Haldern Pop Festival 2008

25th edition
August 7th - 9th, 2008
Rees-Haldern, Lower Rhine Area, Germany

Lost in the sea of possibilities

A perpetual roundabout of possibilities

Should I get up now? What if I stay in bed? My boss, my wife, my children, colleagues, parents...a general expression of widespread annoyance. Breakfast. What shall I have? Klaus and Paula, what would you like on your toast? Or would you rather have cornflakes? Cocoa, fruit? I opt for the kids' leftovers, wolfed down without sitting at the table, no time to read the paper, racing off for work, late again.

At the first roundabout I ask myself - Starbucks or straight to the office? Flexi-time rules. Why didn't I drink a coffee at home? The stereo is silent, half a dozen CDs are scattered on the passenger seat. For later. What am I wearing actually? Yes, I remembered to shave...and so on and so on.

A French chef, living in India, once told me about a form of yoga where you don't make any mental notes, you just concentrate on what you are doing at that particular moment, Nice and simple. Brushing your teeth, for example. An even path through the day. Interesting and, at first glance, uncomplicated - but quite a task, in actual fact. Speaking of which, surveys suggest that multi-tasking was yesterday, the future belongs to mono-tasking. Not some Hollywood fad but straight out of South Tyrol. What can one do, apart from the usual, what do I know, what do I believe, my God, what is just - shall I bring cake for my workmates? Help, the cake!

Flour to cake: Hey cake, how come they call you cake when you are mostly made up of me? Cake to flour: No idea, but maybe it was my idea that we get together..
At which juncture the oven realises something has to be done here and has a word with the sugar. As things spiral in the kitchen, salt cries out: If we're going to be called flour from now on, count me out.
Steady on, says the egg. We need to discuss this.
A day of realisation. The day the cake died, since when we speak of "flour-milk-water-egg-sugar-salt-chocolate-baking powder- mixing bowl-whisk-oven-cherry" and since when the world is supposed to be a little more just. At the inaugural meeting, jobs were delegated, conditions of participation laid down. Refinancing the cake was turned over to the end product. The price of "flour-milk-water-egg-sugar-salt-chocolate-baking powder- mixing bowl-whisk-oven-cherry " quadrupled but everyone was in agreement. The name was deemed to be too long and unwieldy. It was decided to adopt the name of the day of that inaugural meeting. Henceforth cake was known as "Sunday".

Children's birthdays and family parties were cancelled as a result. "Sunday" was far too exorbitant for some people. A minor quibble and, in any case, Monday was pleased as Punch.

OK, up I get, I brush my teeth, each and every one of them. Jam for everyone and I'll walk to the office. I ignore my virtual double me and focus on the analogue we, the here and now. Er, has anyone seen my cigarettes?