Christina Widmann's Blog, page 18

Product review: Linenly Bamboo Sheets

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Disclaimer: This is a paid review. Nevertheless, I'm writing my honest opinion and experience.

Linenly sent me a set of bamboo sheets to test. Do they really make textile from bamboo? Is it washable? Does it feel different from cotton? Watch me discover bamboo fabric, wash and blind-test the Linenly sheets and try them in the Spanish summer heat.

What is bamboo fabric?

I knew flax and cotton, but I had no idea that you can make textile from bamboo. When I applied to test Linenly bamboo sheets, I thought it was just a brand name. I was wrong. You can pulp bamboo into fibers, spin it and weave it into linen. The result is hypoallergic and anti-bacterial and doesnt need fabric softener. Why hadn't I heard of this?

Bamboo plantations go easy on the environment: The roots prevent soil erosion, the plant grows fast with little water. No pesticides nor artificial fertilizer necessary. Bamboo plantations couple development with sustainability, sais this WWF article.

Unwrapping my Linenly bamboo sheets

One week after the shipping notification, I held a packet from Linenly in my hands. Inside was a fabric bag with washing instructions printed on one side, the properties of bamboo fabric on the other. The bag was bamboo, too. Inside, folded around a piece of cardboard, were my queen-sized bedsheets: two pillowcases, a fitted sheet and a flat sheet. Watch me unwrap them:

The fabric felt so silky and smooth! I wanted to change the bedsheets right away and relish the luxurious bamboo linen. But first, laundry.

Wash before first use

Linenly bamboo sheets come with clear instructions: cold water, no bleach, no fabric softener. I stuffed them into the machine, added detergent for delicate fabric and started the 20 degree programme. So far, so easy.

"Dry naturally" - off we go to the laundry line. These sheets are heavy when wet. Not too heavy for your standad clothes line, but heavier than cotton sheets. They dry in a day and a night.

"Low iron if necessary" - it was necessary. The sheets came out of the machine pretty wrinkly and didn't smooth out while drying. However, I generally don't iron anything if I can avoid it, and two-meter bedsheets are beyond me. My usual cotton sheets don't wrinkle much. I stretch them on the bed and they look fine. The bamboo sheets, stretch them as I might, stayed wrinkly. I didn't mind. The pillowcases were twice the size of my pillows - oops. I cheated and tucked the surplus fabric inside. Time for the test.

Blind sheet test

Perks of living with a blind man: He blind tests everything. I didn't tell him we had new sheets, I just put them on the bed and waited for the night. Would he notice the difference? He did: "Is this silk? Feels great!"

Two weeks later: bamboo sheets vs. Spanish summer

My bamboo sheets arrived in late spring. We tested them during the last coolish nights. After a week of luxury, it was time to change the sheets. I put the usual cotton back on the bed, cold-washed the bamboo sheets, dried and folded them. While they were waiting in the closet for their second turn, summer came. My husband got this year's first sunburn, and we both stopped wearing pyjamas. On saturday I changed the sheets. Two washings without fabric softener turn towels into sandpaper in Barbastro's chalky water, but the bamboo sateen felt as smooth and silky as before. It didn't look that smooth; again I hadn't ironed the sheets.

Bamboo linen is heavier than cotton. I was afraid it would be too heavy for the first hot night. But Linenly's bamboo sheets surprised me: They turned out to be just as breathable as thin cotton sheets, maybe even more. They felt cool on my skin.

Test score

Linenly bamboo sheets convinced me. They're taking turns with my cotton sheets now. The second set of cotton sheets is confined to the closet until further notice.

What I like about the bamboo sheets:

+ sustainable, eco-friendly fabric

+ smooth, silky feeling

+ easy to wash and dry

+ breathable

+ available in several sizes and colours, can mix and match

What I didn't like:

- tend to wrinkle

Overall score: 9,5 / 10.

Find out more

Wikipedia has an exhaustive article on bamboo textile.

Linenly offers answers to many questions on their FAQ page: How to wash and dry your bamboo sheets, how the fabric affects (or doesn't affect) the environment, and more. You can find other testers' photos and reviews on social media with the hashtag #sleepwithlinenly.

Maximilian Dorner: Steht auf, auch wenn ihr nicht könnt!

