Pádraig is continuing to dring more every day. He is trying to hard it’s incredible.

I spent time today emptying the sheds in our back garden. They will be removed to make room for Pádraig’s extension.

The time in Dublin always passes by so quickly. I met some old friends today – more on this tomorrow. Tonight, it’s just getting too late…

Yesterday, a package arrived with loads of t-shirts and shorts for the summer, especially tailored for Pádraig. There are friends of us who are in the clothing business (I think) and they had this idea to adapt really nice clothes for Pádraig by cutting them open at the back or the side and then adding velcro – that way, we don’t have to pull t-shirts, for example, over Pádraig’s head. It was so nice to receive that package, together with a lovely card! – It would be worth patenting the idea!!!

Sitting in Bremen Airport waiting for the delayed flight to Dublin. Maybe it’s because I haven’t been out much recently but I find this purpose-built Ryanair Terminal almost overwhelming. Getting in was the first challenge.

There are more pictures along these ‘lines’ here: http://www.dailyedge.ie/13-people-who-fill-you-with-rage-when-youre-taking-a-flight-939576-Jun2013/

People were pushing as if it was a matter of life or death. One mother with a go-cart overtook everybody as did a girl who said her knee was hurting. Half an hour later, when I had made it through the checkpoint, both of them were browsing the perfume section of the shop. This time, the lady asking whether I had toothpaste (I had not) or liquids (I had not) in my bags or a laptop (had already taken that out), also asked me to take out all paper from my pockets. When I did, she wanted to pull it off me and, instinctively, I didn’t let go – after all, it was my wallet. There was a moment of tension until she put another, smaller box on the wallet and said, here you go!

Pádraig hated those ‘incidents’, always telling me to let go of my idiotic, embarrassing  behaviour, what difference did it make anyways, there were more important things in life to worry about than people just doing their (horrible) jobs. The funny thing is that I never changed anything nor did I achieve anything with my tendency to insist in all this unimportant stuff (other than to get on people’s nerves) whereas he had flight assistants offering him better seats or a second meal. He also could never be bothered to cue up for hours to get onto the plane first – why would you? We were just too nervous, too competitive, too afraid not to get the ‘right’ seats…

I spent this morning with Padraig, washing his hair, helping him to drink a glass of the nice-tasting calcium drink he usually gets through his PEG. While I was doing it, I realised again how much Pádraig is able to do, how proud he is of what he can do, how important it is to do all these things with him, to really connect with him all the time, encouraging and supporting him with all he can do, from eating to moving to communicating. I also realised again that carers cannot do this. So,…

Today’s German Music Tip
Mundstuhl, Live. No music but Comedy. German Comedy. It’s what you call an oxymoron (I had to look that up).
What’s hot
Airport Security
What’s cold
Pushing
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Kommensemamit…

What do you think, when you think of trees? – Really now. Think!

If you were not in the Generator in Dublin last night, you lost out on a brilliant night with absolutely brilliant music by some of Ireland’s finest. Here is a taste of what you missed.

Here is the launch of “Pádraig”:

And here are the Dreamboaters going stronger and stronger:

Finally, here is Maitiú with a few words:

A huge big Thank You to all of Pádraig’s friends who sang the songs and shared their love for him. You all have no idea how much this means to him, and to us – it simply keeps him, and us, going, trying, living.

Here is something you could do: Tell all your friends about the song and send them to http://www.amhrandophadraig.com to download it.

In the meantime: have you thought about what comes to your mind when you think about trees?

You know, Germans have a deep, historical, mythical connection with trees. There are poems, songs, and tales about the German trees – and they literally turn up at every corner in Germany.

When I arrived in Ireland, the first thing I did was to plant a tree. When we moved to our new house in Iona, again: I put a tree into the front garden, and several others into the back garden. I love trees, but discovered that the Irish have a different relationship with them than a German would. They almost hate them: because during the summer they block off the sunlight and during the winter they shed their leaves and destroy the garden.

We were lucky that planted all those trees in our back garden – where else would Pádraig have put up his hammocks?

Today’s German Music Tip
Alexandra, Mein Freund der Baum (1968). Here is Alexandra talking to a dead tree. Compare that with Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi (1970) and the tree museum she’s singing about. Would be a nice topic for an essay on alterity…
What’s hot
Trees
What’s cold
Shade
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Da siehst Du vor lauter Bäumen den Wald nicht mehr.

I wish I could be there with you in Smithfield tonight, with Pádraig, enjoying the friendship, the laughs, the music. And neither myself nor Pádraig would mind having a pint (and himself making sure we wouldn’t be sitting too close to each other:).

There will be a night, and then many to follow.

