The first full week of July started pleasantly warm and ended hot. There was a sprinkle of rain on the Wednesday, but it was mostly sunny and windy, too, which made the soil dry up and brought plenty of dust through my open windows.
On Monday, the 3rd of July, I arrived home from O.K.'s in time to start work at a decent time. Afterwards, I went for a good long walk on the fields just outside Ludwigsburg. At one of my favourite places, I spotted a fox - he or she was bright orange in the evening light, but of course dashed off before I was able to pull out my mobile phone to take a picture.
 |
| It's only the 3rd of July but looks like late summer already. |
 |
| Here, at one of my favourite spots on the fields, was a fox. |
Wednesday, the 5th of July, started with a little rain - much more would have been welcome, but this was better than nothing. When the sun came out, it was windy again, but felt relatively cool - perfect for my standard after-work walk to Benningen. I enjoyed each and every step of it.
Working from home on Thursday (July 6) gave me the chance to pop over to my favourite neighbour, the old lady whose beautiful garden I see from my kitchen window. It was her birthday, and I brought her a card and a little present. Years ago, she told me that since her childhood, she always had freshly picked cherries on her birthday, and indeed for a few years I was able to bring her a small bowl full from my own tree. Not so the past few years; cherries have been ripe several weeks too early, and this year, apart from them being early, there were exactly three (not kidding) cherries that were edible and that I was able to reach from my window.
My Mum, my sister and I met at Hi.Francky, the open space on the old industrial estate at Ludwigsburg's train station for drinks. A DJ was putting on a good mix of Reggae and Ragga, not the popular stuff being played on the radio every summer, but some interesting takes on older pieces, perfectly fitting the atmosphere.
 |
| Kleinaspergle, a Celtic tomb hill near the beer garden just outside Asperg |
 |
| This is how we saw the wedding from our table at the pub, without zooming in. |
Sunday, the 9th of July, was the hottest day of the week at 35 C (95 F). I got up early-ish to take advantage of the slightly cooler morning air to get freshly baked rolls and croissants for our breakfast. Later, I dropped off a birthday card and gift at my friend's place, only a five minute walk from my house. Those were the only "walks" I had that day - it really was too hot to do anything ese but stay indoors, blinds down, rest, read, talk and watch TV.
We had ice cream in the afternoon and later a salad of tomatoes, yellow peppers, feta cheese and red onions.
When O.K. left just after 8:30 pm, I decided on a short walk to take in the sunset, but it was still too hot for much, and I was home in under an hour.
We saw a fox in our neighborhood the other day! We were out walking the dogs just before sunset and we saw it trot across a street and disappear into a wooded lot. I thought of you immediately!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds as if you're enjoying your summer. It's been hot here, too, but that's just part of it! Salad and ice cream sounds like a perfect summer meal. :)
I do enjoy summer, but I must admit I worry about the ongoing extremely dry summers while at the same time demand for water keeps rising all the time. There is only so much water our planet holds, and most of it is not saltwater.
DeleteAlso, I struggle through my work days when the nights are so warm that sleep is difficult. I guess I have to get used to it - that's climate change for you.
Love it that you thought of me when you saw the fox! :-)
Those wildflower photos are so pretty, Meike! Is that your Mom in the photo with you? You resemble each other and are both lovely ladies!
ReplyDeleteYes, that's my Mum, she has appeared on my blog before :-) Thank you for saying that we are both lovely ladies - and so is my sister (who does not want her picture shown on my blog).
DeleteA Celtic burial hill at Kleinaspergle !
ReplyDeleteThe Celts had such stories about the Otherworld.
Until this day I had never heard of Kleinaspergle, now it feels iconic.
A very newsy post from the Croatian wedding to the red fox.
I like the observation post by the fields over which the fox walked.
I hope you keep us informed about the lady who has a brain tumour.
So pleasant to hear of tyour friend having cherries on her birthday.
