As I already mentioned in my last post, the heat in Berlin gives me a hard time focusing on my finals that are about to start in two days. The fact that we have been waiting for the summer for such a long time and now, cannot even enjoy its advantages is really frustrating and depressing. I advocate winter terms at university only!

What doesn’t make it any better, is, when I actually managed to force myself to learn (while my body was about to melt away), and getting everything done by the end of the evening, so that I didn’t need to feel bad about watching the final soccer game of the FIFA World Cup. Everybody who has watched the game can understand my disappointment: 12 yellow cards and 1 red-yellow one in comparison to one last-minute threnodic goal. The umpire sucked, the teams’ level of performance sucked and the vuvuzelas sucked! Not even beer could help making the game appear any better…

My craving for relaxation is immense. Therefore, it is torture to see my mum going on a 3-week-holiday together with her boyfriend. What about me?! Oh yeah, I am the stupid one who gets assigned with the task of watering my mum’s plants during their absence. No need to say, that I love plants as much as I love children.

This game is certainly over! Not just for the German soccer team, the era of Günter Netzer and the octopus Paul, but also for the pigeon that got lost in my room this morning and also for me and my blogging time (finally!).

One should always stop when the mood is at its peak, regardless whether this is a good or bad one. That’s why my work here is done. I’m going home. To cap it all off, there needs to be just another kindergarten clan on the underground to bury my mood!

Usually you’d go and relax in one of Berlin’s several parks, catch up with friends and go on a trip to the nearest bathing lake. Tepid evenings invite you to stroll to the nearest pub for a tall cool beer and an entertaining soccer game of the FIFA World Cup. Things we are all willing to give up, I reckon.

And what’s our opportunity cost?

Heat stroke

Yeah, why not spending the whole day with reading books about Cost Accounting and Corporate Finance? As you won’t be able to sleep anyways when it’s that hot, you could even continue learning at night. Sleep is overrated, as is your health.

Never ending melting of your body. Sweaty, humid, icky feeling. Weakness. Heat exhaustion. Painful headache. Strong fast pulse. Lacking concentration. Dehydrogenation. Dizziness. Fainting.

Heat stroke and procrastination – that’s what I call the perfect combination for the weekend!

Why’s that?
1. Being hot makes you tired. Very tired.

2. Being tired makes you grumpy.

3. Being grumpy leads to petty bickering with your friends and family.

4. You can’t sleep when it’s too hot.

5. When you can’t sleep, you get even more tired.

6. When you are tired, you can’t concentrate on learning.

7. As you feel bad about that, you are looking for other generative things to do (e.g. ironing)

I could continue but I won’t, because I’m hot. And tired. And grumpy. I saw the weather report and it said by the end of the week it might crack the 38 degree mark.

Killed in action

Perfect conditions to memorize Cost Accounting and Corporate Finance, I reckon. This is almost as much fun as posting a blog entry every single Sunday.

I’ll certainly go for it! Can’t think of anything else I’d rather do. Stopped thinking at all actually because it’s too hot.

Just decided that I’m going to laminate my books and move my workplace into my grandparents’ pool. In the mean time, I have to go get a tall glass of ice water and stand in front of the open freezer for a while….

One cannot not communicate! That’s what we all know since Paul Watzlawick published his theory of communication. According to him, people also interact silently and unconsciously. That theory seems to be quite reasonable: When you have a short sleep-in during a lecture you automatically signalize that you are tired without having to say a word at all, right?

Anyways, I think, in everyday life and on journeys it would be a major improvement, if the mouth was kept shut at least once in a while, such as on the underground, in the canteen or on the streets. What kind of banalities, intimate details, secrets and nonsense get blurt out, can just be endured with a lot of humour. Due to cheap mobile contracts that include never-ending flat rates,

I have to listen to so much shit every day!

Just take all those excuses for involuntary delays: “Darling, just wanted to let you know that my train will be a little late.” 5 minutes later she calls again: “I’m on the train now. I might still be able to make it on time. I’ll keep you up to date.” And people actually stick to those promises in regular intervals (at least every 10 minutes).

