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lupestripeWith the weather starting to turn - with double digit temperatures and sunny days - the desire to go out has risen, even if the need to save money is still there. Unusually for us, we also went out mid-week, largely because I had a dentist appointment on Tuesday. Going into this, I was full of trepidation as I had been told I'd had the onset of gum disease during my visit last July. Since then, things have been noticeably better, with my new oral regime really reducing the amount of tartar on my teeth significantly. There has also been much less bleeding so I was feeling comfortable enough going into the surgery. Alas, things aren't 100% as although there has been a marked improvement, there are 'pockets' of gum recession in my back teeth which may require treatment. I have another appointment on 25 March to measure their extent. Considering that having perfect teeth was such a badge of honour throughout my childhood, the news hit me quite hard, even if it is an inevitable part of getting old. Still, it's treatable and the insurance will pay for it, so hopefully it'll be swiftly addressed.
As this was a late appointment and Wolfie was in the office, we thought it made sense to go and get some food as Wilmersdorfer Strasse is right in the centre of Charlottenburg, with many good restaurants to try. Initially, we were going to go to to the Egyptian place that Seebass had taken me to last autumn but we discovered it was closed. We therefore ended up going to Japanese place Momiji, which we were going to visit after my last dentist appointment but we were attracted by a rola Indian place instead. Wolfie was a little late and I was worried about not getting a seat, but he arrived just in time for us to grab the last table. The food was exquisite and may be the best meal I have ever had in my life. It was certainly in the top five. The Yakiniku Udon was the perfect mix of soft cool noodles, crispy lettuce leaves and warm BBQ teriyaki beef that textually, temperature and flavour receptors were in complete harmony. With a few bottles of Japanese craft beer, this was ultimately a divine experience and we were buzzing when we left the restaurant. We decided to go to the BRLO bar and ended up drinking four beers in their convivial ambience, as well as having some of their delicious sourdough bread and salted caramel butter. This too is one of my favourite dishes in this city and returning after midnight, we were both very happy.
Friday we were due to see Bloodywood over at Huxleys Neue Welt. The original plan had been for Wolfie to go into work and meet me there, as his office is just three stops from Hermannplatz, where the gig was. However, he slept poorly and opted to stay at home, which made logistics easier. Huxleys Neue Welt is a fantastic concert venue although it is rather cramped, particularly up the spiral steps and through the main atrium areas to get to the stage. However, in the main room itself, there is a raised platform at the back and we snagged a front row standing area by the railings, which meant we had a fantastic view of the whole stage and the energetic mosh pit below. We were a little further back, true, but it was nice to see a gig that didn't involve me trying to stare past someone's tall head. We arrived quite early, meaning we got to see both support bands. Demonic Resurrection have been an Indian metal band for 25 years, pre-dating Bloodywood by a long way. They were perhaps a little too heavy for me, but their musicanship was certainly good and their set engaging. The same is true of the more melodic Calva Louise, a Venezuelan, French, New Zealand outfit based in Britain. Their songs were more catchy, with the lead singer having a moveable keyboard which she slid across whenever she needed to play that rather than her guitar. The main band, of course though, were Bloodywood and they were electric. The sheer power and rage behind their performance was energising and the room lit up. Machi Bhasad is still their top song and the venue hit the roof when it played, but Aaj, Jee Veeray and others were also received well. The tracks from their forthcoming new album slotted in well too, and I am looking forward to hearing it later this month. This is the third time we had seen Bloodywood and they now have enough songs for a full one-hour set, which is nice. We definitely want to go and see them again. What was most powerful though was we were seeing the gig during the backdrop of Trump and Zelenskyy's fateful meeting in The White House. Here, two Brits in the German capital seeing an Indian band highlighted the pointlessness of international borders and how shared values transcend them. Despite how grim things are now getting, there is a certain value and comfort in that.
