June 2017 Things

There was a tremendous storm in Berlin midday yesterday. It was so intense you could hardly see out of the window. All you could see was a grey mist. It marked the end of a nice period of sun, blue skies and 30°C temperatures. One of my AWO Oldies said she wanted it to rain for her plants. Five minutes after she said that the heavens opened! The other Oldies made jokes about her wish.

As May ended, I enjoyed watching a number of football matches to decide which teams came into 1st 2nd 3rd and 4th place. Now for a football free summer. I shall stay in Germany until August when I shall fly to Hungary and from there to the UK and return at the start of September. All I have to do is book the flights - and pay for them! I have to admit that I no longer like flying. All remind me of supermarkets competing to offer the cheapest but worst service.

Yesterday I met another John. He comes from the USA, but his family originally came from the south-west of Germany. He is staying with Stefan and visiting family and friends in Berlin and other parts of the country. Here is a photo of him. He is also a 'hobby cook'. We are meeting in two weeks when he returns from his wandering around other parts of Germany. I am going to show him my bit of Berlin including a very special museum.

Looking at my diary for June I notice a concert with Jutta next week, all my usual Oldie meetings, a range of SPD meetings and activities and a special garden party at the end of the month. For details you only have to read my reports as the month progresses.

Who has a birthday in June 2017?  Nicholas B. in Yorkshire start us off with his big day on the 3rd, my iMac will be 10 years old on the 6th - I wonder how much longer it will operate. On the 19th my father would have been 105 years old and my mother 99 years old. I shall have an extra glass of sekt to celebrate on that day! On the 23rd, Teresa P. will celebrate with friends in Berlin and my Oldie Friend Hermann hits 80 on the 25th. Should be a special party with his family on that day. And so he ends our birthday month. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO EACH AND ALL! 

el abuelo

Yesterday was a very special day. El abuelo Juan (grandfather John) met la nieta Emma (granddaughter Emma)  :-)) Papa and Mama Jan and Arancha flew into Berlin on Tuesday evening for a busy few days meeting friends and family and introducing la nieta Emma to them.

It was great to welcome all and then pick up a very smiley, happy Emma and give her a big kiss! She just smiled back and kicked her legs and waved her arms as she smiled again. What a beauty! I was allowed to push her in her pram as we went into the centre to find a place for a snack.

I met a couple of friends on the way who were both surprised and happy to see me pushing a pram! By then she was asleep and as we arrived at the restaurant and ordered some food she slowly began to wake up. It was interesting to see how quickly Ma and Pa reacted to her movements and sounds.

The visit was over all too soon. I have happy memories of seeing her for the first time. I look forward to our next meeting and taking her out in the pram. As I write these words she is on her way to the airport with Mama and Papa. Have a safe flight home all!

A Müggel Day

Yesterday really was a great day. I thoroughly enjoyed it and didn't want it to end. It started at 8.45 am when I met most of my Müggelsee-Gang at my local railway station. ''The Boyz' also arrived and with Papa. We managed to squeeze into the Regional Train and put our bicycles into the bicycle section.

The squeeze got tighter as more and more people tried to get onto the train at each stop. I was surprised to see many women trying to get prams and babies into that section of the train. They had no success. Still squeezed into the section we finally arrived at Potsdam, where we all spilled out onto the platform - and could breath out again!.

Off we went, led by Uli who had organised the even,t so BIG thanks to him. The first stop on the lakeside was at a large restaurant area with a stage and lots of people all eating roast sausages, drinking beer, singing along to the music and smiling. The latter was most important. It was nearly 11.00 am so I had a late breakfast of sausage with a glass of locally brewed beer. I was not the only one!

More cycling around the lake with a picnic stop, then off again with a later stop. Near the final stop was a bridge with some creatures. 'The Boyz', including Papa, could not resist sitting on the creature and doing a few poses. Here is one I like.

More cycling and back to Potsdam station. Again the train was full but I was able to squeeze in with 'The Boyz and Papa' as we waved goodbye to the rest of the Müggelsee-Gang as many took other trains home and some waited for a later train. Thanks to all for a wonderful day and let's have another day out together as soon as possible.

Müggelseegang

I'm meeting my Müggelseegang tomorrow. It is a public holiday here - but not in Brexitland! The day is called Christi Himmelfahrt (Ascention Day) if you are religious, and if an atheist/secular person you say Männertag (Men's day).

