Category Archives: Life

Slow Down!

Photographed on my last New Year’s Eve hike.

Posted in Life, Photography | 5 Comments

Ukrainian Tears

Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Berichts. It’s been two years since I visited my friends Yaniv and Nastya in Odessa. Because of Covid, we hadn’t had any chance to meet since, but this spring we wanted to make it happen. In … Continue reading

Posted in Germany, Life, Ukraine | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

The Bodhi Tree

Zur deutschen Fassung dieser Erleuchtung. One or two weeks ago, I was sitting under a tree, smoking a cigar. When out of nowhere came a young man, one of those cool guys with a hoodie and a charming smile: “May … Continue reading

Posted in Germany, Life, Religion | Tagged | Leave a comment

Learning Minimalism from the Kids

Zur deutschen Fassung. I have just started house and rabbit sitting for a family in Germany who will be flying to Tanzania for three months to work in a hospital there. After the family of five had packed seven suitcases … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Life, Philosophy | 2 Comments

Hermit for Hire

Zur deutschen Fassung. Of the name of this blog, the hermit part actually suits me better than the happy part. Or, to be more precise, happiness often depends on hermitness. It’s becoming increasingly harder to become hermity, though, not least … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, History, Life, UK | Tagged | 15 Comments

But what about the Comet?

A flashback into the good old times… Continue reading

Posted in Germany, Life, Technology, Time | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Finding myself in Maugham

One and a half winters ago, on a cold day in Calgary, I found a treasure trove of books by the side of the road. I walked home, through ice and snow and wind, with three little gems by William … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Life, Travel | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Strangers in the Park

Hier geht es zur deutschen Fassung dieser Geschichte. I had two days left in Boston before returning to Germany, and I didn’t know anybody in the city. The year was 2009 and, as far as I knew, the internet hadn’t … Continue reading

Posted in Austria, Bolivia, Life, Love, Photography, Romania, Serbia, Travel, USA | Tagged , , , , , | 22 Comments

My first Writing Job

When I was 13 years or so, I had a friend. That friend had a girlfriend, of sorts. I didn’t know her because she went to a different high school than us, and our high school was the limit of … Continue reading

Posted in Life, Love | Tagged | 13 Comments

An extra day: 29 February 2020

Today, you will receive a precious gift: an extra day. Because 2020 is a leap year, you will have 24 hours more in your year. Even those who pretend that they don’t have enough time have no more excuse not … Continue reading

Posted in Life, Time | 2 Comments