Patreon Journal Entry (it's a long one...) - August 2022

Heyo! Guess who found time to write a new journal entry again...! After the last one being in January, woah. I will try to pack most of the things that have happened recently, but it will still be a quite long post, haha, I'm telling you in advance. So grab a cup of coffee, tea, warm milk or Coke —whatever tickles your pickles—, and grab a sit on the most comfortable place you can find aaaaaaand... let's have a chat. ☕🍵

Where should I start? I am slowly but surely getting the full integration experience in a new country... it is not easy, but I am doing my best. From around February until June I was attending an integration course that was compulsory so I could stay here —in other words, learning more German— and by the end of it I had to take a B1 exam. The test experience was nothing new, as I had to take an A1 last year, but the nervousness and expectations are always there. Luckily I got the B1 certificate a month or so ago! So that's one thing off the checklist. And on the same note (of certificates and papers) I also got my university degree finally accepted in Germany! That means that they see I'm a valid and equal graphic designer, despite me not really doing much graphic design recently, haha.

I am really happy that is out of the way, so to say, but there are still a few other things I had to take care of. I recently applied to something called die Künstlersozialkasse, which is an institution that gives support to freelance artists and provides them with the securities that "normal" employees have —i.e. pension, health care and stuff I'm still trying to completely understand. So yeah, I had to send them a thick envelope with a lot of documents and proof of my freelance artist endeavours... Alas, I still have to wait a month or so till they give an answer, as they are usually flooded with applications. Not gonna lie, though, the answer could very much be a big fat NO, in which case my boy and I will have to go full-on Karen mode and talk with a lawyer and their manager and... and... oof. 

Going through all of this is very exhausting sometimes, you know? As someone who just imagined life as sitting on my desk, having a sweet drink and drawing my stuff, taking care of all this is a lot and a huge change from what I was used back in my country. But don't get me wrong, it is all worth it. Every request we sent, and every exam I take is a step closer to reaching a meaningful goal. I really have to thank you all for your support. I deeply appreciate you all being here on Patreon and those who commission me as well, allowing me to slowly but surely live off my art and crafts. My family overall is quite happy and proud of me if you allow me to add. My husband, his and my parents constantly remind me of the effort I put into things and the short time it took me to achieve certain things. So I extend my gratitude to you all. 💖

On a lighter and not-so-full-of-bureaucracy note, early this month my husband and I took some holidays to know more of the north of Germany~ It was lovely and we had a wonderful time. It was something we'd wanted to do for a while and after saving up a bit we managed to pull it out. We visited around five cities, but three of them were the actual destinations: Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Berlin. In between those we also were in Ludwigsburg and  Stuttgart. And let me tell you, for someone who had only seen all of Germany on videos, magazines and other media... it was amazing. TTwTT Giving you a full version of what we did would make this post even longer, so —if you don't mind— I can wrap up a bit of each city: 

We started in Ludwigsburg, where we slept at one of my husband's friends. One of the highlights of this city truly was LOUISE. Who's that, you might ask... That is the biggest piggy bank in the world! And it works as such. Sadly I couldn't give her money 'cause the mechanism was stuck. Later on, we went on a more sightseeing adventure at Blühendes Barrock where we visited the Märchengarten with all the fairy tales in their not-so-brutal and gruesome versions, haha. The next stop was Stuttgart as an in-between sleep where we walked around the city and visited a few shops. 

The trip took us to the first main city: Düsseldorf. And ooooh boy am I in love with this place, haha. It kind of is the "art corner" in Germany, so no wonder I felt attracted to it and suggested it as the destination I, personally, wanted to travel to. It has this mix of old and modern architecture with all the nice places to go... The Rheinturm was beautiful and we had a drink 168 meters above the town —and they kicked us out because they had to close, haha. We visited the K21 art gallery and it was... interesting. All the art there was pretty modern and there's this one, in particular, my boio ranted about all the time because of the message. If you ever visit this museum, please give the installation In Orbit a chance. Walking on a net, suspended 25 meters above the ground is such an experience.

And then Roncalli's Apollo Variete... it was amazing. The artistry of this place got us tearing up. It has very talented acrobats and artists from different branches. We even got to talk to one at the end of the show and she was so nice. We then got to try e-scooters for the first time and I am so surprised we didn't cause an accident or so. But it was so much fun! Düsseldorf was definitely a beautiful place to visit. I liked it so much we recently searched for flats there, although we cannot really afford them. But hey, one can always dream. :D

The next stop was in Hamburg. It was a bit sad that we had to travel around 11 hours to get there on a full-to-the-brim train. We were so done and lacked the energy to go out, but we managed to visit the Elbphilharmony and had a tour on a public transport boat. After a couple of days, we went to Berlin, my boio's preferred city of the trip. And I very much understand why! This city is so nice, full of history and culture and it's so alive throughout the day. We stayed at a very tiny and cute hotel from where we could go almost anywhere interesting in less than half an hour. We checked so many places and we still didn't see all this city has to offer. 

To mention a few of the things we got to visit, I can note the historical side of Berlin. Learning about politics and getting to know how it evolved into a democracy... wow. Coming from a country where people are struggling to live in a democracy is truly inspiring. Not to mention the visit to the different memorials scattered through the city. It took us a solid hour to "feel happy" again. But to turn that feeling we also visited the Museum of Natural Science where they have the biggest mounted Brachiosaurus skeleton in the world! I... I just lost it!! And during the last night, we had some tea at a gorgeous tea house near our hotel. You know, to let all the amazingness sink. UwU

So yeah... It was a unique month. I am still glad I could also finish all the other responsibilities in between —commission work and Patreon, namely— so I thank you very much for staying here and for your patience. Now, I reckon this post is now very, very long and your coffee or tea might be empty. So how about we leave it here for now? If you made it all the way here, thank you once again. I reckon this platform is, mostly, about my art and you don't really need yet another wall of text to read through, but I am happy I can also share the things that happen in my life. If I can find another way of doing so I will try.

And that's it for now! I hope you have a lovely upcoming weekend and I'll see you in the next regular posts. Stay safe!! ✨

Kind regards,

Yeiko