I really enjoy this day with its culture of 'The Lads' setting off on bicycles for tours to and around nice places with lots of stops for beer, singing songs and eating grilled sausages before drinking even more beer. In the areas around Berlin you can still see men sitting in carts drawn by horses and all are drinking and singing drinking songs.

What a pity many tourists never see this aspect of life in Berlin when they arrive here. You need contact to locals and an invitation to just join in otherwise you do not know about it. I'm meeting my Gang at my local station at 8.54 to jump onto the RE7 train to Dessau. . I'm sure the bicycle section will be full, but no matter.

Then to Potsdam where we start our day. Uli has organised the day and I note that just south of Potsdam is a place called Forsthaus Templin which sells beer brewed there. I shall be very surprised if we do not stop there for a taste :-))

The tour around the lake covers 32 klm with stops including one for a lunch picnic. Really looking forward to tomorrow and seeing my Müggelseegang again.

Turned out hot again

Summer has finally arrived. I held back saying this last week for after one day of 30°C and sweating, the temperature dropped and the blue sky disappeared!  We've had three hot sunny days since then so I think it is safe to say that summer has finally arrived.

I have spent more time on my balcony enjoying the sun in the morning and reading. I finally finished my book this morning and as I closed it I felt a sudden loss. What now! No problem for I have lots of other books on 'My Future Reading List'. Even so, it is a strange feeling to turn the last page and put the book down.

The book is called 'Holy Madness: Romantics, Patriots and Revolutionaries 1776 - 1871'. The author is Adam Zamoyski. I posted about this book earlier when I first opened it. It really is a remarkable work of historical study and very readable. I thought I knew more about that period of European history than most, so I was surprised at just how much I still had to learn. Put it on your must read list.

Just had a visit from Bro2 who needed help with his German homework. A bit like the blind leading the blind but I was in fact able to help him and together we wrote the text he has to give to his teacher tomorrow. I told him he had to more forceful and tell the teacher when and if he does not understand anything. I think he listens and says nothing so the teacher thinks everything is okay. I told him to open his mouth!

I'm taking him and Bro1 with me on Thursday when I meet my Muggelsee Gang for a bicycle tour around a lake south of Potsdam. They need the exercise and to see a bit more of the area around Berlin. It is a public holiday here and if the weather is good there will be lots of people on bikes not to mention sipping a few beers and getting some Bratwurst down them! Looking forward to that.

Eat Up

Yesterday was rather special. Since I got to know The Family, we have talked about meeting to cook a tasty Afghan meal. Earlier attempts failed but yesterday we did it. The family arrived together with the main ingredients and I sent The Boyz to my local supermarket to buy the rest plus lots of cola and fruit juices for the children to drink.

The parents settled into my kitchen and started to prepare the dishes. I sat with Bro2 in the living room and helped him with English homework. Bro2 sat on the balcony and did his German homework. Sister sat opposite him and did lots of sketches and drawings, which she is good at.

The clock ticked away until we finally heard the cry, "Dinner's ready!" They wanted to eat in a traditional way so I cleared a place on the living room floor and the dishes were set out for our delight. Here you can see the family about to tuck in. The glasses contain cola and not red wine!!

It was delicious. What did we eat? Basmati Rice cooked with spices and sultanas. Potatoes thinly sliced and fried. Chicken pieces cooked with spices, onions and tomatoes. A large fresh green salad and all washed down with water, cola and fruit juices. I really stuffed my face but there was still enough for the family to take to their quarters to enjoy today.

Thanks and Desk

I've had a 'normal' week and even sat on my balcony in the sun on Wednesday. Wow - and it got to 30°C this afternoon. I hope summer is going to be more than a few days of blue skies and high temperatures.

Last Sunday started slowly as I dozed into the day. Suddenly the phone rang. Two ladies rang about my desk and asked if it had been built. I said no and they said they would be at my place in an hour. They are relatives of Jutta and one is a qualified and experienced specialist for building things.

They duly arrived and looked at the A4 paper showing how to build the thing, which I did not understand. They did and started to built it. They brought their equipment, including special drills, and the desk slowly began to take shape.

Meanwhile, the male part of 'The Family' arrived. Papa wanted to put his laptop onto my internet cable to catch up on news in Afghanistan, Bro1 needed help with his school English homework and Bro2 just wanted to be there! They got on with their respective things as my desk took even  more form.

