Is there anything better than getting things in the mail? (pt. 2)

Can I just take a moment to say I have the most awesome friends ever? Last week, after what had seemed like the longest work week ever, I came home to find this postcard signed by a bunch of my friends in Berlin. I was close to tears reading it. I've been so bogged down with things lately that I feel like I've neglected my relationships with many of my friends. I immediately hung it up on my wall as a reminder that I need to be better at keeping in touch with people that are important to me.

And while I'm on the topic of reminiscing (which seems to be a pretty frequent theme of this blog), it's been sort of humid here lately, and the air has had that sweet summery smell to it, which always reminds me of Berlin. I often find myself closing my eyes and drinking the fragrance in, which has led me to miss the green light at crosswalks on more than one occasion. Oops. But it just takes me back to walks through my old neighborhood on hazy summer afternoons just before school let out for the summer. Was there ever a better feeling than the anticipation at the end of the school year? I still get excited about summer, even though it no longer means vacations and lazing around. But then again, I still refer to evenings during the work week and school nights.

New desk + old things (part 2)

A few more things I came across during my recent desk clean-out:

An old metal pencil case I got at the Greenpeace store in Hannover. It makes the best clanking sound when carried in a school bag! Inside are:
- my first ever fountain pen from the fourth grade and some ink cartridges. The pen is a light turquoise Pelikan and I attached that bit of leather string to it from some Pocahontas activity kit thing I got for my birthday back in the day.
- a Tim und Struppi eraser
- a pair of folding scissors from a Christmas cracker
- a pen with little dogs on it
- a spare key to my room

I also came across the journal I kept when I finished school and vowed to draw a picture in pen everyday to illustrate what I did. I thought it would motivate me to do exciting things since I didn't have a job, but instead I just drew pictures of things like:

my grandma's cat

and me riding the bus.

New desk + old things

I got a new desk recently, so I went through a bunch of old papers and things that had accumulated in my desk drawers. I came across a few forgotten things:

1. a journal with a very nice cover with some birch trees
2. an old postcard showing the Buddenbrookshaus. I found this in a library book when I was at the university.
3. glow-in-the-dark star stickers. I love the packaging.

It's nice to finally have a bigger desk surface. After the hard work of sorting through everything, I needed a snack and a cup of tea in my Marimekko cup. (I just noticed this picture also shows shows my Marimekko bag!)

Heimweh

I've been spending a lot of time lately looking through old photos and planning imaginary trips. I get in moods every once in a while where I really miss Berlin and the slightest thing can make me homesick (if that's the correct word) and close to tears (dramarama!). A while ago it was a particularly fragrant shrub that took me back immediately. Sometimes it's the smell of certain brands of cigarettes or beer.

If only I didn't have such limited vacation time. I feel like I'm not really cut out for the working world. Or maybe being an adult in general. Definitely not my strong suit.