Behinderung ist Rebellion
Lieber Herr Dorner,

ich habe meinen Mann gefragt, ob er sich als Rebell fühlt. Tut er nicht, obwohl er eine Partei wählt, die Abtreibungen verbieten will. Das verlangt Widerstandskraft gegen die herrschende Meinung.

Für Blinde sind Sie als Rollstuhlfahrer nicht zuständig, schreiben Sie. Stimmt, genausowenig wie ein Blinder oder ein Down-Kind für Sie. Behindertengerecht für den Rollstuhl bedeutet noch nicht behindertengerecht für den weißen Stock, und umgekehrt. Sie rebellieren gegen Aktionsgruppen und Beiräte, wo beschlossen und beraten wird, alles behindertengerechter zu machen, und im Flur hängt der Aufzug fest.

Familie ist Zwangsinklusion, wie wahr. Aber man gewöhnt sich daran, keine Schranktüren offen zu lassen, damit keiner dagegen läuft. Ich würde ja Schiebetüren einführen, aber akkurat der Betroffene lässt mich nicht.

Das Leben mit Rollstuhl ist eine Dauerbaustelle, Ihr Manifest auch. Mal wollen Sie den Menschen sehen statt nur der Behinderung und sehen nicht ein, warum sich Rollstuhlfahrer auf der Straße grüßen sollten, wenn sonst auch niemand grüßt. Mal grüßen Sie doch. Das Dilemma bleibt den Blinden erspart. Dafür meinen hier in Spanien meine deutschen Landsleute, wir müssten alle Freunde sein, weil es uns an den Fuß der selben Berge verschlagen hat. Gute Frau, mit Ihnen würde ich in Bayern keinen Kaffee trinken, warum sollte ich es in Spanien wollen?

Unterschiede fallen auf. In einem Buch über Hirnforschung habe ich gelesen, dass wir alle ein Bild vom Durchschnittsmenschen im Hirn haben, errechnet aus allen Leuten, denen wir begegnet sind. Wenn wir jemand Neues kennenlernen, speichern wir nicht dessen Gesicht Punkt für Punkt, sondern seine Unterschiede zu unserem Durchschnittsmenschen. Der größte Unterschied bleibt am besten haften. Wenn das stimmt, müssen wir viele Rollstuhlfahrer, viele Blinde und viele Gehörlose kennenlernen, bevor wir sehen, dass sie außer der Behinderung noch etwas anderes haben, ein Lieblingsessen oder dergleichen. Bei Blinden habe ich es halbwegs raus, seitdem ich jeden Tag einen sehe und gelegentlich zwei oder drei. Ein weißer Stock im Schirmständer fällt mir nicht mehr auf. Stattdessen sehe ich die Leute: Julio ist ein Philosoph, Javier ist Javier und Jan ist ein Aas.

Ihr Manifest in der vorläufigen endgültigen Fassung würde ich am liebsten ganz in diesen Blog hängen, aber ich habe Angst, dass mir der Verlag dann keine Bücher mehr schickt. Drei Sätze darf man zitieren in einer Rezension. Welche drei Punkte soll ich zitieren aus Ihren 52 Forderungen?

1. Ohne Staus und Behinderungen geht es nicht.

38. Jeder, der bei einer Zusammenkunft sagt "Die Gesellschaft muss ...", gibt eine Runde Schnaps aus.

51. Wem einzelne Forderungen nicht passen, streicht diese einfach und schreibt seine daneben.

Verzeihen Sie, dass es in dieser Rezension etwas drunter und drüber geht, Herr Dorner. Ihr Buch springt auch. Ich habe es gerne gelesen. Sie schonen niemanden, erst recht nicht sich selbst, und ringen jeder Situation die Komik ab, notfalls mit Ironie-Warnblinkleuchte.

Ihr Stil gefällt mir, Sie haben noch mehr geschrieben - ich setze Ihre Romane auf die Leseliste.

Hochachtungsvoll
Christina Widmann de Fran

Steht auf, auch wenn ihr nicht könnt! Behinderung ist Rebellion von Maximilian Dorner

Erschienen am 22. April 2019 bei btb. Ich danke für ein Rezensionsexemplar.

ISBN: 978-3-442-75825-8

Erhältlich auf Amazon.de.

