crx aus luebeck, germany

Hallo, mein Name ist Caterina. Ich habe vor drei Jahren eine kleine Buchhandlung in Lübeck eröffnet und Lia hat mich gebeten, ab und zu einen Beitrag für die Bücherecke des ROTEN ZELTES zu schreiben. Da mir die Idee dieser Internetseite sehr gut gefällt, will ich es gern versuchen. Als Erstes ist mir sofort folgendes Buch als wunderbar passend eingefallen:

Joan Anderson
Spaziergang am Meer

Joan Anderson verabschiedete sich für ein Jahr von Alltag und Ehe und verbrachte diese Zeit in einem Cottage auf Cape Cod. Diese Auszeit beschrieb sie selbstkritisch und ohne zu beschönigen, in tagebuchartigen Aufzeichnungen, die stark an Anne Morrow Lindberghs „Muscheln in meiner Hand“ erinnern, in „Ein Jahr am Meer“. Hier nun erzählt sie die Geschichte einer außergewöhnlichen Freundschaft...(mehr)

Was also tun, wenn man gerade noch fröhlich barfüßig über die sich wohlig anfühlende Wiese stapft und dann durch den plötzlichen Schmerz je gestoppt wird?... (mehr)

Here is a new entry (in German) in our House Aphothecary about what to do with a bee sting... (more)

Here is a link to an entry of an interesting blog, Marginal Revolution. The blogger wrote about his favourite travel books. Ok, he references a list, from WorldHum, but as far as blogging is concerned that is very much allowed.

The only books I would add to their lists are... (more)

(collage of preliminary round games, photos from the BBC coverage)

So, the preliminary rounds are over with the soccer World Cup. Now things are going to get serious. And, to be honest, I sort of hope the German soon lose. Not in this next round (it’s called the one-eights, don’t know what the round before the quarterfinals (is that even the word for the round before the semi-finals?) is called in English) against Sweden.

Well, actually, it won’t be so bad if the Germans lose tomorrow from a personal point of view, because I am due to fly up to Sweden next week and if the Swedes lose, there could be a rather cold welcome. My friend, Susanne, who is flying over with me, says she will pretend to be a (half) Canadian and she will line up at the “Others” (i.e. non-EU citizen) custom line-up with me to avoid the frosty looks from the Swedish custom officers… She is married to a Dane and she knows how nationalistic the Scandinavians can be… but that’s another story.

Personally, I would like the Germans to lose in the quarterfinals against Argentina. Argentina is a strong team. The Germans would save face.

Then the Germans could get back to their main duty of the moment: hosting the world’s biggest and best wedding ceremony (the soccer World Cup). The further they get in the series, the more the likelihood the bride and groom are going to get drunk and disorderly and make an absolute ass of themselves before all their guests. Guests, who’ve spent an enormous amount of money and time coming to the party and who, frankly, expect a good return on their investment. You also have to take into account the unruly and socially embarrassing relatives (hooligans), they will only stay locked in the back closet with a case of beer for so long. Once they get out, all mayhem will break out.

Don’t get the wrong impression; I love the fact that the championships are being held here. So far, I think (hope) the Germans have done an absolutely super job of showing the rest of the world what generous, well organised, and graceful hosts they can be.

It is even better than Athens (last) or London (next) hosting the Olympic games. The Olympics take a lot more money, are an organisational nightmare, and they usually end up bankrupting the city hosting the games and doesn’t get half as much publicity as the World Cup. Germany only has to throw a few stadiums together and voila, it’s done. (Slight understatement there.)

So, here’s a prayer that these cup championships continue without averse incident and may the best man (team) win. But, please let it be Brazil or Argentina or someone coming up from behind.

Just finished giving my presentation at the institute on the theme “What do women want…. when it comes to gaming?” The presentation went quite well I think; at least I had fun giving it. Tried a new presentation strategy of using lots of graphics and practically no written text. It was the first time that I just spoke freely and though this was initially quite a terrify leap for me to take, I did better than I thought I would.

