white world.... blue smoke.

I find myself without much to say today. I'm tired from a busy weekend of highs and lows. The company christmas party was both good and awful. Good up until after the delicious meal when smoking was allowed in the main hall and the freaking craptastic band started playing at a volume they could hear in outer space. It's a company party not a fucking hard rock concert man, I'd kinda like to keep my hearing and be able to talk to my co workers without going hoarse, that and the cigarette smoking did it for me. Nice that smokers had freedom to light up but not so good for those of us who chose not to die of lung cancer or some other smoking related disease. Around a 1oo ppl lighting almost at once did me in and that was that. Ignorant and rude are two words that come to mind. Anyway we left at 10 and didn't look back. It was a nice party up until the smokers and the hearing aid brigade took over then it was a nightmare. It's not much fun when I can't breath and my ears hurt from the decibels.

We wandered around for a while in Hamburg's famous red light district, struggling not to slip on the icy sidewalks, marveling at the moon boot and Micheline coat clad prostitutes grabbing at an single man they saw. We poked our noses into various clubs to find someplace warm to have a drink but since we had just come from one loud smokey place I didn't feel like going to another, eventually we found a little pub had a bad irish coffee and then went to the hotel and slept.

Saturday we spent shopping in Hamburg but 4 hours of crazy gormless punters was too much and we eventually shoved our way through the idiot crowds and drove home to peace and quiet and the couch, which lulled us both into a nap.

So what I have learned in the last 36 hours is that smokers are remarkably selfish, I am too old for too loud. ( okay I have worn ear protection to clubs and concerts since I was 19) and people generally have no concept of what is going on around them  Yes, I am talking to you the fucking twat who stopped not once but 3 times in the doorway of the bathroom to search her purse for 50 cents to pay the toilet cleaning woman. Meanwhile myself and three other people are trying to find a way around you to get out. If you have to search your purse for money do it to one side. It was the same story all over the place. people it seems have lost the ability to see five centimeters in front of their faces either that or they think they are the only people on the street so stopping dead in front of me and then getting annoyed when I walk into them....I have two words for you and they ain't merry Christmas.

Funny thing is I love cities I just really have a hard time with the stupidity of the people in them.

We did manage to find our traditional labradorite stall at the market in Hamburg and got caught up on my traditional necklace buy. Beautiful examples of northern lights trapped in stone.

Now we are tucked up at home recovering. The world outside is minus 10 and white all over thanks to the snow, the hoar frost, and frozen fog. I fed the birds, watered the plants and now I am off to make tea and be grateful I live in the middle of sleepy nowhere.

Until then be excellent to each other and wear a scarf.