It happens now and then that I think back, remembering past times. Times when somehow special events took place. School, for example, was special in a way, in a quite uncomfortable sense.

Last Sunday, I decided to prepare and finalise my thesis for republication, so adding some new stuff and revising already added content. While reading and writing along, I felt like being relegated back to 2008 when I was busy with my thesis. It must have been a quite warm summer. I really don’t know very much about that time, neither what I did nor what happened around me. However, this is something I’m really happy about.

Some situations are nevertheless still present in my mind. It’s hard to describe. A kind of feeling that is left. I vaguely remember the atmosphere. It was sunny outside, quite warm inside, a bit close. I had to keep all curtains and windows closed and I was in a really tight mood. It was silent, such a silent atmosphere as if there was not the slightest breath of wind or live outside. In the evenings when I finally opened the windows, the fresh, cool air poured in. Crickets chirped pleasantly. Wow, that sounds tacky now :) Thinking back and feeling this atmosphere again, it’s so ridiculous what people do or think, how they behave. It was a really hard year where I made many mistakes.

Even though induced by some other incident, there’s one (and only one) thing I did properly back then: On Sunday, 12th October 2008, after a horrible night, I took the first train from down to the South. It was a real surprise for everybody, my family, my grandmother and my mother. This was the most unbelievable and best coincidence ever.

Priorities change; feelings persist — forever. At least my book proposal is submitted now :)

That perfectly describes … life.

I should really stick to resolutions I made: do not (in any case) read business mails on the weekend or in the free time!

Just uploaded some pictures of my Valentine’s Day. Very, very exciting stuff! :D

It’s been more than a year since I defended my thesis. I still have mixed feelings when I look back on the 4th December 2008, not because of the defence but other thinks that happened back then — good and unfortunately also bad ones.

One of the good things that happened that day: my colleagues and friends built a really great mortarboard (Doktorhut in German), and you definitively have to use the verb “build” because it actually is an actuated, blinking piece of metal and carpet. Yes, carpet. Great stuff, really!

So, yesterday I finally decided to pick it up. Carrying such a big (and admittedly funny-looking) thing in the train and tram is really challenging, it’s just like having a fellow passenger. With only small damage we both finally reached our home, my flat in Bremen.

Thanks guys for the past years!

RoboCup-Doktorhut :)