In a nutshell the presentation develops as follows: most women like content/storyline (e.g. television drama series, so called “chick flicks”, women literature and magazines); guys like action and interactivity (e.g. see the majority of computer games); in an ideal world content/storyline and action/interactivity are the two essential components for enjoyable gaming; most media today (print, film (DVD), television, Internet, and gaming) promotes some successful products which contain both components, though obviously of different proportions concerning storyline development and interactivity; my concept for a successful women’s game does not emulate the current computer game experience but rather, it is simular to the experience of watching American television (60-70% viewing film (storyline development), and 30-40% gaming elements).

Think the fact that there wasn’t any text made it hard for some of the (male) audience to understand what I was talking about. They found it hard to listen. They also found it difficult to understand/accept/internalise some of the topic material. You could even say that some of them got a bit huffy about some of the ideas I presented.

The female audience unanimously said they loved my gaming concept and they want to play my Talkshow Rivals game or any other game that has this concept, the moment it is out on the market. (Only the gods know when that will be).

After the presentation, I talked things over with two colleagues and it was surprising how much the fellows just didn’t understand, even material that I stated slowly and clearly. Was this because I did not present the material succinctly enough, or I did not repeat myself enough at relevant moments in the presentation, or, was it just the fact that the guys turned off their ears and minds the moment I said the talk was about creating computer games for women? They obviously “got” what I was saying on some level, but there were a few questions and observations posed which demonstrated just how difficult/provocative they felt the presentation to be. Oh, well, tant pis.

So, we are still waiting for Marie (here) to write us something titillatingly interesting for our Book Corner. A promise is a promise Marie.

I also talked to Caterina, the owner of a travel book bookshop just down the road from where I live, about writing something, in German, for our Book Corner page. And she agreed!

Don’t know either of the women well: one virtually (Marie) and the other (Caterina) the last few months since I started ordering German books for the children at her shop. My impression is that they are both very intelligent, have a passion for books, and a fine instinct when it comes to matching the right book to its reader.

For instance, I ordered some books for my 11 year old daughter (three in the Mary Poppins’ series, by Pamela L. Travers, and The Invisible Friend, by Louise Arnold) and in the same batch of books, Caterina ordered Howl’s Moving Castle, by Diana Wynne Jones, and The Goodfellow Chronicles: The Sacred Seal, by Judith Christine Mills. So, when we came to pick up the books, she asked my daughter, “Do you know these books?” And, yes, they were perfect, and, yes, she sold them to us on the spot as well as the ordered. Excellent business all around: whether I am admiring her ability to figure out what Sara likes in books after getting only a few clues, or her ability to judge me as a mother who will (almost) pay anything to let her children read, is the question.

(For those of you who wonder why I am buying German translations of English books for my children… they prefer it so. German is their native tongue and speak English well, but not fluently enough that they can cobble up books at the same speed they can German books.)

And though I haven’t had quite the same experience yet with Marie, I have this feeling that she possesses this talent as well.

So while we, readers of the Red Tent Blog and books in general, are waiting for Marie and Caterina to write something for the Book Corner, take a look at some summer reading lists (here and here) to pass the time away that I got out of the Culture Vulture blog.

tammy (presently) from Amstelveen, Netherlands

“Mom, why do most women take the man’s last name when they get married, but men never seem to take the woman’s last name?”

“Why do so many advertisements have women with practically nothing on?“

“Hasn’t there EVER been a female (American) president?”

Mom, am I fat?”

My daughter is beginning to understand. The questions began at age 7 and have intensified as she has grown. Now at age 11, it is clear that she is becoming increasingly aware that she lives in a world where women are often objectified and are largely denied places of power and authority. For now, her questions come from a place of curiosity. What she observes doesn’t seem to make sense, so she is asks to be sure she is seeing correctly. And she wants to know why.

Part of me aches with her emerging awareness. While it is simply a curiosity for her now, I know that she will eventually come to understand that women are thought of as “less.” I know that she will have struggles trying to demonstrate to others, and more importantly, to herself that she is NOT less. At some point, she will confront the full horror of what many women in the world endure, and have endured over past millennia, simply because they were born female. Thus, the time will come when her curiosity turns to frustration, sadness, even rage. She will hurt because of this.

But another part of me is deeply pleased by her emerging awareness, and I work to cultivate it. I want her to accurately perceive inequity between the sexes when she sees it and not be afraid to voice it. I want her to feel a sense of righteous indignation that anyone would consider her to be less human because she is female. I want her sense of justice to remain intact, rather than have her handle the unpleasantness by turning away from it – by pretending it isn’t there.