Then there is the weekend/after work debate: That’s a dispute about who buys what and where, who will pick up the bloody kids, who will cancel the get-together with old friends and so force. Seriously, whoever has no other subject of conversation and loses oneself in those banalities at the top of one’s voice, communicates all involuntary listeners effectively: “I can do everything except organizing my life.”

The bumbledom act is often put into practice by sophomoric men in order to impress some woman: With their legs apart men like to boast of their latest business success. Such monologues remind me of stock trading “Buy, no limit!” or the well-known building society advertisement “My home, my car, my boat”.

The live report: That’s when somebody talks about his/her daily experiences and outcomes. When listening to that we have to put up with a lot of details, emotions, blasphemy and even secrets.

Chatter-free areas, please!

Curiously enough that all those conversations have one major thing in common: The final sentence will always be “But I can tell you all of that once again tomorrow, in more detail.”

I say: Zip your lips just once! That’s in everyone’s interest, but apparently not enforceable without coercion. Therefore, I advocate chatter-free areas analogous to the car-free Sunday in some countries. Even I will cut down on some of my phrases………… ………………………………………..……………………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….!!!

iPod Touch designed by Apple

As I already told you in one of my previous posts, I had to send in my iPod Touch because it wasn’t working anymore. Due to my clumsiness, I spilled some sparkling wine over it and now the battery won’t recharge anymore.

Despite the fact that I should actually be doing some work for uni, I changed my priorities immediately and rather did some research on where to getting my iPod repaired. I figured out that buying a new device by Apple would plunge me into ruin. That’s why I looked for some kind of agency in Berlin that is specialized in getting Apple products repaired.

CARD services Berlin GmbH is one of those experienced IT-specialists. Their store is centrally located in Ritterstr.3, 10969 Berlin-Kreuzberg and within easy reach if you get off the underground at U Kottbusser Tor or U Moritzplatz.

Even their opening hours are quite humane for the working population: Mo-Fr from 9am to 6pm.

Sounds pretty good so far, right? I even got quite excited when I read the agency’s advertising slogan: “We keep your systems running…”

To make a long story short, one afternoon I went to CARD services and presented the most important electronic device in my life. After a careful testing and inspection I was told that they would have to send in my iPod to a professional Apple store in Frankfurt am Main.

logo designed by Apple

428km distance between my „baby“and me?! That’s torture! And as if that news weren’t horrible enough, they even told me that it won’t be possible to save the data that is located on the iPod’s chip. My music, photos, videos, games – everything will be lost afterwards!

Nevertheless, I was thankful for the fact that there actually is SOMEBODY able to help me with my problem, so I decided to swallow the bitter pill and responded positively to the offer.

About four days later I received the iPod repair cost estimate by e-mail, saying that the headphone jack and the hold-button are defective. Apparently the individual components aren’t interchangeable and the only possibility is a complete replacement of my iPod.

The whole analysis and replacement is gonna cost me € 235, 70! That’s nearly a whole monthly salary!

Fair enough that this information pisses me off, I reckon?!

I’ve gotta tell you that you won’t get a proper blog post from me by the end of this week. Haha!

As you know I’m addicted to music and live concerts. That’s why I’ll spend the whole weekend partying, dancing and goofing around on the Hurricane Festival.

So, sorry folks. You’ve gotta wait a little longer for me to refresh after this short trip into my drug world. Haha!

In the meantime, to keep you busy, you should check out the online game Akinator. You’ll get into it, that’s for sure.

Have fun playing and a great weekend to all of you. I’ll certainly enjoy mine!

You better miss your cold-hearted bitch!

See ya!

“Without music life would be a mistake.”  ~Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

I listen to music because if I didn’t I would be dead. I need it like oxygen, however silly that may sound. I get all stressed up when I haven’t heard music in a lot of hours.

According to that, you can imagine how pissed I was when my iPod touch suddenly was not working any more (well, not mentioning that I spilled some sparkling wine over it).

