Hello my lovelies!
Welcome to this week’s Weekend Coffee Share. How are you?
If we were having coffee today, it’d have to be a very quick one. My uni deadline is looming and it’s the reason I have gone quiet yet again.
If we were having coffee, we’d meet in town for a quick cuppa, as I need to get out for a while. I’ve been cooped up for too long with too little to show for it. It’s pissing it down yet again, but if you can brave the weather, I could do with the company.
I’ve had a rough week. The weather is really playing havoc with me, going from hot and sunny to cold and rainy and overcast. For parts of the week it was summer, and then the temperatures were the same as they were in February. I’ve lacked concentration for a while now, though it had improved over my holidays. My good mood sadly got shot down in flames yet again and I’ve been struggling to find the motivation to do anything at all for the last few days. My SAD is usually only a problem in winter, but with winter weather in summer, I think I need to get my therapy light out again. And see my GP, because I’ve got the suspicion this is not “just” SAD anymore.
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you how grateful I am for my friends. While some are still here in Germany, others are all over the world. When I told them how I felt, they cheered me up – on from the UK and the other all the way from China! My uni course currently deals with emotional challenges and psychology of communication and it’s really opening my eyes. I consider myself quite empathic, yet, I’ve found, that for a long time I have tried to gain the attention and affection of narcissists and that needs to stop as there can’t be the proper emotional exchange I need.
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you I’ve contemplated getting another Midori. I love my Midori Traveler’s Notebook so much, but I found that I’d do better to have one for my planner and general notes, and one for my creativity. So I’ve been looking into planners, but found them quite expensive. I also wasn’t sure whether to buy Midori again or one of the many copycats. So I asked questions in the Midori group on Facebook. “Where did you get yours?” “Who has smooth leather?” “What size did you go for?” and “Is X-Vendor worth the expense?”
A friend I went to school with in New Zealand 12 years ago saw my questions and asked what I was after. I explained I wanted a planner that would hold plenty of notebooks so I could keep them all together and had been looking at a few choices but couldn’t make up my mind. And then she offered her used one to me, as she said she had plenty. It’s the size I wanted and by sought-after vendor ChicSparrow, so I asked her how much she wanted for it. And she said: “Nothing. It’s yours!” And if that wasn’t generous enough, she said she’d put together a nice little kiwiana package for me with treats I’ve not had in 12 years!
My week had been really dark, and then a friend like her comes along and makes me smile genuinely for the first time in days! I am beyond grateful!
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you about The Beaux’ Stratagem. The play is currently being performed at the National Theatre in London, and on Thursday evening, the performance was broadcast live to cinemas worldwide thanks to NTlive. I think NTlive is the best thing that’s happened to theatre, as it opens up plays to audiences who couldn’t have gone to see it otherwise. You get the theatre experience without the travel expense of going to London for a night. The Beaux’ Stratagem was a really good show, witty, funny, fast-paced. My review will follow!
If we were having coffee, I’d quickly tell you about September 1. Because a new year started at Hogwarts, and it was James Sirius Potter’s first day. He got sorted into Gryffindor, by the way, to nobody’s big surprise. So a new generation of Potters and Weasleys is now at Hogwarts. J.K. Rowling tweeted that those at King’s Cross should wave him off to school for her. And images appeared showing the Hogwarts Express on departure boards (though for some reason it was running 30 minutes late). It’s hard to believe that the golden trio would be all grown up by now. I feel like I’ve grown up with them, and in many ways I have. So I got carried away about it being James’ first day and I told my mum about it. Her only response: “It’s just a book.” I’ve given up arguing – some of us need books and all the worlds they introduce us to. Some never feel the magic. But those who don’t have no right to tell those who do that living in a book is wrong. Hogwarts, Middle-Earth, Baker Street, Narnia – all those places have at times felt more like home than my actual home. And they continue to do so. So no, it’s not “just a book.”
Anyway, my quick coffee turned longer than anticipated. I need to get back to my studies. It will be quiet on this blog for at least another week. After that, I’m hoping to restore a sense of normality.
I’m sure the other Weekend Coffee Sharers would also love to see your lovely face. There’s plenty of coffee left to go around.
Thank you for having coffee with me. Same time, next week?
Study. Read. Write. 
Hi Connie! My internet connection is very bad and I can’t google it but- what is SAD? (Pardon my ignorance
)
I hope writing this post was therapeutic for you, I often find it to be.
Good luck with your studies this week!
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Hi Ellie. SAD stands for Seasonal Affective Disorder. Colloquially known as Summer or Winter Blues. I’m usually affected in the winter, but thanks to the lack of a proper summer, my symptoms persist all year. Often Light Therapy (special UV lights) help, especially in winter because of the lack of natural light.
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I really hope that you are fine.
No one ever understood my love for Harry Potter, not even myself. I was not happy when it started going viral… As it was my sacred universe. I do guess we grew up with him, at least with his adventures.
