A Mostly Mild Week

For the most part, last week felt more like spring than January, at least in terms of temperature. We saw the thermometer climb to 12C/53F on three days in a row, and it was probably even warmer in the direct sun and out of the wind. By Sunday, we were back to freezing.

The only thing I noted in my diary about Monday (12 January) was that it snowed. I worked from home and did not go for a walk.

View from my kitchen window at 8:00 am on Monday morning.

What little snow there had been the day before was all gone on Tuesday (13 January) when it was as mild as 10C/50F. It was sunny, then cloudy, then sunny again.

Working from home allowed me to skip out for half an hour at lunch time and get my sixth COVID jab (I'd not had one since 2023, and it is making the rounds again here). All went well, and apart from a slight discomfort in my upper left arm during the night, I felt no side effects.

At 4:30 pm, I walked for about an hour; longer would have been nicer, but I was expecting my two co-owners of the house to discuss a few things. 

Church in Pflugfelden where I walked past.

On Wednesday (14 January) I started work at the office as usual, but left after lunch to spend the afternoon at a company in Stuttgart to give the employees a basic training in matters of data protection and AI. 

Sunrise on Wednesday, as seen from my kitchen...

...and the platform in Zuffenhausen waiting for the local train taking me to the office.

This, giving trainings/talks and interacting directly with the people I work for and with, is my favourite part of the job.

We finished on time and nobody had any more questions, which enabled me to leave with almost an hour left until sunset.

I took advantage of this and walked from Stuttgart's Main Station to its North Station, a route I know very well and have done many times on my way home from the eye surgery. 

Sorry - the photos are in reverse order, starting with a sunset view before reaching North Station and ending with the row of trees near the entrance of the park.

Much of the park looks bleak this time of year, but I still enjoyed the late afternoon atmosphere and silhouettes of bare trees against the setting sun. My pictures can only show part of what it was like; imagine the continuous sound of many, many crows about, and a few other birds as well, with the constant hum of city traffic as a backdrop. As it was one of the 12C/53F days, it felt very good to be out and about.

For Thursday (15 January), I had planned to work at the office again because we were having our quarterly meeting of Compliance Officers (there are 13 or 14 of us for the entire company).

Getting there wasn't straightforward, as the local trains were rather chaotic that morning (as is so often the case). And then I finally arrived, only to find that I was unable to log on to my work computer! 

Since we do not have phones anymore, but all calls come in via our computers, I could not even contact our helpdesk without asking a colleague for help. From her computer, I called the support team and was told that they couldn't fix it quickly. They asked if I had an alternative device to work from. Yes, I did, but at home...

After I informed my boss, I took the next possible trains home, from where I had no trouble at all logging on. In the meantime, I learned that other colleagues had the same problem; apparently, it was an issue with a server, nothing we could do about individually. I missed the first two meetings of the day but was after all able to attend the Compliance Officers meeting, and work without a hitch for the rest of the day.

Late afternoon, I met a friend who lives five minutes from my house, and together we walked to the small palace by the lake which you have seen many times on my blog. The nearby winery (it belongs to the Duke of Wuerttember just like the palace, the lake and the entire estate there) were offering a "Wine After Work", all outdoors between the palace and the steps leading to the lake, and we wanted to have a look (and a drink).

It was a very nice evening, combined with 45 minutes or so of walking each way, giving us a chance to catch up; we'd not seen each other since before Christmas, and I was especially happy to give her the news of my engagement.

The day had been very mild again at 12C/50F, but although it was cooler once the sun was gone, it was warm enough to stay out for a while, especially when walking.

On Friday (16 January), it was sunny and mild all day. I worked from home, then did my usual cleaning, packed my weekend suitcase and left for the train station in the early evening.

The long distance train arrived even two minutes EARLY in Offenburg :-D

O.K. and I enjoyed our customary meal of salad, cheese, bread and wine to ring in the weekend.

Saturday (17 January) was much cooler at a high of 7C/44F, and only where and when the sun managed to pierce the fog. 