Taking away the music from me and telling me that it’ll take at least two weeks until I’ll get it back (That’s how long it takes getting my iPod repaired.) is like sending me away for a withdrawal treatment.

Confessions of an addict:

My name is Toni, and I’m an addict.

I’ve been addicted to listening to music for a very long time. And being addicted to music is like being addicted to crack. Okay. I’ll confess. I’ve never smoked crack.

But the rush of live concerts… When the band is killing it onstage, then I am high. At that very moment I am completely myself, dancing from the depths of my soul and telling my story. When the song is strong, and the rhythm track is hot, I catch a buzz. All of a sudden I start dancing uncontrollably in the middle of the room. I feel like I’m stoned.

“If music be the food of love, play on. Let me have surfeit of it that I may sicken and die.” ~William Shakespeare

The music gives me a fullness of life and the complete armor of expression. There are songs that make me want to dance, songs that make me want to sing alone, but the best songs are those that bring me back to the moment I first heard them.

I’m really passionate about music. I’ve gotta have it – every day, all day, all night, if possible.  I keep chasing that “high”, hoping for the same feeling, a sudden moment of inspiration or a better, more intense high. I listen to music because it is the best and the fastest way to get some weird sense of the mood I am presently in, feelings I encounter. And that’s why I will never quit.

My idea is that there is music in the air, music all around us; the world is full of it, and you simply take as much as you require.  ~Edward Elgar

I also use music as a couch; I want to be pillowed on it, relaxed and consoled for the stress of daily living.  Music washes away from my soul the dust of everyday life.

Music wakes me up; perks me up like coffee,
Music stays with me in my journey,
Music is with me when I am busy,
And music is there with me when I am snoozing.
In the evening when the weary self is heading home music relaxes my soul,
Making the bread and butter music spices up the dreaded task,
At the night time music slowly lulls me to sleep,
Preparing me to face another rough day made sweet by music.

I’m in control. But the first step to control is admitting that I’m an addict, and music is a drug that I will never quit! That’s why I call it absolute torture to leave me without it…!!!

Are you an addict? Do you have your high under control? Hit me up and tell me your story…

Music is my drug. What is yours?

"Spamattacke" found on www.beetlebum.de

Junk mails are persistently clogging my electronic mailbox.

And it’s driving me nuts!

Those of you who have read my last blog entry till the end are hopefully suffering from eye cancer right now. So, no need for you guys to continue reading, as you are not able to distinguish between spam and normal anyways. Lucky you!

You also receive tons of spam mails? And you ask yourself what to do?

You have several options:

• Trust your detecting spam software (Well, mine is crap -.-)
• Create a new junk e-mail filter and virus removal processing service
• Fight back against spammers! (You can easily report unwanted e-mails to the Federal Trade Commission if you believe spammers have violated the law or their Internet Service Provider’s terms of service.)
• Change your e-mail provider (According to the latest Fraunhofer studies you should rather go for Yahoo Mail, Hotmail or Google Mail but try to avoid Web.de and GMX.)

My laptop just suffered from an obtrusive virus lately, which was caused by one of those junk mails. Believe me, I was horrified of losing all my music and pictures! Luckily, I was able to safe my data just in time on my external hard drive (the best X-mas present my mum has ever made me!). Nevertheless, I had to remove my old Windows software and had to set up my laptop from scratch.

Certainly not a weekend activity worth striving for!

By the way, if you ever feel like bitching something out, you don’t have to start blogging about it like I did. You can simply enter an online forum and tell everybody what’s pissing you off in an instant, free and guaranteed anonymous way.

For those of you who don’t have a clue what to rant about, you should do this funny quiz which tells you what pisses you off the most.

