After a long working day yesterday, 17 hours out of which 11 spend in London (but no excitement there, I saw London from the taxi!), I was a bit beat today. So many emails, meetings, phone calls, decisions, assessments, comparisons ... that I was so happy to meet Peter in town, have a coffee, get some sushi and relax.



Now, in my comfy armchair, with lavender scent in my nostrils, I cool down and think that in the end I will remember the capuccino, Peter's support and my homey feeling. That counts right?

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Since until now I had a very unsual day (including being insulted by a very unsecure male), I decided that I will celebrate my day with the Wednesday Hodgepodge and ignore all negative vibes.



1. Of all the tools and gadgets you own which do you most enjoy using?
For the tools I'll definetely go for our Nespresso coffee machine at home, it is amazing and the coffee is simply divine.
As for gadget I would say the Ipod, which treats me with lovely audiobooks while travelling. And the Kindle!

2. When (if ever) is impatience a virtue?
Well it is with me :) I want everything now :) Well kidding but actually there is some truth in it, I can wait but not for too long.

3. What temperature do you keep your thermostat set to in winter? Do you have another way to heat your house besides a furnace of some type?
Well I like it warm in the evenings, but during the day I do like a bit of constant fresh air. And according to many of my friends and aquitances, I am warmer than most, so I can stand cold.

No additional heating possibilities, just house heating.

4. Do/did you have a close relationship with any of your grandparents?
For this, I will repost an older entry

There are some letters which had words attached to them from the beginning, no matter how I would have felt while writing this post I knew I have to write about Grandparents. I was blessed to know all of my 4 grandparents, I even knew two grand-grand-mothers and one grand-grand-granfather. I thought that I would share with you some of my most vivid memories of these amazing people who were and still are part of my life.

Bunica (= grandmother in Romanian), Mimi. She is the mother of my mother and was and is a beautiful woman. I have one of her pictures when she was 18, she was so delicate but strong, so at peace with herself. She was born before the second world war, survived many hardships and still is one of the most optimistic woman I know. She did not lose her passion for life, she finds each day something worth smiling. My earliest memory of her ... Mimi reading to me bed time stories. Grimm Brothers, 1001 nights, simply great stories which filled my imagination, made me dream and put me to sleep. She had a great voice, calm, melodic, following the story with the perfect intonation. I am actually sure that I love books due to her. Books are part of my life since before I could read or write. They were always there and I cheerish them so. Mimi lives with my mom in Romania, is 84 this year and she will be travelling to see us in one month. I cannot wait, so many places to visit :)

Omi (= German version of grandmother) is the mother of my dad, living in Germany, Augsburg. The best seemstress in town a couple of years ago while she still lived in Romania. She was the costume designer of the local theatre and of course I was the best dressed grandchild in town :) She was so creative, never tired of new ideas, of finding new colours to match my complexion. Sadly she cannot do that anymore, old age got her hands, but still I can admire her work. My mom still has some suits made by Omi.

Otta (= German version of grandfather), the father of my mother. The most patient grandfather in the world. I think I drove him nuts with my questions, especially WHY?? We had a routine, on each Sunday morning (to give my mom some space), Otta took me for a ride in town, we went on a bus drive around the city and he showed me old building, told me stories of his youth. He never got tired of answering me questions. And somehow he always managed to answer them. One question I remember pretty well: how is butter made? Why of milk? Where does milk come? and so on and so forth. I miss him a lot. Unfortunately he died 10 years ago but he always will be in my heart. In a way I will never forgive me for not saying good bye. He died while I was on a business trip and I was not there. Miss you Otta! Miss your blue eyes looking towards me!

Buni (= Romanian version of grandfather), the father of my father. The kindest man ever, he loved me so much. I had the luck of having him in my life only for 8 years, but I can still remember his smile. He was in charge of me for the first 2 years of my life since my mom and dad were studying when I was born, so during their remaining study years he took care of me. He was the only one left, everyone else in the family was still working, so he learned how to change diapers, how to feed me, how to calm me down. Bless his heart! Sadly I was not allowed to go to his funeral and say good bye, by then my parents divorced and the second wife of my dad was pretty weird. I visit his grave as often as I am in Romania, I need to 'see' him. Miss him!

