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I really want a scholastic book fair but for adults. Do you remember those little „newspapers“ of books and little summaries? And the back page had these little science kits?

There is The Frankfurt Book Fair but that is just… a lot. To have a bookstore do this and cordon off a part of the store would be so cool. Little bookmarks and posters and cute stationary along with the books…

It was the best time of year. My parents could never afford to buy me the books but it was still so very magical to circle the book summaries I loved the most.

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I haven’t played in a new weeks and my god the level of judgement…

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I mean… it’s me technically but that’s because I emigrated from America to Germany. My mom was born in Scotland but doesn’t remember any of it.

My grandma for sure though! She immigrated to America just after WWII.

My grandma's grandfather came with his family as a little boy in the 1830s.

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We can pick up the new car next week! Welcome Snowberry! (Last picture is from the internet because we didn’t take a clear picture earlier).

We decided on a Mazda MX 30. It’s a plug in hybrid, which was a major deciding factor. Next year we are having some laws come into play that’s going to make the price of Benzin shoot up so our goal is to drive only electric locally and use Benzine on long distance trips.

The other option was a Toyota C-HR buuuut… the tech pissed my wife off 😅. I‘m sure you can turn it off, but the car beeps if you go over the speed limit. It also told her to keep her eyes on the road when she looked over to talk to me…

„It‘s mansplaining me!!“ — My wife when we finished our test drive.

„I… don’t think this is the one for us.“ — Me returning the keys because my wife was too pissed at the car to engage with the general public.

I‘m glad the search is over! Goodbye to my little Blueberry (which we surprisingly got an offer of 10k).

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Ohhhh when it rains, it pours.

I’ve said it before — we don’t get a lot of bad luck in my family, but when we do…

1) Car breaks

2) Washing machine breaks

3) External window shutter needs repair

4) I might need ANOTHER surgery (will find out it March)

Tonight’s a good night for a boozy hot chocolate, I think…

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Well, I think the car is on its last leg and we’ll be in the market soon. We can’t decide if we want to lease or finance… and we have NO CLUE on reliable car brands. Any advice is welcome!

We are thinking the used market is best and we want nothing fancy… just reliable (the Honda is pretty disappointing… it’s only 7 years old!)

I’m thinking a Toyota? Maybe?

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She‘s trying very hard to convince me she‘s already fallen asleep; therefore, I have forfeited my right to sleep next to my wife tonight.

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Just a little throwback showing that our giant boy was always a giant. This is when the breeder asked us to take these two together. The brothers were always thick as thieves.

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Reading: Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Streaming: nothing at the moment

Last movie: Castle in the Sky

Game/Puzzle/Craft: NYT crossword puzzles (a great way to explore random topics to educate yourself). Also slowly watercoloring my way through our Yellowstone vacation photos.

seen a lot of these with your favorites, but reblog with the CURRENT book you are reading, show you are streaming, the last movie you watched, and any game/puzzle/crafts you’re working on 

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@thoughtfulfuri here is the German opening! I love it so much and I think they actually put a lot of thought into it!

Translated…roughly:

“Say the magic word and you have the power (might)

Hold the moon stone firm and feel the power (force)

You can do it, as Sailor Moon

Fight for the victory over darkness

Follow your dream of justice (righteousness)

You can do it, as Sailor Moon

Say the magic word and you have the power (might)

Hold the moon stone firm and feel the power (force)

You can do it, as Sailor Moon

Fight for the victory over darkness

Follow your dream of justice (righteousness)

You can do it, as Sailor Moon

Sailor Moon, Sailor Moon, Sailor Moon, Sailor Moon

Oh Sailor Moon!

Moon stone fly and be victorious! Now is the time!

Oh Sailor Moon”

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One of our left parties played the German Sailor Moon opening during one of their rallies (like we have to fight tyranny!!) after our radical right party made a major gain in parliament.

So I’m like… this will not be the reason I vote for them… this will not be the reason. But still it made me happy.

As an American citizen living in Germany… January has not been kind lmao *cries*

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I’m curious what your expectations were going into 1984? My memory could be mixed up since I did read it in high school but I don’t remember it surprising me compared to what I’d heard about it beforehand

So, I knew this was going to be “the dangers of communism” and Big Brother was the socialist party that controls everyone. I also expected our main character, Winston, to have his awakening and want to go against Big Brother.

I thought this was going to be a success story. Winston breaks away from the oppressive government — either runs away or joins a resistance. I even thought it could be a solemn outwardly accepting but never-losing-yourself story. Like hanging on to your true values. This probably means I am more of an idealist than I care to admit haha.

I was wrooooooong.

I wasn’t expecting to see all this hope of destroying Big Brother and saving society building within Winston to only discover it was a false hope planted by… Big Brother? I read it as if the resistance against Big Brother never existed (though not explicitly stated) and that it was a common enemy the party created to maintain control. I felt like it was a book about Winston basically being played…

And in turn I felt played too!!! I had false hope with him!! They got me! I’ve never had a book that made me feel scammed haha. And I’ve never had a book that made me feel so… troubled? I don’t really know how to put it, but I felt like Winston’s agency and autonomy was lobotomized. The way Orwell illustrates how reality can be controlled and turned into something subjective based on who has the most power is disturbing yet very much within the realm of possibilities.

2+2=4…5? Hell, I don’t even know anymore…

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JUST had a conversation about this with my wife. My last read was “1984” by George Orwell and I hated this book. It left me feeling sour; I went in blind and expected something completely different. This was a book not required in Highschool or college (for me).

Do I think it is well written? YES

Do I think this is an important book? YES

Did I enjoy reading this book? ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT.

But:

It is objectively a good, impactful book. I am fully capable of recommending books I hate but know are important and insightful reads that my circle of friends may enjoy challenging themselves with.

Also, I think it is hilarious when my friends hate what I love and vice verse. In my opinion, the discourse sparks a far more interesting conversation than identical opinions.

"i didn't like it" and "I think it wasn't well written" are different. i can personally dislike things that are not bad and i am being so brave about it

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Why can’t I find something like this but with a woman’s cut 🥲.

A gentleman's embroidered ivory silk waistcoat

1790s

Kerry Taylor Auctions

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Y‘all, my wife is trying so hard to organize her life (documents). I hear her while practicing piano:

„Boys do NOT start a war with me right now!“

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Scrolling through my StoryGraph and I‘m pretty happy with my 2024 wrap up! I didn’t get the 24 books I wanted but I hit hard on Literary Classics (and that was a major goal this year!)

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So I was going through some old pictures and found this gorgeous one laying about and I was thinking „wow… look what happens when we take a moment to pause and appreciate“

And then the next picture… illustrates WHY I had to pause…