One More Time

Today I again went to a job interview! I am still looking for work and by now I am even considering low-pay-jobs and trainee ships that are better paid, but still do not really count as full-paid jobs. Anyways, it would be better than nothing so I will see what I do!

~M~

It's been way too long...

... since the last time i wrote here.

The current situation leaves me no motivation to write here. I am quite edgy and really feel how this unemployment is getting to me. I am sending applications, but the companies take their time and I can't do anything but wait.

After applying to many jobs in January now in February and March not much is happening. There are few applicable job ads and an immense number of internship offers. However right now I would like to get a real job first; internships are at the moment no option for me.

Anyways, since my last post quite a lot happened, although it didn't feel like much to me. It has been over a month already and during that time A. & I walked on the frozen Außenalster, I met up with my study friend F., who was in Hamburg, my grandmother died, I turned 25, we buried my grandma, A. & I went to Berlin and we had some great evenings with S. & R. here in Hamburg.

Overall it was a quite nice time and this weekend A & I are going to Aachen. My dad has his birthday on Saturday and we wanted to take part in the celebration.

Now I have to start packing and still send some applications. I have one interview next week, so I keep my fingers crossed.

~M~

Winter in Hamburg!

After having problems with my laptop and being a constant target for viruses, trojans and - pardon my language - sh*t like that, due to the fact that I was using a Windows system, I decided to change over to Ubuntu, the OS of Linux. Especially the fact that my system recently was infected with the so called BKA-Trojan got me to the decision.

The problem with this trojan is, that it comes even from normal websites. When my system was infected I was reading the news; I wasn't even on potentially harmful websites (if you dont believe me, ask A., she was sitting next to me when it happened). This was a sign and so I now changed to Ubuntu, which is very easy to use and with which I am already quite happy!

Anyways, since not all my programs are running with this OS I occasionally have to go back to Windows. Photoshop for example; the version I have is a Windows version and since the picture programs of Ubuntu are not so good with my RAW-files, I have to work on them under Windows.

Since A. and I were doing some things during the weekend and I wanted to show you the pictures I sadly had to do that for a couple of minutes. Nevermind! The weekend was nice. It was cold, but sunny. It had been snowing a little here in Hamburg and so we went outside.

We walked to the Alster, which is already covered with ice; however the ice is way to thin to walk on it yet and the police is checking that nobody does it. We continued our round and walked the whole way around the Außen- and the Binnenalster. In the sun, when the wind stopped, it actually got quite warm, which was nice.

Later that day we went over to Eppendorf to S's place to play poker. Also R. came and she had brought mustaches; so we all put hats on and were playing poker in our roles.

Picture from here.

We ended up like another evening before in the corner pub playing Mensch ärgere Dich nicht. It was a good evening and a very cold way home. 

Picture from here.

Now the new week started and I changed my system to Ubuntu. Tomorrow I will have to write applications again to finally find a job. I had already three interviews, but did not hear anything from the companies yet. I hope I will get positive answers!

~M~

Pumpkin Soup!

At the moment I am making pumpkin soup. The soup is cooking right now so I have some time to post here. To make the soup I already bought some days ago a lot of vegetables at the vegetable shop at the corner.

I really like this shop and think it's so nice. It is slightly more expensive, I admit, but the quality and the personal service you get is so much better. Due to the recent reports about resistant germs and bacteria in meat and chicken A. and I decided to change our diet a bit.

In the future - and we already started with it - we will eat less, but higher quality meat and more vegetarian dishes. Since Bio-meat is more expensive there is no way around the "less meat"-part. Until now I did not miss the meat or chicken in the food and I am amazed how many nice things you can make without it. 

Despite the fact that I never really cared about animal rights and still wont take any further action to change the way meat is produced, I think that this change in eating-habits can make a difference - if more people are doing it. 

Anyways, the soup is nearly cooked. Now I have to mash and blend the soup, so it gets nice and creamy!

~M~

Fixing things!

Two days ago I had problems with my bike. I pumped the front tire up before going to the shops. Everything was fine and I did my shopping. On my way back home, though, I felt that the front tire was getting flatter and flatter again. 

Picture from here.

After putting the groceries in the fridge I went outside to pump the tire again. Since it was cold outside and I pumped the tire inside the apartment I thought that maybe the air just got more dense outside (cold air is more dense than warm air) and therefore the tire would be flat.

Anyways, since I was on it I also wanted to pump up the back wheel and then it happened: I ripped off the valve of the tire. Bummer! 

So I went to the closest bike shop and bought a new tire. Actually I bought two. I always was so annoyed that my bike tires have these small valves and not the ones a car has. It is much easier to go to the petrol station to fill up the tires than always doing it by hand. Therefore I decided to exchange the type of tire on both wheels.

For that however I had to drill bigger holes into the rim. I was looking through our tools, but just found stone drills. Since I needed to drill metal they were useless. Luckily there are carpenters working in the house next door and from them I could borrow a drill.

