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It's been far too long....
Far, far, far too long since I updated my blog last time.
I'm sorry for that.
I think I lost now my very few regular readers and I feel a bit guilty about that.
With no words I stopped writing and with no words I was disappearing more and more from this site.
I now could come up with a lot of reasons and I guess there is truth in it, but it won't cover the whole story.
When there would be a story.
But, truth to be told is, that I was not only disappearing from this site, no, I did stop a lot of things over the last year.
I was so over-active with second life and at sudden I stopped it.
I was busy on my favorite site and now I just leave a comment there on a very irregular base. Not to say on a very rare base.
There was no reason, nothing happened that I stopped all this.
It was just, that I felt, that I had nothing to say. And, only to say something to have said something is not my way. I feel stupid if I do so.
So, I didn't want to feel stupid, maybe this was the reason to stop.
I did a lot of things over the time of my absence.
I went to concerts.
Yes, I saw Iggy Pop for the first time in my life and I tell you, he really kicks ass and is absolutely fantastic.
He looks great and he is still a dirty boy, but all over charming and sweet (uuuhhhh, Iggy, don't hit me for that, but it is true). I don't know if it was only a game, but I sometimes really had the feeling he is kind of shy *giggle*.
Seems like I like this introverted extroverted characters the most.
It never gets boring with this kind of characters.
Oh, now you might get the impression I met this guy. Nooooooo, wrong, but these guys know how to play games with the audience and even it is just a game it tells a lot about them.
Than I saw Adrian Belew only two weeks ago.
A great guitar hero with emotions in every single fingertip on his guitar.
I was deeply impressed.
So was I with Dominic Miller. What a great jazz guitarist. With both of them you could see how much they love what they do and if you believe them it seems to be the easiest thing to transport emotions only with music.
Hahahaha, they've never seen me playing and braking my fingers and all I transported were funny laughs and smiles of pity through my audience.
Anyway, I know were I stand when it comes to music. And, were I stand is really a good spot to stand. My stage is the audience. I can enjoy and no spot light is disturbing me. I can suck up all the music and the emotions and be all myself without thinking. I feel great. I feel like the world is mine and everything is there just for me. I feel sane and save and free. And, yes, I feel like the performer is just performing for me (I know it is an illusion, but who cares. I will never be so lucky to meet one of them, so I can legally dream). The only thing which gets me always, when a concert is over is, that I really have to start to grow out of my Cinderella shoes, but hey, they feel so comfortable, so why should I? Seriously, I always am so realistic in my every day life, so why not escaping this boring and not so nice reality for a night? I never transport this into my real life so I think I can life that dream as long as I'm able to dream.
There was a lot more going on in 2008.
This summer I met my former guitar teacher after, I think 6 or 7 years.
Well, this guy was on-stage (naaahhh, I won't go there again) and it was a great day for my home town Cologne.
This day the whole town was on the feet to demonstrate against the right wing extremists.
Well, I hope you don't need lessons in German history and so I won't go to deeply into that.
But, it was a great day.
We had our Obama day (sorry, couldn't resist this analogy) long before the historic American election. Ok, without Obama and only because the people of my city are like they are.
We are called the most tolerant city in Germany (beside Berlin, not sure which town should or could win such a competition, if there ever would be a competition).
And now these stupid "brown soup" (as they are called in the press) tried to organize a demonstration against the "Islamization of Germany" here in Cologne on the "Alter Markt" (old market place), which is a big tourist spot in my city.
It was all legal, because of the freedom of assembly and so no one could inhibit it.
This was very frustrating and we all thought about what to do.
To be honest I didn't think loud, but I followed the discussion.
So, the politicians all parties organized a big counter-demonstration.
Our police was very clever.
They closed the "Alter Markt" with the reason that they were afraid of the left wing extremists.
There was only a little snag in it.
Because they were so good in closing the market none of the right wing extremists could go there as well.
The police did argue that, when they leave a little whole the left wings could slip in too.
A big laughter. Very clever.
Only 50 (of the 500 awaited) right wings could make it on the market.
There was a lot more going on.
All taxi drivers didn't allow any right wing in their taxis.
In the pubs the right wings didn't get a beer or even a water.
Hotels canceled the rooms of the right wing people.
There was a tram full of right wings stranded on a dead track, because the police didn't allow the tram in the main station (they were stuck in the tram for 6 hours).
Our airport was closed and didn't let any of them come into town. So they were stranded at the airport for some hours as well, and than they send them just right back to were there came from, with the next plane.
