The peace before a storm

now, I do not anticipate a storm for me, but one never knows. And this title somehow just came to my mind. My first title-thought though was: the peace of a quiet Sunday. On the other hand: a quiet sunday may come before a storm. And we are in autumn, so a storm or two are not unlikely.
Oddly enough, I am not averse to natures storms. But you have to keep in mind, that I am only used to rather undangerous storms. We did have Kyrill a couple of years ago, but I did not really experience it. To me it was a good time to cuddle up into my favourite blanket, with a cappuccino or tea and a candle on. No need for worries.
I do know, that there are really horrible storms in the world, as they are in life. I have just been spared them. Not due to any special reason I can see.
That does not mean however, that I am not thankful for it. I am. Very much so. My whole life so far and it has been longer than that of Jane Austen, well, my whole life I have always been lucky.
I was born with a defect in/to my thyroid. But I was born into a family, that fought for my life and health and development. So I can thank them for being, who I am.
This is just the one big example in my life, but it is like a red twine through my life. I actually don't know the english idiom for it, but this is a translation of the german idiom.

This is, why to me, even if I may not feel so every day, still my life is a very happy and lucky one. I can make my own choices. I am free to live as I like, meet who I like or avoid whom I don't like. I can work where I want and get there how I want. I can just be.

And today I just was. Slept in, played my favourite computer game, watched three old Doris Day movies, watched a whole lot of TV. It was relaxing. While doing all that, I ate a whole bag of Hazlenuts and half a glass of red beets. I also drank lots of water and tea and cappuccino. And: I got on with producing piece for my blanket, unraveled a shirt I started last year and started fresh.

Maybe I should try a song about a fresh start. There is bound to be one. I won't own it. Even now I do not like, if I will like it. But I look for it now.

There was also - as you will have seen - a new beginning for the layout of my blog. As it is almost a year old, I thought, my might play around a bit. And so I did on Friday and enjoyed myself a lot. It was really exciting. I did add some place for advertisement, change the picture, made comment from google+ possible, changed colours and the style of the letters. I also added some links, that I find interesting. Next may be, that I add interesting blogs. I might.

After my changes, I thought I do my Sunday posting. Tomorrow I intend to change my daily rhythm. That'll be rather harder. I am not an early bird by nature and have a comfortable bed. But still. It has to be done, because I want it that way.  In my household I rule.
Apart from that I do have an apointment with a trainer to create a new program. So that gives it a start. And the new month starts on Tuesday, so I thought: You might as well. You do a lazy weekend and than restart your efforts.
The thing with plans and me is: I like to make them, I just dislike to follow them through for any longer stretch of time. Though I do get better in that and manage to follow my plans for months on end or to at least take them up again. Even though I do not always write about them here.

So, my plan for the time starting tomorrow is: do more sports, take your food to work, get a regular rhythm into it. Does not sound like a lot? That is just, because I did not and will not write down the side-plans attached to the main plan..... :-) I am trying though, to do that one day at a time. Like actually getting up at 5.30 am and being in the office by 7.00 am. And staying until 4.30 pm. And in the end, being in bed, ready for sleep by
9.30 pm. That does not mean I will sleep then. It just means, that I am ready to do so. Tired or not, here I come, you can't hide... (That's about something else though, ain't it? Don't own it)... Well on this note and since it is already 7.00 pm, I stop with this song:

Not your typical version and even though I don't own this either, it is a classy version by Dame Shirley Bassey... Those welsh people can sing...

Actually,

quite a lot happened lately. Which is, why I didn't get to write here. So I do now.

Well, never say never, but still: now is a good time.

So to start with the last weekend. That's when my friend got married. It was in a very small village in the backwaters of Germany. Or so I say. But it is certainly no Metropolis. Still, very nice and very rural.

After work on Friday I packed the last of my stuff and then drove there by train. As expected, the train was late. Fortunately, the connecting rural tram has to wait for the express. So I caught that and met up with my friend, her Mum, her husbands Mum and an "old" friend of his. She is only 28, but she has known him for quite a while.

We had dinner and then my friend drove the friend and me to our hotel. It was a very nice and cozy hotel, but with a horrid smell of cigarettes. When I got home I just had to take a shower, to get it out of my pores.

But other than that it was very nice and the people working there very friendly and helpful.

On Saturday at breakfast, we met more of his family. His Dad and Stepmom, his Dad's sister and her husband and one of his brothers and his Girlfriend. They are all from UK, so we spoke english. And the next day after breakfast a nice old lady from a neighbouring table complemented the friend and me on our good german, which was funny, of course. But kind of nice as well.

Anyway. We met at breakfast. The friend (I am not giving her name) knows his family and I speak english, so we got along rather way. We then got ready for the church wedding at 12.00 am.

