Mrs. Martin and Mr. Blohm Episode 34: Whoever stops striving to become better stops being good.

After Regina hadn’t heard from Mr. Blohm for almost five months, and the two hadn’t run into each other—despite being neighbors—the rainy and cold summer in Hamburg had finally passed, and autumn was approaching in October.

Regina knew she would not make it through another summer in Hamburg. It was time to finally move closer to her dream destination—Miami. She had mentally closed the chapter on Hamburg, on Munich, and, in many ways, on Germany altogether. This was not only because of Mr. Blohm, who was clearly not the right match, or the lack of sun and warmth—she was also no longer happy in her job at La Perla.

When a dream becomes louder than reality.

She didn’t yet know how she would make Miami happen, but as the saying goes, it’s never about the “how,” it’s about the “why.” And for Regina, that was very clear—the sun, the tropical weather, and the vibrant mix of cultures in Miami, which she had fallen in love with from the very first moment she arrived there nearly eight years ago.

Regina also hadn’t really made any close friends in Hamburg since moving from Munich almost a year ago, which made her feel even more connected to Miami—where friendships had come so naturally to her.

Hamburg was starting to get on her nerves, and she felt increasingly bored. Even the tennis club on the Alster, where she had been a guest member and played frequently, no longer brought the excitement she had hoped for, nor did it lead to any meaningful encounters that might have hinted at a relationship. All the more, she was delighted when she received a wonderful invitation from her landlord, Gerhard M., from whom she hadn’t heard in months, to the opening of a new restaurant in Hamburg—called The Bank.

Shortly after Gerhard’s call, she noticed an incoming call from Mr. Blohm. She couldn’t help but smile—what a coincidence. And as we know, there are no coincidences in life—what is meant for you will find you. First her landlord from Rondeel 31, and now her neighbor, Mr. Blohm.

She paused for a moment, wondering whether she should even answer the call. But Regina’s curiosity took over, and she picked up, eager to find out what Mr. Blohm wanted after all this time.

“Mrs. Martin, this is Claus Blohm. I haven’t heard from you in such a long time, and I haven’t seen you either. Where are you, Mrs. Martin? What have you been up to—and how are you?”

Regina was overwhelmed by all these questions and responded very briefly—especially after she had discovered that Mr. Blohm, in his free time alongside his main role as CEO of a Swedish uniform company, was the so-called president of the “Bad Boys Club,” a website where South American half-naked women were dancing. That had been the final drop that made the glass overflow.

There had never really been any true alignment between Mrs. Martin and Mr. Blohm, and as mentioned before, he was not her type physically either. For months, Regina had occasionally considered whether something might develop between them, simply because they kept running into each other as neighbors, and because Mr. Blohm repeatedly tried to capture her attention—sometimes successfully, sometimes not at all.

But now, Regina was clear: she did not want to spend another minute with Mr. Blohm. She had completely distanced herself.

She replied briefly, saying she was doing well, that she was very busy, and that she was traveling frequently with La Perla.

Mr. Blohm thought to himself, I already know these answers—she’s been telling me the same thing since the day I met her.

Regina did not ask how Mr. Blohm was doing.

Mr. Blohm then asked, “Well, Mrs. Martin, shall we meet again sometime?”

No More Games

Regina answered immediately, without hesitation:
“No, Mr. Blohm, we shall not. As you know, we have nothing—absolutely nothing—in common. Why should we meet again?”

She simply said it out loud. At that point, she no longer cared. She wanted to put an end to the back-and-forth that Mr. Blohm had created—showing interest, only to disappear again for months. Regina was done with games, especially at 35.

Mr. Blohm was not entirely surprised by Mrs. Martin’s response

Now, dear readers, you must know that Mr. Blohm had been wondering for quite some time why he had never heard from his neighbor, Mrs. Martin, again.

Even though Mr. Blohm had tried his best to turn around the impression of that rather disappointing lunch, he made a spontaneous decision at the very last moment while saying goodbye. He gave Mrs. Martin the password to the legendary “Bad Boys Club Hamburg” website, where he was the president and where, among other things, exclusive golf tournaments and leisure activities were announced.

(Dear readers, you must understand that back in 2005, it was not at all common to have private websites—especially not password-protected ones granting exclusive access.)

For Mr. Blohm, this was a true sign of trust—a way to show Mrs. Martin what he did in his free time. He was proud to be the president of the Bad Boys Club, organizing exceptional golf events in remarkable locations. It required a great deal of time and dedication, especially as it was a nonprofit organization.

The Truth Behind the Distance

Unfortunately, Mr. Blohm later discovered that his marketing manager—and very good friend—Thilo had, without his knowledge, turned the site into a kind of landing page featuring half-naked women along with promotional content. Mr. Blohm had no idea that South American women were dancing on the website to promote a prize for a future golf tournament. Had he known, he would, of course, never have shared the password with Mrs. Martin.

