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just life links and ideas postcards

month of letters: done!

so, finally, this was the year i wrote a postcard or letter for every day in february, successfully checking that item off my list of 101 things to do in 1001 days… yay!

card1

the recipients were a mix of old and new friends, which gave it a nice twist — conversations were started, continued or kickstarted again by means of a random mail item. owed replies were sent, and people were cheered up, or thanked or remembered. it was fun, and it had the unintended benefit of giving me something else to think of during some trying time. i wish i had the stamina to keep it up the whole year! :)

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in portugal one second everyday

one second everyday – february 2015

so… february. yeah.

i think that frame where paulo says “the situation is a little strange…” pretty much sums it up.

we’re still stuck in the limbo of not having electricity (and therefore gas or internet) on the house we rented — and no idea of when that is going to happen. the landlord is apologetic, but still expects us to wait however long it takes for it to happen (latest prediction: another month!) and keep paying the rent for a house in which we cannot live. frankly, i’m… speechless at the way we’re being treated, and sorely missing our fierce berliner mieterverein.

so, we keep our life in boxes and we wait. for landlords, for lawyers, for electricians, for papers to magically show up.

and while we wait, we look at the blue skies and think about how fortunate we are — still, in spite of, regardless. we’re here, we’re healthy, it’s sunny — and everything will be ok in the end.

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links and ideas

find a way!

this, exactly.

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in portugal one second everyday

one second everyday — january 2015

january came and went, and we searched for houses while enjoying the sun and the coffee.

and then we got a house and the long wait began. almost a month later, we’re still waiting for the landlord to figure out how to get the place connected to the electrical grid… sigh. as a result, we’re currently experiencing a big case of reverse culture shock — but perhaps that’s something for another post.

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in portugal just life

omni-impatient

small update just to say that we found a place! to be honest, it’s not at all what i had imagined it would be… but i think it’s growing on me slowly.

the backyard (!) is wild with overgrowth and the house eerily quiet and empty, our voices echoing on the walls and the tiled floor as we pace it, anxiously waiting for all the paperwork to come through.

IMG_0056

there’s a terrace on the roof (!!), from where you can savor the expanse of blue sky all around and even catch a glimpse of the sea, glimmering in the distance… it’s perfect to bask in the sun and the knowledge that this is it, this white canvas of a house this will soon be our home for the foreseeable future. we’re almost done.

sunset

the sun warms our skin and it feels luxuriously novel… like a silent blessing. i hope to always remember this.