HOLIDAY (kind of)

So I'm back again! Back from the abyss that is preparing for holidays, back from the pit that is exhaustion at the end of the school term... And back, most importantly, from Germany.

I appreciate it's been a long, LONG time. But I've had fun! I've been busy. I don't just sit there doing nothing. I do things, see things. We saw Sans Soucci palace (it means without cares- OHNE SORGEN)... And we went to the Jewish Museum in Berlin, which was harrowing, possibly partially due to the fact that as we were translating from German it took longer to read and to find the information (though there are panels in the museum next to the German ones which have the English, I was testing myself). Taking a long time to read these chunks of information means that they really hit a home string. We (there were eight students and two teachers) read about the experiences of Jewish children and families during the Holocaust... I highly recommend going and seeing for yourselves. Unless you were on the trip with me or have already been (though it won't hurt to go again). It's on Lindenstrasse 9-14, 10969 Berlin. The building was designed by Daniel Libeskind, who after having completed the museum was suddenly in demand. His work is revered.

So on this trip, there were two teachers (as I said), me (a Year 13), Anya, Huw, Sadie and Tegwen (Year 12s), and Abbie, Rowena and Mel (Year 11s). I felt a bit odd being the oldest non-teacher there. We had a lot of good conversation, a lot of snooker games, and a LOT of food.

We were there for four days. I hate flying. I loved walking back through the front door, though, because my mum cried. Four days, I know. I cried too. A mixture of tiredness and having missed her so badly... It was amazing.

I'm afraid I got up at quarter to five and need to try to fill a full day tomorrow, revising and decking the halls. Probably not with boughs of Holly.

Advent, Advent, ein lichtlein brennt... I can't remember the rest, but it was two or three weeks ago I heard it...

FROHE WEIHNACHTEN!!! Merry Christmas!

Have great holidays/ festivities!

Happy reading, folks!

The month of bad news

October has always been the month of bad news in our family, And I think that that's maybe the way it's going to stay. Hopefully things won't get so bad as us not getting the house, or Joe getting ill again, even though I think that may have been in September... It was, I'm sure.

Yes, so, to prove that October is a bad month, I have three examples. Four.

1) We got robbed in October
2) My grandfather died in October- two days before his 75th birthday.
3) My mother got a rather horrible illness in October called H-Pylori, nasty nasty.
4) Joe scares me this October with the prospect of very damaging illnesses being in/with him. 

also, 5) because my mother missed an entire day of work this October, and that was just after she'd started a new job, and the new job is really taking its toll.