Sorry, for the German title and attached German song, but sometimes I can't avoid to bring content in my native language I've got us a new header picture yesterday night. It shows the Pacific coast of the US taken from scenic road #1 somewhere south of Monterey. The day it was taken was one of the last hot summerdays I've had in my US holidays. Afterwards, the weather became colder.

Got to admit, that I missed the great wheather, for a while, although the skiing holiday one week later was equal fun. Guess I can't decide, whether I'm a summer or a winter guy. But well - do I have to? At the moment I really enjoy the summery wheather. But for the days the weather won't be so nice, I've attached the video!

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Daily Life, Media, Web-Site at 13:27 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0)

1000 - Almost exactly this was the number of bales of hay I had to handle today and yesterday. At the moment I don't feel a lot like sitting in front of the computer, so you'll have to wait a little to see some pictures (Last year's pictures are linked here.). Since I handled each bale about two times the total amount of hay I lifted during the last two days should be about 25 tons. No need to visit a fitness centre...

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Daily Life at 18:15 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Most of you know, that I really like my Tevas – as soon as the weather is fairly suitable I like to wear those comfortable sandals. They just give you more freedom, and I enjoy the good grip. Now I discovered some even more extreme piece of footwear – the Vibram Fivefingers (In Germany they are sold using the trademark Lizard). I really got to get hold of those interesting shoe innovation, since the idea of walking almost barefoot through everything fascinates me. The company homepage describes there product as follows:

When you go barefoot, your movements become the movements of a child—playful and sensitive, yet purposeful and confident. You experience the unbound joy of stepping, hopping, and running across any surface on earth, simply to get from here to there.
FiveFingers® footwear frees you to relive that sensation. Unlike conventional shoes that insulate you from your surroundings, FiveFingers footwear deepens your connection to the earth and your natural environment. It enhances your tactile sense of touch and feel, making you acutely aware of your body and dramatically improving both balance and agility. Because wearing Vibram FiveFingers is so close to going barefoot, you enjoy the health and performance benefits of barefooting without some of the risks.
Outdoor enthusiasts have found FiveFingers to be the ideal crossover shoe for multiple sports and activities—from ChiRunning and bouldering to kayaking and windsurfing. And our customers continually discover new and creative uses for our alternative performance footwear.

Unluckily the product is available at the European market only at an outrageous price of 85 Euros (in the US it is sold for 70$). This goes beyond my current budget for footwear. But if you want to make me a present, or if you are a distributer of this shoes and looking for a review - size 45 should do it .

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Lost and Found at 18:02 | Comments (5) | Trackbacks (0)

The summer is almost over, but I finally managed to compile a second CD containing my most favourite tracks related to “summer” and “sunshine” (See this post for the first compilation). After some searching it wasn’t too easy to find my favourite songs amongst all of the possible tracks, but I think I gathered together a nice collection of cool recent and past tracks.

Pohlmann – Wenn jetzt Sommer wär (a German singer-songwriter dreaming of summer time)
The Ataris – Boys of summer (just gaining more momentum than Don Henley’s original version)
Heiko and Maiko – Sonnenschein (light weighted house track dreaming of sunshine)
Luttenberger-Klug - Super Sommer (see this article)
Bananafishbones - 1. FC Sommer (this track is just relaxing)
Peter Licht – Sonnendeck (similar relaxing like the Bananafishbones)
Patrick Nuo – Five days (this track has no “summer” or “sunshine” in its title, but it tells the story of a summer love story.)
Katrina and the Waves – Walking on Sunshine (the classic track dealing with sunshine)
Kate Yanai – Summer Dreaming
Mungo Jerry - In the summertime
Laid Back – Sunshine Reggae
DMX – Ain’t no Sunshine
David Tavare – Summer Love
Milk and Suga – Let the Sunshine in
The Corrs – Summer Sunshine
The Underdog Project - Summer jam 2003
Texas – Summer Son
Los Massot – Un rayo del sol (first really noticed that song being whistled in “Lucia y el sexo”)
Ace Of Base - Cruel Summer (Hartmann & Langhoff Short Mix)
Bananarama - Cruel Summer
Dido – Sand in my shoes (Not necessarily a summer song – but it very well tells the story arriving at home after a great summer holiday)

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Media at 08:34 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0)

The weather was a real dream – blue skies, temperatures above 25°C – only the relatively cold water at the swimming pool was a little annoying. Anyway, it was the perfect day to be lazy and to enjoy the sun. I managed to finish reading Gabor Steingart’s recent book, and was busy preparing some blog-postings.

Dinner: Spaghetti a la carbonara – Pizza funghi porcini - Profiteroles

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Travel at 08:24 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

The weather forecast predicts some 28°C for tomorrow and I predict a riot if this won’t come true! It’s just to cold right now? Where is the beautiful summer we had when we celebrated the soccer worldcup? I’m yearning for sunshine and warm weather! So dear sun, please don’t let me down and come back! Once you are back I won’t let you go!

Illustration via http://www.explodingdog.com/

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Daily Life at 21:17 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)

In 1998 just some weeks before I went into my final grammar school exams I compiled a few songs to my personal Summershine compilation. This CD was a very good companion through the last years, when I was searching for some summer songs. Right now I’m about to compile a second volume with more and newer summer related songs. But since we have youtube these days I’ve added available video links to my original track list. Hope you like it!

Playahitty – The Summer is magic
Pearl – Summer Holiday
Scooter – Endless Summer
Crème 21 – Wann wirds mal wieder richtig Sommer (1996)
Joe Cocker – Summer in the city
Dario G – Sunchyme
Bryan Adams – Summer of 69
Fun Factory – Celebration
Captain Jack - Holiday
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Sweet home Alabama
Mr. President – Coco Jambo
Dr. Motte ft. Westbam – Sunshine (Anthem Love parade 1997)
Aphrodisi – Sunshine
Alphaville – Forever Young
Scooter – I’m Raving
DJ Pierro – Another World
Fun Factory – Take your chance
3-O-Matic – Success

I still remember that a few songs including "3-O-Matic - Success" were taken from the compilation "Megahits 95 - Die Erste". "Success" and "Take your chance" were some of my favorites songs at this time - i used them to motivate myself for my exams. I still remember when I drove to my school before my first A-Level exam and listened to this two songs.. what a feeling. Guess you gotta be a friend of Eurodance to enjoy..

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Media at 18:10 | Comments (0) | Trackback (1)

Some Song lyrics strike through their simplicity – and often less is more. Listening to German songs this wisdom accompanied me through the last years. Songs just don’t have to tell complicated stories – sometimes they just have to transmit a certain feeling… One of this outstanding songs was “Juli – Die Perfekte Welle”, listening to this song I really a feeling like just getting the wave right and being able to go for the next goals.

This summer I found a similar song from the Austrian Duo Luttenberger/Klug. This song is a good example that you don’t need excessive casting projects to get young people together creating decent music. Sometimes this happens by coincidence. According to an interview the parents of Michelle Luttenberger und Chrissi Klug know each other for quite a long time, and so the two girls got to know each other and their passion for music – what a sweet story..

Anyway, the song “Super Sommer” transmits a relaxed optimistic feeling but also talks about a commitment – although it is just a loose commitment. The main lyrics translate “I want to spend this great summer with you”. I really like this optimistic attitude!

Can this song compete being a summer hit 2006? It’s probably nothing but a shallow pop song.. But maybe it’s more. What do you think?

Have a look at the attached lyrics, watch the video or listen to the song at the girls myspace site.

Posted by Jürgen Hösch in Media at 16:29 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (2)