For a longer time I was looking into a solution to get rid of the mess around my espresso machine. I have three portafilters: one with a filter basket for one shot and one spout, one with a filter basket for a double shot or two espresso and a double spout and last but not least one with no spout, or, a bottomless portafilter.

As i am only always using one of the above portafilters, the other two are somewhere next to my machine and I don’t have the most space around my machine. I thought of building a little rack out of wood to hang the portafilters I don’t need onto the wall. Then I thought, I do a little bit of research as other people might have the same issue and already solved it.

I found a couple of nice looking solutions, like this one, by someone calling himself chuckcoffee or this one, which comes even with a magnet for the blind filter basket. There are even solutions from companies like ECM, made of metal, but sadly also quite pricey.

I then looked on Etsy and found something called Portakeeper, which does not waste a lot of space on your wall, is easy to mount (you can use 3M sticking pads to mount them) and does not cost too much. Maybe not as beautiful as wooden versions, but you don’t really see them behind the portafilter either. I took a couple of photos of how they look and how I mounted the two I bought.

Of course, those are “only” 3D printed and you can find similar versions on Thingiverse (e. g. this one or this one), but I like that the one behind the Etsy solution provided a great service, helping me with questions and I was happy to buy from him (plus, I don’t have a 3D printer anyways).

This is stunningly beautiful. This is a photography project by Richard Silver.

I can’t describe why, but somehow those photos have something really fascinating. But simply have a look yourself on his website, where you find them in higher resolution.

This is one example of the lovely comments – via email, direct message or alike – I get often after running an event. And this also is an example for my reason running those events.

I can’t describe the happiness whenever I receive one of those emails. Thanks a lot to all those who make the effort and take the time to write me. ❤️

Looking forward to two days in Vienna to attend the Webclerks Conference. Excited to meet friends (and make new ones) after running beyond tellerrand in Berlin just a little more than a week ago. Also happy to meet a couple of people there, which I had not spoken to a lot at my own event as a matter of time and business ;)

Se you there …

I recently, as from time to time, changed all my email account passwords. But I am not able to update any of my accounts on my iPhone X. I can change the passwords, get the blue checkmarks, when a password is changed, but when I go back to my email program, I get the same damn error, that there is a problem with my accounts and I should check the login credentials.

Really Apple?

I am absolutely sad seeing your quality going continuously down over time. I am not even complaining, that there are no new highlights or features are coming in updates (well those superb Memoji stickers 🙄). I am sad to see the hardware quality of the laptops going down (keys fall off etc.), but even the basic stuff is getting worse and worse.

Sad to see this …

On Twitter my friend Brendan was asking if others also noticed a similar way of talking into the camera.

[…] Same phrasing, same mannerisms, same sentence structures. […]

I am sure he is right and I know what he means, as it also counts for images/photos (I am guilty here as well), but I was asking, if he’d have examples.

Keith from Ireland replied with a brilliant link to [an account named insta_repeat, which I haven’t come across before. Brilliant way of holding a mirror in front of us!

About one or two weeks before an event takes place, my Partners (how I like to call my sponsors) get a longer email with all the details and instructions for anything that is in their package.

If they have a booth during the conference, I like to give them this little bit of advise

One tip you should please follow, as I know my attendees for 10 years now: don’t go with the classic table setup, where you sit behind your table with your laptop open during the breaks. That kills it and I promise, no one is gonna speak to you, as they don’t want to disturb you while you work.

🤷‍♂️ Right?

You can imagine, that I am totally sorry to hear that Charis Rooda had to cancel this year’s WebConf Asia. Surely the situation in Hong Kong caused this, but knowing how much passion Charis puts into organising it, it must be such a tough decision to cancel your event. As she says:

We have not taken this decision lightly, and have kept hope until last week that the situation would improve (enough) so we could still hold a great event. Unfortunately, we feel that this is no longer the situation, and therefore we feel obliged to postpone. It’s breaking our hearts and we are very sorry.

Well, I believe this 100%. Fingers crossed for the next one then, dear Charis!

I am just back from the lovely [ScriptConf][https://marcthiele.com/notes/going-to-linz-to-scriptconf], where I had a fabulous time meeting new and old friends. I have been overwhelmed also by the positive conversations about my own event and the many people complimenting me about it and telling me, they are happy that Munich is going to be back.

But when I made my coffee this morning, it dawned on me, that this year, 2019, will be the first year since 2006, that I am not travelling to Brighton at least one time for an event. Since 2006 – so every time – I attended Reasons, the former Flash On The Beach. I also attended many of the dConstruct events and enjoyed all of them a lot. Both sadly came to an end.

There is ffconf, which used to be called Full Frontal Conference earlier. An event by Remy and Julie, which is long running and lovely, but sadly always clashes with my Berlin dates, since I run the Berlin edition of beyond tellerrand. Definitely worth going!

Then there are a series of events Jeremy Keith puts on. Like Responsive Day Out (don’t know if there will be another after three editions, though) or Patterns Day, which took place in June, where I have been away with the Smashing Team to run SmashingConf Toronto. So I missed this as well.

That means, if I won’t travel to Brighton after the Berlin edition of beyond tellerrand, this is really going to be the first year in a long time, where I have to miss Brighton. And I do miss Brighton. And dConstruct. And Reasons.

Leaves me with a nostalgic, little bit sad feeling. But also with a lot of warm and good memories.

It is a bit calm and silent here. Well, guess what: we are close to a beyond tellerrand again. This time special once more, as it is a first time in a new venue. Next to this I had been in Austria’s mountains in Tirol last week with my family. I love this before an event to clear my head and to recharge my batteries before hell breaks loose with all the last minute bits and pieces for a show. One more ticket is left for Berlin and I guess it will be sold out tomorrow beyond tellerrand Berlin sold out while I was typing this text. This is great and I will work hard as usual and give my best to make it a good show again.

But before I finally see you at beyond tellerrand in November, I am going to attend an event in Linz at the end of this week. I try to get to ScriptConf since Stefan, Dominik and Sebastian started it. Tobi – whom you might know from beyond tellerrand since 2013 and who now also plays for events like SmashingConf, Frontend Zurich and others – also is going to be there and rocks the stage for the audience in Linz. If that is not reason enough, than maybe an excellent line-up. The page mentions tickets for €159, but I think it is sold out.

Looking forward to meet you in Linz, if you are there (or in Berlin at beyond tellerrand) ;)