What must she have thought? Mr. Blohm asked himself at the time. Embarrassed after finding out, he decided to keep his distance from Mrs. Martin for a while and not reach out, hoping to let a little grass grow over the situation.

For Mr. Blohm, it became very clear that this was the reason Mrs. Martin had lost interest in him—and why she never contacted him again. The thought that his neighbor might simply not have been interested in him as a man never even crossed his mind.

Claus later told Thilo the whole story about the Bad Boys password and Mrs. Martin, and confronted him, asking why he had never mentioned the changes to the website. Thilo simply replied, “Well, I’m the marketing manager and you’re the president… Claus, that’s your own fault. You know we’re a men’s club—why would you give your neighbor the password to our site?”

Claus answered, “We had an awful lunch, and I wanted to turn the impression around with Mrs. Martin. Thilo and I couldn’t think of anything better than mentioning that I’m the president of the Bad Boys Club—to show her that we host interesting golf events.”

Thilo rolled his eyes and said, “No wonder she never called you again. I wouldn’t have either.”

Thilo could hardly believe that his friend would go to such lengths to impress a woman—with a password. At the same time, it showed him just how deeply his friend Claus had fallen for his neighbor from Munich, Mrs. Martin.

Two Illusions

But Mr. Blohm simply wasn’t so easy to shake off. He did not want to accept that Mrs. Martin no longer wanted to see him again, so he didn’t give up and asked another question:

“What are your plans for the near future, Mrs. Martin?”

When Regina heard this question, she immediately realized it was the perfect opportunity to impress Mr. Blohm—just a little. With a certain pride, she told him that she had been invited to the opening of The Bank, a new restaurant in Hamburg.

When Mr. Blohm heard that Mrs. Martin had been invited to The Bank—a restaurant he had also heard about but had not received an invitation to—he saw his chance to impress her with his insider knowledge of events in Hamburg.

“Oh, I see, Mrs. Martin…” Mr. Blohm began, launching into a monologue.
“You have to know, this will be the event of the year—it’s on November 2rd. I will most likely be there as well,” he said, still hoping he might receive an invitation from some of his friends, though he didn’t mention that to Mrs. Martin. “I know so many people attending. Many well-known names will be there.”

He started mentioning names Regina had never heard of, speaking as if his attendance were already confirmed. From the way he described how such events worked in Hamburg, Regina got the impression that he assumed this was her first major event in her life. His tone, in her eyes, carried a clear sense of showing off.

“In Munich, these kinds of events are quite different, Mrs. Martin. As you know, I have attended many golf tournaments there and have been invited to quite a few special events,” he added, continuing in his all-knowing tone. He also mentioned that he would arrive a bit later, as the event would be too crowded at the beginning.

Regina simply listened, rolling her eyes internally, already eager to end the conversation. Mr. Blohm always knows everything better, she thought. Even after all these months, nothing had changed. She knew this man was not the right one for her.

It felt as if he assumed she had never been invited to anything special before. She also found his constant comparisons between Hamburg and Munich unnecessary—as if Hamburg always had to be better, even though, in Regina’s view, events followed the same patterns everywhere.

If only he knew, she thought. I’ve been to far better events than this small restaurant opening called The Bank.

But she chose not to engage or point that out.

In her mind, she continued, This man is just too arrogant—always acting as if he knows everything.

A New Focus

So Regina interrupted Mr. Blohm mid-sentence.

“Mr. Blohm, I wish you a wonderful day. And please don’t worry about me—I know very well how these kinds of events work.”

She added that she had to attend a client meeting and ended the conversation abruptly.

“Goodbye, Mr. Blohm.”

Mr. Blohm quickly responded, “Well then, I’ll see you, Mrs. Martin, at the latest on November 3rd at The Bank event. I’m looking forward to it.”

Regina didn’t even want to hear the rest. She hung up, looked at her phone, and thought to herself…

She had not mentioned to Mr. Blohm that her landlord had invited her—and that without him, she would not have received the invitation at all. She simply let it sound as if she had been invited on her own.

Why did I even want to impress him? she asked herself.

It doesn’t matter, Regina thought. Let him think whatever he wants.

For Regina, one thing was clear: she would have a wonderful time at the event with Gerhard, her landlord, meet new people, and enjoy the evening. That was all that mattered.

Do you want to know how this continues?
Will Mrs. Martin and Mr. Blohm run into each other before the event… or only at the legendary night itself?

Then stay tuned…

You already know—for this Mrs. Martin & Mr. Blohm story, you’ll need plenty of SYLTBAR cases 🥂
It’s getting more exciting with every episode.