Robin McKinley: Sunshine

Dear Author,

I read Sunshine for the first time back in tenth grade, almost ten years ago, and loved it. I picked it back up yesterday, loved it just as much and appreciated it more. Your vampires scare the wits out of the main character, Rae alias Sunshine. You, the author, keep your cool and your sense of irony.

What does Constantine mean with different ways of being a vampire? Was the lunatic maybe right with the something-o-meter and the moon? It's about time you wrote that sequel, or at least another book in the same universe.

Yours sincerely
Christina Widmann de Fran

Sunshine by Robin McKinley

first published in 2003 by Berkeley

ISBN: 0-425-19178-8

Get your copy on Amazon.co.uk and visit the author on www.robinmckinleysblog.com.

Hailey Edwards: How to Save an Undead Life

The Beginner's Guide to Necromancy, Book 1
Dear Author,

Your necromancers paint sigils in blood to raise the dead as vampires, heal wounds on the living, give themselves more strength in a pinch and probably a lot more. Sigils on skin apparently lose their effect when they rub off. But vampires last for years and don't drop back dead in the rain. I'm curious how this brand of magic works. You give little background in the first volume. Will there be more? I hope so.

Grier, the protagonist, just got released from a horrible prison where she spent years innocent. Does she go investigate what really happened to her dead aunt? Does she go investigate why they suddenly let her out? No. She gets a job and tries to rebuild her life. A legit option.

In this new life, a vampire approaches her, a vampire from a rare breed that can render a necromancer helpless with a touch. Does Grier take precautions? Is she wary? Nope. She lets him into her kitchen and makes him a sandwich. Is the whole community of necromancers wary of those super-vampires? Do they hunt them down? Do they take precautions that none can rise? Nope.

The super-vampire, it turns out, wants something from Grier. As a token of goodwill he gives her a bangle that will make her immune to his power. She wears it, the sensible girl. But when it turns out he wants to marry her, she takes it off. She doesn't give it back for the time being. When the super-vampire appears at her door again, does she slip on the bangle just in case? Does she wear it up her sleeve so he doesn't see it and get his hopes up? Nope, she steps out to him unprotected.

Boaz waits hidden in a hedge for two weeks straight, he says. How does he eat, sleep, shit without getting noticed?

Despite these plot holes, and despite Grier's complete lack of common sense, I enjoyed How to Save an Undead Life. Grier is a bore, but Boaz is fun. So is Grier's haunted house. The whole Society of necromancers and vampires intrigues me. If the vampires need the necromancers to reproduce, and some super-vampires can turn necromancers into helpless thralls, why don't the vampire clans keep pet necromancers? And if Deathless have risen before, why bother with necromancers at all? A Deathless could sire a clan all by himself. Questions upon questions. I'll read How to Claim an Undead Soul. Maybe you give some answers there.

Yours sincerely
Christina Widmann de Fran

​How to Saven an Undead Life: The Beginner's Guide to Necromancy, Book 1 by Hailey Edwards

published in 2017

ISBN: 1985855437

Available on Amazon.co.uk.

Luis Sepúlveda: Historia de una ballena blanca

Una novela para jóvenes de 8 a 88 años
Muy Autor mío:

Moby Dick aburre tanto que me pregunto cómo llegó a ser clásico de la literatura mundial. Su Historia de una ballena blanca, a cambio, me ha gustado. Cuenta cómo un cachalote color luna llega a odiar al hombre. Me encanta el tono poético, tanto que le perdono la historia romántica, mil veces oída y sin embarco falsa, de los nobles salvajes que viven en harmonía con la naturaleza. Tales tribus no ha habido, nos cuentan los antropólogos; la codicia es parte de la condición humana. No la padece sólo el hombre blanco.

Quería un libro de autor vivo con buena prosa. El librero ha cumplido. La telepatía entre ballenas añade un fino toque de realismo mágico a la Historia de una ballena blanca. Creo que leeré más de usted.

Atentamente
Christina Widmann de Fran

​Historia de una ballena blanca: Una novela para jóvenes de 8 a 88 años de Luis Sepúlveda

publicada en 2019 por Tusquets editores

ISBN: 978 8490666968

Disponible en Amazon.es.

Paperang P1: a Review

I bought myself an inkless printer.

