A few (??) things that are on my mind at the moment...

Ok, I have some things to tell you about ;). They're ordered randomly...

• My sister has a weblog now. I'll link it soon "officially". Till then - here's the link: http://gummiebaerchen89.blogspot.com
• The International Pilgrimage of Altar Boys & Girls to Rome was amazing. I hope I can write more about it later. Unfortunately I lost the film with all the pictures (I'm still not taking pictures digitally...), so there won't be any of my pictures :(. But I hope I can get some pictures from others.
• I really hope I can be a long-term volunteer for WYD 2008 (www.wyd2008.org) in Sydney. I'm already dreaming of my time there ;). The site says that they will inform the volunteers in January 2007 - toooooooooooooooooo long to wait :(.
• I'd love to have an Apple computer. I looked at their homepage (www.apple.com) and I really think that Apple is a great company. I've "fallen in love" with their design. I think it's all very elegant and stylish.
• I'm again thinking about what to study. Today I looked for interesting courses that the universities of Cologne offer. I'd love to study there - I like that city. (www.koeln.de)
• On monday, school starts. Finally, my last year of school starts - aaargh! I am so old!!! ;) I can't believe it.....

hooooooooooooooooooooot

It's sooooooooooooooooo hot over here!!!!! Every day it's about 32°Celsius (~90°F) hot and it won't cool down at night (exception: a thunderstorm at night - I'm waiting for the next one...). Plus, our heat is humid... I'm tired from the heat already at noon (school is horrible - at least the classes are "worthless" now as it is the last week of school...), and at night you can't sleep *argh*...
I don't have any shirts left, they're all full of sweat. Same with pants.

Next week I'll be in Rome - probably even hotter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm looking forward to it anyway - and I'll give you a report afterwards :) !

Kofi Annan and soccer

Today, we did an English classtest. The text was great, so I searched for it. Here it is:

At the UN, how we envy the World Cup
by: Kofi A. Annan (June 9, 2006)

You may wonder what a secretary general of the United Nations is doing writing about football. But in fact, the World Cup makes us at the United Nations green with envy. As the pinnacle of the only truly global game, played in every country by every race and religion, it is one of the few phenomena as universal as the United Nations.
You could even say it's more universal. FIFA has 207 members; we have only 191.
But there are far better reasons to be envious. First, the World Cup is an event in which everybody knows where their team stands, and what it did to get there. They know who scored and how and in what minute of the game; they know who missed the open goal; they know who saved the penalty.
I wish we had more of that sort of competition in the family of nations. Countries openly vying for the best standing in the table of respect for human rights, and trying to outdo one another in child survival rates or enrolment in secondary education. States parading their performance for all the world to see. Governments being held accountable for what actions led them to that result.
Second, the World Cup is an event that everybody on the planet loves talking about, dissecting what their team did right, and what it could have done differently - not to mention the other side's team.
People sitting in cafés anywhere from Buenos Aires to Beijing debate the finer points of games endlessly, revealing an intimate knowledge not only of their own national teams but of many of the others too, expressing themselves on the subject with as much clarity as passion. Normally tongue-tied teenagers suddenly become eloquent, confident, and dazzlingly analytical experts.
I wish we had more of that sort of conversation in the world at large. Citizens consumed by the topic of how their country could do better on the Human Development Index, or in reducing the amount of carbon emissions or the number of new HIV infections.
Third, the World Cup is an event that takes place on a level playing field, where every country has a chance to participate on equal terms. Only two commodities matter in this game: talent and teamwork.
I wish we had more levelers like that in the global arena. Free and fair exchanges without the interference of subsidies, barriers or tariffs. Every country getting a real chance to field its strengths on the world stage.
Fourth, the World Cup is an event that illustrates the benefits of cross- pollination between peoples and countries. More and more national teams now welcome coaches from other countries, who bring new ways of thinking and playing.
The same goes for the increasing number of players who, between World Cups, represent clubs away from home. They inject new qualities into their new team, grow from the experience, and are able to contribute even more to their home side when they return.
In the process, they often become heroes in their adopted countries - helping to open hearts and broaden minds.
I wish it were equally plain for all to see that human migration in general can create triple gains - for migrants, for their countries of origin and for the societies that receive them. That migrants not only build better lives for themselves and their families, but are also agents of development - economic, social and cultural - in the countries they go and work in, and in the homelands they inspire through newly won ideas and know-how when they return.
For any country, playing in the World Cup is a matter of profound national pride. For countries qualifying for the first time, such as my native Ghana, it is a badge of honor. For those who are doing so after years of adversity, such as Angola, it provides a sense of national renewal. And for those who are currently riven by conflict, like Ivory Coast, but whose World Cup team is a unique and powerful symbol of national unity, it inspires nothing less than the hope of national rebirth.
Which brings me to what is perhaps most enviable of all for us at the United Nations: The World Cup is an event in which we actually see goals being reached.
I'm not talking only about the goals that a country scores; I also mean the most important goal of all - being there, being part of the family of nations and peoples, celebrating our common humanity.
I'll try to remember that when Ghana plays Italy in Hannover on June 12. Of course, I can't promise I'll succeed.