O.K. worked around his mother's house most of the day, cutting down the climber that is damaging the wall if left unchecked. For about 2 hours in the morning and another 1 1/2 hours in the afternoon, I held the high ladder to make sure he was as safe as he could be. Not moving but keeping hold of the cold aluminium ladder chilled me to the bone after a while, no matter that I was wearing two pairs of woolly socks, two pairs of gloves, a padded winter coat, scarf and woolly hat.

It took me ages to get properly warm again, but eventually, he wrapped up the work and we cooked a nice hot meal together.

Last year, we did that same job in February; I wrote about it here. I so wish O.K. would postpone it to a warmer day, but later in spring, birds breed in the climbers, and cutting the branches would not be a good idea.

It was dark by about 5:30 pm, and by 6:30 pm we left the cottage for a two-hour walk - we were on a mission to deliver three congratulatory cards to two addresses in O.K.'s village and one in the next village. The village band sends cards to those members and supporters who have a special birthday, Golden Wedding anniversary or similar events to celebrate, and it is O.K.'s job to print the cards and make sure they reach the recipients on time. When they live within walking distance, that is usually the quickest and easiest way to do that.

I enjoyed that nightly walk. Along the fields between O.K.'s and the next village there are no street lights, so we had a good view of the starry sky. Walking swiftly meant we weren't cold; only towards the end we were both glad to reach the village again, and get back to the warm, cosy cottage.

O.K.'s Mum is in a rehab clinic for various health issues right now, and we went to visit her on Sunday (18 January). The clinic is in Durbach, only a short drive away, and we know the area quite well from several walks and hikes, for instance here and here.

Durbach

Of course in January, the vineyards and woodland look different, but we still put in a walk of about 10 km before going to the clinic, where we had coffee and cake with O.K.'s Mum.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening back at the cottage, as usual getting ready for our usual 5:15 am start on Monday morning.

Read in 2026 - 3: The Mysterious Stranger

Not my cover, but it fits the story.

The Mysterious Stranger

Mark Twain

Maybe one or two of you remember that I like Mark Twain, both as a person and as a writer. In 2018, I was given two biographies about him, one of which I have reviewed here.

It's been a while since I had last read anything by or about him, but for a few weeks now, "The Mysterious Stranger" kept me company on train journeys.

One of several books left unfinished by the time of the author's death, this one has been written and re-written several times, and different versions of it exist. I only found this out from the wikipedia article and have come to the conclusion that the free ebook I have on my Kindle is the so-called "Eseldorf"-Version.

The story is told by a boy named Theodore, living in a village in Austria at the turn of the 17th to the 18th century. With his two best friends, he enjoys what pleasures village life has to offer to the boys; they roam the woods and fields, fish in the stream and avoid formal education whenever possible.

One day they meet a stranger, a teenage boy some years older than they are. The boy is very handsome and friendly, and after talking for a while, he starts showing his small audience some things that can only be described as magic. For instance, he conjures food and drink out of thin air, and later instructs the three to make little people and animals out of clay who then come alive.

He also seems to be able to read their thoughts, and claims to know the future.

When the boys ask his name, he replies "Satan" but insists that he is an angel, the nephew of the one known to the boys as the Devil.

Partly frightened, the boys are too fascinated by the stranger to leave, and over the course of the following days, weeks and months, a friendship develops between them and the boy who calls himself Philipp Traum (Traum means dream in German) when he shows himself to other people.

At a time when witchcraft is punished with hanging or burning at the stake, somehow young Satan manages to convince everyone that he is just a very handsome young stranger who knows a lot because he has travelled and read much. Instead, witchcraft and other crimes are attributed to harmless folk who happen to "benefit" from his tricks.

The boys repeatedly implore their "friend" to help those who encounter difficulties, and he always concedes - but in his very own way. For instance, when a little girl drowns and her mother goes mad with grief, they ask him to help her. He makes sure that the village people accuse her of witchcraft, and she is killed - in that way, he explains that she died quickly instead of ailing in poverty, illness and distress for many more years until her "natural" death.

Several such events take place in the book. What the boys take to be good things turn out bad, and what seems bad luck for someone is explained as their greatest benefit.

Eventually, their mysterious friend loses interest. His visits become less and less frequent, and the (incomplete) book ends with his good-bye visit, explaining to Theodore that nothing is real, nothing exists but Theodore himself, and only as a thought, not in any real way.

