Hi Jim,

I just got home after watching a movie, I’m Not There, with Susanne. To wake ourselves up a bit after it was over we went to a bar in Mitte called Kim (I think) where everyone was well dressed but the walls were disgracefully dirty. Susanne (who by the way is a doctor of psychology) is recovering from a mental problem and despite the medication, she sometimes says funny things. When we walked in past a row of lockers, she said: ‘There is no barman in this bar,’ in a voice that was as stern as Old Testament and I laughed loudly across the bare room until a barman popped his head through the door flicking water off his fingers and stepped out to serve us two beers. We took a seat on a black sofa and I suddenly realized I was stroking my right testicle. I had no idea that the tear in my jeans would have that effect on me. I warned Susanne and said, ‘Don’t look now but my balls are showing’ and after that she talked to me as if her head was in a neck brace. Thank God at that moment the DJ played a breathy Bryan Ferry song (which in Berlin is ultra arty because in this city they nearly only play beats) and I squealed and sighed and wondered why on earth had we gone to see a movie about Bob Dylan when we both can’t stand him? But as it turned out, Susanne said that the song was actually a Dylan cover so I suppose there was some point to the evening after all.