Bad teachers, good teachers - Or how to make a difference

Recently I was talking to my mom about my school time and the various teachers. It was interesting to see how much I am still influenced by some of them. What fascinated me, was the fact that I don't remember any teacher for their particular knowledge rather than for their way of teaching. Basically there are two sorts of teachers I remember. 

First there are what I consider bad teachers. Those that wouldn't really listen to the kids and just judge them by the impression. Like the sports teacher that automatically assumes that the heavy kid is bad at sports, although it is in fact a rather capable gymnast. Another classic is the language teacher that thinks the foreign kid has to be bad at language class. These teachers tent to frustrate kids and destroy their efforts and will to learn. How I know that? Because I was a kid and if you think about it you might remember one of those teachers as well. 

Let me tell you a little story: In 3rd great we got a new language teacher and she bluntly decided that each foreign child had to go to remedial course. I remember cleary how indignated I felt although this happened 25 years ago. It wasn't because of the extra class (As a matter of fact, back then I really enjoyed school) but the fact that the year before I had been about 5th in the language class. She hadn't even checked my credits! So how is a child going to be motivated if getting the feeling that the teacher just doesn't care enough? How is the kid going to take marks received by such a teacher serious? The story ended when after three weeks the remedial class teacher went to her and said that it was ridiculous having me in that class, also because I was frustrating other children. 

I am not telling this story to brag but since I don't have any kids I have to relate to my own school time. I remember quiet a lot of stories like this and I am sure so do you. I also don't want to make teachers look bad, as I know it is one of the toughest jobs in the world. It is also one of the most responsible jobs, so before becoming a teacher maybe consider if you are at least equally dedicated to children, as to the subject you will be teaching. 

On the other hand there are those teachers that inspire you and always make you go the extra mile. Not because you want to impress them but because they convince you that you want it. I remember another teacher from 7th grade who constantly encouraged me to write, often also with critics, telling me he knew I could do better. It goes so far that I have been trying to find him in order to tell him about my writing and to thank him. It sometimes just takes one person to tell you: Go for it, don't stop. 

The purpose of this post is to inspire all of you to be such teachers to the children. A teacher doesn't have to be in a classroom. Everybody is one! Try to encourage children and listen to them, this way they will reach their full potential. Imagine what would have happened if his father hadn't listened to the three year old Mozart playing the piano and instead had shooed him off the instrument!

Writing update #2

Sorry for not having posted lately, but as announced I am focusing on my novel. My work is finally starting to pay of and "Chronicles of the Shadow Wars" is developing nicely. I might be able to finish the first draft by August 31st as scheduled.

Some of the latest twists I came up with blended perfectly into the existing story parts and gave the book a quicked pace and more dynamic.

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As announce I have also started  a new blog section for my movie reviews, that you can find here:

http://lorcas-movie-reviews.blogspot.de/

The first review is for "The Dark Knight Rises" and might get me some enemies, but that is life! I hope you enjoy it and find it helpful.

Writing update #1 - new blog structure

Some of you might have noticed that this month I have only posted once. Although me being on holiday was partly a reason, the main reason was that I have been thinking a lot about the direction of this blog and how to re-organize it.

I am quiet happy with most of my blog posts, but consider that this blog needs more structure, so everyone can access quicker the posts that interest him/her. So I have decided to split the post into cathegories, such as: essays, short stories, movie reviews etc. I am not sure if I will sort the old posts or just leave them as they are at the moment.

The main page will be reserved for my writing updates, which from now on will me numbered (as you can see from this title). This way you can follow the progress of my novel and my first steps in the publishing world and hopefully this will encourage other yet to be published writers.

Another thing is, that I might be posting less then before. This is not because I don't enjoy blogging (which I do immensly) but because I would like to focus on writing my novel now. If you are a writer and have a blog as well, you will agree that writing a blog often takes time you could employ in writing your novel, which let's be honest is our main focus. This doesn't mean I will lay the blog dorment, but that I have shifted my priority for the time being.

The present status of the novel (working title: Chronicles of the Shadow Wars) is that I am about half way done with it, while the rest of the story already exists in my head. The advancement has been not as quick as I wanted to, lately, but this was due to revisting old chapters for some fine tuning. Despite editing being a tedious work I am very happy with it, as it has given my characters more depth and I also managed to add smaller twists, which from my point of view make the story even more intriguing. Since the novel is what could be considered "historical fantasy" for young adults you can imagine that one of the main challenges is the creation of the "world" in which it takes place but on the other hand this is the fun part. To create rules, traditions and cultures is very exciting.

Since the novel is planned as the first one of a series I assume the rest will be written quicker, as by then the background will already be done. Needless to say that avoiding contradictions in the future books is one of my main targets.

Ok, that is about it for today. I hope you will enjoy the new structure of the blog, as much as you have enjoyed the old one or even more. If you have any ideas for sections or things you would like to read, feel free to let me know and I will consider them. Take care!

Expat 2.0 - Identity crisis or invaluable chance?

With the European Soccer Championship going on, one inevitable question you are asked as an immigrant's child, which I refer to as Expat 2.0, is: Which team are you cheering for?

This is actually a really good question, to which you will get all different kinds of answers.

In my case the situation is as follows: I was born to a spanish father and spanish mother in Germany and grew up and spent all my life so far in Germany. As opposed to the popular belief I am legally spanish but could easily get a german passport if I wished to do so. In fact my oldest brother is now legally german but still he roots for Spain.

So the more important question, finding out who we are, is: How do I feel? Do I feel german or spanish? And the answer to that question is easy for me: I am spanish but I am extremely grateful to have had the chance to grow up in Germany. I also know enough people, whose parents are also from Spain, that will answer that they are german, which is fine.

So if I am spanish, why am I grateful that I got to grow up in Germany? I grew up bilingual and consider german and spanish both my mother tounges. This has made it easy for me to learn other languages, as I was already used to think in different language. In fact my english would be much worse, hadn't I grown up in Germany.

Since both cultures are very different I learnt early to tolerate and appreciate differences, this led to me being an open personality. I always was different, so how I could I not like "different"? Actually I developed an extreme curiosity for other cultures and constantly find myself asking people tons of questions about their home countries.