This rather strange, fairytale-like story clearly shows Mark Twain's take on religious fanatism, mass hysteria and the general weakness of human nature in that we do things for fear of standing out as different, even when we know they are wrong. Laughter is described to be the only really effective weapon mankind has ever invented.

I can't say I enjoyed this book, but as an experiment and collection of thoughts and ideas I found it worth reading.

First Full Week of 2026

The first full week of this year was also my first week back at work since before Christmas - a longer break than usual, which did me good on all accounts.

On Monday (5 January), I worked from home. First thing is always to go through the seven email inboxes I am responsible for: One at my main employer's, three with my secondary employer and three more for my current clients. After being on a holiday for two weeks, I usually find an average of 260 messages to wade through - not all of them mean I have to "do" something; there is always a good percentage of merely informative messages, but they still need to be looked at. This time, I only had a total of 74 emails to deal with. Clearly my clients, colleagues and bosses had been on holiday as well.

It was sunny but cold at -6C/21F. A walk would have been nice, but mid-afternoon I was scheduled for the regular quarter-yearly check-up of my eyes. Since 2017 or so, I've been with the same doctor in Stuttgart. She advised me on and accompanied all three of my eye operations, and apart from liking her as a person, I trusted her completely. Now she's retired and I needed to find somewhere else. 

Good job that we have a large surgery in Ludwigsburg with a team of several doctors and assisting staff within easy walking distance. This was my first appointment there, and everything went smoothly. A slight adjustment in the drops I have to use twice a day was made, and in April we'll see whether it turns out the way the doctor expects. I save a lot of time not having to go to Stuttgart for those check-ups anymore.

Afterwards, I went to the pharmacy to get the new medication, and then I went home to do a bit more work, which of course meant it was too late for a proper walk.

Epiphany or "Three Kings", as we call it (Tuesday, 6 January) is another public holiday in my part of Germany, further easing my return to work. It is also the day when most people, including me, traditionally take down their Christmas decorations. I did that as well as some admin stuff (nothing to do with work), and in the evening went to my Mum for a delicious winterly meal of Sauerkraut with bacon and meat as well as mashed spuds.

View from my kitchen window at 8:00 that morning.

It snowed and was cold enough for me not wanting a walk; the 10-15 minutes it takes me to get to my Mum's (and back, of course) were enough.

The coldest day of the week at -9C/15F was Wednesday (7 January). It was also my first day back at the office in Weilimdorf. 

On the upper platform at Zuffenhausen station, waiting for my train to Weilimdorf. 8 minutes can feel long at -9C, no matter what you're wearing!

With hardly anyone there over the Christmas and New Year period, the large building mostly of concrete, steel and glass was very cold. I knew that my boss was there already on Monday and so I had asked him before Christmas to please turn up the heating in my room on the Monday, so that I would not find a freezing office on Wednesday.

As a consequence, it was warm enough in my room as long as I kept the door shut, but the staircase and the toilets were really cold. Still, I met some of my colleagues and we had a hot meal in the canteen.

It was dark by the time I left the office (and cold!), so once again, no walk.

Thursday (8 January) saw a rise in temperature, with a low of -2C/28F and a high of +2C/35 F in the course of the day. It was cloudy and rained later, which meant another walkless day, working from home and leaving the house only for a spot of groceries shopping at the ALDI five minutes from my house.

The next day (Friday, 9 January) was even milder at 7C/44F, very windy with a mix of sun and rain. 

Sunrise on Friday

After working until lunch time and then doing my weekly cleaning, I left the house at about ten past 3:00 pm for the first proper walk of the week, and the first one to Benningen of this year. It felt so good to be out there, stretching my legs and letting the wind blow me about a bit without feeling too cold!

Looking back across the fields between Freiberg and Benningen.

It started to rain only near the end of my walk, and I didn't have to wait long for the local train back to Ludwigsburg. From the station to my house was the only part of the walk where I really was glad for the hood on my winter coat.

O.K. arrived at about 9:30 that evening, and we ate the tomato soup I had made earlier with some fresh bread.

It was my sister's birthday on Saturday (10 January), and were at hers for a small party in the evening, with good conversation, food and drink. 

