Lifelong Learning
Learning has been a hobby of mine ever since I left school and was no longer bothered by ‘teachers’. During my secondary school years, these educators thoroughly discouraged my enjoyment of learning, so it was only when I got my first computer, a COMMODORE 64 , that my enthusiasm for self-directed learning was rekindled, and it has not waned to this day. From this perspective, teaching web design was the best thing I could have chosen, as the learning and teaching content in this field is certainly evolving the fastest – compared to any other subject.
Political Engagement
I gave up political work some 50 years ago after serving as spokesperson for all secondary schools in Duisburg. At that time (1967), I was praised by the press for drawing attention to political injustices with peaceful demonstrations and other actions, while others were already throwing paving stones. Later, at the University of Hamburg, I once again showed political engagement as a member of a student association and author of political satires under the pseudonym Erna Meier (that was the name of my cat at the time).
Music
Music has always been a hobby of mine. It started with playing the recorder and at the age of 12 the cello, as our school orchestra was one cellist short. But my little sister's guitar became much more interesting when the Beatles took the world by storm. In 1966, I acquired a Framus from a pawn shop, but I mostly played folk on a Spanish concert guitar.
In the 60s, a guitar teacher was better paid than a private tutor and you could impress girls far better playing the guitar than the cello. But working as a DJ in the late 60s also helped.
At some point, however, all the guitars, along with a guitar banjo, ended up on the wall and spent many years gathering dust.
Nowadays, I only write a song directly on the computer or keyboard every now and then. After more than 30 years of my guitars hanging on the wall and only being tuned from time to time, I was inspired by a dear colleague from Aachen to start playing again. I bought his Stratocaster and later a Les Paul, as well as an amplifier and a new concert guitar.
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Windsurfing - First on Mar Menor; Southern Spain, then regularly in and around Hamburg and the North Sea and the Baltic Sea
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Incredible amounts of snowfall in northern Germany got me to cross country skiing in the Kleckerwald and across the great lake in the centre of Hamburg.
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Since 1958 on horseback; here in the late 70's on Aladin in the "Old Country" near Hamburg.
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In 1968 four weeks ski rescue training in the Alps, later as teacher trainee repeatedly in South Tyrol. Found the most beautiful slopes in the world in Utah in the 90's.
Not much going on
As an 8-year-old, I took up vaulting because of early back problems and learned to do gymnastics on a galloping horse. At the age of 12, I switched to water sports, joined a swimming club, and played goalkeeper in a youth team at the local handball club. As I became interested in girls, I shifted my sporting activities to the dance floor, regularly assisting the dance teacher with dance classes and competing in dance tournaments.
During a four-week course at the Kurzschule Baad [Kleinwalssertal, Austria], I learned ski touring and skiing as well as the basics of mountain rescue and also took part in avalanche rescue operations.
When I started my first university degree and moved to Bochum, I gave up all kinds of sporting activities until I moved to Hamburg. At the ripe old age of 34, I was talked into playing indoor football [soccer to you in California] with my colleagues, so once a week we met at the school's gym for two hours only to go to our local pub afterwards for a refill.
Horseback riding, tennis, squash, windsurfing, and skiing have long since fallen victim to mass tourism, computer work, motorcycling, endless walks with our dog, and age-related laziness.
Going to the sauna and lying on a massage bench just seem more age-appropriate to me these days!
To celebrate my first state exam, I traveled to Mar Menor in Spain and learned to windsurf, which I enjoyed doing alongside tennis in Hamburg and later in England.
Los Angeles then put an end to any sporting ambitions: it was far too hot to play tennis and the air on the university campus tennis courts was too smoggy, while the Pacific Ocean was a real challenge for serious surfers, but not an incentive for a totally inexperienced man in his late thirties. Every other weekend, however, there were big tours with the members of the BMW Club of Southern California, by motorcycle to Yosemite Park, Utah, and Las Vegas, Death Valley, Palm Springs, or Phoenix.
Photography and Video Film Making
Successful participation in his first photography competitions in the early 1960s and his desire to become a filmmaker led him, for financial reasons, to study theater studies and artistic photography at the Ruhr University in Bochum and eventually to video filmmaking.
As a film critic, I traveled to Hollywood for an Austrian cultural magazine, enjoyed directing classes with Maximilian Schell at the Max Kade Institute in L.A., and enjoyed my friendship with Bernd Capra, the director of the film “Mindwalk.”
All of this formed the basis for my teaching in the field of audio-visual media lateron.
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Purchased in the USA, several trips through Death Valley and along the Pacific Highway from Los Angeles to Vancouver, then taken to Europe and crisscross the Alps: BMW K1100 LT.
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From 2004 to 2012, my very reliable and probably last motorcycle, an incredibly comfortable but also heavy BMW K1200LT.
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The penultimate bikes at delivery: on the right the BMW K1100 LT and the BMW K1200 LT on the left.
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Aged 75, yet one more new bike: BMW's Urban Mobility C400GT, as with my car "with all conceivable assistants and in an age-appropriate seating position".
