...mostly of skies, but they were so varied last week that no two looked the same.
Monday, the 1st of February, was off to a good start for me, as I woke up to the beautiful song of a blackbird - still one of the sounds that make me happiest.
After work, I went for a walk with my sister.
1st of February, around 5:00 pm
My sister and I met again on Tuesday, this time not for walking, but for an early evening meal together. Usually, neither of us eat our tea/dinner before 8:00 pm, but the curfew means we have to be at our own homes by 8:00, and so my sister came to my place just before 6:00 pm to give us enough time for our cheese and wine tasting. 
Tuesday morning at 7:00
When I spend the weekend at O.K.'s, we often start Friday evening off with a selection of wonderful cheeses, bought by O.K. at a local organic market. Bread and red wine are great company with cheese, and it is our preferred combination. Now that I am not travelling to his place and we are spending our weekends at mine, O.K. has brought our favourite cheeses and a bottle of wine along, enabling us to still have our favourite weekend starter.
We never finish it all over one weekend, and so there was plenty of cheese left, and enough wine as well. O.K. suggested I share it with my sister, and so we did just that.
My sister took this picture, and I have her permission to use it here, even though it shows part of her feet :-)
A nice evening, although of course it had to be cut short; my sister had to leave at 7:45 in order to be home before curfew.
Wednesday was rather mild at 9 Celsius, but I had conference calls almost all afternoon and made it for a short walk just in time to catch the last of the evening light. Later, I rang my mother-in-law in Yorkshire for a chat. She has had her first jab a couple of weeks ago with no ill effects, and told me how well it was all organised and how smoothly the whole process was. What amazes me is how much time seems to be passing in the UK between jabs no. 1 and 2; over here, the official recommendation from our virologists and immunologists is not to allow more than 3, maximum 4, weeks pass before the 2nd jab; Mary says she will have a letter with her next appointment which could be in 2 or 3 months!
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| Wednesday, just before 6:00 pm |
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| Three minutes later |
Thursday was even warmer at 11 Celsius, and for the first time in a long time, a sunny day with blue sky. It can really lift one's spirits, and I spent all of my lunch break outside, walking and soaking up the sunlight.
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| Just after 9:00 on Thursday morning |
Friday was cloudy again but still mild. I did all my shopping and cleaning, and happily welcomed O.K. in the evening, enjoying (you guessed it) another meal of cheese, bread and wine.
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| Yellow tulips - a messenger of spring, and a beautiful gift from my sister. |
Unfortunately, both our walks on Saturday and Sunday ended with rain, but at least Saturday morning had been dry and allowed for a run - our first run together since early December.
Now the temperatures have dropped, and we are in for a very cold week with more rain and then snow. Well, I'll stay warm and dry working from home - something I am really grateful for!
Darling Meike,
ReplyDeleteHow we have enjoyed sharing these tiny details of your life.
One of the few benefits we find of these strange times in which we now find ourselves is the time for reflection and enjoyment of simple pleasures. Noticing the variations in skyscapes and simple food shared with family and friends are just delightful ways to appreciate what we have in life and yet what we can take for granted in normal times.
How wonderful for you to have your sister close by. And, how thoughtful of her to bring the tulips which look so cheerful. Love her fancy socks!!
Hello Jane and Lance,
DeleteI know how fortunate I am - not only in terms of how much (or not) the pandemic affects me, but also in that I live roughly a 10 minute walk from my sister as well as my parents, and can see them frequently.
My sister is never without flowers in her flat, and loves to give flowers when visiting someone, even if it is just for a snack and a chat.
Your skies and cheese and wine are wonderful for the soul (and body). It's lovely being able to have a meal with you sister. No one has been in my house since this lockdown. I love cheese. The latest research seems to support the view of our government in getting the maximum number of first jabs done. So far the UK has inoculated over 10m people and the results are very positive so far. It seems to be the first thing our government has done well.