The Paperang P1 is a pocket printer that connects to your phone via Bluetooth. Watch me unbox mine:

Set-up

The printer comes charged, with a roll of paper inside and with a little manual that basically says: Download the Paperang app, connect the printer and enjoy. However, it isn't that easy.

The Paperang app wants me to connect to an account or register. It does connect with facebook, but I create a new account with my e-mail address. A verification code arrives, I log in for the first time, and we're ready for setup.

As a first step, I'm supposed to press the power button twice. The printer spews out a QR code to scan in the Paperang app. So far, so good.

Next step: configuration. The app wants me to choose a paper type. It looks like it wants me to choose from a list, but there's no list in sight. After several minutes of waiting, an error message. I tap the backwards button on my phone and explore the app. Lots of icons, little explanation. There's loads of options: Type something and print, make a To-Do-list, a calling card, a banner... But no templates anywhere. Blank screens wherever I tap. I choose an image from my phone and try to print. The app goes back to the "Choose a paper type"-screen every time. Sporadic error messages. Should the Paperang app be incombatible with my Android?

I have other things to do. I leave the phone and printer on my desk. When I return after half an hour, something has changed: The app chose a paper type for me.

Trying out my Paperang P1 thermal printer

When I click on To-do-list, a multitude of templates greets me. The same for business cards.

I choose a list template. Now I can type in some bullet points and print it out.

As I tap around the app, I slowly discover more functions. Users can upload images into a cloud for everybody else to use. The albums are searchable and there's a lot to choose from.

Paperang lets you print study notes, lists, whole websites, your own photos and thousands of free images. It always tells you how much paper a project is going to consume. Good to know - the Paperang paper is expensive and the manual warns you not to use any other thermal printer paper because it might damage the device.

One icon leads to a lot of Chinese.

It lets me print out calligraphy instructions. Or is it something else? I have no idea.

My first impression

Dear Paperang, give me a manual. Your app works great once it starts working, but it takes hours to figure out what is where.

Pricing:
The Paperang P1 costs

- more than 100 € on paperangprint.com

- 47 € on Amazon.es

- and around 40 USD on dhgate or other Chinese sites if you're prepared to wait for shipping. A fair price for a lifestyle gadget.

It includes a roll of white thermal paper. You can get more white paper, colorful paper and adhesive paper on paperangprint.com for a hefty price. Other printers cost a fortune in ink, this one costs a fortune in the seller's original paper. Using generic thermal paper will end the warranty and might damage my new toy, says the manual. But you know what, dear Reader? I like this printer. I'm going to be printing my own stickers, notes, quotes, pictures for scrapbooking and more. And I'll try out if cheap thermal paper really damages the printer and if the expensive paperang paper is really better quality. I'll post the experiment here and on my YouTube channel BrutalReviews. Stay tuned.

Yours sincerely
Christina Widmann de Fran

Antonio Priante: Lesbia mía

Muy Autor mío:

Catulo es mi poeta preferido, pero no tenía una imagen mental clara de él. Ahora sí tengo. Usted cuenta, en cartas y unos pocos diálogos, la vida del poeta desde que conoció a Clodia, la que iba a ser Lesbia, La Mujer en mayúsculas. Aparecen también César el ambicioso y Cicerón el ingenuo. Me ha encantado leer así sobre ellos, en un libro donde no son protagonistas. Usted conoce bien la antigua Roma y la pinta en certeras pinceladas. La entrevista entre Catulo y César arroja luz sobre los dos.

En algunas cartas aparecen citas de los poemas de Catulo. Uno me hubiera gustado ver allí: "César, no me esfuerzo demasiado para querer gustarte, ni siquiera para saber si eres blanco o negro." Me pregunto qué queria decir el poeta: que César le importaba un comino, o acaso que no quería saber las preferencias sexuales del hombre. ¿Cómo lee usted el epigrama?

Gracias por este libro.

Atentamente
Christina Widmann de Fran

Lesbia mía de Antonio Priante

primera edición en 1992 (Seix Barral)
reedición en 2016 (Piel de Zapa)

ISBN: 978-8416288939

Disponible en Amazon.es.

