Musik

Usually I don't listen to german music much but now and then comes a couple of nice songs that I bump into. One such song is Ohne dich (schlaf ich heut nacht nicht ein) - AKA Without You ( I can't sleep tonight) - is Münchner Freiheit - or Munich Freedom - based on my loose translating skills. I had some of their songs mainly because I was helping my sis-in-law compile some music on CDs and had to get the mp3 versions. Anyhow, it was on random play in my ipod and it started playing in the middle of the night and it started getting my feeling kinda soppy and sentimental. I never expected a german song to do that to me.

I mean, germans are supposed to be these hard headed, choleric, unfeeling, brutal, evil teutonic people - for the most parts, you'll never meet a more stubborn sort (sic!) who won't budge from their point of view once they decide to put their fences down and sit on it. If you should choose to move them from that, then I predict massive amounts of pain on your part. Anyhow, it made me wonder how they could come up with such a great track. Maybe it had to do with the translation - without any knowledge of german it could be anything and I'd have no idea but maybe it was the melody, the mood, the words.

German have a strange way of creating doublets in their songs, poetry, rhyme and verse akin to certain english writers such as Chaucer and Shakespeare, although Shakespeare was technically more advanced with his language, Chaucer probably comes closest. I had to learn the Canterbury Tales and believe you me, it wasn't easy. I can only guess that was a modernization - then in the 1300s - of the angle-saxon dialect infused with norman influences ala William the Conqueror. I'm a fond lover of medieval history and what I can get my hands in material, I'll happily devour.

Bla bla bla....either that or shoot yourself from the boredom of travelling by horse from London to Canterbury

I remember growing up with the Encyclopedia Britanica - now a relic of bygone days, thanks to the DVD haha - and spending hours just opening it up and reading it. Reading is a lost art now in most cases because as kids nowadays, you've got the internet, and no cozy fire and a warm book. Although I tended to think that if the book was useless as reading material, it would do better as firewood. I guess that's what happens to all those useless business reports and articles that are "supposed" to disappear from people's offices during the cold winter months. ^^

Still figuring out what to give wifey for Christmas. *twiddles thumbs* Actually I've got an idea but I won't be able to do it until next year. >_<