I know I am lucky ... I still have 2 wonderful persons in my life. I have / had so much love coming from their side. But still I miss Otta and Buni ... I hope they keep smiling!

5. When did you last have a family portrait taken?
Long time ago.

6. What does the word patriotism mean to you?
Being proud of being Romanian.

7. Do you like to play cards and if so, what's your favorite card game?
Rummy, I loved it as a child.

8. Insert your own random thought here.
I need sleep :)

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There are moments in life when it appears to be like this



But then the darkness fades away and you get this



I'm off for a 2 day seminar and I am not sure if I will be able to post anything tonight, thus have a happy Wednesday and I'll be on my way to achive the possible first!

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After some tough hours behind, the day after did not bring any notable high or lows, thus decided to take the Halloweenie-Hodgepodge and share some thoughts with you.

1. What gives you goosebumps?

Unknown dogs, darkness and being alone in an empty house. And for sure the cold temperatures in Estonia during winter time. Believe me there is truly cold!

2. Halloween—are you a lover or a hater? Okay, that sounds harsh...Halloween—yay or nay?

Halloween is not part of my culture, I do appreciate the 'madness' and like to see the kids be happy. Europe is getting more and more open towards this holiday, but it still takes some years until we will get similar dimensions as in USA.

3. Can you respect someone you do not trust, and can you trust someone you do not respect?

No and no. Trust for me means to rely upon a person's integrity and character and that for sure involves mutual respect.

4. Apples or oranges? Yes, you have to choose.

Apples. Love them in any shapes, size, meal :)

5. What is something you wish was in your town (shop, restaurant, attraction, etc.)?

Would love a river in order to walk on its banks.

6. What non-food item is in your refrigerator or freezer?

To be honest none

7. Are you at all superstitious?

Sometimes :) This question reminded me of a cartoon which I would like to share with you.




8. Insert your own random thought here.

Just realised how nice our home looks under the delicate lights of candles. Love cosy evenings at home, simply sharing moments with my husband.

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From low



attempt to high



and in the end



Just another day, somehow happy it's done!

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One more day, another wonderful Wednesday behind me. Some of my highlights:

- Seeing my mother happy after buying her a new phone, she was so thrilled and so excited, like a child receiving an amazing gift! I love her smile
- Finding new wool for my next project, this time planning some Christmas gifts!
- Walkimg with Peter and mother in town (I guess we did at least 7kms)
- Talking with friends on the phone
- Having an evening coffee with friends on a terasse and enjoying the evening sun
-Walking with Peter in the evening and enjoying the night lights

Today is what I define as a perfect holiday day, simply happy.

As for the lows I did not find any, I hope no one is upset with that!

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A very unusual Wednesday for me, and to be honest I do not know how should I better describe it. Most likely as very very sad.

The most pregnant event today was the news that a colleague of mine had a apoplexy, that he went an emergency operation in a foreign city and that I do not know what happened afterwards. I truly hope that all went well and I cannot wait to go to work tomorrow since I might find out some more.

The first sad news of the day was the fact that a valuable team member has resigned, without any prior notice. He is young, dinamic, very intelligent and I had high hopes for him. Now he chose a different path, which I respect but still I am affected.

Luckily the day was brighten in the end by the package which I receive from Amazon, the book which I cannot wait to read, Carol Wyer's debut novel, Mini Skirts and Laughter Lines. More details here. I will keep you posted on my reading progress.



Sorry for the not so good news, but such is life!

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Today I received plenty of confirmations, I realised that my work is appreciated and valued and I am grateful for this!

And I remembered a wonderful story, the tale of the strawberry by Jorge Bucay:

A king went to his garden and discovered that his trees, bushes and flowers were dying. The Oak told him that was dying because it could not be as tall as the Pine. Turning to the Pine, found it fallen because could not give grapes as the Vine. And the Vine was dying because could not blossom as the Rose. The Rose cried because could not be as tall and solid as the Oak.

Then he found a plant, a Strawberry, blossoming and fresher than ever. The king asked it:

—How do you grow so healthy in the mist of this withered and somber garden?

—I do not know. Perhaps it be because always I supposed that when you planted me, you wanted strawberries. If you would have wanted an Oak or a Rose, you had planted them. At that time I said to myself: "I will try to be Strawberry the best way I can."