Blog del autor: www.antoniopriante.com

Mike Kleiß: Laufwunder

Wie sie dein Leben verändern

Lieber Herr Kleiß,

"Laufen Sie los, laufen Sie einfach los." Sie haben leicht schreiben als Mann. Sie brauchen nur Schuhe. Ein Sport-Bh zum Laufen kostet hundert Euro, eng sitzen muss er auch. Mag sein, dass Männer beim Laufen freier atmen, ich nicht.

Und wann loslaufen? Auch da schreiben Sie sich leicht als Mann. Sie könne frühmorgens raus oder spät abends, wenn es noch oder schon finster ist. Da bleibe ich besser daheim. Eine Läufergruppe suchen? Ich würde alle anderen aufhalten. Meine ersten Kilometer will ich mir allein erschnaufen. Nachts ist es zu gefährlich, tagsüber sind die Mädchen wach, beide noch zu klein für den Kindergarten. Deshalb hat mich Ihr Buch frustriert. Schreibt mir den Mund wässrig, wo ich frühestens in zwei Jahren wieder loslaufen kann. Selber schuld, ich hätte es nicht jetzt lesen sollen.

Ihr Buch macht wirklich Lust, loszulaufen. Sie erwähnen, dass Sie Marathons in guten Zeiten schaffen; dennoch klingen Sie bescheiden, ja demütig. Humor haben Sie auch. So liest man gerne: von den Menschen, denen Sie an der Laufstrecke begegnet sind. Vom Selbstversuch mit der veganen Ernährung. Von Ihren Hunden, Ihrem Vater, Ihrer Großmutter. Bei Ihrem Stil verzeihe ich sogar das Angeber-Englisch. Läuft bei Ihnen.

Vor unbequemen Fragen laufen Sie nicht weg. Sie schreiben über Laufen und Selbstdarstellung, Laufen und Midlife-Crisis, Laufen und Magersucht. Wo nötig, beraten Sie sich mit Ärzten. Ratschläge geben Sie wenige, im Grunde nur einen: auf den eigenen Körper hören. Außer im ersten Monat, wo sich der innere Schweinehund wehrt mit allerlei Wehwehchen, damit man aufs Sofa zurückkehrt. Wie man unterscheidet zwischen diesen Schweinehundszipperlein und einer beginnenden Verletzung, das schreiben Sie nicht. Woher weiß ich, dass ich im ersten Monat nicht übertreibe und mir etwas kaputt laufe? Ist mir passiert, als ich vor Jahren einmal losgelaufen bin. In einem Monat gesteigert von 0 auf 20 Kilometer. Fühlte sich wunderbar an, dann kam die Schienbeinkante. Ich hätte vielleicht gleich auf meinen Körper hören sollen. Mache ich, wenn ich irgendwann wieder loslaufe. Und vorher lese ich Ihr Buch nochmal. Ich habe nämlich schonmal ein Laufwunder erlebt. Und eine Ziellinie. Da will ich wieder hin.

Hochachtungsvoll
Christina Widmann de Fran

Laufwunder: Wie sie dein Leben verändern von Mike Kleiß

erschienen: 2016 beim Gütersloher Verlagshaus
Ich danke für ein Rezensionsexemplar.

ISBN: 978-3-641-19203-7

Leseprobe kostenlos herunterladen

Erhältlich auf Amazon.de.

Elia Barceló: Las largas sombras

Muy Autora mía:

Usted cuenta la historia de siete mujeres. Comienza con un final: Lena, que antes se llamaba Magda, se desangra en la bañera. Quien la encuentra es Rita, que de joven se llamaba Marga. Ella llama a las demás. Poco a poco las vamos conociendo: Tere, Ana, Carmen, Candela, Sole. Juntas tienen un secreto que no las deja en paz y que tal vez tenga que ver con el suicidio (¿o asesinato?) de Lena. Los capítulos van alternando entre el presente y aquel verano del 1974 que lo cambió todo sin que de momento sepamos por qué.

Siete mujeres son muchas para comenzar un libro, Sra. Barceló. Los nombres Magda y Marga, Carmen y Candela suenan tan similares que me confundo. Tere y Ana son ginecóloga y partera, también difíciles de distinguir en los primeros capítulos. Pero sobre todo hay que tener cuidado con el tiempo: ora estamos en el 2007 antes de la muerte de Lena, ora después. Usted encabeza los capítulos con mes y año, pero no con el día.