It was a very nice and small church in the village. Not overloading with statues of holy people or such. We waited in front, as the weather was very nice. Then her attendant came, a colleague and friend of hers, with her family. And what do you know: we where wearing the same dress, in the same colour, but different sizes. And that only, because she is 7 months pregnant. So....

Well, it shows my nieces good taste in dresses anyway. The attendant had a different stole in white and her shoes where white as well. We had fun though. I like here and we both had problems to find just the right dress.

I had a photo taken of us in our dresses.

Well, the other wedding-guests arrived and we went in. The groom stood nervously at the altar and then the bride came. She was led into the church by her father-in-law, as her own father is sadly already dead. So this was really very nice. I thought. The grooms brother was his best man, by the way. Forgot to mention that.

It was a very nice service and not overlong, so that was nice as well. I was a bit worried, because in my memories catholic weddings are overlong. But I forgot, that the groom is Church of England = Anglican. And therefore in the eyes of the catholic church seemingly not the right kind of christians. I am not sure though. But I am sure that my friend said, that because of his being anglican, it was not the usual catholic wedding.

Well, the groom was wearing Tophat, purple tie and tails and looked VERY handsome. The bride had a tiara a veil, and a very nicely empbroidered dress with a not to long train. But it turned dangerous at the dancing part later. As ever: she was a very lovely bride. And she isn't all the ugly apart from that.

After the wedding we all drove the restaurant, where the party took place in a corso and tooted the horns. Well, I sat in the back, so I let others hoot. People looked, one kid waved, it was great fun.

Then we did the shake-hand and found our tables. There was a plan. Every table had a famous couple as title, mine was Victoria and Albert. But there were Bernard and Bianca (the mice), Emperor Franz of Austria and Empress Sissi, And this vampire guy, with the annoying woman, whose names I can't remember. There were others as well. And there was a portrait of both.

Every table was decorated with a white cloth and a purple stripe, there where purple butterflies and other purple decorations and everyone had a namesigh with a white butterfly. So what do you think? Yes: my friend likes purple and butterflies.

There also was a camera and every table had to do something for the couple. Write a recipe or a way to love, whatever. Also, every guest got a wedding-marmalade as present. Very tasty, by the way.

There were too many very nice cakes, but the wedding cake deserves mentioning. It had four layers: Strawberry, Lemon, Chocolate and Vanilla.

After Cakes there were games and presents got unpacked, speeches were made (and very nice, too) and people changed tables and got to know the other guests. On may tables were the friend of the groom and neighbours of the bride and they were very nice. As nice, as my friend had said.

Oh, the bouqet was thrown, but I had found a place in a backrow and hid behind a taller girl. So I was lucky in that.

The dinner was just as great as cake and coffee and then the dancing began. At first the music was rather hard to take. At least for me, but in the end it was rather nice and I got in some dancing with the britisch guests.

We than took a cab back to the hotel.

Next morning we had breakfast and then went our seperate ways. The Friend and way made a stop in Cologne to visit the Roman-Germanic-Museum and had some ice-cream afterwards. Then I went home and she went to an NS-Documentation-Centre that interested her.

We both got home well and I know that, because for once I remembered to exchange adresses and numbers.

On Monday I went back to work and all was the same, BUT today I moved the furniture in my living-room. I do that now and again and it was time again. So now I turned things around a bit and so gained a lot of space in the centre of the room, even though I made myself a TV-Corner..  I like it.

Tomorrow I'll hoover and clean and then I tackle the next room. But tomorrow I will also buy the birthday present for my niece, who turns 18 on Saturday. She is a big girl now!!!

That's about it for now. I hope you enjoyed it. As ever I don't own any of the clips above. I just like them. Cheerio!

It is time for some swedish nostalgia

Yes, I am aware, that there was the 40th Crown Jubilee in Sweden just now (and the 40th birthday of Prince Daniel by the way). Oddly enough, that is not the reason why I got into nostalgia mood.

I have been watching Duggar-films on You Tube. And on one they had sort of character-songs for almost every Duggar-Girl (almost, because I think Josie hadn't been born by then).

At any rate, the song for Jennifer Danielle Duggar was (not owned by me, just as the following aren't):

And that reminded me of my favourite Ida-Song:

And of course other songs of Astrid Lindgren-characters:

And now, for some contrast and to end this post: Disney... :-)

Listen, if you can detect all the instruments. Amazing. And the voices are great as well... (it does start with some annoying advertisement, though)

As ever and mentioned already in this post: I do not own these videos..

Said yes to the dress

Went shopping today and I can tell you, it's no fun. At least not for me and certainly not, when I am ill and not feeling well at all, sneezing and coughing through the shops. BUT I found a dress for my friends wedding.
Unfortunately, they didn't have it in the shop. BUT they had it online. So I have just ordered it. Very nice dress. MINE. Hooray.
Now I only need shoes and a jacket and something dangling. It'll work out fine. Speaking of fine: I did cut it fine, as the wedding I bought it for, is next week. Ah well. I've got it, now only the present has to arrive on time.
That'll work out too. As my dad says: things sort themselves out on their own. So there is no need to worry.

