12 of 12 (3) -- February 2008

This 12 of 12 is a bit different from the other months and the basic concept, developed by Chad. My digital camera is broken so participating got a little difficult. At first I thought that I'll have to skip this month, but then I remembered that my mobile phone has a camera (with two megapixels even) and I took a few pictures. When I uploaded them onto my iMac I found out that they weren't any good. :( A friend of mine suggested a new approach. I have to admit that pictures 1) to 7) are "staged", but the things in them really happened before! Photos 8) to 12) are "live" again. *lol* I hope you still enjoy them a little bit... All pictures taken with the iSight camera in my iMac, or via screen shot. Next month, if the camera God allows it, I'll be back with real pictures. *fingerscrossed*

1) 18:04
Suddenly remembering that I need to put up a new Quote of the Week, thanks to the by now pretty regular reminder. *lol*

2) 18:13
And done!

3) 19:28

Trying to connect my mobile phone with my iMac via Bluetooth in order to transfer the 12 of 12 pictures I took (was up to 9 pictures at that point)...

4) 19:31
...and getting impatient and slightly frustrated.

5) 19:36
Alas--connection established! And I am...

6) 19:37
...happy again. But not for long...

7) 20:05
...as I soon had to realize that the photos I took with my mobile aren't any good for 12 of 12. *cry* Thanks to my friend Maik a new idea for 12 of 12 was born!

8) 21:10
Enjoying a late dinner and reading a newspaper on the screen.

9) 21:30
That's what I'm reading. It's the e-paper of Die ZEIT, one of the important weekly newspapers in Germany. This article is about my city, Dresden, and the ongoing struggle between supporters and adversaries of a new bridge.

10) 21:49

Pimping my CV. Need to add a few things, most importantly a new picture!

11) 22:03
Checking the result. Content for now. :)

12) 22:18

And bye-bye. See you next month. Hopefully I'll be back with "real" pictures by then...

Quote of the Week -- Week 7

After a nice reminder (thank you! ;)), here comes the new QotW!

Quote of the Week - week 7 of 2008:

Flight attendant: Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to welcome you aboard JetBlue flight 1024 with nonstop service to Boston. Before we depart, I would like to take the time and make sure that everyone is on the right flight -- we don't want people finding out that they're going to the wrong city after we shut the cabin doors. Is everyone here going to Boston? [Silence.] I said, is everyone here going to Boston?
Passengers: Yes!
Flight attendant: Thank you. You have to answer me, people!

Overheard in NYC @ JetBlue flight, JFK

Lent 2008

I am a Christian person and always try to live by it. Today is Ash Wednesday, which might bring all the Carnival lovers in my country to tears but is actually of much more significance than just the end of the crazy season. And I, personally, don't like Carnival anyway, so thank God it's over!

Today marks the last 40 days until Easter (and I can't believe it's time for this already since the year just started...). So it's Lent from now on. I've always tried to abstain from things that I like, sometimes more and sometimes less successfully. This year I've decided to do a comprehensive Lent period and abstain from more than just one thing. The things I'm going to forego are:

Alcohol - not a very hard one as I hardly drink any alcohol
Meat - I could never be a vegetarian, but I can live without meat for a while...
Sweets - that's the really hard part...
Cake & Cookies - equally hard as the above...

The only exception are birthdays where cake and cookies are usually one of the key factors. To all those who just rolled their eyes: Have you ever been to a birthday and asked for a carrot? It would simply look stupid if you just sat there, sipping on your coffee or tea and drool at all the cake. So yeah, no cake or cookies except at a birthday party.

I'll go on a concert tour in Italy with one of my choirs on Easter Sunday, which marks the end of Lent. So there really is something to look forward to in all this. I wouldn't want to abstain from anything in Italy, that'd be torture.

So... I'm resolved and plan on going through with it all. Let's see how it goes!

Quote of the Week - Week 6

Wednesday seems to be a good day for quotes, so here goes another one...

Quote of the Week -- week 6 of 2008:

Marketing assistant: He's really changed his tune on that.
PR associate: Yup, he's come around 360 degrees.
Marketing assistant: If not more!

Overheard in the Office @ 105 Madison Avenue; New York, New York

Quote of the Week -- Week 5

Not much earlier this week, but at least I remembered it myself. ;)

Quote of the Week -- week 5 of 2008:

Four-year-old boy to stranger: Do you have a little boy?
30-ish single man: No, not yet.
Four-year-old boy: Why not?
30-ish single man: Because I don't have a wife yet.
Four-year-old boy: Why not?
30-ish single man: You sound like my mother.

Overheard in New York @ 38th & 2nd

Quote of The Week - Week 4

A little late, I know. But that's the thing with new traditions. They need some time getting used to; to actually become traditions. But here goes the quote for this week:

Quote of The Week -- week 4 of 2008:

NYU dude: Muffled i-Pod noises are the new elevator music.
NYU chick: I miss the old elevator music.

