When I saw the weather forecast last week, I started to get a bit excited. Finally, the temperatures would start to get a bit cooler. In a post from a few weeks ago, I did mention that we had really had a rather warm summer, to the point of being unpleasant. The month of September has really been pretty OK, but still on the warm side.
Before I sound like I really am complaining, let me clarify: I actually have enjoyed wearing shorts for the past 4 months. But, I do like that moment when the temperature breaks, and the season starts to change. Furthermore, because we did not have much rain in the summer, we never got any brief periods of relief from the heat, which I missed.
Last Wednesday, I wore shorts to my dentist appointment, and when my Zahnärztin greeted me, she exclaimed how happy she was that the summer had been long. She is very sporty and likes to ride bikes, swim, and hike; just about anything outdoors suits her fine. I agreed that I had kind of enjoyed the time myself, though I did sort of realize just how little physical activity I do in comparison to what she does.
The weather reports were all keying in on the fact that it would actually be the first day of autumn when we would really see a difference in temps. However, last Friday evening, the evening became a little brisk, which wasn't really a big deal, except I had still elected to wear shorts. My mom probably would have described it as "delightfully cool," and I would tend to agree, but by the time I was getting ready to go home from the pub, I was kind of wishing I was wearing longer pants.
Yesterday, the first day of autumn, was chilly. And I loved it. And I still wore short pants, thinking that I would press my luck one last time (or two) before making the change back to pants and jeans.
It rained for most of the day, which made for an enjoyable time to sit out on the balcony with a cup of coffee and just celebrate the change of season. Fall and winter are my favorites, and that first crisp (albeit soggy) day is always particularly great.
I did not do anything special, I simply enjoyed the day for what it was. I got some piano time in, also some mediation, then went over to the pub to watch the Arsenal. During halftime, I went outside for a ciggy and ran into my neighbor who was on the way home from walking the dog. He, too, was wearing shorts and we both joked that we were still wearing summer attire....probably for the last time this year. Said neighbor Jens and I had already discussed the abusive heat of the summer and our anticipation of the weather changes.
So, today I put on jeans for the first time. As I write this, my legs are still getting used to having something on them. I mean, really, I cannot remember ever having gone so many months without wearing long pants. This is when things will be interesting around the neighborhood for the next few weeks. On the street, I am quite sure that I will see a lot of people suddenly wearing scarves and coats (even though the temperature is only "delightfully cool," and not cold) Likewise, there will still be a few people who will continue to do their shorts and flip-flops routine for the next little while. This will likely be a topic of conversation tonight at the kiosk. Monday nights at the Kiosk are always great for checking out the fashions.
I am not saying that we always make comments about what people are wearing, but we regularly see things which cause us to have a giggle or at least raise an eyebrow. Last week, for example, three guys walked up to buy something at the Kiosk. All were wearing denim shorts (rather form fitting, as they tend to be) and t-shirts that accentuated their large bellies. True, everyone in our Monday evening group is about the same age, and we are a good 20 years older than these guys were. Someone remarked that they didn't wear tight clothes when they were that age, which is true. 20 years ago, we tended to wear baggier clothing. Part of that has to do with the fashions at the time, and part of it has to do with the fact that none of us particularly likes such form fitting clothing. No one said fat bastard or anything like that. I did make a small comment that I have no intentions of starting to carry a man-purse, but again, that is simply my personal choice.
After all, I do enough things in my routine life that give people reason to chuckle. Just a couple of weeks ago, I was standing outside the pub. This alone is no reason to laugh. Furthermore, wearing baggy shorts gives no real opportunity to make a comment, despite the size of my legs. However, I had just bought a fresh pack of cigarettes, and as I do, I started packing them before I opened the box. This is a common thing among American smokers...at least from where I come from.
Unfortunately, I did not notice the busker who was just about to start playing his guitar. During the summer months, it is normal for someone to come by and play for a few minutes, then walk around and pass the hat for a few euro. This particular man had played countless times over the years, and he plays very well. But, there is no quiet way to pack a box of cigarettes. You slap the top of the box against the palm of your hand, and it sounds exactly like you are clapping. This is what I did for a good 15 seconds before I realized that EVERYONE, including the guitar player (who hadn't even played a chord yet) was looking in my direction. Crowded patio at the pub on a warm summer's evening. One guy "clapping" even though no music had (or was being) played...
I realized how silly it looked and checked my pockets for coins. Although I normally give the guy the odd euro from time to time anyway, this time around I was certainly on the hook.
The man played his brief set, and I smiled sheepishly as I put a few coins in the hat when he came round. He probably thinks I am now a big fan. Jeez.