ReplyDeleteHere, people are allowed to meet with one person who is not part of the household, one at a time. Theoretically, it would be within the rules to meet 30 different people throughout the day, provided you only see one at a time - but of course that is not what the rule is about. Apart from my sister and O.K., nobody has been inside my flat for months.
DeleteI understand the idea behind the UK's way of rolling out the vaccine, but can't help but wonder whether the first jab alone will do its job when the second jab is months after the first. I am no expert and can only patiently wait my turn - most likely not before the end of summer.
Having had the OAV vaccine I do have an interest in this and yesterday's news said that the vaccines efficacy continues to increases and when the second jab is give at 12 weeks the final cover is greater than when given at 3 weeks. That wasn't known when the decision was taken however so I suppose it was just a lucky outcome. Now there are questions about the South Africa variant and the efficacy in 65+ years olds. It will be what it is what it is and it'll be a darn site better than no vaccine.
DeleteI am happy to know that you and some of my other friends in the UK already have had your first jabs - as you say, it is better than no vaccine!
DeleteHere, the distribution of the vaccine is still going slower than expected, and districts and cities take different approaches; some hand out (or should I say jab out) all they have, in order to let as many people have their first round as possible, while others hold back on what they have now, to ensure that everyone who has had their first jab will also have their second one in a few weeks, even if the next supply will be late or less than ordered.
Your tulips really give me a taste of Spring.
ReplyDeleteThey are lovel, aren't they! Add to that the blackbird's song, and you could be fooled into thinking spring is just round the corner.
DeleteYour sister has very pretty feet. Are those clouds on her socks? It is hard to see from the picture.
ReplyDeleteThe pattern on the socks is Pink Panther's heads. Have you clicked on the picture to enlarge it?
DeleteYes I did enlarge it Ms Meike but still could not see pink panthers. I was slightly distracted by the elegant fashion model in the corner.
DeleteIt doesn't help that the view of the socks' pattern is upside down. Maybe if you do a headstand in front of your computer you can see the pink panthers.
DeleteThanks! I just broke my neck and I am awaiting an ambulance!
DeleteI'll send a fiver for a bunch of grapes to be delivered to your hospital bed.
DeleteLots of moody skies from your photos, so I can just imagine how happy you were to step out on the sunny Thursday. Glad you and O.K. are still able to get together...and that you are not required to stand in cold, wet train stations waiting for late trains. :)
ReplyDeleteThat sunny Thursday felt like a gift! We have largely returned to solid grey since.
DeleteMy desk at home is close to the radiator, keeping me toasty :-)
Not sure where you live, but 8PM curfew seems excessive.
ReplyDeleteEverything about theses vaccines, makes for wondering. I follow fact based info, and it is still confusing. Because this is brand new. And full, bias-less information, is scarce as hen's teeth.
💟
Hello - not sure I have seen you here before. Thank you for stopping, reading and commenting!
DeleteI am in Baden-Wuerttemberg, in the south-west of Germany.
Like you, I follow fact based info, and of course I recognise that I am by no means an expert on all this - which makes me depend all the more on what the immunologists and virologists etc. have to say.
On both my Paternal side, and my husband's, relatives immigrated from _Germany_, to the US.
DeleteHave you read anything about Ivermectin? You can find information here. "Frontline Covid-19 Critical Care twitter" Not a *Conspiracy Theory,* btw. -smile-
Oh, that click-able link did no work. -sigh- Perhaps I am rusty, on how to type a click-able link. I will try again. "Frontline Covid-19 Critical Care twitter"
DeleteOr...... https://twitter.com/Covid19Critical
We had an 8pm curfew for months in Australia. It worked. I can’t wait until my parents and one day hopefully myself and family get vaccinated. We haven’t started yet but apparently the vaccines are close to being ready.
DeletePs I enjoy your blog. Especially your book reviews.
Hello Curly Club! Welcome to my blog, and thank you for stopping to read and comment :-)
DeleteThe 8pm curfew here was not too hard to bear for me, as there was nowhere to go anyway, with all restaurants, pubs etc. being closed, and it being cold and dark outside by that time. But I have no idea whether it stopped even one single person from catching the virus; I guess we will never know for sure.