Now, since the marrying friend is a close one and there is no film called, my close friends wedding, I chose this song, that isn't owned by me, from my best friends wedding. :-)

O.k., so thanks to EMA I cannot upload the filmversion with Rupert Everett, as it is not available in Germany. I could swear, but I won't here, due to my parents hard work in keeping me from it. But I was annoyed. Until I found this version. And SHE is really very good. So you are actually lucky....

All the best, I'll go sweating now, so I will be fit at least for the wedding. :-)

Run!

Today I did actually get up at a good time. And I got ready well, even ironed a pair of pants and a t-shirt. Anyway, I wasn't all that late in the
office, 7.30 am. Compaired to yesterday, 9.48 am, that is very good.

Unfortunately, I had forgotten, wether I had unplugged my iron. Usually, because I often actually forget to unplug it, I got into the habit of doing the unplugging very ceremoniously. But today I didn't do that.
Because this kind of thing can preoccupy my mind for hours on end, with all its horrible possibilities and because in my new job I have not yet so very important things to do: I raced home. Took the train at 9.40, walked in record-time to my flat (4 Minutes), saw, that it was actually unplugged.

Then I was relieved and decided to visit the bathroom, packed my suncream, pulled the blind up did the usual, including the thorough hand-wash and raced off again to take the bus at 10.09 to catch the train at 10.24. And so I was checked back in at 10.47 am. Good aye?

Now: you may wonder: why does she walk (or run) from the train station, but take a bus to the train-station back?
Easy answer: two different train-stations. The one I arrived at, is about 8 minutes walking away from my home. The one I left from is about an 8 minutes-busride away from my home. So why do I chose another one to get back?
Two Reasons. First, if I take the bus, I can read while I get there. And second: sometimes, my train is late or does not come at all. And in that case the chosen station is better, as it leaves more options to get to my place of work. Great, isn't it? Plus: I can get a Cappuccino there.

So, though I am not proud of the iron-problem, I am proud of my getting around so fast and without fuss. It meant though, that I had to stay a lot longer. Especially, since I took a longer lunch break. Still, it was worth it.

This just a shorty. So maybe just a short - not owned by me - clip..

 

 I thought: short people might suffice. It has the word short in it and it is funny. Untrue, maybe insulting, but hey: if you don't like the text: enjoy the music... :o)

New month, new resolutions

I have always wondered, why I am supposed to wait to make new resoulutions until the first of a new year. Why not the first of every
month? Or Week? Or why not every day?
Therefore my resolutions may start at any time of the year. But their
execution may end just as soon, as a New Years Resolution does.
The difference? Apart from the frequency of making them?
I don't  have to wait and I may have the fun of making a resolution several times a year, instead of just once. Some even stick for longer... :-)

As my Ayurveda Resolution. Though the execution wasn't so very long, the intention of restarting held for longer and parts of it I did keep up. Like at least trying not to eat carbohydrates at night or eat more hot food, because I am a kappha-type. And trying out Yoga.
And the resolution to write here more often. At least I managed to write almost every weekend. That is a starter and I mean to keep that up, resolution or no resolution. Simply because it is great fun.

So my resolution for September? Be savvy with my money, my health, my friends, my work.
Especially my work. As I have exhaustively told, I did not pass my last exam. But as so often, I was lucky and got another job. And it is, what I did before this apprentice-ship, only without two hour orgies of copying.
Like myself, there will start a new system of preparing meetings and so I can get right into the swing. I am even already signed up for a class to learn the how-to.
Then I will be sitting in the office of my former boss, on his place, at his computer. And the first month I will be sitting alone. Then I will get a colleague. So that's done.

As I also have written often before: I like to make plans. And one of them is to motivate me for just the one day to do my work perfectly. After that, there is another day to deal with. For motivation of course, a working song is in order and I decided on the "Happy Working Song" from enchanted.
Though I do like the one from Cinderella as well... Since I own neither,it does not matter really. Here goes:

 

Well, I won't be working with rats or pigeons or cockroaches. I will be working with the usual office supplies. And I will make myself a lovely

place to work in. Sort of a home from home. Being, that I will be in my office for at least two years, when I plan to give the thing of rising in the ranks another try. 

Why not earlier? Well, I cannot start before I am 45 and since I only just turned 43 last month, that gives me two years. And believe you me, I can use at least one year of rest after the stress of the last three years.

At any rate. Today is a rather relaxed day of installing my security DVD, writing here, writing letters, reading books, ironing, packing my bag for

tomorrow and maybe even phone one or to people. Don't like to yet. 

So: keep happy until I write next!
PS: this was my 100th post since I started last year in Octobre