Living in Germany Helloween never ever was a topic for me. Besides knowing it out of a  few movies occasionally  showing dressed up kids walking around and asking for candy and a few oversea contacts mentioning it, it always remains a funny but strange behavior for me.

Now since a few years the shops here have started to sell Helloween stuff as well  ….

Me always wondering about who really would need that to buy that, last year I was very surprised seeing two little ghosts and a bit of a pumpkin decoration at home.

Also our German kids seems to like it and once again it looks the Americans have archived to export some of their good stuff (like Hamburgers, Windows, root beer, Dr. Pepper Coke and KFC …. ) to us.

Nevertheless receiving some Helloween greetings today was fun indeed. It is still not like I would care about this Helloween. But seeing someone making effort, even sending greetings to people living in oversea is great. And specially in this case when exchange isn’t really that much though it values double!!

Perhaps I should now mark down this Oct, 31 for sending greetings myself next year?!!

The older I get, the more I’m interested in people and their stories. Not that you get that wrong now! It is the exchanging with "interesting" people I’m talking about right now. That talking with people having charisma, perhaps done something special or in generally having some story to share. And most important that people being able to carry on some interesting conversation with you.

Last few years for example I had the pleasure, traveling the one and other time together with some really interesting guy for work issues. A philosophy professor which had made his way somehow to computer science and databases, helping me with and teaching me about database tuning. Whenever we traveled together I enjoyed most sitting next to him and being able to talk about really everything with him … traveling time always was short about our chats.

Just often it is purely that fascinating difference I can feel when talking with someone grown up in another country. Someone living at a different place, living a totally different life from mine and is willing to share it with me like Jill my friend living on a cattle station out there in the Outback of OZ.

Recently I got in contact with a couple being right back from a world trip they have made, being on tour now for nearly year. You get it? That is what I’m talking about and for sure I’m very keen to hear their story …

For me it’s also interesting to learn about how the life of others you have met once in your life has turned out later on. Also recently I got in contact with some former class mate of me. I’ve seen her last at an age of 16 and all I remember is that at that time she was a real beauty. No! It is not like that would be some real criteria, but seeing her now next Thursday I’m for sure looking forward to proof memory.

But at the end and to be honest it is this rare, but for me very special friendships which sometimes start to grow out of such contacts, in case you really archive to stay in contact. And the deep sureness that interest is mutual.

Always when I think I’ve seen it all … I find something new, fancy, funny and nerdy thingy …. trapping my interest.

So it happened again yesterday evening when I was a bit bored waiting for some import to finish and started searching through YouTube and all those funny video clips there. Sure, most of them crap and I have to be in a rather funny or lazy mood to do so - normally I see it as wasted time though.

Just this evening I felt too tired to do something else besides and so I ended up in finding this clip here with explanations about how to create you own 25ct WIFI extender. Instead of buying some US$ 25 (or more) new fancy highend antenna instead.

Sure, the physically principle is not really new and even without testing it, I would be sure about it works …. But I guess nerdy as I am, this evening now is already reserved handicraft work time verifying it!

A few weeks ago there were some news about an accident happend at a smaller town close to were we live. Some worker was killed by an tradically accident getting in contact with some blank electricity earth cable while working.

Bad Luck? How can that happen? Why didn’t someone take care about the power was cut off first? 

That were thoughts coming up in my mind while listening to the radio news about …. The usual stuff for sure, and then I forgot about again.

Now today I got in contact with some older friend of mine. A former coworker at a position I had left ages ago. And reading her reply on a friendly line I had passed on earlier was somewhat confusing to me. Knowing her as an always friendly and happy person, I got immediately aware about something had gone wrong with or for her.

Today talking with her it turned out that this poor worker touching the wire was …. her hubby!
How sad and tragically is that?! I’m so sorry for her and her two poor little boys …..

When I speak about ‘Gates to the World’ I’m not speaking about that fancy Stargate stuff (although I really would enjoy being allowed to use some).

My gates to the world are airports. Now I’m not travelling that often that travelling itself would become boring routine. And heading to one of those gates always promises new and exciting stuff.

Each of them is individual for sure and a few I ‘was allowed’ to use even weren’t really worth to be called airport. More some longer straight road somewhere in the bush with a few facilities close by.

But over the years a few of them have become more familiar than others and a few of them really feel like well know locations now.

First of all there is Fraport …. my very own starting Gate for nearly every trip I do. Now not being aware about the ranking list of airports, Frankfurt is certainly one of the biggest in the world and therefore starting there often makes you wonder about some small and ‘provincial’ appearing airport somewhere out in that world close to some famous and well know town.

Now there were also some really fancy airports I’ve visited once like Beijing Capital International Airport or Kai Tak Airport at Hong Kong (the old one) where aircrafts had to fly across the skyscrapers and landing and finally touch down nearly appeared like going down directly within the sea.

Singapore Changi International Airport is special for me as for I was already there several time and never left the international area of the airport as for I was always in transit …. strange as for I have even customers there.

And finally a few airports have become special to me as for they are my Gates for visiting friends.

Now I will make it a bit difficult for you only giving you the airport short name for guessing …. there is YYZ, SYD and finally PER. You are informed now?!