Here you can see the completed desk and 'The Lads' saying 'Thanks' to Peter and Andre and guests who had given money for the family at Peter's birthday party. I told you about it in a recent post. I told them to make some faces and here is the one I like best. Hope it makes you smile :-))

More my day

This morning I went to the Docs because of the persistent throat pains, coughs and sneezing. We also talked about my visit to the local hospital and discussion there about my spine/disc problems. I told him I had rejected an operation this year. He just nodded his head then wrote me a prescription for more antibiotic tablets.

On returning home I found nice surprises in my postbox. More cards and greetings. I really smiled when three of them had pictures of drinks and comments about having a drink.

Just look at the one on the left of the photo. "Don't worry about your age.....ALCOHOL will make it all better." Now that is my kind of humour and thanks to A&T in London. How well they know me :-)) The others came from Hungary and Silsden!

Yesterday evening Marita and Birgit dropped in and so we sipped cool sparkling wine as we caught up on news and relaxed. I've really enjoyed having a 3 day birthday. Try it!

My day

I've had a nice day. It was my day. Once a year I can say that. I enjoyed the recent comments by Barbara all the cards, greetings, telephone messages. This included a long chat with Ian in Sydney via Skype this morning.

As usual I went to the AWO this afternoon to meet my group working to improve their English. What a surprise when I got there. The Boss gave my a big hug and greetings in Spanish as she gave me a bottle and card. Other co-workers greeted me warmly and then the students came into the class.

Lot of happy faces and greetings plus another bottle of sekt. I was presented with a selection of musical things including a CD of Joseph Haydn's works. We then started the lesson with a glass of sekt which another student had brought.

Later I went to another meeting and arrived home in time for a nice chat with Heike in the city of Brandenberg. Celebrations will continue tomorrow when Birgit and Marita come for a Kaffee und Kuchen but of course with a few glasses of sekt!

Talking of bottles, when Daniel was here last Sunday and we tried to build my new writing desk, he gave me a bottle just before he left. Here you can see him with a special bottle of Opa's brew. He said it was made from wood and not fruit.  I'm not sure if was another one of his jokes. I'll know when I try it!!

Failure

This morning Daniel arrived with muscles ready and usual smiles to 'Do The Job'. One month ago I bought a new writing desk then had to wait so long for delivery! It arrived last Thursday. Daniel does regular training and has muscles in all the right places so picking up the desk parts would be no problem. And so it was.

The first thing was to move the TV to the old desk. That was heavy work but he did it with no problem. Then moving other things such as the computer, printer, audio system etc. Finally we had the corner of the room free to set up the desk.

We unpacked the parts and put them onto the floor. We found installation instructions on one piece of A4 with parts missing - and the rest was difficult to understand. Fortunately Daniel has more patience than I and with his mathematics, physics and logic studies was able to work out what the mysteries on the A4 meant.

So far so good. I brought my work box into the room full of things such as screwdrivers. After working out that we needed to connect part C to Part C1 then with H, off we went. We then noted that part H had no drill holes to connect to C and C1. Checking the A4 it said again that the connection had to be made using long metal screws but with blunt ends!

After 15 minutes of screwing a blunt metal screw, without success,  we gave  up and had a coffee break with some apples slices I had bought ready for such an occasion. We decided to try again but with screws and then replace them with their blunt ended brothers. No success! We did not have an electric drill with exchangeable parts and that was the problem. I told Daniel to stop work, which he reluctantly did.

We packed the desk parts into a corner as you can see in the photo. Now he is going to talk to his Papa who knows more about such things than we do. Hopefully we shall solve the problem later in the week when Papa and Daniel have time to come to my place. Who said assembling things bought from furniture markets was easy :-((

May 2017 Things

I'm late with this post. No excuse except increasingly forgetful! Looking back on April, I can reflect on some nice meetings and concerts/opera, very tasty meals with my K-Gang and meeting Colin a number of times. He is now snoozing in a plane en-route to Australia. Birgit left for Ozland yesterday so she is now home with Ian and no doubt telling him about her time in Germany.

Yesterday I went to visit Oldie H for a chat with Kaffee und Kuchen. No big changes in his health but still problems with breathing and now more dependent on his breathing machine. He really enjoys people visiting him so I took along Sailor R. They immediately got into conversation about current events and made comparisons to the ex-DDR. I just smiled as I sipped my coffee!