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After many Volkswagen beetles and Ford Taunus 12M P4 models I could finally afford a VW 411 with a bord computer in a lunch box and over 2 meters of cargo area.
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For journeys with surfboards an old Volkswagen bully, for the love of driving an Audi 100 S Coupé.
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For comfortable trips with dogs, the Volvo V70 was the best; for adventure trips, however, the BMW K1200LT.
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After our dog's death we got a Mercedes coupe, which had no place for new dogs, but all the electronic aids which make a driver dispensable.
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With another dog in the house, the Merc must offer room for three.
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Chance meeting: the old 250 Coupé and the new 250 T-Modell.
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Cleaner drive without cheating software with all conceivable assistants and in an age-appropriate seating position.
Cars
When I turned 16 and could have gone for my motorcycle license, I didn't even have the idea because I was totally concentrated on driving a car one day. At the age of 18, I got my driving license after only three driving lessons and ever since have been an enthusiastic motorists.
My first car was a FORD 12M P4 with column gear change and bench in the front. It was hit by a drunken driver on my 19th birthday and hence had to scrapped. A couple of VW Beetles followed, privately bought for 100 Deutschmarks or at public auctions. My first car bought brand new was a little yellow FIAT 850.
My favourite cars in the 70s were a RENAULT R16 which took me to Austria where I met the love of my life, and a VW 411 VARIANT which did only 9 MPG due to a faulty electronic injection systeme.
VW BULLI T2, VW T3 JOKER, AUDI 100S COUPÉ, CITROEN GX, FORD XR3, LEBARON COUPÉ, all rather different but never forgotten. Two VOLVO V70 models and finally three different MERCEDES BENZ.
I always loved driving and still only use public transport if it is absolutely unavoidable.
Motorbikes
My wife, who herself had traveled about New Delhi and Caracas on mopeds, got me on my first bike in the 80's, the best means of transport in mega cities like London and Los Angeles.
In order to take the driving tests in London, I got myself a SUZUKI GT125 but once I had the full licence, I bought a KAWASAKI GT 750 which took us all over England and even down to Austria. When I learnt that we got transferred to Los Angeles, I started looking for a bike that I could get serviced all over the world only to find out that there are but two brands. One company was BMW and hence I first got a BMW K 100LT, then a BMW K 1100LT and finally a BMW K 1200LT.
Anyone who has ever taken the Pacific Highway from San Diego up past San Fransisco, Seattle and Vancouver by bike, who explored Death Valley, Yosemite Park, Arches National Park in Utah, Gran Canyon or Yellowstone National Park on two wheels will surely never lose his fascination for motorcycles.
Despite the Eifel mountains on our doorstep, the scooter is now primarily used for convenient and quick transportation around town, as it makes the tiresome search for parking spaces much easier.
As a child, I had the obligatory hamsters, an aquarium for exotic freshwater fish, and many horses to ride, but never one of my own.
Alsatian
Freund (Friend) was the name of my Alsatian in Hamburg. I found him as a very young puppy in the local animal shelter. Once he was trained, you could walk him off-leash across the city, take him on the subway and suburban trains, or let him lie in the open convertible, which had the great side effect of preventing parking tickets from being stuck to the windshield.
Since Freund was a knowledgeable city dweller and knew exactly that he had to sit down at every curb and had to wait for a signal before he was allowed to cross the street, chatty flat mates once "forgot" him at a zebra crossing. When, after ten or fifteen minutes, they finally came back to look for him, he had settled down peacefully.
Cats
Freund lived in harmony with Bonnie and Erna Meier, two tabby cats. Bonnie had moved into our shared apartment before Freund and therefore remained the boss in the ring until the end of her life. However, she must have been extremely impressed by Freund's obedience, because she always came running happily when you called her.
Erna Meier, on the other hand, had been rescued from neglect but never gained the basic trust that Bonnie and Freund had. However, her name served as a pseudonym for political satires that I wrote at the time.
Snake
Sam Wurm was a Ball Python. Since I had always been interested in reptiles, I joyfully discovered that my students in Los Angeles either kept snakes or spiders as pets, since birds, dogs or cats were mostly forbidden by their landlords. Sam was the short form for Samantha / Samuel, since it took us two years to find out which sex he was. Unfortunately, Geman Lufthansa left him standing outside the airfield of Frankfurt Airport one night in early January, (although his retainer was marked "live animals"): Sam froze to death.
Hovawart
Cando von der Jonasburg, our Hovawart, still has his own website.
Here you find lots of information about his time with us.
Bernese Mountain Dog
The next canine member of our family was Anton vom Fusse des Westerwaldes; he may well have been the first Canine Blogger worldwide. Since his website [bernersenner.de] recalls the days of his life from 2005 to 2013 in great detail, this will be all I have to say here about a most wonderful dog. 
Alsatian
Rudi is the nickname of our latest addition to the family. His full name is Ludwig aus der Soester Börde and he will also enjoy his own website [rudi.gesti-design.com].