Two quick drills later I was ready to go. I put the tires back on the rims and the wheels back on my bike. Then I pushed it to the next petrol station and filled the tires. Now I have always nicely high pressure in the tires and my bike is faster than ever. Nice, nice!

~M~

The Last Days and All That Stuff...

Jaja, I know, I know. Again and again it takes me a couple of days until I am writing again and that despite the fact that I am most of the day at home. However, I have loads to do and always find something new! Right now for example I am updating my profile and CV on the website of the employment agency. Since the website is quite slow, though, I found the time to write here a bit.

Since my last post quite a lot happened. It was a gray and rainy most of the time and so A. and I were home quite a bit. We were playing the game I bought and were inside mostly. On Saturday morning I had my Swedish class, where I biked in the rain.

After class I was cooking. I made Salmon with maple syrup, oven vegetables and pasta. It was really nice and tasted good. Something I for sure will make again.

On Saturday evening we went out and down to the harbor area and went to the musical The Lion King. It was very nice and it has a certain flair, due to the location of the venue in the middle of the harbor.

Sunday went by without anything happening. Both A. and I were not in the best mood; the weather wasn't helping neither. However, we made the best out of it: A. was cleaning and fixing stuff in the flat and I tried to not be in the way. That's life and that's ok!

~M~

A Word and a Blow!

After my post yesterday I looked through the ads on eBay and found a person selling one game I wanted to buy. So I called and arranged a meeting the same day. The game is Carcassonne, named after the town in France, that is famous for its ancient city walls.

Yesterday evening A. and I still played one round just to try it and I really liked it. Unfortunately A. wasn't really awake and couldn't concentrate. So I hope that it will get better the next times. However also today she is too tired and doesn't want to play.

~M~

Games!

I realized already some time ago that we need some more board games here in our flat. It's better to play something together than sitting in front of the TV all the time. On the weekend A. and I even used a card game to play memory with it, that's how desperate we were.

So, I will do some research today and will see what games I would like to buy. I am going to look for games that are easily understandable so that guest can learn them quickly and that are not taking too long so you can play a quick round in between if you want.

~M~

What else?!

Again it has been one week since my last post. Apart from that my parents were here in Hamburg to visit us, which was very nice, last weekend not much happened. 

I am still looking for work and it is not going how I would like it to go. I don't find suitable positions and the numerous employment websites are simply not good enough. Especially the fact that I am looking for jobs in Hamburg and get results for cities all over Germany doesn't really help.

Anyways, the last couple of days it was very nice here in Hamburg. A. and I went to the matinee of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo on Sunday and had a nice walk in the sunshine after that. 

Now my second round of coffee for the morning is ready. I will enjoy a nice hot cup of that magic drink and will then start looking for work; As George likes to say: What else?!

~M~

Something New!

After receiving my first rejection of an application yesterday I was a bit devastated. However today I feel better and was looking up more job ads and also sent one application. Despite the fact that I don't really want to do it, it is - after all - a job and with that at least something to do. 

Feeling more confident than ever!

I also applied to Balzac Coffee, a local coffee shop brand, as a Barista. I would like to have at least something like a student job right now to get at least some money in and also to not sit at home all day. That job would not be for long though, just until I find a real job.

Here some cool music from Sweden!
 

Soon I will be leaving to my Swedish class. I signed up for it already last year, but now it starts and I am looking forward to it. I am so excited to finally use my brain again and to learn the mother tongue of A.

~M~

The Weekend!

Funny, now that I wrote the post title I had to think of the song by Michael Gray - The Weekend. Anyways, the weekend was really nice. On Friday we had some people over, made pizza, drank wine and were playing games, Mario Kart and Four in a Row.

Saturday was relaxed. We slept long and had nice breakfast with scrambled eggs. Later that day I helped our landlord to get down some Christmas decoration and A. went running. The evening we spent on the couch watching TV.

Today we slept even longer, had an awesome breakfast with pancakes and maple syrup and went then out for a walk around the Alster. For lunch A. made köttbullar and now again we are relaxing. A. is doing her thing and I am mine - which is at the moment posting here!

All in all it was a nice weekend. I loved to have the people over here at our place and hope they will come again at some point. Next time we definitely need more board games!

R. brought the small flower on the left.

~M~

Pizza Perjantai!

I officially became a sandwich consisting of a cooked patty of ground meat usually placed inside a sliced bread roll, which is often served with lettuce, bacon, tomato, onion, pickles, cheese and condiments such as mustard, mayonnaise, ketchup and relish (according to Wikipedia). In short I am now registered in Hamburg, I am a Hamburger.

Thanks to A's new MacBook the retouching of private information is soooo easy...

I went to the agency today and will go on Monday to the employment center to apply for unemployment benefit. Since I am currently looking for work that's what I have to do. The job search didn't go so well the last two days, I didn't find new offers that were applicable. I hope it will get better next week again. 

