It’s the first week of September and summer is slowly winding down. I don’t know what’s better – a crazy busy three months or some slow summer loving. This time of year really turned me upside down in 2016. It seems that every year I experience the hot months in a different wayRead More »
It’s the last day of August. I haven’t blogged all month so I thought getting in this last post before summer comes to an end would be appropriate. The last day of August is Read More »
It always baffles me how different time is perceived when on travels and when at home. Read More »
Sometimes I feel that days just fly by. That we aren’t in control of clock time as much as we would like to. That days turn into weeks and weeks into months. That all of a sudden a new year has come and with it some new changes. Read More »
Lately, many things have happened. But then again, many things have not. How do you start a blog you have neglected for almost a month? I know my post #300 is coming up soon. And while I had thought it would be a cool idea to have told most of my stories by then, it simply didn’t happen. The usual dilemma between working long hours and not being able to have much of a personal life has caught up with me in the past 3 weeks. It will be over, soon, though, so perhaps in the coming days or weeks I will have more time to devote to this blog. Hopefully. And also some fresh topics.
Until then I remain one of those faceless zombies who wait for the subway every morning and evening. In a faceless crowd, trying to squeeze into an overfilled train. Rush hour, how I’ve almost forgotten how it felt. And looked. And smelt.
Or how draining it can be to work for not much of a purpose.
Until then: How do you do it? Blogging and having a life? I have asked you this before but I am still curious how you juggle working, buying groceries, meeting with friends, having a hobby, and then posting online? Well, let me know! Suggestions are always welcome.
It’s been a rocky road up to here but so far I am impressed I am still hanging on. 250 posts – a reason to congratulate myself and all of you, who have continued reading this precious blog of mine. I guess it’s easier said than done – maintaining a presence in the blogosphere on a regular basis. Some of you might have been wondering why it’s become a bit quieter in the past few weeks months (and others might have not). I believe the true challenge is to juggle daily life, stresses, and everything else together with writing. Prioritizing what has to be done and what can wait, until whatever was put on the waiting bench wants to be let out someday.
While I admire those who blog almost every day, it remains a true mystery to me how they are able to do this with a full-time schedule going on. How do you guys manage to post and still have a normal life? Social obligations, hobbies, experiencing life – AND writing on the side?
I currently find myself in a full-time position that does not allow any down time at work (sounds like a reasonable New York job, I’d say). While my old job was more acceptable in terms of whipping up the one or other blog post during office hours, now this has become merely impossible to do (say for at least the past year or so). Therefore, I come home, am basically exhausted, and simply have no drive to sit in front of a laptop and continue with writing. Of course I want to also go to the gym or take some classes (I just successfully completed my first semester of Portuguese studies). Don’t get me started on how distracting New York by itself can be. I’ve already concluded that if I were ever to go back to school, this is just not the right city to be in to pursue a graduate degree. Too much going on, too many parties, too many events one could never possibly attend I just can’t miss out on. And in addition to all of this there remains the challenge of nourishing my second biggest hobby: Photography! So how do you do it, guys? I really want to know!
My priorities seem to also have shifted a bit and now blogging is not quite as important as it used to be. Such is life – you try it out, you immerse in it, and then you let it go. I feel that there are still a few more good posts to come but don’t be too surprised when one day it will all end. Or fall into a trickled drop of nothingness. Then, of course, there is the desire to fulfill what the heart seeks and that burning urge every time I have a pen or a camera in my hand. Perhaps over will never exist.
I’ve had my love-hate relationship with blogging throughout these past 250 posts. Some were really difficult topics, some informative and others easy-going. All in all, I am still writing about New York, and as long as I remain here this will most likely not change. I still find it admirable how people find my blog each and every day. Some google search terms won’t make sense. However, the other day my blog was added to South Slope News, a site that must have just been called into existence. It’s for these little things (being mentioned on other sites and writing for other webpages) that I am thankful I’ve hung on to the ride and not neglected the blogosphere for too long.
Either way, it has been some good posts and it has been some moderate posts but all in all, I am quite thrilled that I am able to meet this fantastic number in 2013. And this deserves an exclamation mark AND the colorful letters. Way to go to number 300!
A belated post on the mid-June days of this challenge! So many things have been going on, I am having a hard time trying to catch up with blogging and writing. This weekend has already been crazy busy and it is only Sunday morning – one more day to go, right?
Anyhow, I’ve really enjoyed seeing your pictures of the Photo A Day June and must say that I like the summerness attached to all of them (well, almost all of them).
Let’s start out with:
[Door]
As you all know, I moved – again! I’ve had so much time exploring my neighborhood in the past two weeks and have come to find that I really did move into a great match. The trade-off between the size of the room and the lively area does not bother me anymore as it did in the beginning days. And this door belongs to a German beerhall which is almost right across the street. While I had been wishing it would open up in time for the Eurocup (and they probably had planned on just the same, judging by the size of the screen they built up inside) it hasn’t happened yet. Most likely they are missing still a few of their liqueur licenses or such. However, this door reminds me of the good times yet to come. C’me on, who could top a Bierhalle diagonal from you? I see one great night following another!