Far too many women tell me they never think about women’s issues. They have established a comfortable niche for themselves with a relatively non-sexist partner and they feel sufficiently powerful in their own sphere. There is a sense that the world is too big to change and they are comfortable – why think about it? But they are raising sons and daughters, too. Can they afford not to think about it? Can they afford to not help their children become aware? It is true – I cannot change the world. But I can help my daughter to perceive it accurately and to live in it with courage.

Exploring my interior with Julia Cameron’s second book “The Vein of Gold” continues to be a great source of creative exercise. The past month I have been writing narrative timelines... (more)

Maureen's next entry into her page, Maureen's Way is fresh off the press. Please read and leave her any comments you have on her subject of inspiration and creativity.

Or Why I Chose To Become An Electrical Engineer

Many years ago I decided to give up my first profession, as a ballet dancer, and go to university and study for a second profession. I wasn’t quite certain what I it was that I wished to do with my life, but it sure wasn’t the arduous, narcissistic, poorly paid, fickle, competitive-ridden, food-depraved, boring, jubilant, sublime art of dance.

When I was in high school I had a Hungarian math and physic teacher. She was perhaps one of the few teachers I ever encountered, who not only had a calling as a teacher, but she was impassioned mathematician and physicist. She believed that mathematics was not the art of mixing numbers or memorizing formulas, but music of the rarest form. She instructed us in the field of mathematical theory, but she also took the time to tell us who discovered each theorem, and about the lives of these men and women, and most particularly, how their theories were rarefied works of wonder.

So, when it came time to choose a field of study I naively considered studying mathematics. I invited my father to lunch one day to discuss this decision. His reaction was, quit ballet– fine, study mathematics–not so fine. His logic was… why would you study something for four or five years only to end up an unemployed math teacher? (This was over twenty-five years ago and the professional choices for math graduates were limited).

Instead, he asked me to describe the type of life I envisioned after leaving university. I wanted to have my cake and eat it too: enough of sacrificing everything for art. I wanted to live in different countries; have the time to travel; my job should be steady and well paid; I wanted to work with interesting people on interesting projects, etc. And math and physics should be the main portion of the study curriculum. We ended up compromising with electrical engineering.

The culture shock of “higher education” was brutally, instantaneously, apparent when I discovered myself in the middle of a crowd of locomotive-hat-dawned first year engineering students: watching them partake in various infantile initiation rituals (e.g. streaking through the campus with nothing on but their locomotive hats and cloth diapers), as well as not so infantile rituals (e.g. beer throwing, food gobbling contests at the local pub with amateur strippers hired from the student faculty).

Once the initial rush of indignation settled down, I realised that all my fellow students had spent the last years studying feverously and not, as I had done, on point shoes dancing from one end of the stage to another. The disparity of academic background couldn’t have been greater.

Completing my electrical engineering degree was a dance requiring a fair measure of self-discipline and ornery tenaciousness. If it wasn’t for the mathematic courses (magical) and professor Wang (quantum physics and laser theory), I don’t think I would have persisted.

Professor Wang was the PhD. student studying under the two scientists who received the Nobel Prize for discovering the transistor. Rumour had it, that much of the work that professor Wang did as a PHD student was the basis for this discovery. The next rumour was, that professor Wang was generally disappointed with the applications that had subsequently been developed using transistors. Thus he specifically chose to teach quantum physics and the non-military use of laser theory as a statement of his disapproval. This probably was all a piece of nonsense, but it inspired me to see that there is also an ethical choice to be made in where I move professionally.

He held a fascinating two hour lecture about Chinese acupuncture and future medical applications, which completely changed the direction I had been considering: from telecommunication to medical engineering. He also mentioned a branch of Siemens in Germany researching such systems. After my studies were completed I packed to bags and headed over to that branch of Siemens, and so ended the one story and the next one began.

Just picked up the first series of Desperate Housewives on DVD. I’ve haven’t watched anything but the weekly highlight on their Internet site. Must say, so far (episode 9), there is nothing relevant in the DVD that I haven’t already seen in the highlights. OK, obviously there is a little more detail, but as far as the progression of events, who-did-what-to-whom, each forty-minute episode can me condensed down to a five (?) minute sequence.