But growing up abroad was not always easy and full of options, there was also a downside to it.

In school my parents weren't able to help with German homework, because although they speak German and manage all their daily tasks in German their language skills are not flawless. This gave my brothers and myself a significant disadvantage at school. Being the youngest I was again lucky as my brothers supported me.

In Germany I was always "the spanish girl" and in Spain I was always "the german girl". When you are a child this can be hard, as you wonder: Do I have two home countries or none? It is sort of conflicting because although people don't say it to hurt you or with a negative attitude you feel as if nobody wants to "claim" you as part of their people. I am sure that for people having grown up in their homecountry this may sound awkward but it is difficult to explain.

Still I wouldn't have want to miss this way of growing up for the world! I am spanish, but growing in Germany has enriched my life tremendously and helped me become the person I am today.

If you have the chance to offer your children this opportunity grab it, especially when it comes to the language.

Same Sex Marriage - Something I fully support!

Same sex marriage is nowadays one of the biggest topics in society, if not the biggest topic. Of course people in a same sex relationship fight to get the possibility to marry whom they love and I think this is great. I mean wouldn't you fight for the right to marry whom you love? Although I am straight I fully support the cause, because being a romantic person I want everybody to experience their own "and they lived happily ever after". 

But then there are the "other straight people". Those who don't get tired of citing religion, 200 year old laws etc. where apparantly it was stated that marriage was only supposed to be something between man and woman. These people I have to ask something: Are you kidding  me? 

Ironically these are the same people who love stories like "Romeo & Juliet" where people fight for a love others condemn. Is the gender question really that important? It is not like anybody is asking you to get married to someone of your sex if you don't want to. 

First of all I want to state one thing: Are you aware why the father of the bride hands the bride to the groom at church during a wedding? It was a sign of the "deal" that took place. Basically the woman was property being passed over. I guess none of us wants to get back to that. Right? So this holy ceremony back then was basically a sale, so like it or not: It already has changed from its original meaning, so why not changing it a little more? 

Also, what is it to you, if the guy next door marries another guy or if the girl in the supermarket wears the same wedding band as her wife? Would she do her job better if she was married to a guy? Most likely the opposite as she would feel miserable in a relationship she doesn't want and pretending to be someone she isn't. 

So please, maybe  I am too stupid to understand but where is the disavantage for straight couples if same sex couples can also get married? Apparantly many people think there is one otherwise I don't understand why they oppose, so please someone enlighten me. 

Another thing I hear often is that gay or lesbian people are supposed to have a very promiscuisous lifestyle. For people using that argument I have two rather simple counter-arguments. The first is the divorce rate among straight couples. I guess I don't need to comment on that any further. My second argument is that straight people have often enough the same lifestyle. If you don't believe me just hit the dating scene for one night and all I am writing will make sense.

Something that makes me particular sad is when I hear about teenage bullying victims. It is extremely tragic when someone takes his or her life, because they are bullied for trying to be honest about who they are. But what we shouldn't forget in this cases is that the bullies usually are inidoctrinated at their social surrounding from a very young age with the bullshit they later torture their victims with. It is there where the change has to start, so that the following generation won't even see the neccesity of discussing the same sex marriage as we don't see the neccesity to discuss that women are allowed to vote or that people with different ethnic heritage share the same bus. Just as it should be. 

A great campaign to change things in this aspect it the "Straight But Not Narrow" project supported by people like actor Josh Hutcherson. Their message is as simple as it is true: We are straight but cool with people being gay. For further information check their webside: http://www.wearesbnn.com/

So please, if before reading this article you were opposed to the same sex marriage ask youself why? Is there any disadvantage for you and would you react the same way if your neighbour would by a black Toyota instead of a red one? The answer is you wouldn't because it is none of your business and doesn't hurt you. For now I am not asking you to actively support same sex marriage, but I am asking you to at least stop opposing it. 

Eutanasia - Mercy or cruelty?

A few days ago I was watching a documentary about a veterinary station. They showed a little dog who had been tortured by its previous owner. The little animal's legs had been broken and had healed the wrong way so the poor fellow was in pain with every step he did. So after a difficult conversation, the vet and the dog's new owner decided it was the kindest to put it down. This actually made me think. 

While we consider it being merciful to put down an animal who is suffering, without the animal even able to voice its opinion, most people are repelled if a person suffering from a painful and terminal disease voices the request for eutanasia. Don't get me wrong I am well aware that there is a huge difference between animals and human beings, but the animals are not even requesting help, while the humans do. Are we granting animals a mercy we deny humans? 

There is a large variety of laws in different countries from actual permission to complete illegality concerning eutanasia, which in a way is surprising as, when it comes to this situation nationality, money, education etc. doesn't really matter anymore, as all men are truely the same when it comes to death. 

Of course a huge factor in the judgement of eutanasia is usually religion and this might in a way explain why the legal approach to eutanasia is so different in various countries.

But instead of discussing laws I wonder if the approach shouldn't be a different and yet simple one: What is the right thing to do for people who are actually suffering? If we are consequent the laws are what should follow once this question is answered.

If a person is suffering from a painful and lethal  disease and is of sound mind and disposing memory and asks for help to end his life do we really have the right to forbid that? If you are thinking "no" ask yourself "why"? Is it for the person that is suffering or for the people around him. Shouldn't the right to command over his own life be the ultimate freedom for a person (Of course always in terms with sanity!)? 

To be absolutely clear this statement is only meant in terms of eutanasia an NOT in terms of suicide. If a person who is healthy thinks about suicide this person clearly needs psychological help. The main difference is that a person requesting eutanasia will not get better, their disease is lethal and painful, their situation won't improve and they are mentally stable, while a fisically healthy person thinking about suicide is mentally ill and can be helped. 

When thinking about this topic I was of course confronted with religious views and have decided not to go into this aspect. If there are literally dozens of laws there are at least ten times more rules applied by religions. I consider this question is equally important for all mankind independently from their religion because after all we are all human beings not matter how we say our prayers. 