Now back to my lovely coffee and reading!

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For this Wednesday's post I would like to share with you another story which made my day yesterday. I was reading it during my flight back home and it stuck with me today and I am sure it will for some time.

The True Value of a Ring
by Jorge Bucay

- There's an old story ... about a young man who went to see an old wise man for help. His problem reminds me of yours.

I'm here, sir, because I feel so small that I have no desire to do anything. They tell me I'm useless, that I don't do anything well, and that I'm lazy and stupid. How can I improve myself? What can I do to get better?

Without looking at him, the wise man said:
- I'm very sorry, young man. I can't help you, I must solve a problem of my own first. Maybe then...
- And after a long pause he added - If you'd like to help me, I could solve my problem more quickly and then... maybe I can help you.
- Yyy ... yes, sir. - he murmured, feeling once again degraded, his needs subordinated to those of the wise man.
- Good, then - the wise man replied. He removed a ring from the pinkie finger of his left hand, and passing it to the young man he said - Take that horse outside and ride to the town markets. I need to sell this ring in order to pay a debt I owe. It's very important that you get the best possible price, absolutely nothing less than one gold coin. Go and come back with the money as soon as you can.

The young man took the ring and went. As soon as he reached the markets, he started showing the ring to the merchants. They all seemed interested until he told them the price he wanted.

When he mentioned the gold coin, some laughed, others gave him strange looks. Only one old man was kind enough to explain to him that one gold coin was too much for the ring. He offered him him a silver coin and a jar full of copper, but the young man rejected the offer following the instructions given to him not to accept less than one gold coin.

Having made more than 100 offers, having been rejected by every merchant in the market, he got on his horse and rode back.

He wanted desperately to have a gold coin to give to the wise man, so that the wise man could help him and advise him.

He entered the house.

- Sir -he said - I'm sorry. You asked me to do something impossible. Maybe I could have gotten two or three silver coins for that ring, but I just can't trick any body into giving me more than its worth.
- The thing that you have just said is very important my young friend. - he replied with a smile - First, we've got to know the true value of the ring! Get back on that horse and go to see the jewelry maker. Who could possibly know better than he? Tell him that you'd like to sell the ring and ask him how much he'll give you for it. But no matter what he offers you -- do not sell the ring. Bring it back here.

The young man got on his horse and set off.

By candlelight, the jewelry maker inspected the ring. He used a magnifying glass and weighed it on a scale, and after a moment he said:

Tell the old man that if he needs to sell it immediately, I can't give him more than 58 gold coins. Got it, sprout?

- 58 gold coins? he said in astonishment.
- Yeah. - If he has more time, he can probably find a buyer at 70 coins. Otherwise...

The young man took the ring and got up and left. He was so excited that he galloped the horse all the way back.

- Sit down. - said the wise man, as his young page burst through the door in excitement.

He listened to the young man's story, and then said
- You are just like this ring: a unique and valuable jewel. The only person who can understand your true value is an expert. Why do you go around expecting that anyone you meet on the street knows your true value.

And with this, he put the ring back on the pinkie finger of his left hand.

Story from here

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Another Wednesday with a mix of highs and lows. Some random thoughts below:
- I am home, but alone, Peter still in the hospital
- Peter is better, but still not 100% recovered but so grateful that progress is visible and felt by him
- Another hectic day behind me, work was rather stressy, just found out that I might postpone my holiday (again!) and not to be able to spend my birthday with the extended family and old friends. Fast other thoughts!
- I made a lovely small dinner, some nice capelleti filled with mushrooms

Beth from Word Nerd Speaks is doing what is called the Wednesday Hodgepodge and I thought I'd give it a try. Let me know what you think about it!



1. What is one piece of advice you would give a 'just turning' 21- year old adult?
Just enjoy the present, you have a wonderful age! Don't bother too much about the thirties or forties!

2. Besides cooler weather (or warmer weather, depending on your hemisphere) what is one thing you are looking forward to this fall?

Just being able to enjoy a nice cup of tea with a great book! And lovely walks in the forest while the colours are changing!