Astonishingly fact once you consider that the show (I believe) runs for an hour. The actual storyline is broadcasted in under forty minutes. Then, the amount of relevant information is conveyed in four minute. Not that I am saying you can reduce the Desperate Housewife experience down to those four minutes. Just that there is a lot of room to move with the development of the main storylines.

The reason I bought the DVD, was because I recently read that they (here) are in the process of developing a computer game for the series. A lot of newpaper hype, but if you are looking carefully about what they are saying, they do not envision anything new or innovative for the new game. It is such a shame that the only thing the game industry can come up with is a Sims-like clone. That is just not going to cut the rope with the target audience.

I am giving a presentation at work next week which posses the question “What do women want… when it comes to gaming?” I was fanaticising how lovely it would be if I could give the presentation to the product development and marketing department of Buena Vista Games. Not being one to indulge in wishful thinking, I’ve decided to write up a game concept for Desperate Housewives and see whether there is any possibility of getting someone to look at it. It’s worth a try.

Marie from Crockatt & Booksellers, in London, England, has kindly agreed to liven up our Book Corner blog page in the future. We all feel very happy to have her on board. Marie not only helps run the store together with Matthew and Adam, she helps plan and host literary evenings, writes in the shop’s blog, and adds many insightful comments to her colleagues’ blog entries.

Here, as way of an introduction, are two book reviews she wrote for the shops online newsletter…

My family and I have come to relax at a lovely holiday apartment in northern Germany. Rabenholz, is a village about forty kilometres away from the Danish border, and just a few kilometres away from the Baltic Sea coast.

We have come here numerous times in the last five years and feel very much at home with the couple who run the holiday apartment, as well as with those running and serving in the cafés, restaurants, grocery stores, etc.

The native north German has a reputation from being reticent, sparse of speech, resilient, stubborn natured. Whether this is true or not, I can’t say. The visits we have made here, have been highlighted with encounters with people of generous spirits, who radiate a calm, no-nonsense, positive attitude to life and though they posses a certain reserve, they are willing to express personal opinions, political viewpoints, and relate aspects of their lives and family going-ons that it is positively refreshing. What they do not have, is a persistent neediness, or will to sell themselves, their land, and their culture at any price, which you unfortunately find in many countries dependant on tourism.

There is no denying that this area of Germany is highly dependent on tourism, even though the agriculture industry is still active. But, like most such places, farmers have it hard. The roots of the region’s wealth historically lay in fishing, farming, and other trades and they are, to various extents, still practiced today. Yet, tourism is something nearly everyone does on the side. Those of us, who come here year in, year out, are not as much tourists to be catered to, but rather visitors who are expected to remain as unobtrusive as possible.

Once you except this fact, the beauty of the arrangement becomes apparent. As a visitor, you get glimpse into the lives of those you are surrounded by. Each party has their sphere of privacy, but often, particularly on sunny summer evenings, everyone spontaneously brings some food out into the garden and share a meal together, or if the weather is stormy and miserable, you share a glass of wine in the owner’s home and talk about all the events that have transpired in the lapse of time between visits. And these encounters occur naturally, whole-heartedly, out of sympathy, often seemingly by chance. Certainly, they do not happen because the event is posted on some bulletin board outside of a hotel casino or cruise ship sports facility.

I am writing this entry in a beautifully restored thatched-roof café; a delightful place that bake exceptional cakes and serve a hot pot of tea that is reminiscent of my Irish boiling-on-the-back-burner-the-whole-day-through brew. To find out what cakes are available, you go into their kitchen and take a look at what is sitting on the various counters. It is essential to take in a deep breath upon entering the kitchen, the heavenly fragrances and the sight of they diverse colours and forms of the cakes tantalise your senses.

I worked up quite an appetite by taking a long walk along a beach, which is part of a nature reserve. Fantastic coastline. Across the water, you can see the Danish islands. The long walk was really just an excuse to spend an hour in the café. Ah, the simple joys in life.

If you only have the time to read one blog entry or news article today, read Garr Reynold’s blog (Presentation Zen) entry, “You are creative (who the %$#@! says you're not?)”. In it, he summarises the advice Brenda Ueland wrote in 1938 in her book, "If you want to Write". Apparently, what she wrote about writing can be extended to any form of creativity or inspirational activity.