So the question has to be if there is a simple right or wrong in the matter or if it is more complex? Isn't it at the same time selfish of a dying person to ask someone for help in killing themselves and to burden this on the other persons soul? Because no matter how you decide in such case you will have to deal with a lot: You either help someone to end their life or you have the knowledge that you prolonged  person's suffering  by denying the help. 

Usually I conclude with my own opinion but in this case I won' t do it, as honestly I really cannot come to a conclusion on what is right or wrong in this matter. I am thankful I have never been in such situation where I had to decide and I dearly hope I never will. 

A little respect for celebrities please!

Let me start this post with a little anecdote from my life. As you might be aware of I am huge movie fan and of course I have a lot of actors I admire.  There is one I admire in particular, so you can say he is my favourite actor. A few years back I went to London for a week and imagine my excitement when I saw that he was performing at the West End. So I went to the theatre and was lucky enough to get a ticket for the show that evening. When I walked out of the theatre after buying my ticket my heart almost stopped as I saw him walking into my direction. My first instinct was to ask him for an autograph, but then I noticed he was talking on his cell phone and believe it or not I didn't say anything and let him walk into the stage door.

A lot of people whom I told this story to thought I was stupid and said I had wasted an opportunity, but I stick to my decision, because I wanted to respect his privacy. I don't know who he was talking to on the phone, maybe he was faking the call because he was having a bad day and wasn't ready for "fan-talk" or maybe it was a really important phone call e.g. his mother was in the hospital. In this case: How would you feel if during such a phone call one of your customers would annoy you with a dull question? Because let's face it: Fans are an artist's customers in a way. Because we buy a product they make. You might not like it, but down the line that is what it is. Of course with the arts a lot of passion and emotions are involved but in essence this is correct. 

Let's think of a different scenario. I guess most people have had a really bad break up at one point or another in their life, at least I know I have. All you try after this is to heal, to get over it and in a way to forget. So put yourself now in the situation where everyday someone you don't even know is constantly asking you about this personal experience, if you say you don't want to talk about it, that get aggressiv and follow you around. People hide around your house with cameras and try to get a picture of you, hoping you are having a breakdown and to catch you with puffy eyes from crying and for them ideally drunk. Isn't that a nightmare? 

A lot of you might think now, well they chose a life in the spotlight. No! These people chose a profession they love, no matter if it is being a musician, actor, singer, politician or athlete. I guess none of these people thought: Hey, it is my lifelong dream to give up my privacy!

Still a lot of celebrities try to be friendly with fans and even to get in touch with them e.g. via twitter and honestly I think this is awesome! Nobody thought something like this possible about 20 years ago. This is why tt pains me even more to see how some so called "fans" treat these celebrities. Mean messages for not replying are the most harmless things there. What are these people thinking? If someone has 150,000 followers and takes the time to respond to maybe 10 a day I think it is really nice of them. Because honestly: How many of you take the time to respond on twitter to people you don't know? 

My biggest fear is that with all the tabloids and gossiping we will reach the point where execptionally talented artists or athletes will prefer no to exhibit their talents to avoid having to live like this. Then all of us would loose. So please before buying a tabloid or asking someone for an autograph when he or she is obviously not up for it (e.g. talking on the phone or in a hurry) ask yourself: How would I feel in this situation and show a little respect! 

Movie review - The Avengers (04/30/2012)

Not being very familiar with the Marvel comic universe and not having seen the previous movies (Iron Man 1 + 2, Captain America, Hulk and Thor) I was afraid that the movie would be a little hard to follow. But despite the large amount of central characters I found this not to be the case. 

Each of the Avengers is introduced in a "recruiting" scene. While this slows the beginning of the movie down for those familiar with the characters, it is important for those (like me) who are new to the Marvel Universe. 

The story is simple and not new, but still effective and catchy: A bunch of specialized people don't get along at first but then need to pull themselves together in order to save the world. 

The dialogues are witty and to the point as expected from director/screenwriter Joss Whedon. In particular Robert Downey jr. as Iron Man gets amazing lines that he delivers so effortlessly that he steals every single scene he is in. 

The pace of the movie constantly increases without ever being hasty or rushed. It has the perfect balance between action scenes and character development. 

The cast is stellar, especially considering that often movies based on comics have the reputation of being mere action movies. In this case the cast is filled with Academy Awards winners and nominees, such as the already mentioned Robert Downey jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo and Samuel L. Jackson which gives the movie a high quality in quieter and more dramatic scenes. The rest of the cast is also composed of high class actors such as Scarlett Johanssen, Stellan Skargard and many more. 

As already stated Robert Downey jr. is amazingly witty and strong as Iron Man (I look incredibly forward now to watch both Iron Man movies). He is the hero among heroes without being flawless, which makes him so believable. Mark Ruffalo's portrayal of Bruce Banner/Hulk is nuanced and perfectly expresses the struggle of his character. He wants to help but has to accept that people around him always see him as a time bomb. 

The CGI is amazing even as per today's standards and the camera work was refreshlingly calm without slowing down the movie as opposed to today's popular "shaky camera". 

This movie is great entertainment for those who enjoy some action and still expect good dialogues. I can heartly recommend it and if possible try to catch it in the original language and not in a dubbed version. 

A new short story: 1850-1857

This is a short story I have written exclusively for this blog. I am fond of ghost stories and had a good time writing it and hope you all will enjoy. In a few days I will move the story to the "english writings" sections (where you can already find some other short stories). Enjoy:

This is just brilliant! thought Phoebe sarcastically having already accepted that she would get wet. She had been doing her tax declaration for 3 days and the deadline was tomorrow, so she had to finish it no matter what. Being a freelance musician this was always a pain in the ass. It had been about 1.30 am when she had decided to take a break and get some indian food from the 24 h take away. She had been half way there when it had started pouring like there was no tomorrow. So there she was soaking wet, tired and as she hadn't arrived yet still starving or maybe just hungry but her annoyance made it seem worse. She was about to cross the street, when she noticed that the gate to the cemetery was open. To walk through the graveyard would safe her about 20 minutes of walking in each direction and considering that the rain was getting stronger it seemed like a good idea, but like most people she dreaded cemeteries. She even felt uncomfortable there by day. She rolled her eyes thinking: Don't be a baby this is not a cheap horror movie! Then she walked towards the gate and entered.