“If you are not on Facebook, MySpace or StudiVZ, you don’t exist!” — Jaqueline (17) to her mom

GiVe YoUrSeLf A sIgNiFiCaNt NiCkNaMe, CrEaTe NoT oNe BuT sEvErAl PrOfilEs On SoCiAl NeTwOrKs, TrY tO cHaNgE tHeM eVeRy DaY, aNd StArT uSiNg WeB tAlK. tHaT’s HoW yOu CrEaTe YoUr OwN iDeNtiTy!

iDeNtiTy CaTeGoRiEs ArE aCtUaLlY SiMiLaR tO cErEaL bRaNdS, tHeRe ArE VaRioUs KiNdS tO cHoOsE fRoM, e.G. :

• tHoSe SoLaRiUm-TaNnEd, PiNk-WeAriNg BuNniEs LiKe $$TiNkErBeLl<333
• wAnNaBe rApPeRs LiKe =§rEbOrN 2PAC Jr.§= WhO wRiTe AnD tAlK LiKe 4th gRaDe SoMeBoDiEs
• tHe GoOd DyE bLoNdS LiKe !$[pOrNsTaR1639]$! wHo LoOk LiKe LiViNg DoLlS aNd UpLoAd NeW piCtUrEs Of ThEmSeLvEs iN tHe BaThRoOm EvErY siNgLe DaY

So WhAt “SlAnGuAgE” dO yOu SpEaK?

YOu ThiNk YoU cAn TaLk A lOt Of LaNgUaGeS? geRmAn, EnGliSh, fReNcH, sPaNiSh? MaYbE sOmEtHiNg ExOtiC LiKe JaPaNeSe WhEn YoU aRe LuCkY aNd SmArT? gOoD oN yOu, iF yOu Do!

BuT lEt Me TeLl YoU tHaT yOu NeEd To UnDeRsTaNd “SlAnGuAgE” iF yOu WaNnA gEt SoMeWhErE!

WARNING:
iT’s NoT a LaNgUaGe As We KnOw iT.“sLaNgUaGe” RePrEsEnTs ToDaY’s CuLtRrE aNd MaNy Of ThE PrOblEmS tHaT gO aLoNg WiTh iT. aLtHoUgH mUcH oF iT iS hUmOrOuS, a GoOd PoRtiOn Of iT iS vErY oFfEnSiVe AnD vUlGaR. mAnY oF tHe WoRdS aRe TeRmS fOr SeXuAl AcTiViTy AnD dRuG uSe. iT iS gEnErAlLy LaBeLeD aS a LiNgUiStiC tAbOo WhiCh ShOuLd NoT bE aPpEaRiNg iN mOsT fOrMaL sOciAl OcCaSiOnS.

mOrEoVeR, iT iS nOt JuSt ThEiR wEiRd CoNvErSaTiOnS bUt AlSo ThE aBsUrD wAy Of WriTiNg On ThOsE sOciAl NeTwOrK siTeS. iT iS nEaRlY iMpOsSiBlE tO mAkE jUdGmEnT oN tHe SeXeS oF tHe AuThOrS siMpLy FrOm ThE “sLaNgUaGe” S/hE uSeS.

sUrPriSiNgLy, i FiGuReD oUt ThAt ThEiR cRyPtS eVeN hAvE sOmE cOnTeNt. ThE fOuR pRiMaRy ToPiCs CoVeReD aRe:

1. EvAlUaTiOnS (uSuAlLy NeGaTiVe) Of PeOpLe, ThiNgS oR eVeNtS

2. apPeArAnCe AnD sTyLe

3. SeX (iNcLuDiNg SeX oRgAnS, aCtiViTiEs, DaTiNg, EtC.)

4. leiSuRe AnD fUn

FoCuS wiLl Be PaRtiCuLaRlY oN tHe ThiRd CaTeGoRy, SeX, siNcE sUcH aReA iS aLwAyS uNdEr ThE yOuTh’S iNtErEsT aCrOsS diFfErEnT cUlTuReS aNd SoCiEtiEs.

i ReCkOn, ThE fUnCtiOn Of SlAnG–tO siGnAl A yOuTh iDeNtiTy – iS bAsEd On CoOlNeSs.

