Geeky Germans

Most people think that Germans are anything else but geeky, or funny or crazy. I realized that once more when I watched this week’s episode of Community, in which Jeff and the study group fought against the “evil Germans”. I have to say I laughed a lot about this, because mostly it is true. But Germans can be funny, they just often hide it. I can’t really say why. There are comedians in Germany and some are very funny, like Anke Engelke. She is smart, can act, sing and is simply hilarious. She’s also the German voice of Marge Simpsons. There might not be many funny Germans on TV, there are no German sitcoms, at least I don’t know one, and only one guy called Stefan Raab who’s having a late night talk show. The “heute show” is a funny news show, which can be a slightly bit compared to SNL. It’s just all about the news and politics, but very well made and very funny.

But Stefan Raab is the man of German Comedy. Whatever he does, it becomes a success. Many guys tried to do a late night show, but all of them failed. He does his show named “TV total” since 1999, which can be compared to Craig Ferguson, Jimmy Fallon or Conan O’Brien. But Raab also has many other shows right now, like the Poker Nights, in which he plays poker with 4 other guys, or he combines boxing matches with trivia. After each round of boxing, there comes a round of trivia, so it’s not only about a man’s strength. In the show “Schlag den Raab” (Beat the Raab) people can apply on the internet to be contestants of the show and fight against Stefan Raab. If they compete against him and get more points than him, which means they win more rounds, they win money. The largest amount someone took home was 3.5 Mio € (about 4.5 Mio $). The games can be any kind of sports like hockey or basketball, some games of skill like stacking cups, or answering trivia questions.

But the first thing he did beside “TV total” was the WOK WM. Since 2003 this championship (= Weltmeisterschaft in German, or short "WM") is a big TV event and every year it gets bigger. I guess you know that a WOK is an Asian pan. But Raab doesn’t cook with it, so it might sound that is a cooking competition, but it is not. He sits in the WOK and uses it as a sleigh. If that’s not geeky, I don’t know what is, or at least it’s some kinda crazy. But it works. People from 11 different countries start this year. There’s a single and a team competition, every team consists of 4 people. So they sit in their WOKs, and glide down the ice track which is normally for real sleighs. Stefan Raab proves very well that Germans can be funny, too, if only they want to.

I’m gonna watch the WOK WM tonight, it’s always fun to watch, and in my mind the best event of the year on German TV. That you can understand better what I am talking about, I found a video on youtube showing a man who works for a German radio station and did such a "WOK ride": 

Do you like sleigh riding, and have you ever considered using a WOK to do that? Would you like to sit in one and do a “WOK ride”?

Award for best movie

A new start is something special and important. It's like a new life. When I finally decided to go to college and stop working, it was a big step, but on the first day everything became real. Unbelievable that I already passed one semester, because it still feels like I've just started. Last Tuesday was the big day for 140 new students at our college which is still expanding. That's very cool because you really learn a lot, meet interesting people, can go to various events, and the lecturers work in several media companies, so they haven't their knowledge from books only but mostly from life.

As I already wrote about on this blog, I did a radio contribution about the gothic scene, for which we did an interview with a shop assistant of a gothic shop, how she started to get interested in that scene, and which stereotypes still exists and which ones are true or false. This was really interesting, and honestly I never thought this much about a scene, but it all gave me a new point of view on it.

We also did a video contribution about Trigema, which is a very huge and popular German textile company. They produce clothes like t-shirts and pants in Germany and deliver it worldwide. The head of the company is Wolfgang Grupp who says that people need work for earning money. Without having money, they couldn't buy anything, and when nothing can be bought there won't be a working place. So it's important to him to give people work who live next to the company and don't outsource the production only to save money. He really takes care of his co-workers, because he says that he simply needs them. He knows that without them he would be nothing and also the company. Everyone is part of the family. And that's why he also invites his about 1,200 employees to his birthday parties or makes big events for the staff. He also honors some of his employees when they did something extraordinary or are in the company for a long time, like 10 years or even longer.

Chris, me, Jess, and Wolfgang Grupp

I think it's a good thing and I know not every boss is like that. He also has not his own office, he works directly with his employees in the same room and he hopes that one day his two kids will take over the company. The parents should be the role model for their kids, and they should look up to them, so he says. When we met him for doing that short film about him, his vision, and Trigema, we could recognize that he does not only say that, he really does it. He is nice, friendly, and caring. You can feel his ambition, his passion that he has for the work he's doing, and he likes to share his success.

It's indeed a good think when you get honored for the things you do. I mean you do it because you enjoy it. Work should not only be for the money, you should feel happy to have that job. And it is a motivation when even once a year the employees get rewarded. Why only actors or singers? I'm really happy that the college I go to gave my group and me an award for the best movie. I don't wanna brag about that, I mean it's neither an Emmy nor a Oscar or anything compared to that, but it makes us all very happy. It is simply great when your work gets noticed. So thanks!!!!

