Yesterday was a bank holiday, tomorrow is a Saturday which makes today a Brückentag (Bridge-day). I quite like these days. They have a quiet, lazy feel to them because not many people work and lots of people are away for the long weekend – but all the shops are open. Continue reading
Ariane has flown off to Dublin for a couple of days on a girls’ trip with her friend Corina – which makes me a so-called Strohwitwer (literally a straw-widower). We use this expression whenever the husband is left alone for a few days. Tomorrow is a bank holiday – Father’s Day over here – so I am hoping that I will be able to have lie in and then have breakfast made for me. In anticipation of the easy day tomorrow, I have allowed the kids to watch some TV this evening and cracked a couple of beers myself. I may even have a whisky when they’ve gone to bed. Continue reading
It’s common knowledge that if you want to have a pleasant evening with friends, don’t talk about politics or religion. Well last night Ariane and I went out for a drink with 5 of our co-workers (a minor celebration as our company broke even in April) and the subject quickly turned to politics and religion. The good news is that we still had a pleasant evening and even though we didn’t all see eye to eye, we had a really good open discussion. As most of the people at the table were a good 25 years younger than me I was really impressed at their attitudes. It was a little disarming and I couldn’t properly fill my traditional role of grumpy old man – they were all so reasonable and articulate. The young aren’t what they used to be. Continue reading
The working month of May began pleasantly. Ariane was feeling a little under the weather so specifically asked that we cycle slowly into work. I didn’t need asking twice. And so we set off at a leisurely pace along the forest trails. The sun was shining and the ground was drying out. The leaves and grass had that extra green appearance you get when the sun is shining after spring rain. You can almost sense nature saying “right, winter has finally buggered off and we are going on an all-out growing frenzy before it gets too hot.” Continue reading
The changeable weather continues. If you live in England you get used to having all sorts of different weather on the same day, but over here the rhythm of change is much slower. Usually you get a few days of roughly the same stuff. But the weather in April hardly ever settled down for more than a day or two – the only time we had a week of consistent weather was when it was really bad. Must be El Nino. Continue reading
The grim weather finally made way for some sunshine yesterday. I cycled to work on dry trails in relatively warm temperatures. I left work a little early to watch my younger daughter, Emma, play her accordeon at a little concert here in Schönaich. She did very well (no, really – no mistakes). Afterwards the weather was still warm and as we’d had a good week at work I picked up some beers at the petrol station so that Ariane and I could enjoy a cold one in the garden before the sun disappeared. Lovely. Continue reading
When I moved to Germany back in 1991 I didn’t really speak any German. I was working straight away and I was vaguely aware that there were various forms to fill out but I had somebody to help me so it didn’t seem too bad. One of the first things I must have done is go to the local town hall / council office to register as a resident. You have to do this within two weeks of moving to a new place in Germany. Continue reading
In earlier posts I have written that Germans tend to be more sensitive to the weather than, say, Yorkshiremen. They wrap up warmer and whinge a bit more when the weather is bad. They attribute all sorts of ailments to a being out in the cold or the wet for a bit too long. They keep their houses at a comfortable 21 degrees all year round and the doors and windows fit so there are no draughts. I worried that I was becoming a bit soft too.
Me, this morning (impressive one-handed photo while riding over cobblestones by Ariane)
Snow fell last night. I tried to talk Ariane into not cycling into work, but she was having nothing of it so we wrapped up warm, gritted our teeth and rode into the snow. There wasn’t any wind and the sun was shining so in the end it was a very pleasant and refreshing run into work. I hadn’t expected to need the gloves and hat again this year. This isn’t supposed to happen with May just around the corner – or is it? Continue reading
I was up early as usual, but no need to walk to the bakery this Sunday. We have plenty of bread in and we have borrowed a waffle iron for a couple of days – and the kids were very clear about their breakfast wishes. The sun was shining, which was not expected, so I was quite sorry to miss my early-morning walk but made myself busy mixing waffle batter. Continue reading
Living in Germany 