#FlatRichie Has Left Germany

/ February 27, 2019

 

Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update +++ Update

Flat Richie has left Germany and is now on his way to the next stop… He’ll have to go a bit of a distance. And to while away the time until we hear from him again, Nordlicht – Flat Richie’s most recent host – has written a detailed account of the visit. In order for all readers here to understand, I have translated the German original into English. However, Nordlicht’s original account is so funny and nicely written, I am going to include it at the bottom of the post for those among you who are able to read German. Also – all photos courtesy of Nordlicht. Here we go…

On Thursday I finally had Flat Richie in my arms. He had been well taken care of by my predecessors – he is a lot bigger and heavier than I expected. Plus, he had something priceless in his bag: a real Richard Armitage! Almost fresh from the press. Remembering the notion that HE had touched the same pages, I could almost imagine I was still able to perceive the slightest whiff of his scent 🤤😍 … Forget coffee paper (a reference to a discussion on this blog), Richard Armitage paper is the one and only that counts. I can now empathise with Francis in the Blake scene … but don’t worry, I did not eat the page 😉. However, it was an uplifting feeling to hold the yet virginal page (not worn and drooled over) in my hands. Thanks again to Armidreamer for this great idea.

The moment of unwrapping the parcel made me really feel like a kid at Christmas, so much excitement, suspense, surprise. So yes, Thursday night was a very special night. Many thanks to all who are participating in the project and making something wonderful possible. And a very special thank you to Guylty, for organising, but also for the wonderful logbook. It totally fascinated me. You put so much love in it and really conjured up a little treasure which alone makes participating in the project worthwhile. And even though I was glad not to be too far back in the itinerary, I regret not being able to see the log once it is filled with even more contributions.

I offered the three travellers the opportunity to enjoy early spring time and refuel in the sun – and took a few photos of them. Flat Richie politely refused, as you know he prefers selfies. So only Thorin and Guy accompanied me on a ramble through my city – which has not hosted a real king for a long time. Some years ago the Pope visited, but what is that compared to the King under the Mountain? Unfortunately I could offer neither gold nor jewels to him whom I would follow anytime, anywhere. Strangely enough though, my suggestion of a flower crown as a substitute was not received with much enthusiasm. However, the two had no problem with being accompanied by a silver fox. Here are the results of my amateurish photo session. We had a lot of fun doing it.

After the walk, Thorin and Guy were more than eager to offer me their help testing a new mattress. But I decided to leave them at home. A furniture store did not seem like the best place for a mattress test. 😏 But at home, the three were witness to my very first attempt at Aloo Masala. The lack of meat was generally lamented (peasants!). Finally and coincidentally at the weekend I had the opportunity to see Alice through the Looking Glass for the first time, and waiting for Richard’s appearance was sweetened by the nice company.

Far too soon, it was time to say goodbye, which was very hard for me. But the lads really are made only for a few nights at most rather than a lifetime. In any case, they were getting restless and wanted to embark on new adventures. Secured with a fresh layer of tape, their journey will hopefully continue on to the next happy hostess. And *I* know who that is! 😝.

Right – and this is the German original:

Nordlicht also enclosed pictures of the three items she chose from the Flat Richie box. Have a look at these gorgeous items:

She writes:

  1. A Thorin figurine. An adequate substitute for Shrine Thorin, whom I had to send off just now. And who could resist the hottest dwarf of all time ?! Not me anyway. Especially since everything started with The Hobbit …
  2. A Zox bracelet. Until recently I did not even know that there was such a thing or what that is. Guylty (and her enthusiasm for it) are to blame that this has changed! And this one fits well, because … well … Tolkien (false dwarf though, but let’s not be petty ;-)). The design reminds me of a mountain landscape. And ultimately, life is always about going forward, no matter what happens.
  3. A necklace. The colour entranced me at first glance. I did not have to think twice. The pendant of this (I suspect) handmade necklace is beautiful.

Thank you for the fabulous report, Nordlicht! And just to set the record clear – too much credit for me. The beautiful gifts you chose were all provided by our fellow fans. I am not entirely sure (so please correct me in the comments if I am wrong) but I suspect the Thorin figurine came from Michele. The Zox bracelet was included in the package by me – but really has been provided by LoLo – who is the one who got me into them in the first place. (I am currently wearing a Tolkien themed Zox strap myself, given to me by LoLo.) Lastly, the gorgeous necklace was handmade – but not by me but by Helen who is a jewelry artist herself. I am the proud owner of several gorgeous pieces made by Helen, too. Check her work HERE.