Tulips and a glass of wine. Wonderful, as Graham said.
ReplyDeleteFor the body as well as the putative soul.
Red wine is the gateway to sleep, but how can I eat steak or Bolognese or cheese without it?
I always see my Italian Aunt Ginetta, sitting down to dinner, only after everyone else had been served, and raising a small glass of red wine, with a delicate gesture.
Having wine on a Tuesday was an exception - I very rarely have an alcoholic drink during the week. And most of the time, I sleep well without red wine. What keeps me hovering on the surface of sleep is sparkling wine.
DeleteYes, red wine goes well with steak or Bolognese. Also with dark chocolate.
You have lovely sky pictures! It sounds like you have been finding some enjoyable ways to pass these cold winter's days. The wine and cheese sounds wonderful! I've always thought that was the best combination. Your sister is very thoughtful to bring those beautiful yellow tulips!
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a wonderful new week and are able to enjoy a few nice walks despite the weather!
My sister is kind, caring and indeed very thoughtful. Also, she knows yellow is my favourite colour!
DeleteI don't mind the cold wintery weather as long as it happens now - by March, I prefer warmer temperatures, sunshine and flowers!
Lovely skies. Blackbird songs and yellow tulips sound perfect!
ReplyDeleteAlong with tasty cheeses and good red wine to share with a loved one (in fancy socks!) - what more does one need at this time in life.
Yes, I was surprised also when my cousin in England told me of the long wait between vaccine 1 and 2 over there - here it is 3 weeks, no longer than 4, and we are scheduled to get #2 this coming Sunday! BTW, we are getting the Pfizer version.
Stay safe dear Meike.
Mary x
You and Bob stay safe, too, dear Mary!
DeleteMy weeks may be a bit same-same these days, and I am often really exhausted from the work load and the endless hours spent in conference calls, but there is still so much that is really nice, such as blackbird songs and yellow tulips!
Did you know that Karl Pfizer, the man who founded the company in 1849, was from Ludwigsburg?
Meike x
I hope your sister's socks agreed to being posted on your blog too. They look like they could cause trouble if they were so minded.
ReplyDeleteOne never knows with socks, that's true! Fortunately, I was not wearing my rabbit socks that evening; that would really have been inviting trouble.
DeleteSunny skies, bread, cheese, wine and your loved ones- all sounds very good to me! Along with your walks, of course. I couldn't help but think of the song, "The Lady's A Tramp" at the beginning of this post. No reflection on you, of course! Just the lyric, "I get too hungry for dinner at 8"!😊
ReplyDeleteIt all was/is very good, Kay - and I know how fortunate I am. Not a day passes when I am not grateful for it, and I keep reminding myself of all this when sometimes I feel overwhelmed by work and other things.
DeleteI am not familiar with those lyrics, but I can see why my post made you think of that particular line! :-)
By the way, as of today, the curfew is gone - we can now be out and about all night, if we are so inclined... only that there is nowhere to go, with all restaurants, clubs, pubs etc. shut!
That shelf of old-looking books just above your head is intriguing!
ReplyDeleteIt is nerve-wracking about the information out there. I, too, have heard that you should get the second one not very long after the first. And now they are telling us that people will still need to wear masks because you can still transmit it even if you are vaccinated. And in so many places people aren't wearing masks. There are times I feel rather hopeless that this virus will never end.
The old-looking books ARE old, Nan - a collection I started in my teens, and they were old then :-) They are a series of books made for the bibliophile reader; people who do indeed (to an extent!) "judge a book by its cover", for its aesthetic value. The series was started in 1912 and have stuck to their original design ever since. You can have a look here; the website is only in German, but the picture shows what I mean.
DeleteAs for the virus, I guess at some stage in the future we will have learned to more or less live with it (and many others). Over here, masks are omnipresent. A positive side effect is that we are at an all-time low of colds, flu, measles and noro virus infections.