Beautiful photo of your mother and you in the sunshine.
Very warm here in Scotland, day after day, nothing like Italy, Germany, America.
Although I have walked past that "high seat" (Hochsitz, as the obersvation post is called in German) many times, I have never seen anyone on it. But it is a sign that there is wildlife to observe - otherwise there would be no such post there. My Dad used to help build these (not this particular one, though) when he was still the active, woodland-loving man who taught me so much about animals and nature.
DeleteMy friend has not had any cherries for her birthday for a few years now, our hot and dry springs and summers have put an end to that, I'm afraid.
The burial hill was first examined in 1879. The burial chamber inside is thought to be from around 430 B.C. and contained quite a few bits and pieces which are now in a museum.
The red fox was running free in 430 B.C.E.
DeleteIf only you and O.K. could stand on that high seat and see back into antiquity !
Back into the world of burial mounds, long barrows, tumuli and earthworks ...
With Kleinaspergle in mind, I Googled *Israel 400 years before Jesus*.
This is the 400 years between Malachi and Matthew (or Mark the oldest Gospel).
Malachi is the last prophet of Israel, the last of the 24 books in the Tanakh.
Love the photo of you and Mum - so happy knowing the two of you, and your sister, get together and enjoy life, that's really important.
ReplyDeleteThe heat does make walking very uncomfortable - and it just seems to be unbearably hot everywhere I have friends and family around the world currently - except perhaps Australia/NZ of course!
We're in the high 90's here - and humid - heavy rain this morning! Stayed in the house, which is cool with air conditioning, doing odd jobs today. Our momma fox trotted past the window but haven't seen the babies for several days - hope she has put them somewhere cool. At least they have water with the rain.
Take care, drink plenty of water.
Hopefully the young foxes are fine and just sheltering from the heat and rain.
DeleteDrinking plenty of water is nearly all I do these days - apart from work, of course.
Today is very hot and humid. O.K. and I are at another wedding, and I definitely do not envy the bride and groom for having to dress up in that weather. Thunderstorms are forecast for early evening; we‘ll see how much rain we‘ll get.
It is good and important that my sister, our Mum and I live close by and can see each other regularly.
The photographs of the fields look like the area around where I live. I especially like your images of the wild flowers and grasses that grow on the field borders. The photo of you and your mother is a lovely one.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rachel! As for the wild flowers and grasses, I am really glad that many of the farmers around here make room for strips of land that is not worked and harvested but offers habitat and food source for insects, birds and small animals.
DeleteLovely photos of the fields, but I agree it looks like later on in summer than it was... The heat sounds really exhausting. We've had cooler and rainier weather here in July than we had in June - feels a bit "backward" but on the whole I prefer it...
ReplyDeleteIn past summers, we often had warm and sunny Junes, then chilly and rainy Julys - I remember one July where I felt so cold in the morning that I turned the heating on in my bathroom!
DeleteYou live a pleasant, healthy life as this blogpost proves and I was struck by the chaotic loveliness of that patch of wild flowers at the top of your photo column.
ReplyDeleteI love those wild flower patches. Apart from being important, they add much interest and aesthetic value to what otherwise is a rather featureless stretch of fields.
DeleteI have been thinking of you when I have seen on the news about the heat in Europe! 95 is very hot and if you don't have any air conditioning, it would be hard to sleep at night! (As a child, we didn't have any and I do remember those days that it went into the 90's and we would go outside and sit on our porch and just doze a bit!) Love the photo of you and your Mum with those nice big drinks! That looks very refreshing. Take care and stay cool. x
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kay! At the moment, it is relatively easy to stay cool - nights have been pleasant, and my office building was OK heat-wise in that my room does not get direct sun. Also, a colleague who usually arrives very early makes the round and opens all our windows to let fresh air in - very good of her!
DeleteThose drinks were refreshing - maybe we'll pop over there again tonight :-)
You too take care! X