Anyway, and now Flat Richie is travelling again. Somebody, somewhere on this planet, may look forward to receiving a parcel in 10 to 12 days… Who will it be? We’ll keep an eye out for Flat Richie’s next landfall.

Related posts

89 thoughts on “#FlatRichie Has Left Germany”

  1. Yes yes yes Nordlicht, so happy you chose Thorin!! He had quite a journey to me and I am beyond glee that you chose him!! I too had selected a necklace from Helen and love it so much. I’ll have to investigate these Zox bracelets now that everyone is talking about them!!
    Aber konne Ich Fragen wo wohnst du in Deutschland? If too personal no problem.. just curious. Meine Mutti ist von Stuttgart.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

        • The bracelets are called “straps” (ignore the other ones for the moment). I don’t think there is a “Thorin” strap yet, Michele. Or did you mean Tolkien? There were definitely several different Tolkien designs in the past. However, since they are only produced in limited number, once they are sold out – they are gone. You could try on eBay if you are really curious 🙂

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply

    • Ah Michele, I immediately suspected that you included Thorin☺. Thanks a bunch for this 😘. But now I´m really curious about his journey to you. You have to tell me.
      What, you do not know Zox wristbands 😲?! That´s unbelievable, really. Everyone knows them. They are der heißeste Scheiß 🤣. But well, you are not alone, I had to google them as well not that long ago 😉.
      I live in Erfurt Michele. That´s not really around the corner from Stuttgart.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      • Jou jou. Nordlicht. Erfurt is so quaint, Reminds me of my Opa and Oma who lived in Bad Waldsee. Thorin took his sweet time coming to me from afar but I thought it was unique and I don’t craft to save my life so I went with Richard inspired stuff (well 2 of the 3). He is sent to you with much love! I have something to ask you but not sure if I can… burning question about a certain tv show…

        Like

        Reply

              • Ok because there is a person on IG who watched BS3 and used northern lights in her moniker and she’s German and she made all of these clever and sweet and inspiring stuff and Orser highlighted her stuff on his IG and for a minute I thought it was you but if you didn’t want to have spotlight for privacy reasons I didn’t want to out you so to speak. Does that make sense?

                Like

                Reply

                • Yes, it totally makes sense. But I´m neither keen on Instagram nor on Twitter. But if she has nice pictures I should have a look maybe. Can you tell me her Insta name?

                  Liked by 1 person

                  Reply

                  • Nordlicht it is skuemy and I didn’t know where in Deutschland you are from and she just poured her heart and creativity into stuff for that show and Orser you could tell was deeply touched. She has Nordlicht in her bio and of course that is where my eyes went so that is why I thought of you and thought you might be on IG. I’m on neither either so I am bonded to you. (hugs to you) if you go to Dublin I’ll go with you and we will bring Rachel, LoLo, Donna, Zee, Helen and everyone else here with us since this is such a great community of commenters!!

                    Liked by 2 people

                    Reply

                    • Thanks, I´ll check her out. You are absolutely right, so many great people around here. I´m just afraid Guylty will be petrified if we all show up on her doorstep together 😂.

                      Liked by 2 people

                    • LOL – I have a big house, so I don’t mind at all. (I also know from experience that my house might look attractive at first look, but often actually puts people off when they realise that there is no central heating and a general lack of most mod cons… )

                      Liked by 2 people

  3. Mensch nordlicht, tolle Fotos und super geschrieben!! Ich hab mich schlapp gelacht. Tolle Geschenke hast du ausgesucht. Und den originalen Armitage in unverbrauchtem Zustand zu sehen, war sicher toll. Aber ich stimme dir zu. So schön es war, gleich am Anfang dran zu sein, das volle Logbuch wäre schon ein Highlight.

    Like

    Reply

    • Leute, nur mal eben hier einschalt: Das volle Logbuch wird auf jeden Fall ausgiebig vorgestellt. Und dann auch irgendwie noch an den Mann gebracht. Wir müssen uns nur überlegen, wie das am meisten Sinn macht!

