Blog

the shop that was therapy (and that's enough)
the shop that was therapy (and that's enough)
Joyful Objects — my tote bag and poster shop — is hibernating. It was therapy, proof of skills, and a creative lifeline. It didn't make sales, but it was never... Read more...
the babushka inhales, exhales, and still makes better mayo than you.
the babushka inhales, exhales, and still makes better mayo than you.
I didn't plan to become a breathing teacher. But then my nervous system sent me a registered letter and I finally read it. Read more...
the environment that made you sick certainly ain't the one that is going to heal ya
the environment that made you sick certainly ain't the one that is going to heal ya
Burnout, panic attacks, destroyed teeth, Hashimoto's, bureaucracy battles, and the slow painful realization that the environment keeping you sick cannot be the one that heals you. An honest account of... Read more...
joyful objects is hibernating — but very much alive
joyful objects is hibernating — but very much alive
The shop is taking a rest. Google keeps indexing, the blog keeps going, and the babushka keeps creating. Here is why — and what comes next. Read more...
taking a summer break
taking a summer break
A honest note about crashing, burning out, and finally choosing rest. The mediterranean babushka is taking a summer break — and she means it this time. Read more...
dear adobe, a love letter from your fave babushka
dear adobe, a love letter from your fave babushka
I tried breaking up with Adobe. I failed. Here is my official love confession to industry standard design software — and why my work is absolutely worth the price. Read more...
i canceled adobe. and i'm not even sorry.
i canceled adobe. and i'm not even sorry.
After 10 years with Photoshop and Illustrator, I finally did it — I canceled my Adobe subscriptions. Switching to free alternatives Affinity and DaVinci Resolve, and rediscovering my love for... Read more...
what a spontaneous ikea trip taught me about my nervous system
what a spontaneous ikea trip taught me about my nervous system
I used to travel the world solo. Airports were my second home. Then burnout, poverty, and panic attacks paralyzed me completely. Here is what an unplanned IKEA trip just taught... Read more...
linkedin is just a spam delivery system and i was right to leave
linkedin is just a spam delivery system and i was right to leave
Logged in. Got pitch slapped, spammed, and newsletter-bombed. Three notifications, zero value. Find me on Instagram, my blog, and my newsletter instead. Read more...
when things feel like they will never get better
when things feel like they will never get better
The past few years have been rough. Too many wars on too many fronts. But transitional times are the hardest — and no one who made it got there overnight.... Read more...
some days i live and some days i barely survive
some days i live and some days i barely survive
some days you wake up at 8 am with a headache, having already cried, knowing exactly why — bad sleep, hormones, a decade of bureaucracy and burnout. this is one... Read more...
shrimps are medicine. just like pizza and tiramisu.
shrimps are medicine. just like pizza and tiramisu.
Shrimps with tarragon and olive oil for lunch, a Ray Peat copper fact, a disclaimer, and the most honest sentence about food as medicine ever written. Obviously. Read more...
golden oysters, zinc, and why my oyster era is coming back better than ever
golden oysters, zinc, and why my oyster era is coming back better than ever
From grilling oysters and painting their shells gold and copper, to the nutritional magic of oysters, to why those times are coming back — this time with an art shop,... Read more...
barcelona the mediterranean city
barcelona, the mediterranean, and why I left but still call it home
A blast from the past — Barcelona 2013/2014, call center jobs, shared apartments, and the Mediterranean saving my health. Why I left, why I'd never go back to live there,... Read more...
shrimp saturday, heat wave, and a nectarine that had no business being that good
shrimp saturday, heat wave, and a nectarine that had no business being that good
The European heat wave is back, I have a headache, and somehow I still created products, drew letters, and made the most delicious deconstructed shrimp salad of my life. Obviously. Read more...
the salad that got zero likes and what it taught me about rejection
the salad that got zero likes and what it taught me about rejection
I posted a delicious Mediterranean salad last week. It got zero likes. So I gave it a dramatic Cuban bolero and turned it into a lesson about rejection, creativity, and... Read more...