The graveyard was rather small and dated about 180 years back. These days people were buried in the new one on the other side of town, that seemed more like a park than a cemetery, which most likely was the intention.

This place had a different quality to it and Phoebe couldn't stop herself from starting to read the headstones: Phillipp Moyers 1878-1902 "beloved son", Carolyn Amber 1853-1910 "I shall never forget you, my eternal pearl. Your husband Michael”. Lily Rose Stone 1850-1857 “our beloved angel your mother and your father will always watch over you”.

Although the rain hadn't stopped Phoebe didn't mind anymore. There was something to these engravings that captivated her. A mixture or warmth and respect that seemed so lost these days. While she approached the gate on the other side she kept reading. The cemetery seemed to have belonged to a rather small community, as the same five family names appeared over and over again. These families seemed to have been wealthy as most of these head stones were delicately decorated and some even bore a portrait of the deceased. The families were: The Moyers, the Sawyers, the O’Riordans, the Stones and the Callums. These names alone, estimated Phoebe, were on about 80 % of the headstones. She made a mental note to google that as she felt intrigued. Maybe these families had been the most generous of the community and donated money to the church.

In any case Phoebe had reached the gate on the other side and couldn’t wait for that “Chicken Vindaloo” she had ordered and some dry clothes. When she tried to push open the heavy gate the only response she got was a loud squeak from the handle but no movement. The gate was locked. Phoebe turned her face upwards, closed her eyes and said to herself: “You have got to be frigging kidding me! It is like I am trapped in some cheap horror movie!” The last part she had almost screamed in frustration so that the low and gentle voice scared her even more: “What is a horror movie?” Phoebe opened her eyes in shock and looked down to a young girl in a simple yellow dress. At least the dress seemed yellow in the dim light. “Oh my god, you scared me! What are you doing here this late?” Phoebe’s voice had a patronizing tone that surprised herself. “I am sorry, I didn’t want to scare you. I was just looking for my parents. I have been looking for them for ages, but cannot find them. Can you help me? I am so tired and if I cannot find them I have to start all over again.” The girl’s eyes filled with tears and Phoebe said: “Of course sweety. What is your name?” “Lily.Lily Rose.” The girl replied trying to smile. “This is a pretty name. I thought that earlier already, when….” Phoebe made a break when she realized what she was about to say and looked at Lily Rose, now realizing that despite the rain she appeared to be perfectly dry. Phoebe stumbled back at her realization, so that Lily finished the sentence for her: “…you read it on my headstone.” Lily eye’s showed even more despair, than when she has been talking about her parents: “Please don’t be scared! I just want to find my parents. I don’t know why everybody is so scared when I talk to them.” “Well Lily, most people get scared when they see a ghost. Wouldn’t you?” Phoebe had to frown herself at this more than weird question. “I was afraid when I was alive, but now I understand it is stupid. I mean I am still me. Just Lily! Nothing has changed, when I was alive nobody was afraid of me, not even the other children…” Her voice broke and she had started sobbing. Phoebe tried to pull herself together. In the simple logic of a child what Lily had said made sense. Why were people afraid of ghosts or paranormal phenomena as they were referred to usually? After all weren’t they us? She made a step towards Lily: “It’s ok. I know you are upset, but we are not used to seeing dead people. I am not afraid of you, but it is scary that I can see you. Do you understand?” She tried to keep her voice steady but it was tough not to freak out over the topic. Lily nodded and started calming down: “I really didn’t mean to scare you. I just want to find my parents. I look every night for them, but I can never find them and then I have to start over again. I miss them so much!” “So you mean you are looking for their graves?” Phoebe asked. “Yes, but I can never remember where I have already been so I have to start again. I cannot read very good so it takes me too long. Can you help me? You look smart!” Phoebe smiled and replied: “Yes I will help you. By the way: My name is Phoebe.” “A pleasure meeting you Phoebe.” said Lily and made a small old fashioned courtesy. “Ok, what were your parents’ names?” “My father’s name was Robert, Robert Stone and my mother was called Felicia.” “Ok very good Lily. Do you know when they were born?” The girl shook her head in response. Phoebe considered for a second: “Did you have older brothers or sisters?” Again Lily shook her head in response. “Well, usually in your time people got married very young so I guess your parents were born between 1820 and 1830. I think I saw some similar dates over there.” said Phoebe and pointed to the left side of the graveyard which was a little shielded from the rain due to the high Oak trees. “Shall we take a look?” “Yes please!” answered Lily and they walked over there. Phoebe felt the urge to take Lily by the hand but since she didn’t know what it would feel like, if she could even take the little girl’s hand she decided against it. The situation was surreal enough just as it was. The rain had in the meantime settled for less aggressive intensity but was still strong.

They walked by the headstones in silence with Phoebe scanning the names Phillipp Callum, Emma O’Riordan, John Callum, Paul Moyers so it went one. Sometimes she stumbled over the name Stone but discarded it due to the time frame until she came to a pretty white marble stone that read: Margaret Stone 1859-1883 “beloved daughter of Robert and Felicia”. Lily looked puzzled when Phoebe read the inscription to her. “Don’t you see? She must have been your sister! We must be getting close.” As she understood Lily’s face brightened. “Great, but we must hurry!” “Why? What is wrong?” “It comes and it pulls me down!” the girl sounded scared. “What comes?” Phoebe felt the panic crawling up her neck, whatever scared a ghost would scare her for sure. “Typhed. My mom called it Typhed. He was there when I died!” Lily grabbed her hand and started to pull her along the way. He hand was cold, but other than that felt quite normal thought Phoebe. They rushed forward Phoebe always scanning the head stones and still thinking about what the girl had said. “You mean Typhoid? Does this mean you died of Typhoid?” “Yes! That is what my mom called it! And he comes back every night, while I am looking for my parents!” and then Phoebe understood. Lily had to have died at night and now she was always looking for her parents and at the time she had died she was sort of pulled away and had to start all over again the next night. That was her curse and as she understood Phoebe was determined to help her! The wind, until that moment barely breeze, gained strength and she knew they were running out of time. She ran along the graves as fast as she could always looking at the names: Alexander, Joshua, Kate, Claudia…until she found them: Here lie Robert Stone 1830-1888 and Felicia Stone 1832-1888 who died in the flames of their house. May they be united with their angels Lily Rose and Margaret for all eternity.

