tobias m. schiel
Cum grano salis, lit. taken with a grain/pinch of salt, fig. not to be taken literally, to be understood using your wit.
Since this whole series makes use of a very specific type of contrast (you know what I mean, right?), I thought I might as well enter it into Paleica’s Magic Motto Challenge: Contrasts. Please check out her site! You’ll find some beautiful contribtions there.
Auf einem (ganz) schmalen Brett sein, lit. to be on a (very) narrow board, equiv. to be skating on thin ice, fig. to be wrong, to risk losing an argument
Auf einem (ganz) schmalen Brett sein, lit. to be on a (very) narrow board, equiv. to be skating on thin ice, fig. to be wrong, to to risk losing an argument
When Paula announced Thursday’s Special was “Waiting“, I immediately thought, “waiting for the penny to drop.” I could not get rid of the phrase until this morning when the penny finally did drop – with a little help from my wife. She also helped me out with an Irish penny, rendering this picture a bit more ironic, though it is for you to decide if is to be seen politically.
In line with my other pictures from this series, I would just like to add that we have the same phrase in German: “Warten, dass der Groschen fällt,” a Groschen being 10 Pfennig, which was our small change before Pfennige and pennies became cents.
You’ll find the subsequent story here.
“It was a blonde. A blonde to make a bishop kick a hole in a stained-glass window.” (Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely)
You’ll find the previous story here.
The quote is from a description of the obstacles faced by the hard boiled detective, he encounters “blocking figures of all kinds, from the professional criminals and their hit men to corrupt cops, siren women, and that most recalcitrant of all witnesses, a dead man” (Dennis Porter, The Pursuit of Crime. Art and Ideology in Detective Fiction, 1981). This is also my take for the Weekly Photo Challenge, if a somewhat ironic one. After all, “murder must advertise.”
Von der Rolle sein, lit. to be off the roll/reel, equiv. to have lost it, to be right out of it, to be all at sea; fig. to be beside oneself, to be (a little) off | Finally I come around to participating in one of Jennifer Nichole Wells‘ photo challenges, the “one word challenge:” this weeks’ word is film.
The little guy looked like someone I knew. Someone I knew from the times when most everything I had to do was reading detective stories, and writing about them. And figuring out how we all know what detectives look like without ever having seen one (it’s not the most public or popular occupation in Germany; detectives are shabby people in department stores waiting to snatch the occasional sock thief).
Well, the hat and the coat rang a bell, and I suspected there must be a gun, too. As chance would have it, there was also a very intriguing project suggestion at 100% Stuck in Plastic: Come up with three toy photographs in a narrative sequence, or, as ME2 put it: “3 images. An introduction, a cliffhanger, and an ending.” As things go, this ending may not necessarily be where the whole story ends…
Ah, and just one more thing: I set up a page where you will be able to see the story unfold (and probably change): Down These Mean Streets a Man Must Go.
To be in over one’s head, lit. bis über den Kopf drinstecken, equiv. etwas wächst jemandem über den Kopf, fig. (English phrase) to be involved in a difficult situation that you cannot get out of
…and while I look at this picture, a German classic comes to mind: Der Zauberlehrling (The Sorcerer’s Apprentice) by Johann Wolfgang Goethe. It is about this magical broom not quite obeying the apprentice… Follow this link for this poem and its English translation.
Strolling around the towns of Middelburg and Veere. Though we come here regularly, I rarely photograph (always preferring the dunes and the sand and the sea), so I thought I’d share these for a change. The atmosphere and the light were just right … and I had brought my camera to what was originally an outing to have lunch. Thanks to my wife for her patience. | This is another contribution for Jo’s great Monday Walks – join her…!
In trockenen Tüchern, lit. in dry rags; in dry tissues; in dry sheets, equiv. cut and dried; home and dry, fig. all wrapped up, fully (and satisfactorily) taken care of
Den Wald vor (lauter) Bäumen nicht sehen, lit. to not see the wood for (all) the trees, fig. to be unable to see the obvious (because one is too close or too caught up in the details)
…the Carnival Parade, hung over a bollard.
Fenster und Fassaden is Christina’s Magical Motto of the Month. And this time, I just seized the opportunity to show some windows (Fenster) I collected during our last trip to Italy, mainly in and around Lucca. I am always fascinated by glass and by the many shapes and designs of windows people come up with.
Please check out the other façades and windows at episoden.film! There are always great contributions to be seen there – and while Christina’s blog is in German, pictures know of no language barrier.
Fenster und Fassaden is Christina’s Magical Motto of the Month. So I thought I’d share the windows I found when I was taking a walk last Sunday. Don’t miss the other façades and windows at episoden.film!
This was the original idea:
Jemandem den Boden unter den Füßen wegziehen, lit. to pull the ground from under sb’s feet, equiv. to pull the rug from under sb’s feet, fig. (German phrase) to threaten someone’s existence
…but it also looks like this guy is standing up on the cobblestone against all odds, so this also seems to be an appropriate contribution for the Weekly Photo Challenge.
This month, Paleica at episoden.film challenges us to photograph windows and façades. Here’s a picture that shows both. I always wanted to photograph this storefront fading into the sky…
“A light dawns on me” is how we say eureka! in German.
I am happy to continue the “Worlds Within Words” series with a contribution for Thursday’s Special at Lost in Translation. Paula wished to see profiles – and I think based on her description and the etymology, these pictures can also be regarded as a mini study of the concept.
Er lebt auf seinem eigenen Stern means “he’s living on his own planet” – almost literally, since Stern is a star. The figurative meaning is the same in German and English.
So much for translating… This is my contribution for Thursday’s Special at Lost in Translation where you can pick a word from this list: radiant | alimentary | frontal | arboreal | remote. I picked the first one, and maybe the last.
And there is also an alternative take.
empire of lights 