Overheard in NYC--Elevator, Silver Center, NYU

Quote of the Week

I've decided to start a new tradition this year for my blog, which I'll call "Quote of the week". First, it will get me to post more regularly, second there are some really funny quotes out there, and third it'll be nice to have a few picture-less posts every once in a while. ;)

While we were in New York (story and picture post still to come), Kerri found this great book in the Barnes & Noble at Union Square and it was so hilarious that she decided to suspend her rule of not buying any new books as long as she has unread books on her shelf and bought it. It's called "Overheard in New York" and contains quotes of random people, overheard by other random people in the streets, buses, subways or other locations in New York City. There also is a website, where people can post the things they overhear.

I'm going to start this tradition with two quotes, since I've been using one as a signature on a message board I visit, and even though I'm going to put in a different one later, it's too funny not to be posted here as well. I'll just back-date it. ;)

Here they go...

Quote of the Week -- week 2 of 2008:
College kid #1: I want to see the Messiah.
College kid #2: Like, actually? Or Händel?
College kid #1: ... Händel.

Overheard in New York @ Lincoln Square


Quote of the Week -- week 3 of 2008:
Old Brit, pointing to float: Who is that?
Wife: Oh, come on, Bill.
Old Brit: No, really. Is it Joey the Clown or something?
Wife: It's a symbol of America!
Old Brit: [Confused silence.]
Wife: It's Ronald McDonald!

Overheard in New York @ Macy's Parade, Columbus Circle

12 of 12 (3) - January 2008

The first 12 of 12 in 2008! A Happy New Year to everybody!! Hopefully, this will be the first year where I do all 12 of 12's, since I only started participating in March 2007. 12 of 12 is the brainchild of Chad Darnell.

01) 00:58

Okay, technically not one but three pictures, but all taken within seconds. I liked them all, so I included them. I was talking to Kerri via IM, and these pictures describe the history of a reply: type-check-like. :lol:

02) 11:08
Santa's last day, at least until December. Immediately after taking this picture, I put Santa back in the closet where he can sleep for the next 10.5 months.

03) 15:55
The Dresden Frauenkirche in the late afternoon light. Lovely!

04) 15:56
View to Dresden Castle. Lots of construction work going on around the Neumarkt.

05) 15:57
My dad, paying the parking garage ticket.

06) 15:58
In the parking garage.

07) 16:03
Now on the way back home. Unfortunately a little blurry, but I still like it. You can see a tram coming.

08) 16:05
Dresden city hall. The light is lovely.

09) 16:07
Still on the way back home, Dresden at dusk.

10) 16:09
Still on the way back home, more Dresden at dusk.

11) 18:10
My mom is making each of us a Martini rosso with lemon. I love this picture because the Martini seems to be frozen in mid-air, since it hadn't reached the glass yet when the picture was taken.

12) 20:08
While trying to sort through and put in order my box of sweets, my mom accidentally held an open bag the wrong way and spread a load of gummi bears throughout my living room. So much for more order. :lol:

See you next month!

12 of 12 December

The last 12 of 12 of the year 2007 is here... My day started in Dresden and ended in Magdeburg, my hometown. 12 of 12 is the brain child of Chad Darnell. A happy Advent season to all 12 of 12'ers and everyone else. *hugs*

1) 00.26
My day ended (or started) with a horrible tummy ache. I took a painkiller and went straight to bed. Sleep didn't come for another two hours. Yikes...



2) 09.00
As you can see, my alarm was set for 10 am, but the guy who wanted to take the meter readings in my apartment woke me up. I greeted him at the door in my Tweety pj's. *profuseblushing*



3) 09.11
I take a look at the weather outside, instantly wishing that I hadn't...



4) 09.13
Retrieving today's egg from my Christmas calendar.



5) 09.17
Say hello to Chip. Or is it Dale?



6) 11.15
Working on a birthday surprise for a friend. I hope he doesn't check my blog. But I think I never gave him the link to my blog, so there's nothing to worry about...



7) 11.45
Now busy with preparations for my trip to the U.S., I also check the current exchange rates and they are very favorable. Yay!



8) 18.05
After 3 hours and 258 km I arrive at my parents' house.



9) 19.15
It's the season... On my way to a meeting of the choir association I am a member of. I'm actually a member of the executive board. Halted at a red light, I get a glimpse of the Christmas decorations of my hometown.



10) 22.18
Some cookie goodness. Makes the following part more enjoyable. *lol*



11) 22.20
Now that the choir association meeting is over, I'm re-reading my notes and trying to transform them into meeting minutes. Three pages need to be cut to at best one and a half... It was a very productive meeting!



12) 22.35
I'm throwing a little pre-Christmas dinner party for a few close friends from the choir on Monday and here's how my mom supports it. I won't have much time to go grocery shopping as I'll still be busy with concerts, so my mom offered to do it for me. :)



Bonus: Believe
After countless nights of going to bed at 3 am or even later, I strongly believe that once I'm done with my blog post I'll go hide under these comfy sheets and get a good night's sleep.

Update...

It seems that this puzzle isn't going as quickly as I thought it would. It's not because of it being an especially tricky one, but because I haven't found any time to work on it in the last few days. It's the season and it has me busy with choir stuff every weekend and most days of the week. Oh, and then there's school. Talk about priorities here... *lol*

Anyway, by now the kitties are complete. What's left is lots of grass and a few flowers, the latter being hastily assembled in a loose heap in the middle.

More soon, at the latest in five days...