.SOMETIMES RAW.

Hello!

So, these days I am writing and maintaining my little website from Germany. Already for over one week. Insane, I know and I keep mentioning it but my brain literally does not fathom how fast a week goes by. And why it has to be that fast. I have discovered a new book club on Friday which was so much fun. Have you ever heard of BookCrossing? It is so amazing. How many books do you have at home that you like but not love and would never read again? Do you want to keep them on your shelf? You have several options. You can donate them to your public library, throw them away, burn them (not a really nice thought!) or simply put them somewhere for anyone to pick up on the streets. Leave books at a café, on a park bench, train station, bus stations, you name it. BookCrossing is the website this book club uses to track the books they leave at certain places. We met at Sonderbar in Coburg, which is a nice restaurant/bar/live-music place with awesome food. It was my first time at the book club so I did not know what to expect. Everybody brought books to share and hand out. If you liked one book, you kept it. Then, you read it, love it and keep it, or simply leave the book somewhere. What an awesome concept. Also, they have two little free libraries in Coburg where many of BookCrossing books “live” – one located at the theater and one at Albertsplatz.

To read a real book is pure pleasure to me; is just one of the best ways to relax. To simply unwind from this crazy world we live in. There is just so much technology available. We download things, read on a Kindle, read online, search online, buy online, it is amazing what possibilities are out there.

Reading articles and newspapers online a lot, it is just natural to for me to follow a couple of blogs daily and I am always speechless by how many are out there. People designing, writing, taking photos, cooking, modeling, I don’t even know how many thousand different blogs are out there – it is just so easy to get lost searching and going through some of them. You like one, read a couple of posts and get a link to another one. It is never-ending.  I do get inspired and at the same time overwhelmed. Just the little thought that makes me think is that there are so many topics out there already and how I could be different from everybody else and special, you know.

I do think once in a while if there will ever be a point that I have nothing new to share. Something that has not been out there already. Anything that makes my little website special and worth reading and following. These little thoughts of how I can keep up with all these good blogs and this amazing stuff bloggers and writers are producing. Many bloggers I follow are in this business for years and I just started. You can google anything and it is already out there in a way. Every time I get this feeling, I do remember however that there is only ONE Sometimes Raw website out there and one family that is just unique like mine with our special stories. Usually, by keeping this in mind, I go back to my computer and type along, realizing that I am just a tiny voice in this huge overwhelming world-wide web. Sort of like being in this insane big room and everybody talking and shouting and every single person wants to be heard. But no voice is like my voice. No story is like my story. And no blog is like my blog. So I type along and love what I am doing. And this is the most important thing.

Thank you for reading my blog. 

Hello again!

I just finished my book that needs to be reviewed but I will start all this work tomorrow. I am going to watch one of my favorite movies instead: “Conversations with Other Women”. Check out the trailer if you like.

Thank you for reading my blog. 

Hello!

Today I share my thoughts about electronics (cell phones, iPad, iPod, iwhatever)  and how important it is to unplug or stay away from them once in a while. We do live in a world where technology is pretty advanced. Who would have thought fifteen years ago than in 2015 people walk around with smartphones and pay their bills wherever they are, at any time with their phone with their finger? I did not. Another crazy example is that my two-year-old son knows how to swipe- on an iPhone. He just knows. He has his own iPad to watch his shows. I know, you guys, I did not buy him an iPad; it is my old one but I don’t use it anymore because I received a new iPhone. See a pattern here? New, new, new. Faster, better, greater! And this is why it is important to turn off the phone and be unreachable once in a while.

I am guilty as charged here. I do realize how many times I check Facebook, read the news, take pictures, Instagram my way through the day and look for new books and reviews. And this is all okay, too. But to be on the phone or computer all day long is just not okay or healthy. The first thing you reach for in the morning is your phone? Before kissing your partner good morning? Not cool! The first thing you put on the table at a restaurant is mostly your phone? Also not okay! While you wait of the waiter you can check your updates and emails quickly. Or share what you are up to, or where you are and take a picture of the location. And when the waiter comes you put your phone down, order your food and then you are back on it. Sad but true! You might have missed something. I might exaggerating a bit here, but also, really not. And the worst is, if you are on your phone constantly when you are at the restaurant with someone.

Do we have to use these gadgets to the extend we currently do? I don’t think so. And I also do remember the time when I received my first phone:

Remember these? I was so happy and took it everywhere I went – text messaging everybody. And before that? I was fine without a phone. It was all okay. I had my walk-man with tapes and listened to them. But what I did more than anything else was talking to other human beings in person. You met and you talked to each other. Without cell phone “bing”- interruptions. And when we scheduled a movie-date, you actually met at the theater and did not cancel via text message/whatsapp five minutes before. I am getting off on a tangent here. My point is that it is almost a must to unplug and to give yourself a break once in a while. And I am not talking about turning off your phone  before you go to bed. I mean, imagine a day without your phone! Crazy, no? Could you handle it? I know how uncomfortable I get when I don’t have wifi for a day or so. We all know Maslow’s hirachy of needs pyramid on basic human needs, right?  I would add two more things to it and my husband would agree:

I am trying to unplug from social media, my phone or sometimes even the entire world at least one day a week. But it is difficult, simple because I want to write to my husband to see what is going on with him in Congo. How did we do it before, I wonder. I do need my computer to maintain my website and write daily. However, I could schedule posts and articles in advance to have one day off. We do live in the 21st century and we cannot turn back time, obviously. We do have all these gadgets around so we might as well use them because they are helpful as well. But I think it is important to do everything in moderation and find some sort of balance. What I am working on is: If I play with my son, I play with my son. I am with him 100% and don’t play on my phone all the time. Nothing is THAT important ever. Unless you are a surgeon and need to go to your next brain surgery asap because you are on standby. Or police, or firemen. If I eat, I eat. I don’t want to check my phone while I enjoy a nice dinner at a restaurant. If I read, I read. To simply  not be available at times does not make the world around you collapse, you know? It is all okay. Try to turn off your phone for a couple of hours or leave it at home and see how you feel. The other day I was outside with my son and of course I was on the phone checking things while he played. My son comes up to me and says: “C’mon mama. Phone, bag!”, while he grabs my hand with his tiny one and pulls me along to the playground.I would love to hear your thoughts on this one.

Thank you for reading my blog.