Freedom is Calling - Page 14 of 25 - Blog about following the call of freedom

Almost done

EW May 26, 2024

Well, with more ideas popping up in my head it’s really not done, but it’s getting close …

Since I did not know at the beginning of the week what would come out at the end, there was a lot of going back and forth between the drawing table, hardware store and work bench.

I’m quite pleased with the result – no beauty contest attempted – Big Paul now got a tied down and therefore fully removable storage rack. That should suffice for our needs.

I posted a short tour on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ojLJ2racIJ8

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

Season of Pleasure

GEF May 26, 2024

Last week was my elder sister’s birthday. What a great season to be born into. For my next incarnation, I’ve decided to also pick the month of May for my month of birth.

The energy is upwards, upwards, upwards …

Nature is flipping over in order to produce so many beautiful flowers and blossoms. Lilacs, jasmine and lime trees are filling the air with their fragrance. The fresh, juicy, flamboyant green of the deciduous trees is coaxing the eye.

By the way – have you ever tried „baby“ lime leaves? They have a very tender, sweetish taste and do well in a freshly mixed salad.

Yummy ...

Since we’re on the topic: The Pentecost holiday provided for a great excuse to enjoy my favorite dish that I’ve loved from childhood on. Back then it gave me the nickname „Fraulein Forelle“ or „Miss Trout“.

Trout au bleu with parsley potatoes and melted butter flakes is absolutely second to none on my list when it comes to freshly cooked meals.

My local fish dealer had only some freshly caught, extra voluminous salmon trouts left for sale due to the holiday. Those giants weighed almost two pounds. One fish good enough for two meals.

So, I was lucky and in for a treat twice!

On fire and snakes

In the traditional Chinese calendar the month of May has a special connotation. It’s the fourth moon cycle of the year and is ruled by a zodiacal animal, the snake. Also, it is the starting phase of the all-expanding celestial Fire element, which rules the summer season.

The way the ancient Daoists interpreted the Fire element, it’s a representation of growth and the free unfolding and development of all potentials. In the human body it is connected with the heart and the small intestine, one yin, one yang.

Philosophically and spiritually, the Fire element connects you with your intuition, your higher self, the universal intelligence and the divine. You get to deeper insights beyond the knowledge of the logical mind.

The Fire element’s natural emotion is joy and exuberance, its perspective is open and tolerant.

Efficiency is king

The Snake on the other hand is a metaphore as to how the energy spreads out and how it influences the climate, meteorologically as well as socially and economically.

The main character trait of a snake is efficiency. Snakes are energy savers and don’t move about without a convincing reason.

They can endure long periods without food and stay quietly in hiding, not even twitching an eyelid. Unless a worthwile prey comes strolling along.

When they pick up a scent, they tighten up and focus. This is the point of no return. Now nothing can keep the snake away from its goal.
The attack happens in a split second. From zero to 100 faster than you can think.

In the figurative sense, the Month of the Snake can be a pleasurable, playful time, when everything joyfully expands.
But you have to bear in mind that some things have a tendency to happen when you least expect them. You’d better be prepared. And act fast and purposefully.

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

Traffic Jams

EW May 20, 2024

The time has begun when seemingly everyone gets on the road. Yes, travel season already started and as usual it comes with lots of traffic jams. It’s really no fun to sit put in Big Paul at 30°C without air condition. Even for a drive of a relatively short distance on Wednesday, I had a one and a half hour delay. Luckily, the weather was not hot that day.

Progress on Big Pauls Interior

With lots of time spent traveling, I still found some opportunities for planning and a trip to the hardware store. The last interior module is slowly taking shape in my head and awaits to be manifested …

See for yourself on YouTube: https://youtu.be/aKcjyY7PHB4

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

Perfectionism and the real Life

GEF May 20, 2024

At school, my needlework was regularly rated „5“, which corresponds to an „F“ in the US system.

Somehow, the teacher wouldn’t appreciate my idiosyncratic style as to how I set the stitches and use the cloth to create edgy shapes and expressive color combinations.

Now, when I look at the result of my needlework on Big Paul’s mosquito screen, I’m quite satisfied. The job was to fasten the magnets firmly. It took me a while, but now it’s done.

My stitches are still out of line. But I’m happy that I can fasten the magnets with a sturdy thread and do a robust seam that holds.

It’s far from perfect. But it does what it’s supposed to do. And it’s not my aspiration to „die in beauty“, as we say in Germany.

So, my reprehensive teacher must have had a beneficial influence on me anyway and, although not willingly, taught me something useful for life.

Learning how to handle perfectionism

Maybe it’s due to my upbringing or just a character trait – I admit I’ve got a perfectionistic streak. There are things that fire up my ambition and I really want them to be 100 per cent perfect, better even 110 per cent.

It’s the allure of „higher, faster, better“ that powers me up every once in a while.

But life taught me that you just drive yourself nuts and wear yourself out, if literally everything has to be better than best. I payed a price for my perfectionism that was not reasonable. Especially in my first career, where I tended to overdeliver all the time.

So, I had to learn to set priorities.

Giving myself a break

Perfectionism, yes – where it is really applicable and worth the invest. Then, perfectionism creates results that I can be really proud of. Other than that, half of the energy spent will do. It will still give an acceptable result.

With this strategy I get much more done in the same amount of time.

Working on our van is where reason meets invest. It’s an old car from the Postal Service, it doesn’t have to look fancy and new.

We never wanted a highly furnished, fully equipped modernistic camper van, but a realiable, low maintenance vehicle that can store and transport the tools and items necessary for an independent travel style.

For us, Big Paul is the “higher octave” of our beloved tent. It provides better shelter against bad weather and noise and gives us much more “room to move”.

We want a comfortable bed, because – as funny as it sounds – people of a certain age need their very good and undisturbed sleep.

When working or just relaxing and reading, we want to be able to sit in a laid-back position inside the car and have enough space around us to not feel completely fenced in.

We want to carry what is necessary. No more, no less.

That’s it.

Looks like we are on a good path with Big Paul.

Enjoying the gifts of nature

And meanwhile, we don’t forget to indulge in the colorful and tasty presents nature is offering us at this special time of the year. Some of my favorites can already be harvested:

Wild strawberries and newly sprouting spruce tips.

These berries are a real stand-alone. They have such an exceptional taste that anything else in addition would spoil the experience.

Spruce tips for a change make an aromatic and healthy tea. A traditional, natural remedy. Very soothing and balsamic, a real delight, not only when you’ve got a cold.

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and