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My husband’s birthday

Happy Birthday to the love of my life! Je t’aime mon amour!  We celebrated my husband’s birthday on the 11th of October and I am glad he was here with us. The biggest birthday gift for him was that we could be all together and…

How to: Chia Pudding for Breakfast – healthy and raw.

Hello and welcome back to my little series “How-to”. Today I would like to share a very simple breakfast idea that is healthy, hearty and keeps your stomach filled for a couple of hours so you won’t have the morning cravings. I mix my breakfasts…

The Book Review: “Street God” by Dimas Salaberrios

 

“One day Tank and I became so desperate to get high that we robbed his next-door neighbor’s house. Talk about risky! I didn’t care where I sold, as long as I had enough money to replenish my supply and enough crack for myself to smoke. In fact, I was about to hit rock bottom”. – Dimas Salaberrios 

 

Advance Reading Copy Disclosure:

Thanks to Tyndale Momentum and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. I have not heard of Dimas Salaberrios before but what drew my attention to this book the most was the description. This does not affect my opinion of the content or the book of my review.

When I read the description of the book I thought that it will be an awesome read. I would like to share a little insight about me before I start the review. I worked for the German Federal Police for several years before I joined the United Nations Security Department in New York and I can proudly say that I have seen it all. From drugs, to homicides, to suicides and back. Unfortunately nothing was left out for me. I also finished an Associates Degree at LaGuardia Community College (right next to the Queensboro Correctional Facility – and yes, they offer programs for detainees to attend classes at the college or to finish their GED!) and transferred to John Jay College of Criminal Justice. I finished with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice/Forensic Psychology in 2012.I have been at Rikers Island Jail with one of the Corrections Classes I have taken which was a very intense experience) John Jay College offers a plethora of great Criminal Justice Programs. One of my favorite professors throughout my four year college experience was Professor Peter Moskos. He is a professor of law, police science and criminal justice administration. He has also written three books that I have all read. My favorite was “Cop in the Hood” because I simply could relate to so many things he wrote about. Having all this background and reading “Street God” was very interesting because it had been written from the perspective of the “other side”; the criminal side. 

Let’s dive into the book review. 

I love memoirs. This is most likely one of my favorite books to read because the individuals write about themselves and it is usually very intimate. The book starts out pretty rough by Salaberrios’ description of his early life in the drug world of Queens/New York. Even though is parents are considered as “normal” (his mother is an elementary teacher and his father works in a correctional facility) This was probably the most shocking part to realize that Dimas had a great childhood and “good” parents. Dimas wanted to be the Street God; the best known drug dealer with power and money.  He starts dealing and even consuming drugs to the extend where he almost hit “rock bottom”. I thought his description of the drug dealers and gang life was pretty interesting, especially if I keep in mind that I lived a couple of minutes away from where he lived. The further I kept on reading I was more and more surprised how he ended up surviving living this crazy drug life – specifically after taking drugs himself. 

When you read Dimas’ story and you think it cannot get worse, everything changes but I don’t want to give the plot away here. I think it is just an amazing story that is difficult to put down because of Dimas’ honesty. I recommend this book to parents and teens to simply read and try to understand how the inner city life really is. I think the book is a great leaning experience and full of love and forgiveness. 

Thank you for reading my blog. You want to read the book? Order it here. Share your thoughts in the comments below. 

My take on: Jackson Pollock

“When I’m painting, I’m not aware of what I’m doing. It’s only after a get acquainted period that I see what I’ve been about. I’ve no fears about making changes for the painting has a life of its own.” – Jackson Pollock Let’s get lost in…

The Book Review: “All the light we cannot see” by Anthony Doerr

“He sweeps her hair back from her ears; he swings her above his head. he says she is his émerveillement. He says he will never leave her, not in a million years.”  ― Anthony Doerr, All the Light We Cannot See This was a book…

On dressing like a halfway hipster (Part I – Style)

“If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine, it is lethal.” – Paulo Coelho 

I would call myself a halfway-hipster just because I like that expression. Do you know what a hipster is? Do you know how a hipster dresses and what the lifestyle entails?  First I want to share with you the overall description from wikipedia on what a hipster is. 

“The hipster subculture is one of affluent or middle class young Bohemians who reside in gentrifying neighborhoods, broadly associated with indie and alternative music, a varied non-mainstream fashion sensibility (including vintage and thrift store-bought clothes), generally progressive political views, organic and artisanal foods, and alternative lifestyles.”

How does this apply to my style and life? Fashion was at some point very important to me but this was years ago. I needed the to wear the latest fashion all the time and was sucked into consumerism. Now, all I need are the essentials that never go out of style and more importantly to buy things that last for a long time. Being a halfway hipster I love to shop in vintage/thrift stores or flee markets. What I try to avoid is walking around like a billboard or have any expensive labels showing on my clothes. I love to buy my things from local fashion stores instead of going to a mall. As a matter of fact I hate malls. I love to wear skinny jeans (1) but also high-wasted pants. They hide things at the right places. 🙂  Unfortunately I do need glasses and I am rarely seen without. I am basically blind when it comes to driving at night, reading or watching TV without them. I purchases a pair of Ray Ban’s just because I like the style and I haven’t found another brand with my preferred shape. I don’t get however how some wear glasses if they don’t need them just to be hip. Honestly, I would rather live without them. 