The look on Lily’s face left no doubt that she had in the meantime also read the headstone. “Mother, father! I am home.” she said sobbing but this time it was not out of despair but of happiness. The wind had calmed in the moment they had found the grave and Lily had realized she had found her parents. Phoebe stood there and watched the little girl vanish with tears in her eyes. After that she didn’t mind the rain and went to get her food, knowing she would never again be afraid of ghosts.

The following day after she had handed in her tax records, Phoebe went to a flower shop and got a little bouquet. She found Lily’s grave in no time and left her the bouquet which of course was made of lilies and roses.

Political Correctness and Humor. A contradiction?

Before writing about this sensitive topic I want to state two things about myself.

First of all I am an extremely tolerant person, in my honest opinion as long as the people involved in your actions are consenting adults and nobody gets hurt do as you please. I am proud to have friends with lots of different cultural backgrounds and love to learn about other cultures and their values. I am stating all this so explicitly to make sure that people are aware that hurting someone just because he is different to me is the LAST thing on earth I would do. So if anybody feels offended by the article I am about to write I apologize, as it is in no way my intention to offend or hurt anybody.

The second thing is that I love to laugh! I laugh at many things including myself no matter if the jokes are clever, satiric, sophisticated, goofy, naughty...as long as they are funny I laugh at them and this is where the problem for many people seems to start.

Of course humor is always a matter of taste, what one finds funny the other thinks of as boring and viceversa and when political correctness is involved the line you have to walk gets even thiner. I know we all have some things we are sensitive about but we should ask ourselvesif someone makes a joke about it, the following: Is this person trying to hurt ME or are they just trying to make people laugh and make sure people have a good time? I think in this situation it is important to check from this point of view. Being spanish one joke I often make myself is: "We cannot do proper economy but at least we can do soccer", so why should I be offended if someone else makes the joke hile it is ok if I make it? I also laugh dearly about jokes on the cost of women's parking abilities or our habit of going to the toilet in groups. Girls think about it: We actually GO to the toilet in groups! There are lots of examples for this sort of jokes and if you think about it they have one thing in common. The jokes are not about the actual people but about the clichés regarding some groups of people! In a way a cliché is a "mild predjudice", so if we make fun about a cliché we are making fun of a predjudice.

Political correctness is a good thing don't get me wrong. It was and is important for people to become aware of what minorities might find offensive and to avoid these things, but these days I often get the feeling that we are starting to over-do it.

An example is something I heard some time back about spanish grammar. In spanish (for those of you who don't speak it) there are two versions of the pronom "they" one is "ellos" for men and the other one is "ellas" for women, so far so good. If the group you are refering to is of both sexes you use the male "they" ellos. I as a woman have absolutely no problem with that, but apparantly other women have, as now they are changing that and it is now grammatically correct to use "ellas" if the majority in the group consists of  women. In theory this means that before talking about them you should  check if there are more women or men in the group! In my opinion when it comes to these extremes we are absolutely missing the point. Does this seriously matter to someone?

On the other hand it is a reality that usually women earn less money than men for doing the exact same job or people of african descent are not let into clubs simply because of their skin colour. Just to name two examples where there is still "work to be done". Aren't these the things we should be aiming at instead of the political correctness of jokes?

I personally think we should relax, when it comes to humor in the aspects of political correctness and put the focus for political correctness where is belongs, the real world! In humor it is about laughing, preferably at ourselves. It is not the real world, but a place to forget about the real world and just laugh.

Why I write

A lot of people ask me, why I write. At the age of 33 and with a more or less good job, most people are thinking about settling down and spending time with friends and family, while I put a lot of effort and time into writing. So the question is absolutely valid and before writing this I had to ask myself: Why do I write?

First of all I want to clarify that although I have only started about one year ago to publish things (mostly through this blog) and to talk about it, I have been writing since I was about 15 years old. It started as way to sort out my confused teenage thoughts but quickly turned to something more. Writing or story telling is for me a way to experience new things. I guess you could refer to it as "mind travelling", which I hope doesn't sound too spiritual. If you tell a story it is all about empathising into your characters and situations. Sometimes this experience can be quiet intense and that is for me the most amazing thing when I am writing. Some of you might have experienced something like that when reading a good book, thinking "I so can relate to this". In a way the writer binds his emotions when writing and the reader relives them when reading. Take a second to think about how amazing this truely is!

I think what differs me from most writers is that often (not always of course) I simply let the story grow and run its course. Basically I just start writing to see where it leads me (A good example for this is my short story "Kane Mansion" you can find in the english writing section). Often I have a vague idea where I want to get with the story and then its developement surprises me. Most writers have a previous plan, but I prefer to write like this, since the story then seems much more organic to me, instead of doing an unnatural twist just to take it, where I had intended to take it from the beginning on.

Interesting as this has just happened with the entry, while I wanted to write "why" I write I ended up explaining on "how" I write. But in a way there lies this answer already.

Most people might think, that you only are a writer if you do it for a living, but I don't think so. I am a writer because I have to write. It is as essential to me as breathing. There is no other way for me to be happy, but to be writing. That is why I write and I am sure that all artists can relate to this feeling no matter if they are musicians, painters, writers, actors or sculptors. Art is not a choice it is who we are.

This blog entry is especially dedicated to all my artist friends!

Social Networks - Blessing or Curse?

These days being member of at least one social network seems almost as essential as speech. But as with all things we need to ask ourselves are they a blessing or a curse? I am well aware of the irony that I am writing this article on a blog, that is also a sort of social network platform.

Let me start by saying that I am an avid user of social networks. I think they are a wonderful way to stay in touch with people from all over the world and also to meet new people. Many of the people I call friends these days have I met through social networks. It is a great way to organize events, reach people and share things. Why would I write a blog, have a twitter and facebook account if I didn't think so? But I often I cannot but wondering if it really is all blessing.