It's just the beginning, and I can't wait for the next semesters. It's like our professor who run the college said on Tuesday to the freshmen:  we do not only plan events, we live events. Exams are events, and every lecture is. Life is an event, you can't predict it exactly but you can plan it as best as you can to make it as close to your dreams and imaginations as possible. Grab for the stars, because the sky is not the limit.
So I wish the newbies all the best for their student days. You can really learn a lot. And even though I don't earn money anymore, I do not regret it that I stopped working. Because meeting so many great and inspiring people, and making lots of experiences can't be bought with any money. What you learn is not just knowledge, it's more precious than anything else, and it will never lose its worth - like money.

So, if you understand German, you can watch here the short film we did about Wolfgang Grupp and Trigema.

Are you already dancing?

Do you know when you wanna watch something, but no matter to which channel you switch, you see the same? So do I feel these days. Everywhere is dancing, everyone is dancing. It all started on Ellen, where I saw Britney trying to dance the Oppa Gangnam Style. That was the first time I heard about that dance. I'm not a good dancer but I think this a dance that everyone can dance. So, could this be the reason why this Korean guy named Psy has so much success with this? The video has reached more than 63 million viewers which is absolutely amazing and astonishing.

About a month ago, when I firstly saw that video, I really asked myself what people can like about this dance. Could it really be because it seems to be so easy and everyone could dance it, so it just cheers up everyone? I mean mostly the simplest things can create the biggest fun, right? So Psy was at the VMA's, even on Saturday Night Live. Unbelievable that it was supposed to be for Korea only. Even to him this whole thing seems to be unreal, and he never thought of having such an huge success with the dance, he said at the VMA's this year.

Noble at daytime and crazy at night - that's Gangnam Style. 

Psy at the VMA's 2012

Yes, youtube makes a lot of things possible. It is easier for people that they get noticed, when they simply make a video, upload it on youtube and share it on Twitter and Facebook. Okay there is also much really bad stuff on there, so sorting out good stuff can be hard. But it's not only Psy who showed that there are talented people on youtube. And it can work very well. There are a lot of people who started on the video platform, too, like Justin Bieber. The internet can be great for young artists, and maybe some people can see the talent and then start working with these people so that even more guys out there can see or hear them.

Youtube is not only a platform for dancers or singers, also actors or comedians can have a chance there. I know a few from Germany who are actually good and funny. They do it in their free time and not for earning money, it's more about the fun. The internet is not only a way where you can read or find information, everyone has the possibility to be a part of it. You can share content you like, discuss about your favorite shows, or show something about your life to your friends, like pictures. You do not only sit with your family in front of the TV anymore and talk about what you see, you also go online and chat with friends about it worldwide.

There is even a new shopping possibility that I found recently. You can go shopping online, and while doing that use the chat of the shop and discuss with your friends wherever they are, about what you want to buy. Okay there are also a few shops already on Facebook, so I guess it's also possible there, but will this change our actual real life? Do we really need that or isn't it better to really go shopping and chat with your friends? Will the internet one day be our first way of communication?

The internet is a good thing, obviously. Everyone can be a part of it. It's like that dance. Everyone can do it. It seems to be simple and maybe it is simple. Maybe just too simple for anyone else, and that's why no one had the idea before. It's maybe to do something that already exists, but mix it with something extraordinary, so that it is special, unique. And you should have fun doing it, then others will have fun, too. Then you can dance everywhere, and motivate everyone to join you.

At the end of the post I'd like to share with you a video of a German magician that I found on youtube. He proves that you can do something extraoridinary with something that you already know. I guess you have never seen a greater presentation of the iPad - and even Steve Jobbs would have liked it.

What are your favorite videos on youtube? Do you think that tomorrow's stars can be found on the internet or do you think these guys can't be successful over a longer period of time? And: are you already dancing?

Where home is

I have spent some time abroad, on Grand Canary, and I really enjoyed it. That's also the reason why I didn't blog that much within the last few weeks. For me it was the first time I spent on the island. The view from my room was amazing and I wished I could have taken it with me, but unfortunately it didn't fit into my suitcase :(
On the first day someone from the travel agency told us a bit about the Spanish island. I was mostly astonished about the fact that it hasn't rained since May last year. Where I live it's normal that it rains almost every week (not now, because I have at least taken the heat with me).

the view from my hotel room - could be worse, right? -kidding ;)

Every day was warm, and even it was sometimes a bit cloudy, it never rained and though it was windy at the beach, it had never been cold. The temperature was constantly about 85 degrees - so I was totally happy because I love it when it's warm and sunny like that. My family and I rented a car and explored the isle. We saw some harbors, cities, and lots of mountains. It was really impressive, and we also met lots of friendly people. I am not that person who finds it easily to just go to someone I've never met before and have a chat, but the few I spoke with, were very kind. Of course we spent a day at the beach, too. Not that many because I am very pale, and when there was one thing I didn't want to bring home was a sunburn. Luckily I didn't ;).

no it's not Egypt - it's Grand Canary - just a big sand box ;)

But for some reason, as much as I always look forward spending some time abroad, to sit on a plane (though I don't understand why so many people applaud after landing - I mean no one claps his/her hands after I've done my work well), and fly far away from home, I am also always happy when I am back home again. Mostly I'm already happy when we drive through the city I was born. But this time, it was the first that I felt nothing. When we sat on the bus back to the airport, it just felt for me like we're making another trip. And now, that I am home again, I felt like I haven't been abroad - though I have all the memories about what we did, what we saw.