When it comes to tops, I do love tank tops in any color as well as simple black or white t-shirts. I have a couple of shirts as well; my favorite being a plaid shirt. I have a couple of t-shirts with book covers printed of them which I love and wear. I also own several cardigans that go with all my tank tops or t-shirts. I love cardigans as well as fitted hoodies. 

The right footwear is key. My husband would say that, “I always wear the wrong shoes” but I think this is not true of course.  I love to wear TOMS and they go with almost everything and are super comfortable. Besides that, I wear flats in all colors and range as well as boots. I used to wear Converse for the longest time but haven’t done so lately. 

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Accessories I rarely use. I do love to use nail polish here and there and sometimes nice pins or belts. I used to have “tunnels” and several plugs but I removed them because I simply did not like them anymore. One gets older too hahahah. My hair is usually up in a bun or straight down with bangs. I like it simple and casual and the messy hairdos are fine. Read my hair routine here.  I do have a Longchamp Le Pliage purse (medium size) that I have had forever and use now for my son’s things (diapers, wipes, snacks etc.). For myself I have a vintage leather purse that holds all my writing implements and usually a book (or two). It is big enough to even hold my laptop. 

Thank you for reading. Part II – My Hipster Lifestyle coming soon. 

The Book Review: “American Housewife” by Helen Ellis.

Advance Reading Copy Disclosure:  Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. I have not read anything else by Ellis before but what drew my attention to this book the most was the cover. This…

Parenting 101 – or I don’t know what I am doing either.

“Parenting isn’t a practice. It’s a learning experience.” Do you have the feeling sometimes that you are doing this parenting thing all wrong? I talked to parents and some said  they don’t know what they are doing either which makes me feel instantly better. Sometimes however I…

Five Things.

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It is Friday again and my son and I were pretty busy during the week. The most important thing however is that my husband is finally back home! He made it safe and sound and we picked him up at JFK Airport on Thursday evening. Now the world is a-okay again! My son and I were busy cleaning the house, doing laundry and went food shopping so I can cook something nice for my family. I just wanted everything to be perfect when he is back. It was the best feeling to be at the airport to pick him up. My son ran towards him and was so excited. I usually hate airports because there is always this weird mixture of anxiety, sadness and happiness that is present at ever corner. (“Valley of tears” – Frankfurt Airport). This anticipation when you stand in the arrival hall and wait and wait and people-watch and then out of a sudden the person you are waiting for comes out – priceless. Especially if it is my husband after all this time. Here are my five things I want to share. 

Thinking about: The other day I was at Calf Pasture Beach with my son. We spent almost five hours there because it was nice and warm and he had a blast with a bunch of other kids building sandcastles and collecting shells. Ripka’s Beach Cafe just closed when my son asked for “Pommes bitte” so I needed to find some food fast.”Fast food” 🙂 My first thought was our favorite diner in Norwalk – The Post Road Diner. which never let us down. So we had been seated and waited for our food as an elderly well dressed woman walked in. The waiter directed her to her seat which was right behind us. She walked by and smiled at us; kept on walking and came back and stared at us. When I asked her if I can help her she started to cry and said that my son looks exactly like her son who died 20+ years ago. I told her to sit down with us and talk a bit. She ended up telling me the entire story always staring at my son. Then she got up and said: “Good bye Ben, I will see you again on the other side”. Definitely my weirdest time at the diner. 

Watching: The woman at the diner recommended to watch the movie: “Heaven is for Real” which I did and cried my eyeballs out. Very sad story about a near death experience of a little boy and you guessed right – he looks like my son. My mom recommended a movie on ARTE – “Zuhause in der Wildnis” which I loved. It is about a German woman who married a Native American. They have four kids and live in the wild of the Canadian Rocky Mountains in which seems total isolation and seclusion. The movie is in English/German but also available in French. 

Reading: The usual. A ton. Now that three book houses started sending me books to review I am constantly seen reading. I love it so it is all good. Here are the books.


Order the books here: “If I fall, If I die” by Michael Christie,  “American Housewife” by Helen Ellis (only pre-order. The book will be released in January 2016 and “M Train” by Patti Smith. 

Enjoying: Life and my family. 

Traveling: To Cananda next week. There is this really nice place in Quebec; quite some miles away from Montreal but sooooo worth it. Here is the link. The owners are renting completely furnished cottages at the waterfront. We spent the first couple of days there after my son was born. Yes, he is Canadian. 🙂 We stayed at the “Piccolo Cottage” which was an awesome experience. There is plenty to do here in Connecticut but to spend a couple of days at this beautiful place in Canada beats is all! 

We stayed at the “Two Pines Cottage” when our son was five days old and woke up to this view every morning. 

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful weekend. 

Tips on how to survive a road trip with a toddler.

“I was surprised, as always, be how easy the act of leaving was, and how good it felt. The world was suddenly rich with possibility.”  ― Jack Kerouac, On the Road The writer in me I guess chose a quote by Jack Kerouac’s great novel…


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