As if that was not enough my city was, what it always is, when it sees their rights in great danger.
The City organized a big demonstration (5000 liberal people were on their feet). With a big concert with all "famous" local musicians. Close to the "Alter Markt". And they place the speakers into the direction of the "Alter Markt" and put it full power to be louder than the speakers of the "brown soup".
It would have worked, when the "brown soup" would've been able to get their speakers on. Even the electric power was against them, so they had electricity, but, because the liberal people needed a bit more electricity they always had fall outs (did I say that right, oooppppss, I know you all know what I mean) and nothing worked properly.
At points I really tried to feel a bit pity for them, but, than again, never underestimate the power of the people from Cologne.
After 4 hours of our demonstration I was a proud witness of the moment when the police did say loud over their speakers, that the right wing extremists demonstration is not longer allowed as they couldn't guarantuee any longer for the safety of the people.
A big cheering and rejoicing took place with the 5000 people all over the town. I had a big lump in my throat and was close to tears.
Than a big party started.
The concert was one good feeling and that's were I saw my former guitar teacher after such a long time.
He spotted me in the audience. And I as able to see the question-mark on his face. After 3 songs and a lot of staring into my direction his face was lightning up and he pointed at me, happy to know, where to put my face.
After that we all celebrated and I even met my neighbour and so everything was a big great day, full of peace, victory and that it is possible to do something against people who think into a dangerous direction.
With all that good things, happened that day I will not keep quiet about, that there was violence too.
Some of the left wing extremists did throw stones and some Molotov Cocktails. They were arrested. But, this was only a very small side effect and really rare. Just because we didn't let them.
I really have to say, I'm proud of my city.
I hope we don't need to do that next time. But, if we have to repeat it, we will. And, we will win again with mostly peaceful ways. Oh yes 
That was this summer.
And now there was the election.
And yes, we Germans did follow this election like it would have been in our country.
Will it be Obama or McCain?
Well, I was for Obama, but not without critics.
I mean, there are some points which really fear me about him.
It's always dangerous, when a politician is adored like a messiah or a rock star.
It's always dangerous when people mix these two things.
He is a politician. That means, he can't get through his job without telling lies. That is a fact and there is no way we can close our eyes about a fact like this.
So, he might disappoint after all the big pressure of expectations pressing on his shoulders right now.
I mean, if it only would be America looking at him like the saviour machine, saving the world on any level (war, financial crisis, environment crisis and so on), but now it's the whole world waiting for him doing that.
The whole world now is waiting that he comes his way and with a snip of his magic finger and everything will be alright.
How can he do that?
He is only human.
He is only a politician who has to make compromises he might not be happy with and maybe he has to sell some of his ideals on the big world market game.
Yes, I'm happy that he made it and not McCain. And, I can't help, but having high expectations on him like any other. But still, there is this little voice in me asking if it all is really so good as it looks now and as it seems on the first euphoric emotion.
There is another thing which gets me all the time.
And this is, that it is still a question about skin colour.
I mean, helloooooo!!!!!!
We are living in the age of the Internet and Globalization.
We should've found out by now, that the skin colour doesn't make any difference between good and bad. The skin colour doesn't make any difference about you and me, maybe only the look in the mirror.
But hey, I'm scared by the look into my mirror, but I'm never scared by the look into the mirror of somebody else.
So, the skin colour doesn't count as an argument for anything anymore. And, for me that was already before Obama was part of the election.
Have you ever seen a German or an English guy on Majorca after a few hours in the sun, without sun cream?
So, why the hell do people call the native Americans "red skinned" (well, at least here in Germany we say so)?
Oh well, just a thought....
Ok, I think I did put the great things of this year into one blog entry and so I feel good 
So, go Obama, go and fulfill all our high expectations or they will hang you for that..... go, Cologne, go, don't let the right wing extremists rule our city, never again..... and, go, musicians, go, let me come home with the feeling that I might be something special (but, to be honest, there is only one musician in the world, who can fulfill me in all my personal and none political high expectations and the others are great and good, but this one musician is the perfect touch of my soul in any meaning).....
You all have a great weekend and I hope you see me again sooner as you might think 
Much love
anna
P.S.: While re-reading it, I could see some really nasty grammar error in my blog entry. But, somehow I have no idea how to put it better. So, please, everybody is invited to correct me. As I'm not a native speaker I do my very best to avoid these errors, but, well, I only can learn if somebody tell me, what was wrong and how to put it in a better way!
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