sometimes all you need for a good sunday is an early morning at the swimming pool
sometimes all you need for a good sunday is an early morning at the swimming pool
Sometimes all you need for a good Sunday is an early morning at the swimming pool — sunshine, water, french fries, and the little things that bring so much joy. Read more...
one fine day with my mom by the water
one fine day with my mom by the water
A poke bowl, ice cream, my mom by the water, and the realization that creating dark humor art for the shop became the most healing thing I've ever done. On... Read more...
one fine day with my mom, a poke bowl, and the realization that joy is the best medicine
one fine day with my mom, a poke bowl, and the realization that joy is the best medicine
Sometimes all it takes is a day by the water, a colorful poke bowl, and your mom next to you to remember what life is actually supposed to feel like.... Read more...
good food doesn't have to be complicated — my favorite summer salad
good food doesn't have to be complicated — my favorite summer salad
Cherry tomatoes, cucumber, mozzarella, Spanish olive oil, white balsamic. That's it. The simplest summer salad and the most perfect one. Because good food doesn't have to be complicated. Read more...
why i film my calas instead of my face — and why i'm moving to mallorca anyway
why i film my calas instead of my face — and why i'm moving to mallorca anyway
I ran out of beach videos from my last Mallorca trip. The only solution is to move there permanently. This is not a travel post. This is an exit strategy. Read more...
mornings for creating, afternoons for swimming — why i left freelance services behind for good
mornings for creating, afternoons for swimming — why i left freelance services behind for good
I left freelance services behind after burnout and meetings that paid nothing. Now I build my shop in the mornings and swim in the afternoons. This is the exit strategy.... Read more...
Snow in Winter. Mediterranean Next Winter. Obviously.
Snow in Winter. Mediterranean Next Winter. Obviously.
Right now in the middle of summer it's hard to imagine it'll look like this again in winter. And I hope that next year when the gorgeous snow is here... Read more...
tiramisu for breakfast. because being an adult comes with responsibilites.
tiramisu for breakfast. because being an adult comes with responsibilites.
Tiramisu for breakfast. Because being an adult comes with responsibilities. And I totally mean it. What's the point of not having tiramisu for breakfast? There's none. Subscribe to the Babushka... Read more...
empuria brava, september 2021 — shot shortly before flying back to germany
empuria brava, september 2021 — shot shortly before flying back to germany
A moody beach video from 2021, shot right before flying back to Germany. Little did I know things would keep getting worse — until I quit teaching, started healing, and... Read more...
japanese snacks, a tokyo earthquake, and the bar where lost in translation was shot
japanese snacks, a tokyo earthquake, and the bar where lost in translation was shot
A friend of mine came over spontaneously with the snacks she bought for me in Japan. And somehow looking at those snacks makes me genuinely happy. Because they remind me... Read more...
some things have to go
some things have to go
Palm tree shadows in Hvar, 2019. On losing the path you thought was yours — and finding the one you always wanted. Read more...
how a dental appointment for a second opinion turned Into a tribunal
how a dental appointment for a second opinion turned Into a tribunal
A raw, honest account of what happens when the German health insurance sends you for a second opinion and it turns into a tribunal. Freelancing, Hashimoto's, burnout, dentist phobia —... Read more...
summer food when your appetite disappears in the heat
summer food when your appetite disappears in the heat
The heat wave hitting Europe right now is extreme. And it affects my appetite. Here is what I am eating to stay pro-thyroid, pro-metabolic, and sane — and why it... Read more...
Babushka knows best 🪆
Babushka knows best 🪆
Your babushka always knows best. Hot summer days call for kefir, fresh fruit, and skipping the expensive skincare. Babushka lifestyle hacks, straight from the source. 🪆 Read more...
the sourdough funeral, the lawsuit, and why I make posters and tote bags now
the sourdough funeral, the lawsuit, and why I make posters and tote bags now
I had to bury my sourdough starter yesterday. But this is not really about sourdough — it is about burnout, bureaucracy, a lawsuit, and why I started making posters instead... Read more...
Mediterranean view with turquoise water and pine trees — Joyful Objects blog
this one is on treating yourself with love and integrity
In my books it is just that simple: sleep, eat real food, surround yourself with people who energize you, get sunshine, rest before you burn out, find something you truly... Read more...