In our times of Facebook and other social networks the word "friend" has been distorted from its original meaning. For my generation and even more the generation of my parents a "friend" was pretty much someone who knew the worst of you and still loved you. But what is a friend nowadays? In social networks we can get "friends" by a simple mouseklick. Some people even sent friend requests without knowing someone or even adding a message. I often wonder what the background of this is. Some people even told me, there were dating someone they had met on a social network. There is nothing wrong with that you might think, until I tell you they hadn't even met this person in real life. So I find myself wondering, if there is an unhealthy developement happening in society.

In 1995 the movie "The Net", starring Sandra Bullock, seemed surreal, as most of the lead character's life was organized through her computer and she hardly had any personal contact with other people. But if we watch it today our perception of it has changed, as a lot of it is normal these days.

The 2009 movie "Surrogates" with Bruce Willis even takes it one step further. People in the movie  avoid human contact entirely by using remote controlled androids instead of going outside themselves. The thought that when watching this movie in 20 years it could feel less awkward scares me to death!

So let's take social networks as useful tool, nothing more, nothing less. I am glad for having gotten the chance to meet so many wonderful people through it. But it was only through meeting them in person and shared laughs and tears that I really got to know them and came to consider them friends. I hope I will have the chance to meet more people thanks to net working and share at least a cup of coffee and a chat with them or you.

Now I am going out to meet with a friend of mine, whom I have met through a social net work.

Movie review "Hunger Games"

You can leave a cinema with a variety of emotions after watching a movie. The worst of all is anger over a wasted story. The story of "Hunger Games" is intriguing and full of potential but the film only exploits 50 % of its potential.

A boy and girl between 12 and 18 years from each of the 12 districts  is chosen to compete in a mixture of gladiator games and survival training. Enter Katniss who volunteers, to safe her younger sister, to be the female tribute for the poor district 12. Someone volunteering in this district is a novelty! The male tribute for her district is Peeta the son of the baker, who is secretely in love with Katniss. They travel to the capitol to participate and after a few days of training and interviews (that reminded me of a pageant competition) the games start and only one contestant can survive, which means that in the end Peeta and Katniss could be facing each other.

This story could show emotional dilemas (e.g. kill your friends to survive), first love, struggle with responsibility (according to the sypnosis the district of the winner receives plenty of food) etc. Unfortunately the movie mostly fails at it.

The background of the hunger games is not properly explained and neiter is the potential gaining for the winners, which makes the audience wonder why some richer districts have special training academies for the tributes who later volunteer.

The tributes from the other districts are mostly not even mentioned by name, let alone intruduced as proper characters, which makes the dilema of killing each other almost none existing as they barely grow on the audience.

With a duration of 142 minutes one could expect more character developement and proper background stories, instead we receive protracted shots of the woods and scences that would have worked with half the time (Do we really need in such a movie 2 minutes showing, what the beauticians do with her?). A good example for this is the fact that they seriously count 45 seconds down before the start in real time! Cutting down these scence for the benefit of character developement would have done wonders to this movie. On the other hand the action scences were shot with such a hectic camera work that one almost gets seasick.

Jennifer Lawrence does a fair job in playing Katniss. She pulls of the physical challenges of the role realistically without losing feminity. In that aspect she reminded me of Sigourney Weaver in "Aliens".But at the moments, when her character was to show despair or weakness the audience remained vastly unmoved. I haven't seen any other movie with her, so I guess it was not for lack of talent, but possibly due to the set of scene.

My personal favourite of the cast is Josh Hutcherson as Peeta. The struggle Peeta goes through during the games, thinking he might have to kill the girl he loves at one point, is absolutely believable. He tries "to play by the rules" when is comes to the hype surrounding the games to improve the odds for Katniss and himself and is quiet successful. These "changes" between Peetas public face and the face in private are quiet organic and always portrait in a realistic was. Hutcherson's acting is always to the point never over or underacting. Watch out for this young man!

A positive surprise was Lenny Kravitz small but significant performance as Cinna. One wants to say: Why did you wait so long to start acting?

Woody Harrelson's performance as a former winner is solid as to be expected from him.

As I said initially I left the movie theatre angry, because despite a good story, great costumes and sets and decent actors the movie was lengthy (especially in the beginning). To me it seems that a more experienced director (It is only Gary Ross 3rd movie as a director) would have been better suited for this project.

Concert review - Cassie Taylor feat. Jack Moore (March 17th 2012)

The "Scheune" in Wendelstein, near Nürnberg, is a very special venue. It is a remodeled barn with a unique charm and space for barely 100 people. At 8 pm, a brief introduction by an employee took place (of course mentioning the fathers of the artists: Otis Taylor, father of Cassie Taylor, and Gary Moore, father of Jack Moore) it started. Just a minute later it was clear to the audience, that these young musicians have much more to offer than just famous surnames. The trio of the concert was completed by drummer Jamie Little.

Cassie has already received some attention with "Girls with Guitars"(an album with Samantha Fish and Dany Wilde), as well as performing with her father. Now she has published her first solo album called "Blue". Being in her early twenties she has already a stronger stage presence than most artists twice her age and managed to lead through the show with refreshing charm. Her smooth yet strong voice is perfect for blues and after having played the bass during the first songs she switched to the piano for a few more quiet tunes, among others "waste of time", my personal favourite from her current album. The lyrics of her songs speak of struggles most of us go through at one point or another, which makes them quite appealing, as everyone can relate to them.

The only pity was that most of the audience seemed not to understand english and therefore had trouble following her. But she managed perfectly and asked the audience the get up at the end concert. When they wouldn't understand she managed to make herself understood with gestures which only added to her natural sympathy.

Jack Moore has so far mainly received attention by guesting with more than established artists like Deep Purple, Joe Bonamassa, Thin Lizzy and Otis Taylor to name a few. His playing looked so effortless, that one couldn't but wonder what sort of musical challenge it would take to make him look strained while playing. His solos were all superb and received constant applause. His playing was marked by perfect timing and the most appropriate expression that comes to mind to describe it is "mature", as opposed to a lot young guitarists that only seem to care about speed while playing a solo. This became particular obvious with the encore of Jimi Hendrix's "Hey Joe", where he amazed the audience with his relaxed performance.