I then went to a Farewell to Colin evening. I arrived late but just in time to see the meal set onto the table. Very tasty with lots of interesting conversation and mixture of red wines! This morning Daniel came to help me construct  my new writing table. We had problems, but more about that in the next post. My diary tells me that next week has all the usual appointments plus a few more. The main one being a concert on Wednesday with musicians from Die Komische Oper Berlin. Thanks to Neil for the joke on the right >>>

Who has a birthday in May? Max started us off with his 34th on the 2nd of May. This was followed by my godson Marcel who hit 23 on the 6th. I wonder if they have any grey hairs by now = getting old :-) A certain Dr without Dr. Hot and Cold Johannes von-zu-und-mit Müller will be 74 on the 8th May. That is a good age and he is now clearly losing his hair! Hans R. will probably smoke even more to enjoy his 66th on the 11th May. Special thoughts go to the south-west of Turkey where Trish will celebrate her 65th on the 13th May. I wonder if there will be an extra round of Champers to celebrate getting to the official retirement age. Back in Berlin, Heike D. will celebrate with her family on the 16th. Sylvia will be 61 in Brighton on the 21st May. A day she shares with my wonderful cousin Barbara in Silsden who will be 72 on that day. She is one of two people I started writing this blog for. Holger W. in Bremen will be 53 on the 31st May and so ends our birthday month. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO EACH AND ALL NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE!

La Opera

Last Wednesday evening, Johanna and I went to the Staatsoper to see Verdi's opera La traviata. It means 'The Fallen Women' in English. Our visit there was courtesy of Birgit. She had bought two tickets but due to illness could not go. She gave us the tickets. Very generous of her.

The opera was in Italian with translation to German on a screen at the top of the stage. The performance was first class. I was very pleasantly surprised to see/hear such a professional performance. I was particularly impressed with a singer called Ailyn Perez who sang/played the main role.

I was interested in the origin of what is now the most played opera worldwide. You may know some of the arias from recordings made by Maria Callas and still worth listening to. La traviata is a three act opera by Giuseppe Verdi. It runs for 2 hours 10 minutes without a break so have a drink before the start!

Verdi set it to an Italian libretto by Francesco Piave. This is turn was based on La Dame aux Camelias (1852) which was a play adopted from the novel by Alexander Dumas. Phew ... but what a history! It was first performed in March 1853 at the La Fenice opera house in Venice. Then it was performed in London in May 1855, in New York in December 1856, and in Paris two day later.

 In case you don't know, it is about a courtesan torn between the love of two men who is slowly dying of consumption.

On the same day I got a postcard from Alan and Lynne. They had a holiday break in "Skeggy" = an English east coast resort called Skegness. I guess they also went to Scarborough from where they sent this card. It is of the staircase in the Royal Hotel. I think Verdi must have walked up/down many such staircases in his lifetime. Perhaps when he was sketching the music for La traviata in his head!

Mittelalter-Fest

I had a nice holiday weekend. It started last Saturday morning when I went to a local SPD meeting to plan for the election in September. In the evening I met my Kowalke Gang and we went to a Vietnamese Restaurant known to them, but not to me. A very pleasant evening.

On Monday 1st May, I went to the park next to Lichtenberg Town Hall. On that day each year there is a Mittelalter-Fest. This means a middle-age festival. It surrounds a stage with different events and music shows during the day, including a show for children in the afternoon. All participants dress in clothes from that period.

I met my SPD Gang at our local office, which faces the park, where we picked up the things we needed for our table in the park called an 'Info-Stand'. Next to it I set up a wheel-game for children. They had three shots at stopping it on the SPD slogan to win a prize. I made sure it did and each child won a prize plus some sweets. Great to see so many happy faces, and also from their parents who noticed I was cheating to make sure the kids won :-))

Later I met 'The Family'. It was really nice to see them together. Here is a pic of them in front of our Info-Stand with our candidate. His name is Kevin Hönicke and he is a local 'lad' and works as a teacher of maths and physics when not campaigning for the SPD. After that they wanted ice cream, which you can see they enjoyed.

We then wandered around the park and the kids enjoyed themselves at different stands, challenges and games. I gave each some money donated by guests at Peter's birthday party the weekend before so they could choose which activities to take part in. At the end of all their activities they relaxed with a bag of 'pommes' = chips covered in ketchup!

