I wish my first post after my return from vacation could be something other than mourning the death of a legend. But today Walter Cronkite, legendary US TV anchorman, passed away.
For me as a journalism graduate, Walter Cronkite was of course known and we studied his style of reporting, the influence it had and above all the influence he himself had on the world he covered in his news for decades. I know that in the US, most everybody knew who he was, even though he had retired from television …

Hi folks,
sorry for the long silence, but I’ve been chasing myself over the past couple of weeks and time seemed to be disappearing forever.
Thanks for all the positive feedback on my Obama pictures; my flickr account showed 30,000 clicks on those photos within just one week. Awesome! This made me reconsider the design of my own photosite (inthemoment.rule-twentynine.com). Back when I published it I just needed a quick and dirty solution; now I am considering a flash solution, but that will be somewhat of a long term project. But there …

When I perused the online newspapers this morning, one topic stood out among all others: the ten year anniversary of the massacre at Columbine High School.
Strangely enough, I only associated this year with the ten year anniversary of my own US High School graduation. Reading the name ‘Columbine’ today brought back many memories and emotions.
In 1999, my year as an exchange student in Michigan was coming to a close. I was fortunate to attend a fantastic school, with great teachers and students and I treasure the year I spent there. …

My thoughts are with my sister’s family today. My brother-in-law’s mother died, one month short of her 80th birthday, peaceful in her sleep. She will be laid to rest in May, once her husband, who has left us a long time ago, has been transferred here.
There’s not much to say except for how very, very sorry I feel for my sister’s family’s loss.
This journey has ended. Another begins. Time .. to rest now.
- Lorien, Babylon 5, “Sleeping in Light”

Tiziana Fabi/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
With many worries I have followed the news about Natasha Richardson’s skiing accident and her hospital treatment since the weekend. This morning I had to read the terrible news that she has passed away.
I can’t even begin to say how sad I feel. By pure chance I had downloaded the movie ‘Maid in Manhattan’ last week via iTunes, where Mrs Richardson stars as an eccentric business woman together with Ralph Fiennes and Jennifer Lopez. I liked her very much in that role (not to mention …

Valentine’s day traditionally is for those in love, but since I don’t have someone like that again (yet), I thought: who are the people that matter most after family and partners/spouses? The answer was pretty simple: Friends.
From my personal experience, you can fall in and out of love, but real friends stay with you no matter what.
Real friends are 

the ones who don’t mind if you forget their birthday because they know that you care about them always, not just on a special day (and they know you feel terrible once …

As a child I never understood it when adults said ‘Time flies’. Being an adult myself now for quite some time, I understand that idiom much better now. So much has happened in the past 12 months, it’s hard to believe that 2008 is already over.
The new year is now almost 13 hours old and I am both surprised and proud at how I feel. Last year at the same time, I was facing an enormous amount of emotional challenges to overcome and deal with. If someone would have told …

 
The Roddenberrys
Majel Roddenberry, widow of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, has passed beyond the Rim on December 18 at the age of 76. She lost the battle against leukemia at her home in Bel-Air. Her family was with her. (Official homepage)
For me as a science fiction fan, the name Roddenberry is as deeply connected to the genre as is the name Juri Gagarin in the science community associated with space travel. The Star Trek universe has been a constant for me since I started to watch TV.
Majel Barrett Roddenberry was …