Tonight we will have Pizza Perjantai, Pizza Friday (with self-made pizza). S. and R. will come over to our place at some point and then we'll prepare and eat it together. Looking forward to it!

~M~

Relaxing!

Uh, its so bad weather outside. When I was biking to the shops earlier today I got soaking wet, yuck! When I came home I put my lazy pants on, started cooking A's lunch for tomorrow and did the dishes afterwards. When A. came home from work I put some candles on and made a nice cup of tea. Now I am sitting comfortably on the sofa and am relaxing together with A.

~M~

Quick Changing Mind!

This morning I put our old sofa, that was in the flat when we moved in, on eBay to sell it. For that matter I wanted to take a picture of it and put it normal, since it had been standing on its side all the time to use less space. 

After putting it on eBay I suddenly started rearranging the room to see if the sofa would fit somehow into the room in a manner to actually use it as a guest room. This was basically just to check IF it would work IN CASE we wouldn't be able to sell it. At that time the sofa-ad was about five minutes online.

Quite quickly after being done and happy with the rearrangement somebody called to ask if the sofa would still be available. Of course, once I actually had decided to keep it and use the room - as we thought from the beginning - as a guest room, somebody wants to buy the sofa.

However, he just said that he would come to take a look. So if he doesn't take it we maybe can keep it.  

Note: While writing this another potential buyer called. So I guess now it is clear that one of them will take it.

Anyways, today I continued my job search and sent two more applications - until now. The biggest problem with the search really is to know what to look for. I don't know what exactly I want to do, the companies use all different job titles and therefore I don't know what to type into the search box of the numerous employment websites. It's really difficult!

Picture from here.

~M~

Job Search!

Today my job search continued. However different from yesterday where I sent three applications it was just one today. Also it was not for a particular job offer, but the website gave the possibility to hand in a speculative application.

The reason why I did just send one application today is rooted in the fact that companies at the moment have these application portals where you can't just upload your CV, but have to enter every-every-everything manually. I mean, why do I have my CV? 

Anyways, now I am watching TV and A. was just hoovering. We will have dinner soon and then the day is already over again. Amazing how time flies, I really can't wait for it to be summer again!

~M~

New Year, New Start!

2012, here we go! This is the first "real day" in the new year and until now it has been great. I went from the status of a passive job seeker to being an active one. Today I already sent two applications and will send at least one more. Since I am "customizing" the cover letter for each application that takes some time.

Despite that I again did some laundry and folded clothes. Everything is back to normal, but I am weirdly excited about finding a job now. Until two days ago I still enjoyed the role of the houseman. Now I am fed up with it and want to find a job that suits me.

New Years Eve was nice. We were at L. & A's place and were celebrating the change of the year at the Alster. On our way home A. and I took a thousand pictures. Somehow we were funny and to be honest the sparkling wine made me a bit too funny.

Anyways, it was a good evening with a hilarious way home. The next day we were just hanging around. S. came over and we were playing Mario Kart and were eating hangover food. I really enjoyed the day. S. is so easy going and relaxed; he doesn't mind if you are wearing the oldest clothes you have and just hang around together. He's a really good guy!

~M~

2012!

A (Nearly) Perfect Last Day of the Year!

This was a really good day. Despite the fact that I had (and still have) headache the whole day it was nice. After the walk yesterday I slept like a baby, got up late and had a good breakfast together with A.. Then she went quickly to town and I went to Lidl to buy some supplies for tonight. Now the cask of beer is in natural cooling called winter.

The rest of the day we were at home and just doing anything and everything. Later we watched Dinner for One an old short film that is traditionally watched on New Years Eve in Germany. When it was finished I started cooking our linner (mixture of lunch and dinner).

As a highlight of the year I made duck with an apple-chestnut-side-dish and dumplings. It was super delicious and a good finish of the year. 

Soon we will head over to L. & A. to celebrate New Years Eve. I am really looking forward to it and hope it will be good. This is the last post of 2011, take care guys, have an awesome night! See you next year!

~M~

Always Something To Do!

There is always something to do in a household. Today I was quite productive: I folded clothes, washed and hung up the laundry, cleaned the oven and found and fixed a leak in the kitchen.

 

Already yesterday I put up two small picture frames that we brought from Finland. They are fitting nicely on the wall and are making the living room a little bit more cozy. 

 

We also brought two lamps from Finland that are now in the windows. Since they are in front of the curtains they create a "light barrier" that makes it nearly impossible to look into our living room.

More and more we are making this really our home. Now we still need some few things like pictures in the corridor, a carpet in the bed room and a cupboard in the living room; but we will get there, little by little.

Now A. and I just came back from an evening walk around the Alster. We packed ourselves in our outdoor clothes and went out. Don't we look sporty?!

~M~