Muted Horn is just one U-Bahn stop from Hermannplatz so it made sense to go there afterwards. Skaugen, who we met in the venue, declined to join us as he was feeling tired while Wolfie struggled to make the walk as four hours of standing wasn't great on his leg. Still, we got there and managed to nab a small table, meaning we were free to sample a range of their wonderful beers. The Irish guy behind the bar recognised us and asked us where we had been, confessing he had wanted to go and see Bloodywood himself but had to work. Halfway through the evening, some random bloke sat at our table uninvited and worked on his laptop, which annoyed Wolfie as he couldn't stretch his swollen leg as easily. In the end though we ignored him and ended up staying until last orders, being turfed out at around 2am. We went back via U8 and U7 to Spandau.
Saturday was BDSM Furry Munch day but we had already written it off on account of the Bloodywood gig. I think that's why Skaugen went home early, but even though my horniess has risen over the last week, it is still a stretch too far to get back into BDSM at this point. I'll probably just end up cancelling our Qualgeist membership as we hardly ever go, even though my lack of BDSM activities right now is causing real jealousy when I scan what people are up to on social media. I'm acutely aware how little sex I get too, and this too is getting me down. Despite this, in the end, I just walked around Spandau and enjoyed the day, while we ordered pizza from Happy Slice in the evening. I also did a little more writing, but my enthusiasm for this has really hit the floor in the last week. I got some complicated feedback on one of my stories which hit me harder than I thought, and although the second set of feedback was better, I am questioning what the point of all this is. Everything is going glacially slowly, no-one seems all that bothered, and I burnt myself out over the last few months with my profligacy. Maybe things will change in a few weeks time after some rest, but anger was my primary motivation throughout February and I think I just burnt myself out.
Today there was a meet-up at a Flipper Hall in Teltow. Having never been to a pinball arcade place, nor this suburb of Berlin, I decided to go, even if it is a 90 minute journey from Spandau on a Sunday. There is very little in Teltow in all honesty - a nice church, a market place and a few memorials - so all it took was 15 minutes to walk around before I headed to the gaming area. This is on the second floor of a huge warehouse and it was quite difficult to work out how to get in. Still, once I had discovered the big grey industrial door and had climbed up the steps, I was greeted to the clammy warmth and loud cacophony of so many people playing. Payment is a trust system, with a cash and card machine as you enter, and after spending a while figuring out how it all worked, I soon paid my €10 and I was in. Drinks were on an honour system too and I ended up buying a Coca-Cola and a beer the same way as I'd paid my entry. I bumped into Feo early on and he wanted a chat, so we hung around the tables at the bar area while the others played. Someone called Tiny Twin joined us and we were delighted to discover he lives about 15 minutes walk from us. He was very easy to talk to, and we chatted for a good half hour, even discussing evening meal plans which sadly didn't come to fruition. After this, I did end up playing quite a few of the pinball machines, which I found strangely addictive. It took me a while to work out strategies, and I ignored my scores for a good long time, but I got the hang of it pretty swiftly and it took me back to the days of playing Pinball on my 1990s PC. The rattling of the machines was intoxicating, as were the flickering lights, while I loved all of the different themes. The Metallica one was probably my favourite, with the vomiting snake telling you your score.
I must have played eight or nine in the end, with my friends leaving one by one. Feo was first, then the Kalynx/Seebass group, which seemed to contain everyone else I knew. This meant that despite talking about food plans, I was left on my own in the venue. I sneaked out shortly afterwards and made my way home via public transport, but being abandoned did leave me feeling down. It was like a visceral thing from my childhood as this stuff happened quite often. I don't think it was personal nor deliberate, and maybe I should have asked to tag along, but I know Kalynx has driven and so there would have been no room. In the end, I ended up coming back to Spandau feeling somewhat unhappy. Still, this did mean that Wolfie and I could go out for dinner and we ended up in Chettinad, our favourite Indian place that has moved one door down since the last time we went there. This premises is slightly smaller, which suits the clientele they get, while it's directly behind their little summer garden, which makes sense too. The food here was as delicious as ever, but the chicken tikka masala they gave was not spicy as I had asked. All of the food also came in a random order, with the poppadoms being served last, but it was all fine. I still feel very bloated now though and wonder why I do this to myself. It was great food though and on the way home, we also saw a fox, who spent quite a while staring at me before becoming more interested in leaves. That was a great end to the weekend.
