Across the Fence

We all have encountered this Germanism during the Corona virus pandemic – hamster (pronounce hum-stah). Indeed, the English version of the noun and verb is identical in its unconjugated or undeclined form whereas the German infinitive adds an “n”, hamstern. As a linguist, I’m thrilled of course, to find that word, although allegedly derived from […]

How often have we laughed about the situations created on stage or in films when a woman is cross-dressing as a male and gets mistaken for one or makes the oddest mistakes BECAUSE she is a woman? Think, for example, of Shakespeare’s comedy “As You Like It” in which Lady Rosalind dresses as a man […]

First of all, Happy New Year to you, dear reader! How did you celebrate the turn of the year? Did you end up with a little hangover? If so, Germans have a proven method to deal with it: Rollmops (pronounce ‘rawl-mops). No, it’s not a rolling pug as the name suggests, but a rolled up […]

Another year is about to end. It was filled with ups and downs, pretty much like a roller coaster ride. For me, it was also filled with an extreme amount of writing in order to catch up with the schedule I set myself as a novelist. I’m finally back where I wanted to be and […]

Each and every year, when I have set up the Christmas tree, I also arrange our nativity scene in a special place where it gets its well-deserved visibility. My husband once bought it way before we even met – it is a classical mud people nativity scene from Spain. At first, I had to get […]

There have been years when I didn’t set up a Christmas tree because I was a single and didn’t think the effort worthwhile. As soon as I was married that changed again. And our Christmas tree features the magic of all our past Christmases as grown-ups, embodied by ornaments that were crafted or purchased year […]

Kids are almost bursting with anticipation these days. Adults do rarely – our lightheartedness has often been taken over by stress and anxiety as to how the holidays will pass. Pass, indeed, not be enjoyed. There are so many aspects of what we fear – imperfection of the setting, imperfection of human relationships, imperfection of […]

Are you checking off your lists again? Does your home look perfect for receiving your Christmas guests? Is the schedule for the upcoming holidays watertight? Will everybody have fun-stuff to do? Is the wine cellar filled, and will the food on the table be sufficient? Ah, what is sufficient?! I have stopped going to the […]

Christmas is connected to angels from its very beginning. Angels are considered to be harbingers of God, creatures of light, and are most often imagined to have wings and halos. They pervade sacred art from cute little cherubs of very human toddler quality to the awe-inspiring and forbidding guardians of Paradise. But often we also […]