During the day, O.K. and I had been into town for a few errands and a coffee, and then had a bit of a rest in the afternoon. It snowed later, but wasn't icy underfoot.

Sunday (11 January) was colder again. After a sunny start, clouds drew in but it remained dry.

We did not feel like a muddy walk on the fields and went to the palace grounds instead. With much of the snow gone, the grounds still looked beautiful although not much of a Winter Wonderland.

From there, we went across the road and through the deer park, where we saw the usual herds of deer and mouflon sheep (no photos), as well as many people who'd had the same idea as us. 

Back home after a couple of hours, we had coffee, and not very long after that I started on our dinner. Because of weather warnings, O.K. planned to drive home earlier than usual, which was a wise decision. It also meant we ate a lot earlier than usual. I roasted diced spuds and butternut in a deep pan and crumbled feta cheese on top for the last two minutes or so, which combined to a filling, warming and tasty dish, especially with a pinch of ground ginger and some freshly grated nutmeg.

Thankfully, O.K.'s drive home went well; the motorways were less busy than what is often the case on a Sunday evening (maybe some people decided to stay put because of the weather warnings), and he did not encounter any icy parts.

Now I feel that the year has started properly, and next week will be a lot busier at work than these first few days have been.

Read in 2026 - 2: The Children Act

The Children Act

Ian McEwan

Another paperback from the secondhand book sale by the church, this relatively short book of 213 pages was an intense and very good read. Highly recommended!

In the middle of a marital crisis, a High Court Judge has to decide on a case involving a 17-year old boy who refuses medical treatment for religious reasons, facing almost certain death.

Fiona finds she can't pass judgement without having spoken to the boy personally, and her visit in hospital becomes a turning point in her life as well as the boy's.

Because I don't want to spoil it for any of you who might want to read the book for yourselves, I'm not going to tell you more about the actual story. But I can tell you what made it such a good read for me:

Fiona, her husband and all the other characters involved are entirely believable. The descriptions of the Judge's work, her daily life and her marriage are unsentimental but still take the reader in. I really cared about what was happening, what she did and what she didn't do.

Maybe part of it comes from me being only a year younger than Fiona, and being able to relate to some of what it can mean to get closer to one's 60th birthday (she is said to be 59 in the book, and I will be 58 in March). Maybe I am also a bit like her in that I can compartmentalise my thinking similarly to what she does when she focuses on her work and pushes everything else to the back, and her analytical mind. (I'm nowhere near as highly educated, but I can approach a problem or challenge systematically and logically, which does not mean I am always successful in mastering each and everything life presents me with.)

At some point in the second half of the book, I guessed the outcome, but that wasn't the point of the story; it's not a work of crime fiction where the reader can solve the puzzle along with the investigating team and take guesses at the whodunnit.

Last but not least, the author's writing is of the kind that just makes you want to read on - no "dumbing down", but no unnecessary use of long winding sentences and rare words just to show that he can do it, and to put the reader in awe.

It wasn't my first read by Ian McEwan; I know I have read "Atonement" and "On Chesil Beach", but it must have been before I started to post reviews here on my blog of every book I've read.

New Year's Week

For most of us, the end of an old and start of a new year is a special time, often marked by festivities, and equally often leaving us somewhat suspended in mid-air, out of our regular weekly activities, not knowing what day of the week it actually is unless we have appointments to keep. 

O.K. and I spent the week together until Saturday lunch time, when I boarded the first of three trains to take me back to Ludwigsburg.

Monday (29.12.2025) was sunny but cold at -6C/21F. Wrapped up warmly, we braved the cold for a walk but didn't stay out for much more than an hour.

By 3:00 pm, we were at my Mum's. She was hosting a gathering of family and friends; there were 9 of us in total plus three dogs - a rather lively afternoon and evening, as you can imagine.

There was coffee and cake, followed by enough time for part of the group to walk the dogs and visit the cemetery while the others (me included) stayed behind, clearing the long table of coffee cups and plates and setting it for the evening.

My Mum had made two large lasagnes, one with and the other without meat. For starters, we had antipasti made by my sister. Everything we ate and drank was delicious, and conversation was flowing freely. Of course O.K. and I told them our news and happily received congratulatory hugs.

