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.