Source: http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/09/opinion/edannan.php

Patriotism

More than half of the Soccer World Cup is already over and Germany has gone crazy - in a positive way!
Usually, patriotism in Germany is next to nothing -> it doesn't exist at all. This is mainly caused by the bad experience the Germans had during the 3rd Reich (under Hitler) and the 2nd World War :(. But now, there is a German flag in nearly every window and people don't think you're strange when you paint "black-red-gold" into your face.

I like this. I really think Germany needs more patriotism! It makes me smile everytime I see another German flag in a window or a garden. We have even two flags :D....

After the World Cup (I hope Germany wins on Friday against Argentinia!!!) there won't be that many flags left I suppose, but I really hope that people over here start becoming more patriotic!!!

May resumé

May is nearly over - and indeed - it was a great month!

The comedian was good - I couldn't really "prepare" myself for his show as I was too excited about all the Wise Guys stuff *g*...

The new Wise Guys album is soooo good!! I knew many songs before, but it's great to have them - to "own" them ;) ...
I already heard the title song ("Radio") in real radio!!! Amazing!
The concert was great, too! So much fun!!

The new Basta CD is great, too. Very different, but funny and good. Although these two groups do in fact the same thing - a cappella / comedy - they are soo different. I like them both :D !!

Our concert in school was very good. Everybody said that we hadn't been that good for years - YEAH!!

At the moment I'm sitting here coughing - I caught a cold :(. I couldn't speak for 2 days because my throat hurt so much. Now I take penicillin and sth against the pain and trink loads of sage tea (I like that one ;) ) and I hope it'll be over in a few days...

Oh, and it's raining again *grrr*. In some parts in Germany, they even have snow... According to the calendar, we have summer!!!!!

Next friday, the soccer world championship here in Germany will start - I'm really looking forward to it!

GO, GERMANY!!

WebCam

Isn't that amazing?!? Yesterday The postman rang at the door and what he gave me was a small box which contained a --- WebCam!!! I won it... I got the news that I won about one month ago - now it's real!!!! I still can hardly believe it...

May time

This May is going to be real exciting - sooo many things will happen, good things, of course!!
It started with 2 project days in school - *chill*...
On Friday, the new Wise Guys album is released which I already ordered - I hope it'll come in time! Plus, I'm going to a comedy show on Friday. This comedian (Christian Habekost) is so funny - he talks in the accent of our region (the palatinate).

Then, on May 10, there will be the Wise Guys concert in Heidelberg, for which I have tickets for row 2!

On May 19, 2 great things will (hopefully ;) ) happen: The concert of the school's choir and big band and another album is released: the new Basta album...

This is going to be a great month!!!

Happy Easter

I wish you all a Happy Easter !!!! (ok, today is Good Friday..)

Find all your eggs and sweets you are supposed to find, and don't get sick from all the sweets!

For my Jewish friends: Happy Passover!

What to do after school....

I suppose most of you went right away to university or college after graduation. I want to spent one year abroad before.

I thought about different possibilities: I could go and be an au pair in the U.S. or in Canada, I thought about going to Chile and learn Spanish, and my last idea was to go to Sydney to help preparing the World Youth Day 2008 (either as a volunteer or an employee).

• Being an au pair would mean that I need several hours of experience with kids , and till now you couldn't be an au pair in Canada but they're about to change the legal situation at the moment. I'd love to go to Canada sometime....
• Going to Chile would be great to meet my friends there and to learn Spanish but none of the organizations go there. If you want to go to South America, you can go to Brazil, Ecuador or Peru. I will start a Spanish course on Wednesday.
• Last but not least: Sydney. It's my latest idea... I wanted to go to the WYD anyway so that would be a great chance to go there while keeping the costs limited. I also thought about studying English/Anglistics, so I'd have already a practical. I've been to Australia before but I wouldn't mind going there again... If I went there, I'd also work with people of many different nationalities, which can be very amazing and informative.

At the moment, Sydney is my favorite but there's still one more year to go.
Please tell me what you think about my ideas - I need help in deciding!!!

April Fools Day

Have you been fooled yesterday? Or did you fool somebody?
I haven't been fooled - I sorted out 2 out of 3 jokes immediately yesterday. With the 3rd one I didn't really realize it (it was one on the internet - guest books and forum)... I'm pretty proud ;) ....