To sum it up:

In case of Cassie Taylor and Jack Moore musical talent definetely runs in the respective families. The influence of their fathers is obvious, but they manage to do their thing with a personal style, which is surely the most difficult thing for young artists following their parents steps. I definetely look forward to what these two might bring us in the future, as I forsee amazing music coming!

For more information about these promising artists:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jack-Moore/228416173876277
http://www.facebook.com/cassietaylorband

Kane Mansion online

Finally "Kane Mansion" is now online in the english writings section.
It is a mystery story I take great pride in and I hope you enjoy it. I would love to hear your thoughts on the ending in particular...

Have fun!

The Misuse of Power

When hearing about "The Misuse of Power" we think immidiately of the top of the pyramid. The president using the jet for a trip to Jamaica with his mistress and the minister putting money aside.

But I don't want to talk about that. I want to talk about the small administrative employee, who has just enough to power to use it to make other people miserable. I am sounding annoyed? Yes, I am because there is no other point in what they do than to prove to themselves that they have power over someone.

Today I went to get a residence confirmation (not sure about the proper english term, but basically a paper proving that I live where I say I live), as it is required by the consulate to issue a new passport. Since my passport is outdated I took my drivers licence as ID, which according to them is no acceptable ID, instead the outdated passport was required. You might say: The rules are the rules! Well, ironically my dad requested the same document for the same reason only three days ago and in this case the drivers licence was a proper ID.

This is just one example of many as I am sure each of my readers can come up with at least one similar event. It is not a big deal, tomorrow I will return with the outdated passport and get the document, that point is: Why do this people behave like this? They have no real personal gain and have to end up doing the work anyhow. It is about proving they have power over you, they can make you return the next day, having to run extra errands etc. But this doesn't happen only with adminstrative employees but all over the place, like the practise nurse telling you there is no earlier appointment available or the tax investigator being extra thorough, so that the invistigation costs more than what you make in year.

The question is: Are we all predisposed to behave like this, when we have a little power? I guess each of us should be careful, because it is rather easy to fall into this behaviour. We should bear in mind that we could be on the other side next time. It all comes down to one thing:

Try to be understanding to other people and don't misuse whatever power you have.

Ireland - My lovestory with Emerald Island

If you grow up abroad like me, usually the holiday season is reserved to travel back home to visit relatives, so you don't get to travel around much. In 2003 this changed for me, as I had been in a long distance relationship with a guy in Spain, which ended in a bad break up. So the last thing I wanted was to go home and I decided to follow my gut and booked a trip to Ireland. By then I only knew about the country that it was green and that it had nice music.

As soon as I stepped of the plane I noticed that something very special had happened. I felt a special connection to the country that I cannot explain even now almost 10 years later. So there I was on my own, with a right hand drive rental car, a list of B&Bs and a map, ready to embark on my own personal adventure.

What followed was a week during which I deeply fell in love with the country and its people.

Irish people make you feel like family after five minutes and have an emotional warmth to them that blew me away. I wouldn't need to ask for help, as people would offer it to me, as soon as I started to look remotely like a lost puppy. Living in a country where the police recommends you to scream "Fire" instead of "Help" when you are in need of assistance (Apparantly people tend to pay only attention to "fire" as it could endanger them too) this totally blew me away.

I remember meeting an elderly couple on a beach near Ballina.She was English and he was Irish. She had come to Ireland for visit a long time ago, fell in love with him and moved there shortly after. They had been married for over 50 years. They shared this story with a total stranger and it warmed my heart to see how much they still were in love. She even warned me about the charm and smile of irish men with a twinkle.

I am not going to write about the irish landscape as from my point of view I can never do it justice with my words. What I can tell you is that you feel like in a fairy tale, embraced by woods and castles.

Ireland is also a very proud country and has all the reason to be. You stumble across history around every corner and everyone enjoys preserving even the smallest things. Each waiter or ticket sales man has a local legend or story to tell.

Another story I remember is hitting a local pub, after a long day of driving around. After all, what would be a visit to Ireland without going to a pub? I don't recall the town's name and I am pretty sure I was the only tourist there. There was this band playing some sort of folk music and there were pretty good. After a while I started wondering how many singers the band had, until I understood that the people singing weren't the band's singers but other guests. They would walk over to the band and request a certain song and then just go for it. I was amazed to see that there were so many traditional songs everybody knew, especially in a time when folkloric background seems to be outdated.

You may want to say now: God, she seems to be irish. But no, I am spanish and proud of it, but nonetheless I love Ireland. I think both countries have a special link and if you start thinking about it there is something to it.

Northern Spain has a huge celtic back ground, going so far that one of the regions is called "Galicia" and the resemblance to the word "Gaelic" couldn't be more obvious. Also you have in Ireland what is called "the Dark Irish". It is said that when the rest of the crushed Armada (1588) tried to make it back home lots of spanish sailors stranded in Ireland and formed families.

Maybe this is all legend or maybe we have common roots, who knows. The only thing I know for sure is that I will always return to Ireland.

Update writings

Lately I have posted mostly essays but I wanted to give you an update on my writings.

Chronicles of the Shadow Wars, for those who don't know this is the novel I am working on, is developing nicely, although these days I am too focused on my upcoming exams to work on it. I have reached a major plot point and have to nail that one. But the exams are only ten days away so afterwards I will focus more on it. I am currently waiting for the feedback of a publisher, that requested a summary of the book and the first three chapters. Keep your fingers crossed!

At this point I don't cannot give away any story details, but it is what is called urban fantasy (at least from my point of view) and it is based in the times of Ancient Rome.

Other then that I am working on several poems and short stories (These only take a few days to develope) and am trying to post them within this month. You can find those in the "english writings" section on the right side of this page.

I look forward to getting feedback.

One more note: If you want to use anything from this page please contact me in advance (best way is to leave a comment) to discuss your request. Anything else will be considered a copyright infringement.

Thanks for your understanding.

