Dumb phone reduces anxiety. Sophie the Cold. Only organic products and no canned food?

November 6, 2023. Last night, I dreamed of Leonardo Di Caprio, who had gray hair and approached Robert De Niro, who was sitting in a chair with downturned corners of his mouth. Later, I dreamed of walking from the main building through the Welfengarten to the main cafeteria and seeing Jule ahead of me. I sped up to overtake her. When I passed her, I didn't turn around to say hello but continued purposefully towards the cafeteria.

I left my smartphone at home and instead took my basic mobile phone. At Lidl, I bought two rolls, two quark pastries, and a butter croissant and headed to the library on the fourth floor.

Once settled in at the library, I immediately went to have a coffee and eat a croissant.

Interestingly, I had forgotten my basic mobile phone on the table in the library and didn't want to turn back because I wasn't worried about it being stolen. If it had been my expensive iPhone, I would have turned back to retrieve it, but with the 17 Euro basic mobile phone, it wouldn't be tragic if it disappeared because it doesn't contain sensitive data except for the phone numbers of my family members. It's a nice feeling of freedom not having to worry about the item "phone," no matter where it is.

As I passed by HanoMacke at the cafeteria, I saw the tall blonde Labrador woman talking to a guy much taller than her standing on the sidewalk.

Unfortunately, HanoMacke was closed, so I just ate a quark pastry without a drink. I glanced in the direction of the Labrador woman. They had kissed. Oh, she probably found herself a boyfriend now. The guy then went into the cafeteria, probably to return his coffee cup, and as soon as he turned around, she took out her phone from her light coat and looked at it until he stood in front of her again. Then I finished my quark pastry and went back inside.

Around 10 o'clock, a student with dark blonde curls sat across from me at the table. She was wearing a black shirt, light jeans, and black-framed glasses on top of her head. She took out a MacBook, a notepad with a pen, and a water bottle and was writing in her notebook all the time.

Later, as I took a sip of water and stretched, she looked at me, and I looked at her. Definitely longer than 3 seconds. Unfortunately, I was the first to break eye contact because I didn't expect a woman to maintain eye contact for so long.

At half past ten, I tried again to see if HanoMacke was open. It was actually open. I got myself a coffee and ate the second quark pastry and then a croissant. I saw a redhead whom I had once approached in her group of friends; she was sitting with her friends on the sofa. I also saw Nina with her friend; they were also on a coffee break.

When I returned, a girl with long dark blonde hair braided into a small bun, golden round earrings, white pants, an oversized checkered shirt that could belong to a man, black over-ear headphones, and typing on her Windows Surface laptop sat across from me. Next to her was a college water bottle and a notepad. Somehow she looks like a Russian. Maybe she is Russian. Occasionally, when she stops typing, she stretches and looks at me with her blue eyes and a smile. Of course, I return her friendly gaze and smile.

She became restless, constantly touching her hair and smelling it. Then, when she briefly left with the bottle and returned, her behavior surprised me greatly. She took out her phone and sat on the floor with her back against the heater. I had never seen anything like that in a library before. It immediately caught my attention.

Then she stretched by placing her arm around her head, stretching it to the left and then to the right. Then she turned her head. It was somehow fascinating. Then she sat back down and typed thoughtfully on her laptop. Her eyebrows were furrowed as if she were deeply thinking about something. This one hundred percent concentration reminded me a little of Jule or Richard David Precht.

The next time she went to the bathroom or something, she sat back at the heater. Stretched. Occasionally glanced at the laptop as if waiting for something to load. Then she sat back at the table, crossed her arms, and looked around. She placed her hand on the table and stretched her fingers upward with the other hand. Then she continued typing. She looked at her trimmed fingernails. Typed on. Then she slipped her hand into her shirt. I found it somehow fascinating that I pay much more attention to the body language of other people since I have been focusing more on it. And shit, am I excited... These observations distract me a bit.

I drank a coffee and signaled to her that I would be away longer than just going to the toilet. I pushed my chair to the table, took my book "Nonconformists," my basic mobile phone, and my water bottle. I got myself a coffee and sat outside the library to let the warm sunrays that were coming out of the clouds shine on me and also to see if the interesting student would come out of the library exit. Unfortunately, she did not.

When I returned to the library around half past one, three guys were sitting at my table (they seemed to be computer scientists). The interesting student was still there. Unfortunately, a few minutes later, I realized she was about to leave. First, she unplugged her charger from the socket. I got a bit nervous. I didn't want her to leave just yet. Then she put her notebook and water bottle into her basket.

I knew I had to act to not miss the chance to possibly meet the most amazing woman of my life. I stood up and headed out, even before she left. I waited in the foyer of the fourth floor near the elevators. Then she came... At first, she didn't notice me at all and almost walked past me.

»Hey«, I stopped her as she walked past me. I was a bit nervous. But that was typical when I thought too much about how to approach a particular woman.

»Hi.«

»I just didn't dare to talk to you when so many people were listening«, I said, slightly excited.