As this was a late appointment and Wolfie was in the office, we thought it made sense to go and get some food as Wilmersdorfer Strasse is right in the centre of Charlottenburg, with many good restaurants to try. Initially, we were going to go to to the Egyptian place that Seebass had taken me to last autumn but we discovered it was closed. We therefore ended up going to Japanese place Momiji, which we were going to visit after my last dentist appointment but we were attracted by a rola Indian place instead. Wolfie was a little late and I was worried about not getting a seat, but he arrived just in time for us to grab the last table. The food was exquisite and may be the best meal I have ever had in my life. It was certainly in the top five. The Yakiniku Udon was the perfect mix of soft cool noodles, crispy lettuce leaves and warm BBQ teriyaki beef that textually, temperature and flavour receptors were in complete harmony. With a few bottles of Japanese craft beer, this was ultimately a divine experience and we were buzzing when we left the restaurant. We decided to go to the BRLO bar and ended up drinking four beers in their convivial ambience, as well as having some of their delicious sourdough bread and salted caramel butter. This too is one of my favourite dishes in this city and returning after midnight, we were both very happy.
Friday we were due to see Bloodywood over at Huxleys Neue Welt. The original plan had been for Wolfie to go into work and meet me there, as his office is just three stops from Hermannplatz, where the gig was. However, he slept poorly and opted to stay at home, which made logistics easier. Huxleys Neue Welt is a fantastic concert venue although it is rather cramped, particularly up the spiral steps and through the main atrium areas to get to the stage. However, in the main room itself, there is a raised platform at the back and we snagged a front row standing area by the railings, which meant we had a fantastic view of the whole stage and the energetic mosh pit below. We were a little further back, true, but it was nice to see a gig that didn't involve me trying to stare past someone's tall head. We arrived quite early, meaning we got to see both support bands. Demonic Resurrection have been an Indian metal band for 25 years, pre-dating Bloodywood by a long way. They were perhaps a little too heavy for me, but their musicanship was certainly good and their set engaging. The same is true of the more melodic Calva Louise, a Venezuelan, French, New Zealand outfit based in Britain. Their songs were more catchy, with the lead singer having a moveable keyboard which she slid across whenever she needed to play that rather than her guitar. The main band, of course though, were Bloodywood and they were electric. The sheer power and rage behind their performance was energising and the room lit up. Machi Bhasad is still their top song and the venue hit the roof when it played, but Aaj, Jee Veeray and others were also received well. The tracks from their forthcoming new album slotted in well too, and I am looking forward to hearing it later this month. This is the third time we had seen Bloodywood and they now have enough songs for a full one-hour set, which is nice. We definitely want to go and see them again. What was most powerful though was we were seeing the gig during the backdrop of Trump and Zelenskyy's fateful meeting in The White House. Here, two Brits in the German capital seeing an Indian band highlighted the pointlessness of international borders and how shared values transcend them. Despite how grim things are now getting, there is a certain value and comfort in that.
Muted Horn is just one U-Bahn stop from Hermannplatz so it made sense to go there afterwards. Skaugen, who we met in the venue, declined to join us as he was feeling tired while Wolfie struggled to make the walk as four hours of standing wasn't great on his leg. Still, we got there and managed to nab a small table, meaning we were free to sample a range of their wonderful beers. The Irish guy behind the bar recognised us and asked us where we had been, confessing he had wanted to go and see Bloodywood himself but had to work. Halfway through the evening, some random bloke sat at our table uninvited and worked on his laptop, which annoyed Wolfie as he couldn't stretch his swollen leg as easily. In the end though we ignored him and ended up staying until last orders, being turfed out at around 2am. We went back via U8 and U7 to Spandau.