Pádraig keeps going. When I think just a few weeks back and look at what he is doing these days, it’s truly remarkable. We went for a walk today, down the road to the the park. It seems that them famous German engineers weren’t interested in constructing footpaths. Proper footpaths without potholes. For Pádraig going down this road to the park is like a roller-coaster. Each time we walk that way, he is getting better in controlling his body. Visibly.

I checked out two websites today. They turned out to be offered by the same company but offer an amazing variety of good food for people with different kinds of handicaps.

(with thanks to a good friend who passed on the link!)

Biozoon is a German company based in Bremerhaven. It was founded just nine years ago and had tremendous success with their first product. It’s now based in a 600m2 facility and also just opened a second factory in the south of Germany to provide a better service to the southern folk.

There is such a range of topics in which to become an expert, it’s amazing.

An Saol definitely needs good music, but also a restaurant and the best food we can get for everybody living, working, and being there. Right?

Today’s German Music Tip
Duo Ohrenschmaus, Geht en Mann durch de Wald.
You’ll need a bit more than 15 minutes to watch this. But this is worth it. This is so absurd it’s unreal. Imagine a show like this in any other country. Impossible.
What’s hot
Music and Food
What’s cold
Tasteless anything
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Schirri (think: FIFA)

Make sure that you won’t miss the launch of “Pádraig” tomorrow night, 8pm, at the Dublin Generator Hostel, Smithfield:

https://www.facebook.com/events/374935589377452

There was an interview with Cian Mac Cárthaigh of IMLÉ and Marcus Mac Conghail on Raidió na Life tonight at 8pm, on Fios Feasa presented by Siobhán Seoighe, with a performance of Pádraig, the song. I managed to record the interview ok, but messed up the first minute or so of recording of the song for some reason – which, I guess, makes it a collectors item!

Pat interpreted for me, so I was able to follow, more or less, what was said. There were two things that stood out for me: one was that this is a song, an anthem, to all people with a good heart; the other was that Pádraig has friends that are legend.

The interview: 

The song: 

This is summer. Holidays. Early morning runs. Long, warm, summer evenings in the back garden with family and friends.

Next year.

This year, I’m becoming an expert in ceiling lifts, hoisting systems, stair platform lifts, all sorts of bath tubs and other gadgets. Today, I found out that there is a “Verein” in Hamburg that has not just experts on communication, bathroom solutions, mobility, a barrier free construction, they also have a 200m2 show room where they show and demonstrate solutions from different manufacturers.

Of course, the “Verein” is financed by the Freie-und Hansestadt Hamburg and its services are free. We’ll go there tomorrow morning to get some ideas on how to make life for Pádraig a bit better.

There’s a “Verein” for everything in Germany. I should have know!

Pádraig is doing well. We’re trying to get the three meals a day going. Today was the first day with the changed schedule. T’wasn’t perfect (yet:) but a good try. It’ll be better tomorrow.

Today’s German Music Tip
BVB (100,000 Freunde, ein Verein) – It’s a different kind of “Verein”, but – in Germany, there one for everybody in the audience… and Pádraig really likes BVB!
What’s hot
BVB
What’s cold
The wind high up on a roof terrace, even on a hot day.
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Dat kannse dia vonne Backe putzen.

PS: Just found this on Raidió na Life’s website

There is no doubt that Pádraig is moving a little bit more every day. And that he is eating better and more every day. Being more himself.

Today, as on most days, his aunt rang to talk to him. Routine. Except that, today, he was holding his arm up (no support underneath) and he was holding the mobile (or ‘cell’ as our american friends would call it), he was holding the mobile in his left hand, holding it close to his ear.

We changed our arrangement with the carer slightly because were are going to introduce three meals a day for which he will need time. We will also go out more often and more regularly. It’s summer, after all!

And we’ll be getting more mobile by the day!!!

Today’s German Music Tip
Helene Fischer, Atemlos. This has been the song in Germany over the past year or two, and I never ever thought I would recommend it to anyone. But his version is like a lesson in German culture: Helene sings her summer hit at the celebrations of the German soccer team, the new world champions, at the Brandenburg Gate last summer. It’s iconic in a special sense.
What’s hot
Phone home
What’s cold
Helene Fischer
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Tortenarsch, Bratbär, Pflaumenaugust, Muffkopp, Kappskopp, und Dreckschüppengesicht – all words you should remember when you want to really insult somebody.

Today was s fabulous day outside. A bit windy, maybe, but a great blue sky with sunshine and temperatures that were just right. So we went out for a long walk. Two, maybe three hours. I showed Pádraig and Pat the route where I go ‘running’. Pat didn’t want to walk back the way we came, which is what I always do, so we walked up a side street and discovered – that Tonndorf actually has a beach and an open air swimming pool in a natural lake! Tonndorfer Strand!