As the clock ticked and it got darker and cooler we slowly made our way home and very happy with the time we spent together.

Ilkley Moor

I finally managed to change this photo from png to jpg so I could edit. I recently got it as an attachment to an e-mail from Alan. As you Silsdeners know very well he is my oldest and best friend. We met when were both 16 and went to college in Leeds.

Alan and Lynne took a few days off at the end of March to spend time with son Peter, who was visiting from his home in Australia. They spent a day out in my old part of the world. This included a visit to Betty's Tea Room in Ilkley. Yes, I always go there at the end of my visits.

Ilkley is north of Silsden in the next valley.  At the bottom is the River Wharfe. Next to the river is a cemetery and there is my mother's family grave. I have always enjoyed visiting this town and its area. I have so many memories and that is perhaps why I keep looking at this photo.

It was taken by Peter on his smart phone. Alan gave me permission to publish on my blog. I like all of the image and did not change anything except the size. Well done, Peter. Alan is facing north and looking into the valley. I like the whole composition and the view into the mist hanging over the valley bottom and river.

I shall be there in July and perhaps with Alan and Lynne. Now that really would be special and even better if we had tea in Betty's Tea Room!

Spine and Discs

On Thursday I went to a department of a hospital specialising in the spine and discs. This was my second attempt to get an appointment. I succeeded but all the computers were not working so the staff were busy making new appointment for patients. I thought I was in a NHS hospital!

My Doc didn't need a computer. He looked at my X-Rays and that was enough. He explained the images. Disc numbers 5 and 6 at the top of my spine are collapsing and the passage ways for nerves are under pressure. Doc said I could have an operation now ....or later. I took the latter option!

I think it is only a matter of time before I shall have to have such an operation. There are risks and he told me about them. Entry has to be made via my throat - hearing that really turned me off! There is also a risk of being lamed if the operation goes wrong. That means life in a wheelchair and living in a home. Not too happy about that either!!

I notice the problem all the time now. When I move my head I can hear noises as if things are grinding against each other and I have permanent pain at the back of my neck. The Doc said if I had pains in my arms and fingers and could not pick things up anymore then I would need an operation. The picture above reminds me of the relationship between my head and my spine :-))

Now to a happier report. I went to a birthday party last Saturday, as I told you in my last post. Guests donated money for The Family. Thanks to all and for the Birthday Boy for such a nice party. I've been busy with all the usual things plus doing two translations. The first was for Maude who is an artist and it was about her latest exhibition. The second was for Holger. He wrote a 100 line story with some platt deutsch vocabulary and I found it interesting and challenging to translate.

Tomorrow I am off to an SPD meeting to discuss local issues for the election in September. Then I am meeting my Kowalke Gang and going to a restaurant. On Sunday I'm going to visit Oldie H and make sure he is okay and does not burn the fish/kitchen again!! On Monday 1 May I'm going to help at an SPD event in the garden in front of the district town hall. It's called an 'Infostand'. I hope the weather is fine and sunny. We need that.

Jawohl, Capt'n

Yesterday afternoon my Photoshop Gang promoted me to Captain of the Oldie Navy Reserve. Now I shall have to learn to swim properly and use more than the breaststroke! Here is a pic of me complete with Capt'n cap. I would have preferred them to have made me Captain of the Oldie Ski Reserve and then sent me off to the ski slopes for a week.

The week started with bad news. My second oldest friend died of MS. His name is/was Ian and some of you know/knew him. He suffered from MS for a long time but even so it was a shock to get such news. I'm in contact with some of his family and will visit his grave when I go to the north of England next July.

After a long lunch with my Kowalke-Gang last Sunday I went home and Imre visited me. He recently went to Manila to visit his lady friend so showed me lots of photos of his time there. Very interesting and large city and he certainly enjoyed it.

He has a collection of cameras and recently bought a Canon reflex camera. We spent some time talking about using such a camera and about editing a collection of photos. For example, I said he could reduce his Manila collection and then edit them using a programme. This is new for him so we agreed that he would visit me again and have a session with one of my programmes, such as Photoshop. It was great to see him and hear his news. Here is a photo of him taken by me and edited!

On Tuesday I had a nice Kaffee und Kuchen session with my SPD Oldies and next day met my Oldie Keep Fit Gang led by Kerstin in a local Chinese restaurant. A pleasant relaxing few hours. On Thursday I spent 2 hours in an allergy doctors practice and had tests. All my old allergies are still there but I have new ones, manly from different kinds of grass! I also have new medicine.