Well, like the song goes, "When you're happy and you know it..."
see you out there
bryan
Monday, September 24, 2018
Friday, September 14, 2018
Darkness and Enlightenment - So That's How the Shutters Work!
The other week, I was awakened by the sound of some jerk using a jack hammer outside of my apartment building. It was around 7am, which is when my alarm clock goes off, so technically, I was needing to get up anyway. However, I would argue that no one really finds the jarring sound of a jack hammer particularly pleasant at such an early hour.
I got on with my morning routine of the workday, and was enjoying a coffee when my doorbell rang. I opened the door to find a young guy asking if he could test my intercom system, which took all of five seconds. Then, a few minutes later, he came back and gave me a new key for my mailbox.
The penny dropped, and I realized that the guys had spent the morning replacing our bank of mailboxes on the front of the house, as well the doorbell buttons.
I went downstairs to inspect their work, and took a moment to joke with the guys about how much fun they might have had running power tools early in the morning. As we spoke, they confirmed that they had enjoyed it, then went on to say that in a few more days, they would start redoing the stucco on the front of our house.
Now, this is a bit of a production to redo the exterior walls on the front of the building. First, they raise the scaffolding, which they did last week. Then, the guys start scraping all the stuff off the walls, which they have been doing for the past few days. Estimated completion time? They say 2 to 3 weeks, so I will reckon on 4 to 5 weeks. That's just how these things seem to go.
This past Monday afternoon, the workman put up a little sign requesting that we close our rolling shutters on our windows so that they could get everything cleaned. Like a good tenant, I complied first thing Tuesday morning; I lowered the shutter in my bedroom, then did the same in the living room.
Normally, I leave the shutters raised all year round, especially in the living room, so as to allow for as much light as possible. I do keep the bedroom shutters mostly lowered, but only about halfway. I like to have a little bit of natural light, even when sleeping.
That Tuesday night as I went to bed, I realized just how much darker it was in my bedroom. I am not afraid of the dark (despite Nadja's comment), but it was a little spooky, and certainly different. I slept pretty well, and the following morning thought, "Hey, maybe I should always sleep with the shutters completely closed."
That next night, I did have to get up for a toilet break (I drink a lot of water these days), and as I walked back to my bed in the darkness, I was more than a little surprised when I overshot my bedroom door by 6 inches, which meant that I collided with the wall and subsequently startled myself fully awake. Clearly sleeping in complete darkness had changed my spatial awareness just a wee bit.
Fortunately, I did not really hurt myself. The experience was more along the lines of inadvertently walking into a freshly cleaned glass door, which creates more surprise and bemusement as opposed to stubbing one's toe on an unfortunately placed dumbbell in the middle of one's floor. (This latter incident simply sucks.)
Yes, I have found many ways to amuse (or is it abuse) myself in my lifetime. However, I shall leave those stories of wearing brand new leather soled shoes on a slick floor or how to be eight years old and lie down on the ground right on top of dog poo for another time...
At any rate, I continue to keep my shutters closed for the moment to allow the workman to get on with their job of redoing the building's facade. Perhaps at the weekend I will open the living room shutters again. Interestingly enough, napping in the living room has been more enjoyable these past days. The absence of natural light (as well as the reduced noise from the front of house) seems to be helping me to focus more on the music that I have playing in the background.
Lately I have been listening to a lot of classical music, and my "napping in the dark" escapades are bring new focus to the music. I am hearing the tempos and melodies much more vividly, and this is having a positive influence on my piano playing. Talk about an epiphany.
That alone is enough to make it a really good week. But, no need to stop there...
Yesterday, I took my weekly peek at my high school class's 30 year reunion social media page. Someone posted a little montage of some songs that are turning 30 this year. I could not resist checking to see what was on the list, and I should have not been surprised to see the usual mainstream artists from that era. All of it was mainstream, and with a few exceptions, it was a far cry from what I was listening to at that time. Most of it was that pop-metal stuff (Whitesnake, Aerosmith, etc) mixed with a few Michael Jackson songs. I had forgotten that by 1988, Belinda Carlisle was singing solo. True, she is rather attractive, but I was never really a fan, despite the fact that I did (and always have) "have the beat."
So no, I was not surprised at the listing of songs, but I was a little disappointed. Then again, my listening tastes were all over the map back then (like they still are), so I can appreciate that most mainstream hoopty doo class reunion "hits of yesterday" lists are not going to include the likes of the Mission, Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Robtiko Rejekto, Bigod 20, and Front 242, even if all of those bands also had songs that turn 30 this year. Hell, I think the Exploited also put out an album that year, too. (I did say my listening was quite diverse).
Still, I did not get discouraged, and spent nap time listening to a few of those bands, then went a little more local, and had a pleasant afternoon listening to my favorite bands from the Dallas scene. That took me back....