Las perspectivas también alternan entre las chicas y tres hombres. Leo lenta y atentamente para aclararme de cuándo y con quién estamos. Caen muchas alusiones al verano del 1974 y al viaje de fin de curso. Me enfado con las siete mujeres y con usted, Sra. Barceló: ¿Por qué no lo cuenta ya? ¿Por qué tantos rodeos?

Por fin, a mitad de libro, nos enteramos. Por fin distingo entre Carmen y Candela, entre Marga/Rita y Magda/Lena. Por fin conocemos a Mati, la octava chica, la que murió en el 1974. El libro acelera. En la segunda mitad ocurre mucho, se explica mucho. Me gustan las partes que transcurren en el 1974. La muerte de Mati parece inevitable, pero ¿quién fue? Las partes en el presente no me interesan tanto. La muerte de Lena no parece inevitable, ni siquiera tiene lógica el móvil. El asesinto preparado en sangre fría, el somnífero traído en polvo desde casa, no cuadran con lo que sabemos de la asesina.

Una pregunta queda, Sra. Barceló: ¿qué hicieron con la maleta de Olaf? Lo demás era fácil de repartir. ¿No llamó la atención una maleta demás?

Atentamente
Christina Widmann de Fran

​Las largas sombras de Elia Barceló

Publicado en 2009.

ISBN: 9788417092719

Disponible en Amazon.es.

Beth Revis: Give the Dark My Love

Dear Author,

What kind of university throws a first-year student into a class that is about to graduate? And why would they withhold the basic demonstration of Alchemy until far into the first semester of that last year? Are your students supposed to learn the whole art, craft and science of Medical Alchemy in a few months?

What is this Alchemy anyway? In the demonstration, a teacher exchanges a hair for a rock, then temporarily turns the rock into a living rat which later absorbs the pain of a cut to a student's hand. The rat turns back into a rat-shaped rock. So, in your world, you can get a rock for a short hair. Can you get a brick for a long one? Can the Alchemist control what he gets? How does this affect people's lives: Do Alchemists work in the brick factory? Do they make lifelike statues of anything that fits into a crucible? Do they exchange garbage for useful resources? No. It seems all they do is numb pain.
How does the pain absorption work? The way the teacher explains it, an Alchemist can channel the pain from a person into a rat. That would mean only the rat feels the pain. Later, the same teacher says that the Alchemist must feel part of the pain - or all of it? The explanation isn't clear. When Nedra channels the surgery pain, it seems she feels it all. In that case, why bother with a rat? And why use living rats for Alchemy if you can work with rocks that need neither food nor water?

Alchemy apart, what time does Give the Dark My Love imitate? People travel by boat and mule cart. There's a university that gives scholarships to gifted students. There's no steam engines yet, but people work in factories. Didn't factories start with the steam engine? Your setting looks more or less like nineteenth century Europe. Did girls go to university in the nineteenth century? Were peasants literate? Nedra's father can live selling books in farmers' villages. Live well, if his wife serves cookies and bacon for breakfast. Nevertheless, you call him poor.

Nedra, your heroine, is a bookseller's daughter who taught herself all she could before going to university with a scholarship. She encounters an indifferent, even hostile professor - who suddenly turns into her mentor when she gives him lip. She is the only lowborn girl among rich kids who, you write, look down on her for her unfashionable clothes. The most popular guy in class wants to bully her, but stops after one short conversation. Nedra gets invited into a study group. And Greggori, a politician's son, falls in love with her at first sight. Nedra is behind the other students, but performs a feat that graduated, experienced Alchemists wouldn't attempt. Mary Sue much?

But here's what made me throw away Give the Dark My Love: your style. You don't build your world at all, Mrs. Revis. You mention Nedra's "unfashionable clothes." What does that mean? Is everybody wearing puffed sleeves except her? Is it the colours? Is she wearing high bodices while the other girls wear them low or is she wearing a low bodice when all the others are buttoning them up? Show, don't tell, Mrs. Revis. And imagine it all the way through before trying to show me.

Yours sincerely disappointed
Christina Widmann de Fran

​Give the Dark My Love by Beth Revis

published in 2018 by Razorbill (Penguin)

ISBN: 9781595147172

Available on Amazon.co.uk.

Visit the author on www.bethrevis.com.