nebenbei

wenn er sich von seinen freunden verabschiedet, vergisst daruman leider manchmal sich gebührend zu bedanken. zum beispiel für jenes glas sauvignon blanc, das ihm eine nette kärntnerin bei ihrem zweiten rendez-vous spendierte. oder für dieses schöne mitbringsel aus istanbul, welches daruman von einer freundin erhalten hat, als er ihr kurz nach dem einbruch in ihre wohnung über den ersten schock hinweg half. den beiden möchte ich deshalb hier im namen von daruman nochmal ganz herzlich danken.
auch über den ersten perfekten stundenplan seiner unikarriere ist daruman äußerst dankbar...

anmk. des chronisten: ja, im abschnitt oben läßt sich einiges zwischen den zeilen lesen (z.b. "daruman genießt das singleleben", "das leben in wien ist nicht immer einfach" oder "im dritten studiensemester wird einiges einfacher").

transition completed

if on the way home from three months' travelling in southamerica your backpack suddenly decides to spend the night at beautiful new york jfk airport, the best thing to do is to keep cool and to calmly look for a new set of garments that better fit the latest fashion than your worn traveller's clothes. i dare say you will find something you like in one of the 50 h&m stores in the city near your home town...

residents of european countries having returned from the american continent often suffer from a condition commonly known as "jet lag". the usual jet lag symptoms such as general tiredness combined with insomnia added to daruman's cultural confusion: cars slowing down from top speeds to let him cross the street, tap water tasting ten times better than bottled water in bolivia, eating fresh salad without fear of food poisoning, no problems paying your coffee with a 100 franc bill nor flushing down the toilet paper. if you did not know, here it is again: we live in a society of lavishness and carelessness.

when daruman returned to his viennese flat a week ago he felt like opening a new chapter in his life putting the lid on two years of uncertainty and emotional dependence. cruising southamerica rounded off something you might call a period of transition. daruman is happy to be, for the moment, master of his own heart, he has a rather accurate map of the immediate future and the ambition to reach his goals. thus he begins his second year in vienna.