3. What sound lulls you to sleep?

Silence :)

4. September is National Preparedness Month...does your family have an emergency 'kit' and/or disaster plan in place?

I was not aware of this, but hey! I don't live in USA! And no :=)

5. How has your blog changed since you started blogging? Or has it?

I actually described this in the first post under the GBE2 experience. My conclusion from then is still valid.

My expectations at the beginning of blogging activity? I just wanted to help a friend, then somehow my interest faded but in the meantime I am so in to it. I don’t expect to influence anyone’s life, I just want to enjoy writing, I am grateful for each comment that I get, knowing that someone out there is reading my words.

6. What's something you've recently learned to do on the computer?

Hm ... not much really! Does that sound conceited? I hope not!

7. Is a picture worth a thousand words? Elaborate.

This reminds me of a cool cartoon.



8. Insert your own random thought here.

Need a coffee :)

Enjoy your Wednesday!

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After a wonderful day yesterday, it seems that my good positive vibe mood continues! Since I am at home for more than 10 days at a row without any business trips, the social life can flourish and this afternoon I spend lovely 2 hours with a good friend. She went through many hardships (lost her husband, had to move into a new flat), but her optimism amazes me each day.

While chatting happily over a cup of coffee I noticed a new poster she had in her living room with the wonderful poem below:

I want you to listen to me without judging me
I want you to give your opinion without giving me advice
I want you to trust me without expecting anything
I want you to help me without deciding for me
I want you to care for me without smothering me
I want you to see me without seeing yourself in me
I want you to hug me without suffocating me
I want you to encourage me without hassling me
I want you to hold me without holding me down
I want you to protect me without lying
I want you to come closer without intruding
I want you to know everything that displeases you about me
That you accept this and do not try to change it
I want you to know ...that you can count on me today...
Unconditionally.
by Jorge Bucay

I am inspired and so full of energy ... no reason to explain that my day was a HIGH! The lows, not relevant ...

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What a day! Storms night, heavy rains, thunder, lightning, lot of noise. Then silence, quiet morning, lot of work, but in the end a normal day. And then just before I wanted to leave, another storm broke loose. The nature's power is amazing!

Since there was nothing else spectacular about the day, I thought I will adjust one challenge from a Romanian blog which I follow, so here we are!

Nominate a band or an artist which you liked as a child / teenager and now you are thinking why :)



Jason Donovan was the first which came into my mind, I still am able to hum his songs, I was a big fan and I still remember how one classmate gave me one of his albums (Ten Good Reasons) and I was exctatic!

Nominate a band or an artist which you hated and now you like



Well, this was hard since I like music in general and I don't associate hate with it. But I wasn't a big fan of the Stones, and now I truly enjoy hearing them!

Nominate a band or an artist which you liked and still do so!



This is easy, I always enjoyed Bee Gees (I even dedicated a post to them for the May Challenge!), it was the music my mom listen to while pregnant with you, sot it is really special!

Nominate a song which gives you the beat



Motown song, what else? :)

And to end, nominate the current favourite song

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When I posted my High and Low entry today, I didn't think that I will get so much support from my readers, thank you all for your kind words, they all mean a lot to me after a 16 hours hard and challenging working day. I survived, still breathing, so I guess it's OK. I am very very tired but with some ideas for the future. The good news? Going home tomorrow and will be there for 2 weeks so plenty of time to recharge my batteries.

Now chilling down, cos I am beating like a drum :)

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What a day so far! Awake for 6 hours but had such an intense morning ...

Among other main events just found out that one important team member has resigned and I cannot shift my thoughts to something else. Personally I fully understand, but for the project's sake this is completely the wrong moment. But I guess Murphy's Laws are working extra time ...

Let's see ...

If anything can go wrong, it will
Checked!

If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong
Checked, actually a collection of damaging issues occuring at parallel!

If anything just cannot go wrong, it will anyway
Checked!

If you perceive that there are four possible ways in which something can go wrong, and circumvent these, then a fifth way, unprepared for, will promptly develop
And sixth, and seventh ...

Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse
Oh yes! See my constant travels to Estonia to fix things!

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something
Never underestimate!

When working toward the solution of a problem, it always helps if you know the answer.
Could help!

But in the end all will be well and if it's not well then the end is not there! This is for me the motto at the moment, so I hope that all the hardships I am going through will pay off at one time! But please let the well part come soon!