      Like

      Reply

      • Das klingt auf jeden Fall gut. Zur Not würd ich aber auch Dublin auf der Städtetourenliste nach oben schieben und dich bei der Gelegenheit einen Nachmittag heimsuchen 😈😉. Würde auch Erdnussflips mitbringen 😂😉.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

          • Kein Problem. Ein Schlüpper reicht ja als Gepäck. Der Rest des Freigepäcks geht für Erdnussflips drauf 🤣🤣🤣.
            Ich gehe davon aus, dass die Termine dann so gelegt werden, dass eine gleichbleibende Flipsversorgung gesichert wird.

            Like

            Reply

            • Du meinst im Sinne von – immer schön die Gäste aus Erdnussflips-affinen Territorien so einladen, dass die Flips nie ausgehen? So viele von euch sind da ja nicht. Aber im Zweifelsfalle könntet ihr ja auch quasi jeden zweiten Monat wiederkommen?

              Like

              Reply

              • Uiuiui, und der CO2-Fußabruck? Rudern dauert doch so lange 😓.
                Aber ja, so meinte ich das. Ich hab ehrlich gesagt null Ahnung, wo man Flips überall kaufen kann oder halt nicht. Potentielle Logbuchinteressenten aus flipsfreien Zonen müssten dann halt einen kleinen Umweg machen auf dem Weg nach Dublin 😉.

                Like

                Reply

                • Hahaha, du hast das ja schon alles genau ausgeklügelt… Also, in den britischen Inseln findet man Erdnussflips weniger. Dagegen sind die leckeren Nuss-Mais-Knabbereien in Zentral- und Osteuropa in jedem gut sortierten Krämerladen zu finden. Also können schon mal alle Deutschen, Österreicher, Polen, Slowenen, Slowaken, Tschechen etc. kommen. Alle anderen müssen dann wohl tatsächlich zwischenlanden…

                  Like

                  Reply

    • Oh, danke dir *rotwerd*. Das Ganze hat echt soviel Spaß gemacht. Und ja, der original Armitage hat dem ganzen die Krone aufgesetzt. Auch wenn man ihn mit IHM in natura sicher nicht vergleichen kann 😉. Aber trotzdem hab ich erstmal hektisch diese eine Seite gesucht 😂.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  4. Oh, what wonderful photos! The boys obviously had a marvellous time with you, Nordlicht 😃You live in a very scenic city. I’m so pleased you like the necklace 😊 Many thanks for the translation, Guylty 😘

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

    • Haha Armidreamer 😂, yeah, would have been a pity if all your sacrifice had been destroyed that soon 😉. And we all know what happened to Francis after all. Totally not what I want. Anyway, thank you again for making this possible.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  6. What a lovely visit they had with you Nordlicht. The pictures are fab. You live in a beautiful area. It is so cool to see all the new items that other hosts have added since the guys stayed with me. You made some great choices. Thanks G for translating so us non-German speakers could enjoy this sweet and funny report. ❤️ Ok now I need to learn more about Zox bracelets 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Ok – the Zox straps are these really cool bracelets. They all have a beautiful design – and always also a sentiment that goes with it. (I am wearing two right now, and they are called “Afterglow” and “Wanderlust”. Last week, when I was struggling with my nasty transcription/translation I wore “Warrior”. The first one I received and wore all summer last year, was “Kindness”… and there is obviously lots and lots more.) Anyway, they are elastic, fabric bracelets, and more or less collectibles with a limited number of straps per design. But they are very affordable (like $10) so you can easily afford one – or give one as a present. Anyway, I think they are modern and cool and original, and thanks to LoLo I have been given lots of them… (Some are still there for future auctions, btw…) Anyway, LoLo could probably explain more and better, but if you want to check them out, look here: https://zox.la/collections/straps . If you can’t resist and want to buy one, let us know, though, we can probably hook you up with a discount code. *Guylty’s advertising game strong* 😉

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    • Thank you Donna 😊. I´m really happy to live here. But the weather is great these days as well so taking the pictures was great fun.
      Word of warning: don´t follow that Zox-road. There´s no way back 😉.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  8. So, nachdem ich mich endlich bis hier unten vorgearbeitet habe: ein dickes Danke an dich für die tolle Übersetzung 😊! Die englische Version ist nun besser als die deutsche, finde ich.

    Like

    Reply

  9. Fun to hear of all of Flat Richie’s adventures! Those Zox bracelets do look intriguing. I’ll have to browse their website. I read their story of how the three brothers created them and the company. The eldest brother created the first one to match his bright-coloured shoes!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Let me know what you think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.