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I really like the formatting and concept of this post. Sub a fun idea to share your thoughts journal style but over a virtual cup of coffee. Thanks for the great post. It was lovely and a nice way to start my day. 🙂
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Hi Conny, enjoyed sharing a coffee with you. Sounds like you’ve had some ups and downs. But, sounds like your friend’s kindness helped you through it. Good luck with your studies. Oh by the way I reckon that I suffer from SAD too, does the light box work?
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In England it used to work. Here I’m not so sure. Back in the UK, I’d have it on and sit next to it for 20 mins every morning while having breakfast / coffee. It was usually still dark out. Then I’d turn it back on at night after work and sit next to it for a while. It did help, friends noticed a change in me within a week. But here in Germany, I’ve not had the same effect for some reason. I got my Light Therapy from Amazon, and it’s about A3 in size although there are different models out there. I’ve also started to take vitamin supplements, especially for enhancing B12, Folic Acid and anything enhancing Vitamin D.
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Thanks Conny, that’s good to know will check out Amazon I’ve got a feeling I might need a little helping hand this year as I don’t feel as if I’ve had much summer sun, and not likely to find any now! A supplement might be good too. I’ve never had a light therapy box so it would be worth a try. Hope it starts working for you in Germany Conny. All the best, Marje
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Thank you Marje! I hope you find a light that works for you. Just make sure it has 10,000 Lux. I got one similar to this. http://www.amazon.co.uk/SAD-Light-Box-Medically-Certified/dp/B000YSDHZ8/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1441473747&sr=8-6&keywords=therapy+light
All the best, Conny
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Thanks so much for the link Conny, that’s very kind of you. 🙂
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I’ll swap your SAD with my DWD (Deutschland Withdrawal Disorder). While its effect has lessened over the past few years, there are still times I miss Germany terribly – warm summers in the parks of Düsseldorf, the Christmas Markets, Karnival, Japantag – the list goes on and on.
I think it’s wonderful you’re keeping up with life in Hogwarts. I introduced my oldest to Harry Potter last year and he’s now on The Prisoner of Azkaban. It’s a great series.
Schöne grüße aus England. Dylan
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Danke Dir, Dylan! You should come back over here some day! Though this summer’s been quite wet. Solingen’s annual flea market Zöppkesmarkt is on next weekend. Harry Potter is a brilliant series. And not just for children. Plus it’s a great gateway series to more grown-up fantasy literature.
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Hope you’re feeling better soon! The winter months wreak havoc with my anxiety and depression, too, so I try to make sure I get out in the sunlight more than usual. Luckily, that’s far easier here than it is in some places, so I haven’t needed to get a sunlamp.
Hope your studies are going well!
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I am glad that you had friends that could cheer you up. I found German weather depressing, and am thankful that it is more sunny here, but I don’t have SAD so I hope you do get that therapy light out.
What is your Mum talking about – there are only books? Harry Potter series is so much more than that for so many of us! Have a great week!
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I hope things get better soon, its always hard to feel positive when summer thinks it is a rainy autumn. I don’t understand what your mum was talking about. Does she not know that books are all that matters? That the truths books contain colour our experience of real life things?
Hope this week is easier.
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I’m so sorry you’re feeling down. However, I’m also glad that you are thinking about seeing the doctor about it. That’s a wise thing to do before it gets worse.
Another Midori! What a good friend that is to send you one of hers! I’m sure it will cheer you a bit too be setting it up and every time you use it you can think about how kind people can be. I think that’s a positive thing.
Take care. Don’t overwork yourself. Try to find at least one thing to smile about each hour of the day…even Hogwarts related.
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Sorry to hear about your SAD, and that it’s getting worse. Take care of yourself. Eat well, take vitamins, exercise. I know it’s harder to do when you’re feeling down, but it can really make a difference.
I hope James is doing well at Hogwarts! My life is too busy to keep up with that news (and my kids aren’t old enough for it yet), so thanks for the update! Have a great week.
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I’m sorry to hear about your SAD acting up. Sarah gives some good advice. I’ve found that supplementing vitamin D really helps me with it. I too have issues when there is not enough sun.
I couldn’t believe James was already off to Hogwarts, just like my son. I always thought the Harry Potter trio was much younger than me. Books and the worlds in them are magical.
Thanks for the cup of coffee, Conny. It’s been a while since our last cup. I’ve quite missed it.
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How lucky I feel on this early Saturday morning to find your blog and be able to share a cup of coffee with you! How cool that your friend had just the right Midori cover… treats and all… just for you. It’s a special kind of magic! Same with the amazing and magical lands that creatively talented authors can dream up for us to share. It isn’t just a book… it is their love… imagination…gift… to the world… to you and me. A gift that can touch your life and heart in so many ways. The thing is, how sad that your mom has never had an amazingly special experience from a book. As for me, books are my friends… that I treasure. I am fifty years old and still have some of the kid books I had when I was little. Seeing them up there on the shelf makes me smile… and it is my hope that I will be able to share them with someone… some eager child, sometime. So feel really lucky that you can see and experience the magic of a good book/story… I bet you see lots of the other magic that this world has to offer that other people will never experience. 🙂
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