Saturday was BDSM Furry Munch day but we had already written it off on account of the Bloodywood gig. I think that's why Skaugen went home early, but even though my horniess has risen over the last week, it is still a stretch too far to get back into BDSM at this point. I'll probably just end up cancelling our Qualgeist membership as we hardly ever go, even though my lack of BDSM activities right now is causing real jealousy when I scan what people are up to on social media. I'm acutely aware how little sex I get too, and this too is getting me down. Despite this, in the end, I just walked around Spandau and enjoyed the day, while we ordered pizza from Happy Slice in the evening. I also did a little more writing, but my enthusiasm for this has really hit the floor in the last week. I got some complicated feedback on one of my stories which hit me harder than I thought, and although the second set of feedback was better, I am questioning what the point of all this is. Everything is going glacially slowly, no-one seems all that bothered, and I burnt myself out over the last few months with my profligacy. Maybe things will change in a few weeks time after some rest, but anger was my primary motivation throughout February and I think I just burnt myself out.
Today there was a meet-up at a Flipper Hall in Teltow. Having never been to a pinball arcade place, nor this suburb of Berlin, I decided to go, even if it is a 90 minute journey from Spandau on a Sunday. There is very little in Teltow in all honesty - a nice church, a market place and a few memorials - so all it took was 15 minutes to walk around before I headed to the gaming area. This is on the second floor of a huge warehouse and it was quite difficult to work out how to get in. Still, once I had discovered the big grey industrial door and had climbed up the steps, I was greeted to the clammy warmth and loud cacophony of so many people playing. Payment is a trust system, with a cash and card machine as you enter, and after spending a while figuring out how it all worked, I soon paid my €10 and I was in. Drinks were on an honour system too and I ended up buying a Coca-Cola and a beer the same way as I'd paid my entry. I bumped into Feo early on and he wanted a chat, so we hung around the tables at the bar area while the others played. Someone called Tiny Twin joined us and we were delighted to discover he lives about 15 minutes walk from us. He was very easy to talk to, and we chatted for a good half hour, even discussing evening meal plans which sadly didn't come to fruition. After this, I did end up playing quite a few of the pinball machines, which I found strangely addictive. It took me a while to work out strategies, and I ignored my scores for a good long time, but I got the hang of it pretty swiftly and it took me back to the days of playing Pinball on my 1990s PC. The rattling of the machines was intoxicating, as were the flickering lights, while I loved all of the different themes. The Metallica one was probably my favourite, with the vomiting snake telling you your score.
I must have played eight or nine in the end, with my friends leaving one by one. Feo was first, then the Kalynx/Seebass group, which seemed to contain everyone else I knew. This meant that despite talking about food plans, I was left on my own in the venue. I sneaked out shortly afterwards and made my way home via public transport, but being abandoned did leave me feeling down. It was like a visceral thing from my childhood as this stuff happened quite often. I don't think it was personal nor deliberate, and maybe I should have asked to tag along, but I know Kalynx has driven and so there would have been no room. In the end, I ended up coming back to Spandau feeling somewhat unhappy. Still, this did mean that Wolfie and I could go out for dinner and we ended up in Chettinad, our favourite Indian place that has moved one door down since the last time we went there. This premises is slightly smaller, which suits the clientele they get, while it's directly behind their little summer garden, which makes sense too. The food here was as delicious as ever, but the chicken tikka masala they gave was not spicy as I had asked. All of the food also came in a random order, with the poppadoms being served last, but it was all fine. I still feel very bloated now though and wonder why I do this to myself. It was great food though and on the way home, we also saw a fox, who spent quite a while staring at me before becoming more interested in leaves. That was a great end to the weekend.