Now to get ready to go to Alt-Landsberg which is way out in the country. I get there via S-Bahn and my bicycle but the weather is not looking too good at the moment. Going there to celebrate a birthday. I expect lots of grilling later in the evening. Enjoy your weekend!

Special People

You know people at work and those who are your neighbours. But some of them are special people. To call them friends does not really describe the relationship. The key word is special and this is defined by each of us according to our values.

I'm lucky to know such people. Some of them are members of what I call my Kowalke-Gang. I've talked about them before so they are not new to you.

 I've spent some time recently with some of them, and all of them. We gathered last Saturday and Sunday to eat, drink, talk and make jokes together.

Colin is in town. He lives in Australia but is finding his family roots by visits to Germany. He can now take part in a conversation in German!
Here is a photo of him with Jutta and one of the rest of the K-Gang. We are planning some trips to various places in the next few weeks. I'll share the events with you via blog posts.

Music and Hasi

The weather is mixed here. Cool, with rain and sunny spells. I think it has kept many people at home over Easter. I enjoyed the concert I mentioned in my last post.  What do you know about Pergolesi and Stabat Mater? Perhaps you heard it on the radio, or in a concert hall, on Easter Friday. Here is some information about both,
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi

Born near Ancona 1710. Died of tuberculosis at Naples in 1736. He was only 26. Italian composer, violinist and organist. Studied music in Naples, 1725. He was only 15. Principally a composer of comic operas, but his Stabat Mater, 1729, (he was only 19) is perhaps his most performed work.

Stabat Mater = Devotional poem about the Virgin Mary’s vigil by Christ’s Cross. Used as a sequence in Roman Catholic liturgy since 1727, to plainchant melody. Note that this was only 2 years before Pergolesi wrote his Stabat Mater. He was also one of many composers to set the words to music. In short, the music is his but the words are not

Franz Joseph Haydn

The music for Die sieben letzten Worte unseres Erlöseers am Kreuz/ The Seven Last Words of Our Saviour on the Cross, was first written by Haydn in 1785. He wrote the music but no text for singers/choir. He revised it in 1796 and this is the version we heard in the Philharmonie. He took the original words and set them into seven sections. Four solo singers sing the words alone, then this is developed by the choir and orchestra. He revised it after his successful visits to London towards the end of his life.  We can clearly hear other musical influences from Handel, Mozart and perhaps Beethoven in this late Classical piece. 

Smile: Friends sent me a number of cards and online greetings. I must share one with you. It is about the Easter Rabbit/Bunny which figures a lot in German Easter celebrations. The words in the cartoon are in German and can be translated as, 'Easter's cancelled: Something is not right with Hasi!' I replied to the friends who sent it that I gave Hasi a large whiskey and he is now staggering back onto his feet :-))  Enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend. 

More Trees and pills

Trees: We've got more trees in the garden. A couple of days ago some gardeners arrived and started to dig big holes in the grass. They planted three trees that day and then two more the day after.

Another change to the garden since the land at the front was used to build another 78 flats. Some trees and bushes were re-planted in the back garden as building began. Nice, for the garden will have more green and shade in summer.

Health: I went to the new allergy practice yesterday morning. I had to wait 2 hours to see a doc. I wonder if the public health system here is getting more like the NHS in Brexitland? My eyes, nose and throat were checked and I got new nose and eye medicine.

I also got an appointment to have a new allergy test next Thursday morning. I hope I don't have to wait another 2 hours for that! I've just telephoned the hospital again re: my spine/discs and got an appointment in two weeks. Last time I went there they did not have my name on their patients list! Making slow progress.

Meeting 'The Bros' later to look for affordable sport shoes then off  to the Philharmonie with Johanna for an Easter concert. On Saturday The Kowalka Gang is meeting for breakfast and on Sunday I'm off to Johanna's for lunch and a chat with her cousin Colin, who recently arrived from Australia. Looking forward to both sessions around the dining table. Enjoy your Easter holiday no matter where you are.

Health and Silver

Last Thursday I went to my docs. I told him my appointment at the local hospital had not been recorded and that was after waiting for 4 weeks! He was not happy about that but asked me to make another appointment. I got a new Überweisungsschein = transfer form or letter of referral. I have to register with the Neurochirurgie section and my problem is Protusion C5/6 li. Now you know as much as I do!