It began to snow late afternoon/early evening.

Tuesday (30.12.2025) was equally cold and sunny. 

The view from my bedroom that morning...

...and from the kitchen.

A few days previously, a good friend and former colleague had texted me about the recent death of a former colleague of ours, and we arranged to attend her funeral together. I had liked this colleague very much but had not remained in touch after I'd left the company in 2003. The funeral was moving, and from the priest's eulogy I learned some surprising things about the colleague. The music was beautiful. Standing in line on the cemetery, waiting our turn to throw a handful of flowers into the open grave, we were very cold, no matter how warmly we were dressed.

We were glad to be back at my place for a coffee before my friend left. I quickly packed my things, and then O.K. drove us the 150 km to his place for the rest of the week.

New Year's Eve (31.12.2025) was another bright sunny day. We took things easy and slept in. In the afternoon, we went for a walk. It was good to be out and not too cold as long as we kept to sunny paths; we walked for about two hours before eventually the cold caught up with us and I wanted nothing but to get back to the warm cottage.

The two of us spent the evening talking, watching some silly TV and eating a fine meal. For my birthday in March, a friend had given me a small bottle of real champagne; we raised our glasses at midnight with that and watched what fireworks we could see from the cottage. O.K.'s idea had been to climb one of the hills around the village and watch the fireworks from there, but I chickened out - it really was very cold. 

On New Year's Day (01.01.2026) we took it easy again, only going for a walk in combination with two errands and back after an hour or so. 

Every year on the 1st of January, O.K.'s Mum hosts a traditional family meal, and this year was no exception. For us it only meant to cross the road, and we enjoyed the food and company as always.

It snowed some more on Friday (02.01.2026), and if I remember correctly, once again we were out only briefly, if at all. How good to have a warm house to retreat to, with a well stocked fridge and comfy settee in it, and to top it all off, with the man you love!

View from O.K.'s cottage towards the main village road that morning.

On Saturday (03.01.2026), we had arranged to meet friends for breakfast at a café. We had last seen them in October, and it was nice to catch up.

I then had a bit of an adventurous trip home; the first of my three trains was delayed so that I would not catch my connection in Karlsruhe, which caused us to dash to the station half an hour earlier than planned so that I managed to catch an earlier train and reached my connection in Karlsruhe. 

That first train was VERY crowded, and for the 50 minute journey I only had standing room squeezed between the stairs to the upper level and - thankfully! - a window. Someone not far from me reeked of sweat, and there was much coughing and sneezing - urgh!

The second train from Karlsruhe to Stuttgart was such a relief; it was maybe half full, I had plenty of room, and nobody smelly was close by. In Stuttgart, things were (as usual) a bit chaotic, but eventually I made it home with a total delay of only 15 minutes. Still, I was too exhausted to do more than unpack, start the washing machine and do a very quick shopping of essential groceries.

From the train, I had been watching it snowing on a monochrome landscape, and it was still snowing lightly by the time I got home.

On my way back from ALDI that afternoon.

This is not the midday sun - it was the night sky as seen from my kitchen window at 9:18 pm. The moon was intensely bright!

Sunday (04.01.2026) was cloudy and windy, but a little warmer than the previous days, with the thermometer reaching a max of maybe 2C/35F. I spent most of the morning pottering about the flat, then went for a walk with my sister before going to my Mum's for a coffee on the way home.

Sunrise on Sunday

Big sky over the fields the same afternoon.

The rest of Sunday evening I was just relaxing, trying to imagine that work was really starting again the next morning, and of course O.K. and I talked on the phone.

Read in 2026 - 1: A Simple Life

As is often the case for me around the turn of a year, I am not sure whether to count a book as read in the past or the current year. This one, for instance, I finished reading on the 2nd of January, but had started much earlier in December. It's a paperback I found at the 2nd hand book sale that takes place by the church once a month on a Saturday, and there is usually a good selection of paperbacks in English for just 2 euros each.

A Simple Life

Rosie Thomas

It was my first read by this author, but it is likely that I'll buy more of her books should I happen to come across more paperbacks at the church sale. Although at first I struggled getting into the story - I simply didn't find the main character very interesting, or cared about her - that changed after a while, and I am glad I persisted.