like taken from a movie - the mountains of Grand Canary

Do you know what I mean? Maybe it was because it was only a week, maybe because it was the first time after 4 years that I saw a beach and palm trees again. Maybe I felt that it wasn't time to go back home. Can this be possible? Or that I feel that the place I was born is no longer my home? Can this change? I still live with my parents, and I wanna have my own place, but as I don't earn any money right now - but start to look for some writing jobs to get at least a bit money - I simply can't move. When I have finished my basic studies I hope I can do my internship semester somewhere within the US. I hope that I can convince my friend to go next year with me to Los Angeles, visting my relatives and finding out if I really can imagine living there.

Do you still feel at home where you was born or has this changed? Can the definition of home change? Is home always where you come from, or where you feel currently happy?
I guess it's the place where you love to be, spending most of your time, where you have your friends. I think as we all change, our safe place can change, too. I will never forget where I come from, and it could be that I will miss it once when I spent too much time far away. Of course I have my family here, and that will be hard when I can't see them daily anymore, but I guess I have reached a point in my life when I wanna start and live my own life.

The Einstein Approximation Sequel

Do you know that when you try to figure out something and therefore you can’t sleep? You always think about the same, the whole time, over and over again? Or you think about the dream you had the night before? Sometimes it is just a name or any sort of irrelevancy that don’t wanna come into your mind.

I had this not only once. I walked into my room, and before I did that, I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but in the room I had no clue. I thought and thought and thought but couldn’t remember. Or I made a crossword puzzle and the correct answer was on the tip of my tongue but I couldn’t say it. Do you know what I mean?  Or I tried to understand a simple equation like in maths. Or I wrote a word, the computer “said” it’s wrong and I looked and looked at it but couldn't find the mistake. And then someone came, and without thinking, solving the equation, writing the word correctly on which I was thinking about for such a long time. And he or she solved that in a blink of an eye and I thought: why haven't I figured it out?

I found this on the internet. When I read that kindergarten children can do this easily but a professor can’t, my first thought was that this is impossible. In fact, I have to say, I hadn’t figured it out when I first saw it. I thought about it, but couldn’t find the logic. Maybe we have learned too much, think too abstract, I don’t know. Here is it, maybe you find the right solution. Think about it and please write me your solution. I finally figured it out and so know its logic now ;)

click on the picture to enlarge it

A rollercoaster ride

It makes fun. Everyone who ever did it knows that. Maybe some had to struggle with themselves until they did it and some did it without thinking. But both of them are proud of themselves afterwards. Some are screaming, some are smiling. Some love the speed of it, that it goes up and down so fast. It is fascinating and most guys want to take a second ride after the first and another and another.

But what about the ride we got for free? What about our own life? It goes up and down all the time. We can’t get out, we can’t go back, we go forward, always. But we are our own engine. We have to find the strength for getting up after we fell. Some are exhausted, and when it goes down and down and down like a free fall, some might have lost this strength.

But keep in mind, when you wanna go up, you have to go down first. It is like a bird who wants to fly: first it falls, but then it goes up flying. Some might see you falling, others see you flying. Like always: it’s the perspective. You can’t go up all the time. If the down wouldn’t exist, the up wouldn’t, too. So everything would just be a straight road. No curves, no acclivities, no slopes. Just a straight road. And now think about such a rollercoaster ride. Wouldn’t it be less fun?

Of course it can be hard, when you feel like being stuck in a deep hole. But you have to find the right tools, and take all our strength and will, and maybe you fail the first time or the second, but you will find your way out. And then you will be happy that you did it. But if you give up, it’s like leaving the rollercoaster in the middle of the ride and you want to enjoy the full ride, won’t you?

The real usage of your feet

You always have thought that you can use your feet only for walking? But they can do so much more, like acting. You can’t believe that? Well, watch this video and you will be amazed. There is a german girl called Anne Klinge who uses her feet and hands to make a play. Dress your feet and try to make your own play. It’s funny - not just to watch - do it yourself. You know so many actors out there, but do you know ‘feet-actor’? I don’t think so - so let’s try something new.


Watch here the 'real' usage of your feet

Even the biggest is still small

Compared to our entire universe even the biggest man is very small. But in it, a small boy is very big. The 14-year old Cary Huang from California made a ‘scale of the universe’. With some technical help of his twin brother Michael, Cary compared everything in our world with each other.

"My seventh grade science teacher showed us a size comparison video on cells, and I thought it was fascinating”, Cary said and added he “decided to make my own interactive version that included a much larger range of sizes.”

The project wasn’t for school, he did it for fun, worked over a year on it. He read astronomy books and also got some information from Wikipedia.

I have to say, that I really love it. It is so well done, it shows us how small we are in this world. It compares everything, from a little string to the milky way and the observable universe. So totally fascinating. And more wonderful to see that a 14-year-old did this. Such a smart guy. Dive into our marvelous world and scale the universe.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/page/scale-universe-cary-michael-huang-california-high-school-15573968