Part 2 tonight!

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Another Wednesday spend in Estonia, with a collection of mixed feelings.

One of my best highlights: I have reached the 100th follower on my blog! Yeah! Thank you all, this is an important milestone and I am very grateful for your support, comments and kind feedback. Thank you.

Another highlight: the amazing nature display in Estonia. For 10 mins heavy rain, then deep blue sky, followed by heavy wind. I think that during the last 6 hours I never got such a mix of weather. Quite fascinating!

On the low part? The fact that another week goes by without me spending 7 days at home, that my meetings are quite frustrating, but in the end all will be well right?

Wishing you all a great Wednesday!

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Writing this entry while driving on the road to Tallinn to Narva. Actually I am not driving, just sitting in the bus and trying to get my thoughts together. Another Wednesday spend in Estonia, two more weeks and then I will have 2 free weeks without travel. Or at least that is what I hope, so better keep quiet and enjoy the break? :)

Anyway a normal day behind, work for 5 hours, travel for 7 hours. Somehow on the way I remembered one wonderful poem by our national poet Mihai Eminescu and I wanted to share that with you

And If...

And if the branches tap my pane
And the poplars whisper nightly,
It is to make me dream again
I hold you to me tightly.
And if the stars shine on the pond
And light its sombre shoal,
It is to quench my mind's despond
And flood with peace my soul.

And if the clouds their tresses part
And does the moon outblaze,
It is but to remind my heart
I long for you always.

Sweet dreams!

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Another Wednesday, again Estonia. To summarize my day:

- wonderful start: breakfast on the terasse under the morning sun, with a nice cup of ... coffee of course
- long long long meeting, a tough one, but it is behind me so I am not worrying anymore
- great ending: grill party with my colleagues under the evening sun!

Estonia is amazing, sunny, warm, no sign of yesterday's storm!

Below the pictures from tonight!

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This post is possible only because my husband insisted that I should not let one of my weekly specials fall down due to my holiday. So here I am writing my High & Low and to be honest there are many highs (only to mention Peter's birthday yesterday, our common holiday, no meetings, no to dos, just doing what I want) but at the same time a couple of lows (to begin with the autumn weather, we have in Germany heavy rains and 14 degrees Celsius, I cannot believe that it is actually July). One important low bothers me a lot, but I don't know how to write about it, I need to find the best way, so until then just indulge me. Probably the best way will be to add in a story and to try to deal with it!

I wish you all a high Wednesday and hopefully tomorrow will be a 100% high day!

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Another Wednesday and this time not in Estonia. This for sure deserves the top stop in the Highs :)

A very mixed day to be honest:
- a long day at work even if this morning I decided to leave early - lesson learned? Don't say, do it!
- rainy day, grey and cold - lesson learned? Linen is not a good material to wear when it's humid!
- dentist appointment - lesson learned? More brushing!
- watching women's world football championship - lesson learned? Women can play as great football as men, just watch USA vs France
- tired, tired, tired - wish: early sleep, but now comes in the first lesson right?

I wish you all a Happy Wednesday, I will do my best to end mine on a happy note!

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Dear me, another Wednesday? Sometime I wonder how time flies, somehow this blog is for me an indication of how week after week life takes slight turns!

Today was under the sign of the following quote

Time is what prevents everything from happening at once. ~John Archibald Wheeler

Everybody at work tried to have everything happening at once and were pushing me to provide them with solutions for their problems. Wednesday as a fire fighting day for 11 hours and it drained me of energy.

But then I came home, chatted with hubby and started to relax, then I started reading the GBE2 posts, the BFF posts and following my usual blogs. Cool down Claudia! And it works, magic!

Therefore in order to repay to you all, my dear followers and readers, I came up with an idea and I hope you will join in :)

At the moment I have 81 dear followers and I am very grateful for your support and kind comments. I never thought possible that I will reach this amount so fast, but the April and May challenge, alongside with the membership in the GBE2, BFF and the Writers' Post groups added many of you dear blogging friends! So I launch my personal challenge to the world wide web! The moment The story will reach 100 followers I will have a raffle for all interested in attending it, and the prize will be linked with one of my passions. Hint? Here :) What do you say? Interested?

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