How many shows did I see of Three on a Hill, Shallow Reign, or Ten Hands?` As my grandmother might say, "a zillion."
Indeed, Chris, say the word. The big one is coming....
see you out there
bryan
I got on with my morning routine of the workday, and was enjoying a coffee when my doorbell rang. I opened the door to find a young guy asking if he could test my intercom system, which took all of five seconds. Then, a few minutes later, he came back and gave me a new key for my mailbox.
The penny dropped, and I realized that the guys had spent the morning replacing our bank of mailboxes on the front of the house, as well the doorbell buttons.
I went downstairs to inspect their work, and took a moment to joke with the guys about how much fun they might have had running power tools early in the morning. As we spoke, they confirmed that they had enjoyed it, then went on to say that in a few more days, they would start redoing the stucco on the front of our house.
Now, this is a bit of a production to redo the exterior walls on the front of the building. First, they raise the scaffolding, which they did last week. Then, the guys start scraping all the stuff off the walls, which they have been doing for the past few days. Estimated completion time? They say 2 to 3 weeks, so I will reckon on 4 to 5 weeks. That's just how these things seem to go.
This past Monday afternoon, the workman put up a little sign requesting that we close our rolling shutters on our windows so that they could get everything cleaned. Like a good tenant, I complied first thing Tuesday morning; I lowered the shutter in my bedroom, then did the same in the living room.
Normally, I leave the shutters raised all year round, especially in the living room, so as to allow for as much light as possible. I do keep the bedroom shutters mostly lowered, but only about halfway. I like to have a little bit of natural light, even when sleeping.
That Tuesday night as I went to bed, I realized just how much darker it was in my bedroom. I am not afraid of the dark (despite Nadja's comment), but it was a little spooky, and certainly different. I slept pretty well, and the following morning thought, "Hey, maybe I should always sleep with the shutters completely closed."
That next night, I did have to get up for a toilet break (I drink a lot of water these days), and as I walked back to my bed in the darkness, I was more than a little surprised when I overshot my bedroom door by 6 inches, which meant that I collided with the wall and subsequently startled myself fully awake. Clearly sleeping in complete darkness had changed my spatial awareness just a wee bit.
Fortunately, I did not really hurt myself. The experience was more along the lines of inadvertently walking into a freshly cleaned glass door, which creates more surprise and bemusement as opposed to stubbing one's toe on an unfortunately placed dumbbell in the middle of one's floor. (This latter incident simply sucks.)
Yes, I have found many ways to amuse (or is it abuse) myself in my lifetime. However, I shall leave those stories of wearing brand new leather soled shoes on a slick floor or how to be eight years old and lie down on the ground right on top of dog poo for another time...
At any rate, I continue to keep my shutters closed for the moment to allow the workman to get on with their job of redoing the building's facade. Perhaps at the weekend I will open the living room shutters again. Interestingly enough, napping in the living room has been more enjoyable these past days. The absence of natural light (as well as the reduced noise from the front of house) seems to be helping me to focus more on the music that I have playing in the background.
Lately I have been listening to a lot of classical music, and my "napping in the dark" escapades are bring new focus to the music. I am hearing the tempos and melodies much more vividly, and this is having a positive influence on my piano playing. Talk about an epiphany.
That alone is enough to make it a really good week. But, no need to stop there...
Yesterday, I took my weekly peek at my high school class's 30 year reunion social media page. Someone posted a little montage of some songs that are turning 30 this year. I could not resist checking to see what was on the list, and I should have not been surprised to see the usual mainstream artists from that era. All of it was mainstream, and with a few exceptions, it was a far cry from what I was listening to at that time. Most of it was that pop-metal stuff (Whitesnake, Aerosmith, etc) mixed with a few Michael Jackson songs. I had forgotten that by 1988, Belinda Carlisle was singing solo. True, she is rather attractive, but I was never really a fan, despite the fact that I did (and always have) "have the beat."
So no, I was not surprised at the listing of songs, but I was a little disappointed. Then again, my listening tastes were all over the map back then (like they still are), so I can appreciate that most mainstream hoopty doo class reunion "hits of yesterday" lists are not going to include the likes of the Mission, Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Robtiko Rejekto, Bigod 20, and Front 242, even if all of those bands also had songs that turn 30 this year. Hell, I think the Exploited also put out an album that year, too. (I did say my listening was quite diverse).
Still, I did not get discouraged, and spent nap time listening to a few of those bands, then went a little more local, and had a pleasant afternoon listening to my favorite bands from the Dallas scene. That took me back....
How many shows did I see of Three on a Hill, Shallow Reign, or Ten Hands?` As my grandmother might say, "a zillion."
Indeed, Chris, say the word. The big one is coming....
see you out there
bryan
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