The Love Chronicles

Another birthday has come and gone. Now that I'm over 30, celebrations tend to be over by midnight and not fueled by nearly as much alcohol as they once were 5-10 years ago. Although I must say, to spend the eve of my birth at Oktoberfest in Munich was interesting. One entire liter of beer - at 5pm on a Saturday, mind you, we were not out to get shit faced - was enough to make me giddy as a little schoolgirl. And that was it for me! I shudder to think what I put my poor liver through in my 20s. But hey, it was fun! *Shout out to the San Diego birthday crew of 2012, Sloan, Dan, Lucas and David. So many shenanigans. *Big shout out to my 30th birthday crew of 2015! That really was a classy, beautiful party. Thanks to Annette and Meg for the inspiration for the theme. And oh, the champagne donated by my beautiful mother, a true reveler  ❤️   But now, it is not only alcohol that I have to watch out for. I have Berlin's hard water and air pollution, a lack of sun, lack o

My Dear Readers, With only a few weeks to go until I reach the PhD finish line, my brain has been set to hyperdrive mode. Thus it is not entirely surprising that I could still manage to write something for fun. I must admit that today's post is quite personal, but I think the bottom line is one with which we all relate. I have suffered from IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) since I was a teenager. I was not always aware of my affliction, I just knew I felt terrible and sometimes it would take weeks or even months for me to look and feel normal. The average person cannot see that you suffer from IBS unless, for example, you are so bloated you look pregnant, which I experience from time to time. It is a chronic disorder that, as far as I am aware, receives little attention but approximately 1 in 5 Americans have it. It has a range of symptoms and unfortunately cannot be cured. You just have to learn to manage it in the long term, which is not always an easy task and requires discipl