Zigarettenautomat – ad for and sale of cigarettes from machines on Tonndorfer Strand!

It was a great walk and Pádraig really enjoyed it, I think. On a day like this, why would you stay in the house when it is so beautiful outside? Maybe the only downside to all of this was that we were not the only people thinking that way, of course, so there were just a tiny bit too many cyclists, walkers, runners, and dogs around. But having people around is great and makes you feel alive!

Last night, I watched the last half an hour of Bladerunner, the movie Philip refers to about a dozen times in his book, It’s not dark yet, as one of his favourite films of all times. It’s a science fiction movie, now several decades old, and still a masterpiece. Turns out that the last sentence of the movie (in the final cut) is key: “It’s a shame she won’t live – but then again, who does?” says a voice referring to a female robot and now his friend, as Deckard discovers a paper unicorn and the crushing realisation that he, too, is a replicant (but has been programmed to believe he is human). Deckard is the Bladerunner, charged with killing (or ‘decommissioning’) human robots, slaves, that are running out of control.

There must be some deep meaning. Robots looking like humans. ‘Humans’ not realising they are robots and have a limited lifespan.

The one thing that distinguish robots from humans is that humans have emotions. They could love. They can be Dreamboaters. Robots, slaves just following orders, can not be Dreamboaters. Ever.

Today’s German Music Tip
Walter Mossmann, Sieben Fragen eines Schülers.
Good idea to check out the lyrics. Neither Walter Mossmann nor this song would be ‘cool’ these days. He was one of the German singer song-writers who had convictions, a sense of justice, and a believe that artists had a role in changing society (for the better). He died on 29 May, on Pádraig’s birthday, 73 years old. Loads of his songs are on youtube and other online sources. They are not just works or art and testimony to a certain time in Germany’s history, they make you think. Think that there’s no need for a sell out. That economy is different from society. That people always come first.
What’s hot
Protest
What’s cold
The water on Tonndorfer Strand
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Zichten

Some years ago, I was driving for the hospice in Raheny as a volunteer. Once a week, I picked up someone from home, brought them to the hospice, and brought them back home later n the afternoon. I will never forget my first impression of the hospice: it was one, if not the most beautiful places I had seen in my lift. Then, I wondered why one had to die in order to be looked after so well.

Today, I saw someone asking that question again: Why do you have to be dying to be looked after that well?

If you think about it: the hospice movement is doing exactly the opposite of what the medical profession would argue for: they are spending all their money and all their energy on people who very likely will die soon. They do that in the best way they can and what they can do is really impressive.

I think: you can be looked after that well, even when you are not dying, when people care.

Today, Pádraig is doing all the things many ‘professionals’ believed he would never be able for: he just finished a bowl of soup, he is breathing by himself, the only tube going into him is the PEG for liquids and food, he goes out into parks, supermarkets, cafés – and 28-hour train journeys. Just 5 months ago, doctors wouldn’t even let him go out for a walk in the hospital yard with us.

He can do all those things he couldn’t do just a few months ago because people care.

When people care, things can be done, even when you’re not about to die.

Pádraig’s physio tried out the therapy table with Pádraig today. There is a bit of setting up time required but once the transfer was done he really enjoyed it. There is so much more space on that table than in the bed and, in addition, it’s a bit harder, providing more support and body feeling. One nice aspect of this was that his therapist was focusing completely on what he was doing and not on the time at all.

Guess what this is: a hotel for insects! Only in Germany…

Later on in the morning, Pádraig, apparently, had encouraged his carer to read him out of an English book a friend had sent him but then changed his mind and ‘told’ him to read out of a German book for him. They both were delighted: the carer because he did something Pádraig had asked him to do (using his tongue), and Pádraig because the carer had entertained him a bit.

It made me think that we should try and play audio books for Pádraig. And, as it happens, one of his four friends visiting him yesterday and today had brought an audio book for him! So, we’ll try out how he’ll like that. They had also brought a brand new guidebook for Pádraig: a guide book to Alaska! No question, we’ll have to go there now!! And before the guidebook gets dated!

The full moon over Hamburg

…and our back garden in Dublin.

Today was the hottest day of the year: 30oC. It was the first time we could really take advantage of the terrace and sit outside in the sun. We also went for a long walk to the park with Pádraig’s friends taking care of him and the wheelchair which was really nice!

These were great days, yesterday and today, for Pádraig: being with his friends, listening to the chat, being with them.

There’s a full moon rising. The same that lit up the sky in Dublin earlier this week on an amazingly clear sky over our back garden – waiting to be transformed for Pádraig.