what I will get for it (not much to be sure, schools in Germany usually do not have a very high budget, and they’d rather spend it for the children), but that is not something I care about. I enjoy creating websites, especially when it is for a good cause :)

Movie Evenings

The carnival season is in full swing now and therefore Hermann has to spend many evenings at the various events for the newspaper he is working for. This means that I’m alone at home all those evenings which gives me the opportunity to watch movies that Hermann wouldn’t want to watch – like the Jane Austen adaptations, for example. In his opinion, nothing ever happens in those movies *lol*

Yesterday I watched “Pride and Prejudice”, the famous BBC adaptation of 1995 with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. It is so beautifully made – just right for a romantic evening on one’s own ;)

Winter Continues

Since last night it has snowed a lot and it got colder again, and this weather is supposed to continue at least for the rest of this week and for the next. Of course, I did not really expect spring yet…

Here is something for all who are longing for it – enjoy :)

What Kind of Intelligence?

I did this test a while ago – the results didn’t really surprise me ;)

Your Dominant Intelligence is Linguistic Intelligence

You are excellent with words and language. You explain yourself well. An elegant speaker, you can converse well with anyone on the fly. You are also good at remembering information and convincing someone of your point of view. A master of creative phrasing and unique words, you enjoy expanding your vocabulary. You would make a fantastic poet, journalist, writer, teacher, lawyer, politician, or translator.

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

More Visitors

Yesterday there were two more families looking around our house. Quite honestly, I hope we do not have to go through this procedure too often before the house is sold. I was exhausted afterwards. Not that I was involved a lot, but the mere presence of so many strangers in my home is rather stressful for me.

Snow and Visitors

Meanwhile we have got even more snow and everything looks lovely outside – I like it when the snow covers all the dark winter colours!

Yesterday we were visited by two families who are both interested in buying our house. Things are looking good at the moment and we hope to be able to move to our new place within the next six months.

Holidays Over

So here am I again - hopefully more often in 2010! This is not a resolution, as I never keep resolutions ;) We spent the holidays with the family at my father’s house and we had a lot of fun. Anyway, now we are back in the daily routine, even though it is still a little calmer than usual. The Christmas holidays at the schools are lasting one more week and even though we don’t have children we feel it, too.

We are enjoying cold and sunny winter days at the moment, just the way it should be :) I only wished that Hermann would not have to drive so much in this weather, especially on those winding roads along the Danube Valley. He is a careful driver himself, but unfortunately there are people who think they can drive fast on icy streets and by this put others into danger.

As always at the beginning of a new year I’m very curious what lies ahead of me in the coming twelve months!