I got emotionally drained by a linkedIn stalker. here is what I learned.
I got emotionally drained by a linkedIn stalker. here is what I learned.
By Sunday I was sick in bed. Not because of the block — because my body had been holding months of stress and finally felt safe enough to release it.... Read more...
believe in yourself - even if no one else does...
believe in yourself - even if no one else does...
Winners in life are the ones who never quit. Yes, it is that simple and easy. It's most often not the smartest, most eloquent ones - of course being smart... Read more...
the spelt spaghetti newsletter
the spelt spaghetti newsletter
I have a thing for spelt spaghetti. Drowned in butter with fresh parmigiano, with lox in a crème fraîche sauce, or the legendary Marcella Hazan tomato sauce. This is how... Read more...
how I am healing my jaw, my fascia, and my nervous system after a decade of stress
how I am healing my jaw, my fascia, and my nervous system after a decade of stress
A decade of extreme stress ground my teeth into destruction. Here is the healing protocol I built from scratch — futon on the floor, ballet at the barre, fascia release,... Read more...
rote grütze, kissel, rødgrød. same pudding. different grandmother. here's how to make it.
rote grütze, kissel, rødgrød. same pudding. different grandmother. here's how to make it.
And yes, I love tomatoes but I'm currently on a non-nightshade-eating protocol (FYI: potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers are all in the nightshade category and some people with autoimmune issues... Read more...
the birthplace of mayonnaise
the birthplace of mayonnaise
Mayonnaise isn't just a condiment - it's a lifestyle! At least if you grew up in Germany or Eastern Europe where salads get drowned in mayonnaise and then people call... Read more...
calculated parasitic linkedin engagement behavior
calculated parasitic linkedin engagement behavior
Some random guy had the audacity to write an article about “the worst content being human and not AI generated”… Mentioned my 3 AM LinkedIn poll in his boring article,... Read more...
are you suffering a bit today?
are you suffering a bit today?
Are you suffering a bit today? From the heat, the cold, food poisoning, your cat waking you up vomiting at 3am - or just the typical existential life crisis that... Read more...
how morning ballet sessions completely changed my day
how morning ballet sessions completely changed my day
I love ballet deeply. I loved it so much as a kid that I was allowed to start classes being 3 years old. Even though normally no kids younger than... Read more...
on following your dreams
on following your dreams
I'm a firm believer that our dreams and goals are nothing random. They speak for a part within ourselves - what our soul is craving. And very often our dreams... Read more...
my anti-inflammatory lifestyle
my anti-inflammatory lifestyle
So lately I have changed my way of eating a bit in order to reduce inflammation. I have some massive dental work coming up and with an inflamed body things... Read more...
dark chocolate is my sleep drug
dark chocolate is my sleep drug
Nothing makes you feel as good as a good night of deep sleep, right? But often we want to sleep but that deep sleep doesn't want us it seems 🤷♀️😳... Read more...
how a broken mouse forced me to slow down
how a broken mouse forced me to slow down
Currently I'm pouring all my energy into creating my amazing online-shop with fun products like posters, tote bags and hoodies to begin with. It's a print on demand shop which... Read more...
what decluttering really is about
what decluttering really is about
I gotta admit, as a kid and teenager I was quite messy. And later on I dove deep into the work of Marie Kondo and then I also learned that... Read more...
what saying no really means
what saying no really means
Who would've thought that the tiny word 'no' often is the hardest one to use whenever something just feels off. It took me a long time to finally learn that... Read more...
how to calm a busy mind
how to calm a busy mind
Maybe you're like me and can relate to a mind that sometimes seems to go absolutely nutters! You just can't stop thinking and overthinking and in the worst case your... Read more...
hello spring cleaning 🧹🧼🫧
hello spring cleaning 🧹🧼🫧
Cleaning is a super powerful act - and there's a reason why we get so fond of cleaning when a new season starts. Like now Spring! You might wonder why,... Read more...
trying to stay sane while everything seems so complicated
trying to stay sane while everything seems so complicated
If you've been following along for sometime, you might remember that I've been dealing with tons of stress in several different areas in life. Health issues, a major burnout, dealing... Read more...