The family of a British scientist transfer to the US for the scientist's work. The wife does her best to make a new home in the foreign country for their two boys, but keeps longing for what she left behind in England - and not just their house, friends and family, but also a big secret:

15 years ago, the couple had their first child, a daughter with Down syndrome. Just like now, their lives revolved around the husband; his work and what he needed in order to rise in brilliance and become a highly regarded scientist was their focus. A child that wasn't "normal" and that would always require a lot of attention and care didn't fit in with their plans, and so the baby was given up for adoption.

They knew that the girl was happy and well cared for and carried on with their lives - HIS life, mainly -, never talking about their first child.

Their plan worked out, but the longing for her daughter never left the woman. She loved her husband and the two boys they had afterwards, but there was still this gap, this big secret they were too ashamed of to talk about to anyone, not even with each other.

Eventually, the wife can't put on the facade of a perfect life any longer. She leaves for England on a quest to find her daughter, to see her, to get to know her.

I am not going to tell you how things go from there, in case you wish to read it for yourself. Not being a parent myself, sometimes I found it hard to relate to the mother's actions that were irresponsible and irrational, nor entirely to the father who wanted to let the past be the past and continue his life the way it was.

Let's just say that it isn't a smooth ride for anyone, and after this trip nothing will stay exactly the way it was before for the family and the others involved.

Something I liked about the book was the choice of settings for its scenes. The author plays the landscape and weather very well to fit in with what's going on. And while nowadays much of what happens would be different due to the almost constant availability of people via their smartphones, the book was written in the 1990s when yes, you could book a flight and travel between the US and UK at the drop of a hat (if you had the money), but you could easily be completely off the radar if you wished to. I also liked the actual writing, the language and choice of words.

Rosie Thomas has her own website here, where you can find out more about herself and her books.

Read in 2025 - 33, 34, 35

All three of the books I am about to review were free ebooks at Amazon's Kindle shop, and all three of them Christmas reads. If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I enjoy seasonal reading, and around Christmas, I don't shy away from some truly kitschy stuff. I finished reading these stories a while ago but only now got round to typing up short reviews for them.

# 33: Little Girl Lost

Donna Douglas

The author has written a series of books set in the East End of London in the 1930s at the Nightingale Hospital. This one is a short Christmas story.

While on duty at Christmas, a nurse is doing her best to make this a special time for the children who are in her care. When a newborn baby is found and brought to the hospital, the young nurse is confronted not only with the immediate care of the little patient, but also with her own past. Will she be able to let the spirit of Christmas enter her heart?

I'd not come across Donna Douglas before and am not in a hurry to seeking out her other hospital books, but this one was nicely written and made for a short, cosy Christmas read, just what I wanted at the time.

I might check out her books set in Yorkshire - she is originally from London but now lives in York, something i have just learned from her website, which you can find here.

# 34, 35: Comfort Crossing Holiday Collection

Kay Correll

Two stories make up this collection. Both are set in Comfort Crossing, a small U.S. town where a close-knit community of families, friends and neighbours lead what goes for typical small-town lives. In both stories, characters from the other story appear, but they aren't installments as such, and it is not necessary to know the other books in the series to understand them.

In "The Christmas Cottage", a young veterinarian seeks to forget all about Christmas by working through the holidays as a stand-in for the regular vet at Comfort Crossing. 

To her dismay, when she arrives at the cottage that is to be her temporary home while working in the town, she finds everything there ready for Christmas, and her next-door neighbours who own the cottage are as eager to celebrate the holiday as she is to avoid it.

I'm not going to tell you more since maybe you enjoy a kitschy-cosy Christmas read like I do and want to download this one for next Christmas. It was very foreseeable and of course most of the characters are too good to be true, but that's ok - nobody claims that it's a documentary :-)

"The Christmas Scarf" introduces us to another young woman, but this one is actually from Comfort Crossing and home for the holidays - or so she wants everybody to believe while she's sorting out her life after her ambition of making it as a Country singer has failed.

With help from her family and friends as well as from a mysterious stranger, the young woman finds that all she really wants is not so far away from home.

Another author I was not familiar with. Her website is here.