Its about problems with my spine and the collapse of some discs. It is not new but it appears that discs at the top are now collapsing as those at the bottom of the spine did a few years ago. In addition to that I got a form for more antibiotics. The bronchitis I had before I went on my skiing holiday has returned.

I also got a transfer form for Allergologie and have an appointment on Wednesday morning. My allergies have been very bad this year. I wonder what the new doctor will do. I had treatment for 10 years and nothing stopped the power of the allergie sources against resistance in my body.

I also got a transfer form for Cervicalsyndrom and Gelenkfunktionsstörung = all to do with my back and movement. I need to find a doctor who specialises in this area.  Anything else? No, but three transfer forms and a prescription for antibiotics is more than enough to keep me busy at the moment

On the brighter side. I had a visit from The Bros this morning. Bro1 has to prepare a short talk about the history of Berlin up to 1486 and didn't know what to do or say. Fruit juice and slices of cake got us into the mood to find the material. We found it on the internet, edited it = reduce to the required period, print it out then had more orange juice and cake!

Meanwhile, I put Bro2 to work. His task was to polish my silver. Here you can see him at work and he did a good job for a beginner. They both asked if they could shower and of course I said they could. I will not bore you with details of the poor facilities for bathing in the home where they have to live. We are meeting next Thursday to buy new sport shoes for both.

April 2017 Things

I'm late with this post. Had a busy and good start to the month. I have not had such a happy time with health. Here I refer to my flu and bronchitis plus spine/collar problems. I told you about this before. From my Doc I got a prescription to have an X-ray. This was delayed once and took place over a month later!

I then made appointment with a local hospital department to check my spine. I arrived this morning at 9.00 to be told my name was not on their list. Now into the 4th month and still no treatment. They said I could have an appointment at the end of May. I said I could be dead by then and just walked out. This series of non-treatment events could have happened in the NHS in Brexitland from what I hear in BBC news reports.  I shall just report all this to my Doc and see what he advises.

Yesterday I went to a concert at the recently opened Pierre Boulez Saal (Hall). It is in the centre of Berlin and is a project supported by Daniel Barenboim. I went with Johanna, who organised the visit and tickets. The building is the latest catering for concerts, opera, shows etc. in Berlin. The hall is oval and has a simple wood walls.

It will offer 'modern classics' as well as music from earlier centuries. We saw/listened to three quartets written by Joseph Haydn and played by the Hagen Quartett. They played superbly and the audience really liked their interpretation. I could have spent all afternoon listening to more. We are going there for a concert later this month.

Who has a birthday this month? Horst in Berlin kicks us off with his 83rd on the 4th. He is followed by Uli for his 70th on the 6th followed by wife Petra on the 8th. Daniel B. in Ozland will be 38 on the 9th. Dennis celebrates his 62nd with his family in California on the 11th. Writer and teacher Neil Deane will be 60 on the 13th - thanks for the invitation Neil! Matthew B. who lives near to Silsden will be 19 on the 14th. My great-nephew Henri will by all of 7 on the 18th and my old business partner Mathias hits 53 on the 19th. I am going to Peter L. birthday party to the east of Berlin to celebrate his 54th on the 23rd. Peter has given a lot of support and money to 'The Family'. Birgit F. in Berlin ends the birthday month with her 53rd on the 24th.
To each and all: -  Have a wonderful day with family and friends! 

Armpits

Here is a photo of me cleaning a lady's left armpit. Why? She couldn't do it herself! It all happened last Saturday morning. There is a tradition here to mark the advent of Spring, when people go out and clean public areas.

In Karlshorst, this is usually done by members of political parties and the local citizens association. The latter organises the event and provides the cleaning material. As a reward for our work we get a plate of hot potato stew with a large sausage on top to put back the energy spent on cleaning.

I was with the SPD group and our task was to clean the area around the S-Bahn/Rail Station. After that we cleaned up two parks. I found this lady in one of the parks. She whispered to me that she would like a quick Spring clean.

I quickly responded but did not have a hosepipe so all I could do was give her a yearly 'brush down'. She smiled throughout and thanked me at the end. I promised I would do it again next year and she said she was looking forward to that :-))

The evening before I was at our local SPD annual reception (der Jahresempfang) with Johanna. It was her birthday and we had enjoyed a long breakfast with the Kowalka Gang at her place. It was her first time at such an event and she enjoyed it. It is basically to get members together socially. We were met by glasses of sekt and later for supper with a range of wines or beer. Yes, a very nice time!

