Tuesday 14 June 2022

The Rest of That Week

The day after my return from Berlin was Wednesday, the 1st of June. I only had a few hours working from home in the morning before I set off to Marbach around lunch time for a meeting with my client there. The German Literature Archive is my favourite work place - I love the location, the buildings, and everybody there is exceptionally nice and cooperative.
Usually, I take advantage of my Marbach visits to walk there for a while, but not today. I took the next possible train back to Ludwigsburg, left my heavy bag with the laptop at home and walked right back to the train station where a Covid testing centre is nearby.

Unlike at the beginning of the pandemic, we are now allowed to visit our loved ones in hospital, but everyone (regardless of how many times we've been vaccined and boostered) needs to produce an official negative test - even though I must say I am a lot more thorough when self-testing than the rather sloppy way the staff at those "official" test places go about it. But it is mandatory, and so we comply.
Test done and negative result obtained, I walked to the hospital and spent the rest of the afternoon there with my Mum (who was of course also visiting) and Dad.

With everything that had been going on, my Mum had not yet been to the palace grounds this year, and so we decided to have a little walk there after saying good-bye to Dad. His room at the hospital was on the 8th floor, overlooking the palace grounds, and the view was about the only thing he liked about his stay in hospital. He frequently saw the family of three storks nesting in the grounds fly past his window, and when we were there, he always pointed something or other out to us.

Thursday, the 2nd of June, no hospital visit was possible (long story and a case of organisational hiccup). After work, my Mum and I took a taxi to the small palace by the lake (often seen on my blog). There, an open evening at the winery was being held, called "Wine after Work", open meaning no registration or tickets were needed; one could just walk up, get whatever wine one fancied to try, find a seat and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere in beautiful evening light. We did exactly that, and for the first time in a long time Mum had the chance to be at this particularly beautiful spot, so close to home.


Friday, June 3, was the usual mix of work and household things. At about 4:00 pm, I was on my way to the test centre and then to hospital again. This time, all three of us met at my Dad's bed. My Mum went home on her own, while my sister and I took advantage of the beautiful evening and walked back through town. We decided to stop at the recently opened industrial area at the train station for a quick shandy, a bag of freshly made chips (very nice!) and a good chat.
It was also the day I picked my first handful of cherries from the tree at the side of my house, directly through my kitchen window.
I looked up older posts of mine to find out whether they were ever ripe so early in June; it looks like I always had my first batch of cherries some time in June, but never at the start of the month.

I started my weekend at O.K.'s only on Saturday, but it was still a long weekend with the Monday off (Pentecost). But that will be one of my next posts.

18 comments:

  1. I was going to say, that sounds early for cherries... :) Here, I was able to buy the first Swedish strawberries from a market stall in the square last week, and that felt rather early too.

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    1. Strawberries will soon be past it here; it has been mostly another rather warm and dry spring and early summer in these parts, and they keep reporting in our local news how farmers have to adapt to climate change which is well and truly making itself noted.

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  2. Your are good daughters to spend time at the hospital with your Dad and give extra support and a break to your Mom. Those were lovely outings and your fresh-picked cherries are delightful!

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    1. Visiting our Dad in hospital is the very least we can do - most of the other stuff we can't, such as moving in with our parents and looking after him.
      Also: Good parents make good daughters :-) (of course not always true, but in our case, it is!)
      I have been having a bowl of cherries for dessert every night this week!

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  3. Your last post on Berlin was an unexpected treat, better than a postcard, because a postcard does not come with such a fascinating text, nor such good photographs.
    The German Literary Archive in Marburg is the kind of place one dreams of visiting.
    A great photo of a young woman who enjoys a portion of frites: I haven't eaten French fries in years which may explain why my girth has not increased in half a century: I am as tall and thin as my Uncle George Hamilton who celebrated his 102nd birthday in April, at home in Devon. I am very happy to hear that your Papa is doing well.
    I did like the cherries: Waitrose does a cherry and almond tart I like.

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    1. Sorry to be picky, but it is Marbach, not Marburg - Marburg being far away from where I live, whereas Marbach is just next door. And it is the Literature Archive, collecting all German Literature. You can read more about that worthy institution here: https://www.dla-marbach.de/en/
      My sister and I love those chips (or Pommes - short for pommes frites - as most Germans call them. They are crispy and made fresh to order every time.
      Your Uncle George is 102! That is quite an achievement.
      The cherries from my tree are delicious; they are untreated and taste of sun and early summer sweetness.

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  4. I have just been catching up on your posts. I have been to Berlin several times so am always interested to hear of visits you make and the walk along the Spree from the station is a walk I have often done. I am pleased to hear of your father's progress and how quickly he was responding to treatment. Rachel

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    1. I had not been to that particular part of Berlin before and found the walk along the remainder of the Berlin Wall interesting.
      The infusion and antibiotic treatment my Dad received in hospital did wonders for him, but his overall condition remains so that he can not manage without assistance anymore.

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  5. I'm glad that at least your Dad was able to enjoy watching the storks while he was in the hospital. Nature can provide a welcome distraction from medical situations. Your Mum must have really enjoyed getting out with you on Wednesday and Thursday evening. Outings like that are a refreshing change when you've been concerned about a loved one in the hospital. You have such a wonderful family and I know your parents must really appreciate having you nearby!

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    1. I do miss those walks my Mum and I used to enjoy together, and occasions such as during that week have become very rare now. All the more do I strive to make them possible every now and then.
      The appreciation about being nearby is on both sides - my sister and I are glad that we can just walk over to our parents within 10-15 minutes. So many people I know live far away from their parents, children or siblings.

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  6. Those cherries look so good. We also used to have a cherry tree here in Sicily.

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    1. Is that you, Francesca?
      Today, my upstairs neighbours have been at the tree with a ladder. They have left those branches untouched that I can reach from my windows, so I can have cherries again for dessert tonight!

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  7. Those cherries look very inviting.

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    1. They have become better day by day, and today might well be one of the last times I can pick some, as they are almost past it now.

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  8. Hi Meike, I hope your Dad has a speedy recovery from his op and can be back home soon.

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    1. Hi Karen :-) (Got your message on my other blog, thank you!)
      My Dad has recovered well from the op, but his overall condition means that he can hardly do anything without assistance anymore.
      He's been home since Thursday the week before last, and very happy about that!

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  9. How lovely to have your own cherries! There is some really lovely old architecture where you live!

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    1. It is really nice to have that tree in front of my kitchen windows.
      Ludwigsburg is actually not very old, only about 300 years. The surrounding villages and small towns are much older, some over 1,200 years.

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