This time of year, at least in my part of the world one can't help but notice the inevitable change of the seasons. Even though last week was a scorcher of a week (and weekend), sunrise is much later and sunrise much earlier than it was a few weeks ago. Also, the flowers in people's gardens are different, fields are mostly harvested and the apple trees are getting visibly heavier with fruit by the minute, it seems. Birdsong has largely stopped, as it always does in high summer. And this morning, opening all my windows actually felt COLD at a mere 10 Celsius (as opposed to easily hitting the 30C-mark on the weekend).
Like every year, I experience this change with a mix of nostalgia for the passing summer (can't it last a little longer?) and looking forward to autumn with its own beauty. August is a busy month in my family for birthdays; my Mum is the first to start the series (on the 12th), then it is O.K.'s sister (she turns 60 on Sunday and there will be a proper "do"), and last but not least, O.K.'s mother is going to be 81 the week after.
Other changes concern Covid regulations; yesterday, a new set of rules was introduced for my part of Germany (and most of our 16 federal states, I think): You have much of your freedom back if you are fully vaccined, but need to produce a negative test in many situations if you are not. That way, people are supposed to feel motivated to have their jabs; after months of there not being enough vaccine around, now they are positively throwing it at you. In my town, a mobile vaccination centre (a converted bus) has been stopping at various places for a few weeks now, for instance on the market square during our weekly markets, on the IKEA parking lot (plus IKEA offering each person who take them up on the offer a 10-Euro-voucher for their willingness to get vaccined), near public swimming pools, outside a popular beer garden by the river and so on. There was even a "vaccination party" on Friday night with a DJ at the centre close to where I live!
One big change for me will be next week, when for the first time in many months I will return to my biggest client's office for two days every week. I am looking forward to this and hope the local trains won't let me down (again).
Last week, another change took place in that I met up with part of my pub quiz team for the first time in about a year. Not everybody could make it, but the four of us who did get together had a great time. Our pub has been open for months, but at the moment I still go there only when the weather allows for a table outside on our beautiful market square.
Here are two pictures I took that evening. The corner where the pub is has sunlight the longest of all the square, and it was such a pleasure to observe people simply enjoying themselves on that beautiful summer evening. How I wish people in other places could enjoy the same peace!
"Image preview" is a strange name for a pub.
ReplyDeleteIts real name is "Towers", and it is not in either of the two pictures that were supposed to appear here. I shall try again later, after my next meeting.
DeleteI can't get the pictures but it all sounds rather nice and certainly a step towards the end of all the restrictions.
ReplyDeleteSorry about the pictures - I have no idea what went wrong there and will try again in my lunch break.
DeleteFYI - No trouble seeing two photos this morning.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear that you were able to be with your pub quiz friends on a lovely evening. And hope that the local train service doesn't leave you hanging around on the platform when you head off to work.
I hope that the train services won't leave me hanging around when I travel to O.K.'s on Saturday, either. But I will take my kindle so that I can at least make use of the time reading.
DeleteThank you - lovely skies and lovely atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteThank you for checking back in!
DeleteLovely evening sky in those photos. That would be a fun place to sit out with friends! How lucky you are!
ReplyDeleteI know how lucky I am in (almost) all respects, Ellen!
DeleteThat square is beautiful in all seasons; you have probably seen picturese of it with the Christmas market here on my blog, too.
Those are beautiful sunset pictures! I understand what you say about this time of the year. I hate to see summer end but I do love Fall.
ReplyDeleteIt's good to hear you are getting some freedoms back if vaccinated. After getting better the first part of the summer, the pandemic is now getting much worse here with the Delta version and it looks like this winter will be bad. Too many people here won't get vaccinated.
I hope your week is going well!
Things are looking worrying here because of the Delta variant, too, and I am not at all optimistic about autumn and winter. A few of my friends in the UK have caught Covid in spite of being fully vaccinated, which makes me wonder how to best handle those freedoms.
DeleteMaybe one of the "other places" you were thinking of was Kabul?
ReplyDeleteThe nights are drawing in here too. Summer is starting to slip away.
Kabul was definitely high on my mental list of places where I wish people weould be allowed to simply go about their own lives as freely and in peace as here.
DeleteI feel the same way about the passing of Summer but as it fades away gradually into the Autumn, I enjoy the soup, candles and cosy clothes, not the grey skies and wet weather. However, we wouldn't appreciate the warm weather if it was all year round.
ReplyDeleteFor me, each season has its own beauty, and I am glad to live in a part of the globe where we can observe and live with that change. Grey skies and wet weather? We've had plenty of that this summer - hopefully, autumn will bring some beautiful sunny days. It has often been like that after a wet July and thunderous August, that September and October were particularly beautiful here.
DeleteI'm looking forward so much to fall and better weather - the summer here has been, and still is, really miserable most of the time. Just when we need cheering up with so much sadness in the world, the dreary days dampen our spirits and cloud our view of life.
ReplyDeleteI have just said something similar about the weather in my reply to L's comment, Mary.
DeleteAs for cheering up - I know how you mean it, but I guess those who most need cheering up are those with little perspective for anything cheerful in their lives for the foreseeable future; thinking of the people in Afghanistan, Haiti and in way too many other parts of the world where they can not just live their lives in peace and the way they want to.
It feels very autumnal here - far too soon to be saying goodbye to summer! This year, because of so much rainfall, everything is still fresh and green, but the temperature is low and the wind bracing.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the birthday celebrations!
Thank you!
DeleteSame here about the green, but the hedgerows are already full of rosehips, the horse chestnuts are getting bigger by the minute and I need to switch the light on at my desk for the first hour or so in the morning now.
Oh good, you got to do your pub quiz! You will tell us when you win, right? Please do!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I love those photos, love them!
Take care, wear a mask and don't touch anything!! Stay safe!!
Dear Kay, I guess I did not make myself really clear - I only got together with some of my pub quiz team members, just for a drink and a chat; the pub quiz has not yet been re-established. But you can bet that we will be the first to attend when it starts again!
DeleteDon't worry, Kay - I am a law-abiding citizen and wear my mask where it is mandatory. Also, I wear it because I know it is the sensible thing to do! As for not touching anything - I'm afraid I can't guarantee that, especially not when I am using public transport. But I always make sure to wash my hands thoroughly afterwards!
I very much echo the sentiment in the last sentence of your post. There is so much unrest in the world at the moment.
ReplyDeleteThere is indeed. I have missed 1 1/2 weeks of news in the mountains, but I am not really keen on catching up… catching up on my favourite blogs is a different matter.
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