Two Different Weekends

The weekend before last was different for us in that O.K. and I spent it separately. O.K. had pulled his back at the beginning of the week and was still in quite some pain and on medication, which did not recommend itself for the long drive to me.  Almost every day during that week, I had woken up with a headache pulling from somewhere around my right shoulder. Most days, about two hours after getting up, I was already so tired again I wanted to go back to bed. I still worked, but the week dragged on in an untypical manner, and so we both agreed it was best if each of us stayed at their own place for the weekend and tried to get better.

On the Saturday (we are talking the 5th of March here) I felt well enough to go to a guided tour at Ludwigsburg's city museum, and arranged to meet up with my Mum and sister afterwards. The tour and of course our meeting up was really good, and after my sister and I had accompanied our Mum to the bus stop and waited with her until she was on the bus, we walked up to the "giant wheel" (you remember it from previous posts, don't you) where a few stalls have sprung up, offering food and drink. Nowhere near as big as the funfair we usually have in the spring on that square, but still more than what we've had for the last two years! And the best: Our favourite stall from twenty years of Christmas markets is there on weekends, too!

Compare with one of the pictures in this post from 2019.

We enjoyed our Dinnede (although they could have been in the oven a tad longer) and then went for a short walk together. By the time I came home in the early afternoon, I was feeling pretty rough; all of a sudden, I could not stop sneezing for what felt like 100 times and was extremely exhausted, certainly not justified by the outing. 

All of Sunday I did not set foot outside the house in spite of the good weather. I felt weak and tired, and not motivated to do anything or see anyone. For several days in a row, I have self-tested, always resulting negative (which in itself does not say much, I know that). So, have I had "it"? I don't know - but what I do know is that I was back to my old self by about Wednesday, and O.K. was better, too.

Monday (March 7) morning, view from my kitchen window

Wednesday (March 9) I was finally out again for an after-work walk.

Therefore, last Friday evening saw me on the train to Offenburg again. This time, all went well with my trains, also with the return trip. We had a sunny Saturday and mostly sunny Sunday, and went for walks on both days.

Sunlight on the fields. It is all rather dry and dusty.

But there is also green, and new growth.

On the Sunday, we met for breakfast at a café with a small group of friends we had not seen in a long time. It was very noisy at the café - we are simply not used to many people anymore, are we! The food was nice, and it was really good to see our friends again. Of course, the conversation included what is on most people's minds today; we covered the pandemic, the Ukraine war, increase in prices for fuel, gas and electricity and so on. But there were also other news to talk about such as one of the couples having a baby. Yes, life goes on, doesn't it.

After our breakfast (which lasted until about 1:00 pm), O.K. and I walked directly from there through an area of Offenburg where we had not been in years. We love looking at houses and gardens, and if we can combine such walks with a bit of a view as in this case, even better.

It was (you guessed it) time for coffee and cake when we arrived home. The sun shone beautifully, luring us out once more half an hour before sunset, but then grey clouds in the west meant there was nothing to see. Still, the quick turn around the fields was nice; so much more is in bloom already in O.K.'s area than where I live. That's not unusual, as even just a difference in temperature of two degrees can bring things forward by a week or more. In any case, spring is here!