The Duden is the (read thee) authoritative body on what’s what in German grammar and what is accepted in the language as being considered German.
Langenscheidt is also a major dictionary used in Germany and is reputable.
This years told 5 words according to the Local (a german based english newspaper:
1. Swag (enviable, casual-cool charisma or a charismatic, positive aura)
2. Fail/Epic Fail (A big mistake or failure)
3. Guttenbergen (to plagiarize or crib – derived from disgraced former Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg who resigned after it emerged he had copied large parts of his doctoral thesis)
4. Körperklaus (clumsy)
5. Googeln (to search or look up something)
Today, you are five years old. With remembrance of the day when I was in Tokyo wondering how to express some of my thoughts and ideas and experiences. Then New Gabriel Times was born. November 16, 2006.
Thoughts and ideas for the next five years? Not my concern at the moment.
To think that I have spent all this time and energy on a blog that you or maybe no one will read, but in the hopes that my thoughts can be put on paper, so to speak, makes it feel all worth it somehow.
Stories and stories and pictures and interpretations of culture, all on here.
With beaches as nice as Lavadi in Donoussa, Greece – which had enough naked people to make anyone happy, sky blue water to please your eyes and cool water to relax your overheated body – I think you would do a handstand too.
It is cold here at the moment, but things are going alright, meeting new people and new family as well as reflecting on many things, including David Henry.
The Man in the Middle with his cat-like quickness. Koh Lanta, Thailand.
“Give him a break.” I’d say to myself as I looked across the court at my teammate. Between points, the players would take short glances across the sand towards the Andaman Sea at the red volleyball shaped celestial object sinking into the horizon. Unlike the sun, the man in the middle wasn’t sinking and fading away into the sand beneath his feet, as his court presence was constant and reliable for the duration of the game. This was because he never moved from the center position in front of the net, which is usually reserved for a tall athletic player. He wasn’t a distraction but rather a memorable point for the players to focus on, bringing fear into the minds of the opposing team as he stood often so still he looked like a suntanned statue built in nearby Saladan. He just didn’t look the part. He was wearing a football jersey after all. For him to be there, on the beach volleyball sand was like seeing a pig trying to swim. He looked like he should be sitting in a beach chair with a beer in hand, watching his children play in the lapping waves. He was, though, a calming figure that didn’t move his feet any more than to catch his balance and to prevent himself from falling. After a few points were played it was more and more evident that he was flexible and agile enough to be a strong competitor showing us his two left feet didn’t prevent him from making great sets.
Mentally, I was asking him to rotate (“Stop being a permanent setter…”) and adapt to us foreigners trying to take over the game and win. Perhaps we should have trusted his presence, as it was his land, his beach, his court. Others would have thought the same, I imagine, but even if one spoke out against his style of play, the words would have most likely been misunderstood or maybe he wouldn’t have even tried to understand. After all, he knew what he was doing. He knew how to play the game – using his hands while jumping no higher than a small toad. In volleyball, this inability may prove to be a major hindrance, but not with this man – it was his advantage and his strength. With six players equally rotating around the court like clockwork as points traded sides, the man in the middle refused to move from the center position, sitting tight and attempting to appear larger than he was. This was his hidden strategic move to scare our opponents. It worked. Using his cat-quick hands (see picture) and his court-sense, he helped our team to victory and the man in the middle was as happy as we were to watch the sun gravitate beneath the silver blue ocean horizon.
Some photos from the last month Dec 2010- Jan 2011, selected from my phone.
Flood at local Peißnitz Park - this is normally open green space with both a basketball court and soccer to the right.
"Junkers" hot water heater. Halle, Germany
Berlin train ad
Yasemin's aliean art
Daniel @ a drop/pick up box for DHL packages in Paulus Viertel. Halle.
Hospital lobby optical illusion wall?
This photo makes me calm.
Ice Skating in Berlin
Wasser Turm, Halle
A "gift for my soul" from one of my students. A 1977 bottle of French wine.
Table/tap water is not given for free in Germany (they always want you to buy carbonated water) and at the Brauhaus in Halle, I had to beg the waitress for it, and it was only 100ml at that. Is it such a problem to get a glass of tap water?
I am heading to Thailand in 2 days. I hope to be drinking that 1977 bottle of wine on the beach.
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