The Power of Music

First of all I will admit that I am deeply in love with music. Perhaps even more than some musicians, despite lacking any talent for it. As you can imagine this breaks my heart, but I found my way to be a part of it. As a matter of fact I wrote part of the lyrics for the unfinished musical "outremer" which went 3rd in an international competition (This under the pen name of Maria Lorca).

I am not writing this to show off, but to prove something to people that might feel like myself a  love for music, but show no talent for it. Music will always find a way into your life, if you let it. 

To me music is one of the most amazing things on earth. Without words it can move you through the complete range of emotions and back. It is the perfect art as it is literally born out of nothing and can be everything. It connects people through generations, time and language barriers. How else can you explain that the music from Mozart or Beethoven is still present more than 200 years later? No matter if it is in greeting cards, lifts or concerts. It is there, we know it and it moves us.

Music is everywhere. What would the best movie be without its proper score? What would be "Shark", "Indiana Jones" or "Star Wars" without their classic theme? Just stop a second and try to remember the name of the actors in the movie and then try to remember the central melodies. Let's me guess: No clue about the actors (Maybe except of Harrison Ford) but the music was there in an instant?

Most of your know Mussorgsky's "pictures at an Exhibition", but does anybody remember the pictures? The music was just written to underline the exhibition yet it is what endured.

While most things these days become outdated within a decade, music is always there. Although new forms appear the old forms still exist and are still appreciated. It is more than that, they are carefully cherished. How else can you explain that 15 yearolds still know who people like Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore, The Doors and Queen are, although they are supposed to be the music of the "previous" generation?

Because Music endures, moves us and unites us more than anything else. This is the power of music!

Is Hollywood running out of ideas or just afraid to try?

When I was a child and a teenager I remember that sunday was the highlight of my week. My mum would give me 10 Deutschmark, which were back then enough for a ticket and popcorn, and I would head to the cinema with my friends. Some movies transmited their story with such an intensity, that we would feel the magic for days. My fascination for story telling was born back then.

This is why the developement we are seeing these days pains me, as business is starting to overpower art in shocking dimensions. Of course movies and tv shows are business and where there is money involved a different way of thinking kicks in, but these days we are more and more experiencing what I like to call "movie-cloning".

Let me get this straight: I am not speaking of a remake of a 50 year old movie, that can be reinterpreted thanks to new technology or social changes. I am speaking of remaking a movie within 5 years of the original (sometimes even less). Don't get me wrong, a lot of these remakes are quiet enjoyable, but do we really need to get the same movie twice? Off hand I remember at least 10 movies, where this has been done in the last 10 years and the frequency is rising (By the way this is being done in all directions Hollywood picking up European Movies and viceversa).

I have a theory as to why this is being done: What has worked once will work twice! It is really a simply plan: Take a small movie, which has been received well and has received positiv criticts, put in a few well known actors and add some money to the original budget. The result is a bigger version of what has already worked. As you knew the movie worked before, you minimize risk and end up with a decent earning.

This being said the question has to be: Are movies barely another business or should they be art? Trust me, working in the economy sector I am not naive and I am well aware the most things revolve around money and making money, but still I wonder if people merely interested earnings should really get into movie making instead of telecommunications, real estate or whatever the booming sectors are these days.

Also when I say "art" I don't mean barely those independant movies shown is small cinemas with old fashioned movie posters on the wall. When I say "art" I am talking of the movies that accompany you for various days. The movies that make you laugh and cry with their characters,  movies that inspire you to do something you never dared, but always dreamed of.

Luckily there are still a lot of people making movies like this and this is my way of supporting them. As I fear that as time goes by the battle will become harder for them to fight, against the mere profit-hunting sharks.

You may not agree with me, but let me pop another question to finalize this article: What do movies like Star Wars, Titanic, Avatar and Lord of the Rings have in common? Before being made all were considered crazy ideas and the general opinion was that these movies were going to be financial disasters and fail, but what happened instead is movie history. So maybe some crazy or shall I say creativ ideas are worth the risk, even if money is involved.

Dear Production companies, please thinks about that!

Spain - Espana

Although I have been considering to write something about the current struggle in my home country for weeks I didn't dare until now. I might be spanish, but I grew up in Germany, which makes it rather difficult to have a true insight on the problems, nonetheless I have decided to write this essay, as I love my home country and its problems upset me deeply.

While considering to write this another issue, was the question in which language to write it, Spanish or English. English is the business language, but according to Eurostat data collected in 2007 46,6 % of the spanish adult population does not speak a foreign language. Taking into consideration, that economies are growing closer more and more, this creates a certain type of isolation. Companies operating on an international level often end up hiring people from abroad to make sure business communication works. For country with an youth unemployment rate of 46 % (Source: http://www.focus.de/), this is in my option rather problematic. Of course it is a great oportunity we have these days to work abroad in Europe without too much trouble, but for a country with such high unemployement the question has to be asked, if education is missing out on something, when it comes to preparing young people for their working life.
Although unemployement is a huge issue in Spain it is by far not the only problem. Because when taking a look at the employed population we have to notice for instance, that in 2010 the relation between the  highest paid and the lowest paid people was the second largest in Europe (source: eurostat; always using the 20% of the population at both extremes). This makes it obvious, that when talking about the average salary the number states is outside of reality. This "average" salary was in 2010 approx. 1.800 eur pre-tax per month (almost half the amount of the UK and Germany). Down the line this means, that a significant part of the population has to live with less than that. The so called "mileuristas" often have only about 1.000 eur per month to live on. If we keep in mind that the living expenses are barely 15 % cheaper than in Germany (according to http://www.ba-auslandsvermittlung.de/), we have to ask ourselves: How can spanish people manage the day by day? What money are they actually suppose to "invest" in the economy when we see these figures?

The so called informal sector is often considered a significant reason for Spain's economic problems. Although tax evasion is always a crime, the question in this case is:
Is there another option for the "mileuristas" to manage their live?

I could go on talking about various problems in spanish economy from the number of senators (more then in the US) to corruption and temporal contracts. What has to be clear to all of us is that the problems Spain is facing won't be solved in months but rather in years and each of us has to look at what we can do, as WE are Spain, the spanish people, not the government.