»Yeah?«

»I found it very fascinating how you were sitting by the heater. I've never seen anything like that in my library career», I said, looking down occasionally and occasionally into her eyes because I was so excited.

»I was just a little cold«, she answered, smiling.

»I wanted to ask if you'd like to have a coffee with me...«, I asked her.

She paused and looked at me as if she were considering.

»Mmm... I don't know. I have to go too«, she said as the elevator opened.

»You can think about it. I can give you my number«, I replied, »just give me a call«, I continued.

»Yes, I'll think about it», she said, took her phone out of the black basket, opened the window where you could dial a number, and held it out to me.

»By the way, what's your name?«, I asked her as I typed in my number.

»Sophie, and you?«

»Alexander«, I said when I was finished typing and finally looked into her gray-blue eyes for a little longer.

She stepped into the elevator.

»You will probably have doubts... or concerns.«

»Yes, we'll see. I'll think about it«, she said, and I realized she really had to go somewhere.

»I would be very happy. Goodbye, Sophie«, I waved to her as the elevator door closed.

I still felt the excitement within me, my hands trembling slightly. I hadn't been this nervous in a long time. But once I was back at the table, the excitement turned into a joyful feeling because I had the courage to take the first step. The rest was up to her.

Already seated at the table was a brunette woman with brown eyes, her hair braided into a bun like Sophie's, wearing glasses with a transparent frame. She had a nose piercing, and the most striking thing about her was her laptop covered in stickers: "FCKNZS", "EAT PUSSY. NOT ANIMALS", "self love baby. self love", "save the bees, trees $\&$ seas", "drink more wine", "destroy the capitalism not the planet".

The slogan "EAT PUSSY. NOT ANIMALS" particularly caught my attention. She seemed very left-leaning and definitely a vegan. But she was fully focused on her laptop. I went briefly to HanoMacke and had bread rolls with a spread I brought from Borsum.

After that, I went shopping quickly and then took the bus home. Today I had an interesting conversation. I went into the kitchen. Lina and Lara were there. Lara was cooking, and Lina was sitting in the conservatory reading a book. They were chatting about mundane things. I asked Lara who the guy was who was here recently. The conversation escalated very quickly, and within minutes we were talking about sex and our one-night stands. Finally, we were discussing something exciting.

Then I continued reading the book "CLEAN" and learned about the importance of having a diverse microbiome. A baby born through the vagina comes into contact with the mother's anus and thus gets various microbes, resulting in a much better immune system than a baby born through a C-section.

Perhaps there's even an advantage for my microbiome if I clean my bottom with water and my hand after using the toilet, rather than using toilet paper as I do now? Another advantage occurred to me that could arise if I come into contact with bacteria from my feces in this way: The strain of bacteria that produces Vitamin B12 resides in the colon. Unfortunately, it's not absorbed by the body in the colon. However, if I regularly wash down there with my hand, I could naturally transfer these B12-producing bacteria to the small intestine through hand contact and subsequent hand-to-mouth eating, potentially eliminating the need for B12 supplements as a vegetarian.

I'm slowly realizing how important it is for my health to form a symbiosis with my microbiome, to accept it as part of me, and to nurture it rather than constantly destroying it with soap and other chemicals.

This thought about the human microbiome made me curious whether the plants I eat also have a microbiome. I researched and found out that fruits and vegetables also have a microbiome. Then I thought: When I buy fruits and vegetables, everywhere on the internet I'm advised to wash them thoroughly. But doesn't washing them remove part of the plant's microbiome? I couldn't find any information about that. And what about the pesticides on the plants I bought today at the discount store? I definitely need to wash those. With organic fruits and vegetables, it would probably be safer to eat them unwashed. That way, I could better diversify my gut microbiome. I made a note about this improvement but didn't dare to implement it immediately until I found information about it. But right after that, something became clear to me that I hadn't been aware of the whole time.

My goal is to transition to a vegan diet. And one of the reasons is: I want to reduce suffering in the world. And I'm buying fruits and vegetables treated with pesticides? I'm supporting the destruction of unwanted plants (weeds), insects, fungi, and microorganisms? I can minimize these cruelties to small animals by buying organic food. This way, I avoid at least the targeted destruction of these beings.

I also researched the health effects of pesticides on the human body. The number of pesticide poisonings, the increased likelihood of liver and breast cancer, and various allergies were enough to convince me to only buy organic products from today onwards. For my health as the basis of a good life, I'm willing to pay more, I thought.

Then I learned about canned foods. These are contaminated with BPA, especially corn, which I regularly bought. I read that BPA significantly impairs sperm quality and is carcinogenic. Good reasons to avoid canned food. I now only buy my cooked organic beans in glass jars. This has a good side effect: I would avoid a lot of waste that goes into the yellow bag.

My goal is to initially reduce all my paper waste and food waste to zero by switching to products in glass or buying unpackaged products. Fortunately, I'm already done with residual waste.

The second point is, since I'll be spending more money on food, I'll appreciate it much more and be less tempted to throw it away or not consume it all. I noticed this effect with my high-quality Merino shirts, and I'm convinced it will be the same with more expensive food items.