[From a low angle]
The week started out rainy – as so many times lately in the past few weeks. Perhaps following this half-a**ed winter is a disappointing summer as well? However, this day was special. It was once again “Movie Time in New York.” More to come tomorrow, the post is already lined up. Right outside of the Empire State Building a fabulous sequence was shot and I didn’t even notice who was starring until Wednesday. This picture is an ode to New York and the place I work in at the current moment.
[Art]
A few weeks back I was part of a great street art project with Raquel Brust and some other friends. This photo was taken in May, so it’s not depicting the current day. I still wanted to post it in memories of the great time we had back then and the art we created. I plan on re-visiting the place very soon to see what has become of the hand drawn on the construction site. Might be interesting to see who tore it off or if it has stayed intact throughout the past month Read more about it here if you want to refresh your memory.
[Time]
This photo depicts pretty much everything I had to say about time on that particular day. Today is now and tomorrow is then. I cannot believe that June has met its middle already. Just like in last month, the days have been racing each other to form an end. Time is so valuable we often forget it. This was taken in a movie theater I happened to come across when strolling the streets of Midtown.
[Yellow]
Yellow is the color of my skirt. Yellow is my mood – very mellow. The world needs more yellow, especially in this city. The sun is yellow, the flowers are yellow, and the next trend color is yellow. The only thing that does not look good is when you put on yellow nail polish, I have come to find. I guess I really do not know what to write. It was a hot day and my sense of fashion style was appropriate. It was also Friday, which was good, as it was the start of another lovely weekend which ended up being way to short. Go figure. Can’t wait to read your yellow posts!
Now I am off to see how Germany will win against Denmark. If not, they’re still in the next round, which is equally wonderful! Ay ay ay!
I miss writing! Don’t think I have forgotten you, I am just insanely busy at the moment! Not only is the new job eating up most of my daytime hours and leaving me with practically nothing at the end of the day. But I am also in the process of moving.
That’s right! It will most likely be no more Park Slope for me by December 1. Because of unexpected circumstances I am looking for a new apartment/room in Brooklyn. I am not even dealing with other boroughs. Forget Queens, the Bronx, or anything North of Harlem. My heart lies here, which means I have to take my time, sort out some appointments and look at potential houses. I have to say, so far the Slope, Kensington, and even Bedstuy have been represented in my search.
Hey, don’t judge! The realtor after all did put “Crown Heights” in the ad. But a place off Nostrand Ave on the A-line is most definitely not Crown Heights anymore. I thought it still essential to at least check out this spot before I could judge and kick it out of my considerations. With some caution I stepped off the train and saw a good amount of homeless people already. I guess a homeless shelter was close to the station. Walking down 4 long blocks to the advertised location proofed to be very errr … interesting. Good it wasn’t too late at night, I think I would have been more scared otherwise. The area seems to be very West-Indian, but compared to Flatbush, another West-Indian neighborhood, the vibes are completely different. Oh boy, I definitely have to write a ghetto post on Brooklyn! The part of Bedstuy I was in is already starting to gentrify – I saw more and more white faces when walking towards my destination. And the houses are beautiful, almost like in the Slope, built sometime in the 19th century, which stoic stone-steps leading up to the high-ceiled buildings. “Pity that the wrong sort of unappreciative folks live there”, I thought.
When I walked close to the given address, I saw another guy who had already been waiting. The appointment was one was one of those “open-house-come-ins” people tend to have in New York, so I wasn’t too surprised. What was different about this seeing was that we had two different names for who we wanted to see and didn’t know which apartment number to buzz. After waiting some precious 5 minutes, a girl came downstairs and fetched us. Supposedly the rooms were not even renovated yet and the entire place was in the process of being built. Yup, as far as I could tell the floor had only recently been installed. So a completely new apartment with five bedrooms seeking to be filled on a first-come-first-serve basis. The kids who found the spot were confident that it would be done by November 15th… Which would have been in a week from when I had looked at the rooms. I never followed up with them but I am curious to know if they are able to move in by Tuesday, which I highly doubt. The girl who had discovered this “raw diamond” was nice and had already bonded with an Australian guy. There were four other people looking at the three spare bedrooms. As we got to know each other, I found out that only a guy from Long Island and I myself had lived in New York for longer than one month. So no wonder these folks were quite enthralled! If they were to know that the real ghetto starts just 4 blocks down, I doubt they would have even considered checking out the room … But I have to admit all persons were equally social and I sure hope they found their match in roommates. I decided it wouldn’t be for me this time, though. Of to the next one.
Aside from the aforementioned apartment I have checked out a few places in the Slope and sorta given up the idea of living in a decent spot over here. One potential candidate wanted me to pay 600 bucks just for her “new” furniture she had bought from Ikea (!) and which she wouldn’t be able to take with her on her move back to Austria. Then there was a situation during which I had to wait for 20 minutes just to get into a place. The girl who had been looking before me had locked herself into the apartment by accident and it took some three strong women to pry the door open (it was wooden and had been caught in the frame).
I am really not in the mood to look at another 20 places, just as was the case last year. I remember saying to myself I never wanted to go through this again! Boy, was I pleased when I had found the “right” place. And here I am, once again on a search for a room in New York! I will keep you updated on the progress. Until I figure out how to squeeze in more hours in a seemingly fast-paced 24-hour-day or until I find out how to sleep and write and work at the same time, well until then, keep on following. I will try to keep you updated more often.
Have a great Sunday!
German-American Abroad 