Category Archives: Life
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
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
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
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
“How are you?”
Someone: How are you? Me: Confused. Someone: Oh. I am sorry to hear that. Me: No, that’s OK. I am studying philosophy. When I first went to Israel on a youth exchange program, I stayed with a family in a … Continue reading
Just a Cup of Tea
It’s really mystifying how Aachen could once have been such an important city. Charlemagne, Holy Roman Empire, coronation place of kings, and all of that in a city without a river. I am only here for a few days, not … Continue reading
My secular Shabbat
Zur deutschen Fassung dieses Texts. Readers of this blog will have noticed that I am a radical Atheist. But there is one religious idea that I have incorporated in my life, although in a secular version. It’s the idea of … Continue reading
Honeymoon on a Train
The young man went to the dining car alone because the wife had a strict rule about not eating after 8 pm and, having crossed several time zones on the long train journey, she was unsure which of them to … Continue reading
Where do Babies come from?
The other day, I overheard a conversation at the restaurant: Everyone on my Facebook is having a baby. That doesn’t mean we need to have one too. These baby photos receive a lot of likes, though. How many? 33, 25, … Continue reading
The Danger of a Beautiful Day
It was supposed to be winter, but the day was unseasonably mild, warm even. I dressed quickly, confident that I needed neither hat nor gloves, and left the house, lured outside by the sun, the warmth and the joyful day … Continue reading
The Happy Hermit 