Good News

I am pleased to share some very good news with you. Jump back to yesterday when 'The Bros' called to ask if they could visit. They duly arrived and then the big smiles started. Bro1 said he had news for me.

I guessed correctly it was about permission to stay in Germany. He then said they had got a letter from the responsible office to say the family had permission to stay another three years with possibility for further extension! WOW!! Lots of big smiles and hugs.

Bro2 then said there was a problem to wash/shower in the home/shelter where they live. I did not believe him for I know his parents are very attentive about personal hygiene. I am sure it was his way of asking to enjoy the privacy of my bathrom. In the home there are only shower rooms so the males shower wearing underpants and only have cold water!

Bro2 disappeared into the bathroom as I took Bro1 into the garden to do some English homework. He recently good very low marks in English at school so that has pushed him to learn more. The weather was really nice. We've had sun and blue skies for a couple of days with temperatures of 20°C plus. Just my kind of weather.

We had tea and cakes in the garden then Bro1 went to the bathroom to shower while Bro2 sat with me in the garden and did some basic English exercises. He does not have English at school but he will from next semester. Here you can see a photo of them with books.

I then took delivery of four large bags of children's toys, books, games and a range of learning activities. All donated by Barbara and family. She is in my Tuesday English Gang and had asked me if she could donate things for children in the refugee home.

I was surprised at 4 bags but the kids will really enjoy her donation. Here is a photo of three and a half bags. The Bros took half a bag to give to their sister. They will take the rest after further visits. There is only a limited amount you can get on the back of a bicycle!

Goodbye Brexitland

And so it came to pass. Mrs May signed a document yesterday. It was taken to Brussels and given to the legal EU official. It announced the official withdrawal of Brexitland from the EU,  details of which have to be agreed within two years.

Goodbye Brexitland. I forecast the referendum result but still think the  citizens of Brexitland made a mistake. Only time will tell. I plan to spend next July in Brexitland with family and friends. I wonder if I shall notice any changes.

The referendum result only confirms my decision to take German citizenship some years ago. One of my best decisions. German friends still sometimes ask me how I feel about having dual citizenship. I posted about this on my blog and you can still find it in the archive links. I feel very happy about this and have no regrets.

I've had a nice week so far and we have even had signs of Spring this week. Nice to see blue sky, sun and temperature of 20°C. More please.  Here is a pic of the sun going down on the EU and Brexitland relationship :-))

First time words

Yesterday some words were said to me for the first time ever. Let's start at the beginning. The Bros called me early Saturday morning to say they needed help and could they come to my place. I said yes and they duly arrived. Bro1 needed help with English and Bro2 for his German homework about the French revolution. What a mixture!

As they settled in they told me about racial abuse they had recently received at their schools. I listened and let them talk. The abuse came from four German boys in their respective classes. I explained that the abusive boys had a problem and they should not react, but ignore them and walk away. Both had reported this to their teachers who had responded by having a discussion on the topic in class. Even so the verbal abuse continues.

After some time with tea and cakes, they started their homework. During a later tea break Bro2 talked about his family in Afghanistan and said I must be as old as his grandparents. Grandfather died some years ago. I just let him talk. We finished the English homework and I told them to return on Sunday so we could do Bro2 German homework.

They arrived as agreed. Bro1 did more English as I concentrated on Bro2 and his German. Suddenly he told me he had thought about our conversation when he was alone on Saturday evening. He said he had cried at the thought of my death. No one has ever said this to me before!

He lowered his head and stared at the floor as he quietly said, "I  don't want you to die." No one has ever said this to me before. He glanced at me then returned to looking at the floor. I said nothing. Long silence. I put out my arms and held him. He let me hold him. More silence then he whispered the words again. Tears formed and slowly ran down his cheeks. I just continued to hold him in silence.

I then whispered that there was nothing anyone could do for it was part of Nature and covered everything on the planet. We had a small discussion about Nature before I directed him back to completing his homework. Here is a photo of him doing his homework and having a break with Bro1.

I have not been able to forget his words and how he said them. Whenever I close my eyes, or drift off into vacent thoughts, I relive those moments.