Hello :~)
Hello again everyone. This is coming to you hot from our new living room. As always, I hope you are lively. The recent updates from Golden Plains would suggest you're all thriving.
The last few weeks have flown by – a couple of milestones to remember it by: saying goodbye to beloved Josh and Maxie, moving offices at work, and finally Dom and I packing up our apartment and shuffled over to Kreuzberg.
Can you believe it is already mid-March? I've been meeting a lot of new people recently (we must all be coming out of winter hibernation finally) and when they ask me how long I've been living in Berlin I always instinctively say six months, before correcting myself and realising it's more like nine. The time has really slipped away. I've been worrying about the passing of time recently. I wish things would move slower so I had more time to appreciate it.
I have been at my job for three months now, which means I still have nine to go. If I was going to leave Berlin right after this job wrapped up, it would technically mean I am at about the halfway point of my time in Berlin. That's not to say that this is necessarily halfway, but it is making me reflect on what has happened and what's to come. Am I happy with how the last nine months panned out? How will I let the next nine go? Some things for me to ponder to myself, before out loud. I will of course let you know how this stream of consciousness works out.
I had pretty grand visions for how this email was going to go, but because we were without internet in our apartment for a bit, and because my parents have just come to visit me, I'm going to make it short and sweet. – I know that if I don't send this little nugget out now, it will only prolong the correspondence even more.
Apologies, it's really not my best work. But I missed you all – so here are the thoughts that have been wandering around in my brain recently.
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Transience
At work, the majority of the team is made up of interns. Most of these interns work for us for three to six months, before returning to study, or leaving to write their thesis. When I first joined the company, I was a pretty lonely hire – no one really started at the same time as me. Everyone appeared super chummy and I felt a little worried about how I was going to fit in.
Fast forward three months and 80% of those interns have left, and now the team is almost entirely new again. It seemed to happen out of nowhere. Suddenly we are doing introductions all over again and I am somehow one of the old kids in the office? Very weird.
Anyway, I’ve started to realise that this is not just something that happens at work, but a common occurrence in Berlin. I’ve been struggling to wrap my head around it a bit. It feels like everyone is here to sort themselves out, and then move on. I don’t blame them. It’s the perfect place to do it.
Sometimes though, I wonder if the transience of the city actually makes it unattractive. I wonder if people here are afraid to form roots.
This is not to say that the friendships I've made here haven't been nourishing and worthwhile. They have kept me going when I’ve not had much else going. But the constant change in this city has also made me a little scared to give myself away to new people I meet here – it is very taxing on the heart. One of my favourite people at work, who has a permanent role and I was reliant on staying at the company for as long as I would, is leaving to Lisbon next year. How do you form trusting relationships when they are gone as quickly as they come? It is something that plagues my mind a lot recently and has become one of the hardest things for me to deal with to feel settled in this city. I feel like an Avril Lavigne album cover.
I do miss the ease and comfort of friends on call in Melbourne. Even the people I know who have been in Berlin for a few years don't have the big circle of friends like we do in Melbourne. My boss, who has been here for six years now, has said that to be kinder to herself, she tries to avoid making friends with people who aren't committed to the city. I don't blame her at all, but these are also very much the reasons that make me scared to stay.
Anyway that's pretty much been the big idea that's been weighing on my mind for a couple of weeks now, and I am not sure how or what will help me be at ease with how things are going currently. The other night Dom and I went to a gig and the homesickness hit me harder than it has since we left Australia. I hope it gets easier soon, I didn’t expect it to hit me now.
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On your way out...
Dense Discovery
– Subscribe
I have a special email address I use to subscribe to just about any and every email newsletter I come across on the web. I thought maybe if people were interested I could start sharing some of my favourite ones I am subscribed to.
First up is Dense Discovery which is actually run by a German who now lives in Melbourne. Kai's newsletter is all about productivity, inspiration and motivation. I really like it because it's well designed and because it's an easy scroll – I don't have to think too much while I am reading it. It's perfect for anyone deep in the digital sphere.
Ganni Seersucker Dress
– Buy
Turns out winter DOES goes on for far too long in Berlin. I have tried to make the best out of a worst situation by doing a lot of online window shopping at a few Euro brands that were tough-ish to acquire in Melbourne. I am praying that this one will somehow make it to the sale section, although I might just take the plunge and buy it now.
The Aldi Effect
– Read
A super interesting long read about the history of Aldi – did you know the owner of Aldi was the richest man in Germany before he passed away? Second on the list was the owner of Lidl. I do have a personal preference for Aldi (the random aisle is much better than Lidl's), but Lidl is now closer to home. Warning: this takes about half an hour to read but is totally worth it if you have the time.
Niels Gammelgaard Moment Sofa
– Admire
I was actually going to devote an entire section of this issue to this goddamn couch but so much time has passed since when I first set out to write this email that the moment (pardon the pun) has passed a little. Mainly - I have spent far too many hours trying to source this couch with little success. But look how beautiful it is! Actually, just about everything Gammelgaard designed for IKEA back in the day was pretty incredible. I even almost bought the table version of this sofa, but unfortunately it won't quite fit in our new place.
Slack's Illustration Voice
– Read
At work I have been working on our brand's visual identity closely with our graphic designer/illustrator and CEO. It's been a really interesting and fun process and I have learnt so much about what makes for effective visual communication. This case study by illustrator Alice Lee is so well produced and really insightful as well. This is definitely some of the stuff I hope I get to continue to do in the future!
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Goodbye :~)
Okay okay! Until next time – after my parents come and go I should be able to take some nice photos of the apartment to share with you. Plus – please keep me updated on your (European) summer movements, I know some of you are starting to plan holidays and I would love to see you if you do make it to the Northern Hemisphere.
Lots and lots of love as always.
♡
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