BuT iS iT rEaLlY nEcEsSaRy To ShOw ThE wHoLe WoRlD tHaT yOu HaVe A sTrOnG aFfiLiAtiOn WiTh ThE hiP-hOp CuLtRrE? iNcLuDiNg RaPpiNg PhRaSeS iNtO oNe’S eVeRyDaY sPeEcH iS nOt CoNsiDeReD cOoL iN mY wOrLd!

ThErE aRe A lOt Of iNvEsTiGaTiOnS aNd StUdiEs AbOuT “wHy YoUtH ♥ sOciAl nEtWoRk SiTeS” – sO iF yOu HaVe An iNcEnTiVe To UnDeRsTaNd OuR gEnErAtiOn, ThEn Go FoR iT!

tHaT’s It FoR tOdAy! I dO nOt WaNt YoU tO sUfFeR fRoM eYe CaNcEr AfTeR rEaDiNg ThIs BlOg!

AnD i’M sIcK oF wRiTiNg In SuCh A fOnT aNyWaYs!

LuV aNd StUfF, xoxo

$$$%[§]cOlD-hEaRtEd BiTcH [§]%$$$

Welcome to the 21st century

Don’t breathe the air.

Don’t drink the water.

Don’t eat fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, sugar, salt or fats.

Don’t have sex ever again.

Have a nice day!

Culcha Candela – Schöne Neue Welt

How much are you willing to pay to satisfy one of the most basic human needs:

the desire to urinate?

€0.50 for having a pee in the nearest restaurant? €0.30 at a train station? Still too expensive? Or do you rather have a piss behind a bush? I mean, animals do the same kind of thing. So it’s nothing condemnable! Well, apparently it is if you ask Germans. You better be aware of the fact that you risk getting a fine by the police if you get caught. And the fine can range from €5 to €1000, depending on the degree of your exigency.

So what do we realize? Either way, it’ll cost us even more to relieve ourselves than what we pay for the alcohol. What the f***?!

But what about those people who do not have enough money? Are they not allowed to go to the toilet anymore? Shall we send them to jail straight away?!

Have you ever stood in line in the supermarket behind someone who is using government food stamps to pay? Although they are obviously poor, what are they buying? Is it bread, meat, milk, fruit and eggs? No, it’s frozen pizzas, soft drinks and candy—all of it brand name. There’s nothing there but sugar and fat, wrapped up in a glittery media package. It’s the stuff that Capitalism is continuously pushing on us.

Are we victims of capitalism?

Once upon a time when we were Natives, we had heritage, we knew our place in the world. Maybe it wasn’t the most developed culture, but at least it was something. It gave our lives structure and meaning. Now, we are all generic consumers, victims of Nike and McDonalds. The traditions of our forebears are almost a forgotten memory. Now, nearly all of the culture that most people experience, from morning until night, is a Capitalist sales message:

Buy, Buy, Buy!

Pay for every single need you have to proof that you live a humane lifestyle!

A humane lifestyle can be defined as: the ability of an individual or society to live in psychological, physical, spiritual, intellectual and emotional balance and security; or in other words to live a fulfilling and happy life.

According to Simon Hertnon’s “Theory of Universal Human Needs” there are just two types of need: survival and betterment. But when I had a closer look at the diagram of his theory, I recognized that those are in conflict with each other: physical well-being vs. doing good deeds (helping others to satisfy their unmet needs).

I won’t call it a good deed if they charge me €0.50 to satisfy my physical well-being!

So why do I think that capitalism sucks?

• Capitalism encourages people to seek to amass wealth and possessions rather than to help their fellow man or society. It breeds selfishness and discourages selflessness.
• Many people have little wealth left over after living expenses, so they can’t make it grow quickly. This further deepens the disparity between rich and poor.
• Capitalism encourages people to seek careers in whichever field generates the most income. People do what pays the most, not what they love the most, or what they are naturally talented at.

But that’s life under capitalism, isn’t it? It’s just one scandal after another.

Is capitalism sucking the planet dry just as it is draining all our souls?

What do you think?