A Varied Weather Week

This week is nearly over, and I have not yet written about last week. Time flies when one is having fun...!

On the morning of Monday, March 13, I arrived home from O.K.'s with both my trains on time. It was a very windy, rather warm day reaching almost 20C (68F), and so the thunderstorm that arrived late in the evening was not surprising. It was very brief, though - I heard precisely one thunder clap, and was aware of lightning only once, too. 

Unfortunately, it was also the day O.K. found out that a co-worker had managed to pass COVID not only to him but to half the department. Of course, I self-tested immediately (and repeated that daily for the rest of the week), but I remained negative and had no symptoms. The four jabs I have had must have done the trick.

My sister and I spent the evening at our Mum's, enjoying her excellent cooking and each other's company.

It was another suny and windy day with some rain on Tuesday, the 14th of March. I worked in Marbach, training the employees of the Literature Archive in data protection. Two time slots were offered, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, so that everyone had a chance to attend. We'll do that again in April, and most likely one more time in autumn.

Giving those trainings/interactive talks to an attentive audience is one of the things I like best about my work. Questions arise, and the most interesting discussions ensue. It is also nice to go for a different walk than usual during my lunch break.

The Schiller National Museum is part of the Literature Archive.

View towards Ludwigsburg from the terrace next to the museum

View towards Benningen from the same spot

A foot bridge connecting two parts of Marbach

Back home after work, I went to pick up my new computer (see previous post).

After the mild days, Wednesday (March 15) was cold enough for snow! There were only a few flakes forming among sleety rain, and there was also sun before and after - a day that had nearly everything in terms of weather.

I was expected at the office and eventually made it there, but trains were again not running to where I needed to go, and I had a combination of walking and taking a totally overcrowded bus which I heartily disliked. Instead of the 17 minutes according to the local trains time table, each way took me one hour.

It was good to work from home on Thursday, the 16th of March! After a frosty morning of -2C (28.4F), the afternoon was much warmer at 12C (53.6F). My Mum, my sister and I met up after work; there was a French Market in town, with about six (really tiny, but nice) genuine French stalls on the courtyard behind the town hall. 

Sunrise from my kitchen window on Thursday

Bread and cheese were bought, we had something to eat and drink and did a bit of people watching before it became too chilly for our liking.

By Friday (March 17) we knew for sure I was going to be on my own for the weekend, with O.K. still having symptoms. After work, I took the train to Marbach for the second time that week. This time, it was for the walk I have mentioned often on my blog, that used to be my Mum and my favourite walk together back when my parents still had their allotment near Steinheim.

After Steinheim, I climbed the hill and walked past the allotments before reaching the woods. A deliberately long loop took me back to Steinheim first and then to Marbach, where I boarded the train home about 18 km, 3 hours and 15 minutes later.

The river Murr in Steinheim

Old vineyard

It was more or less here that I watched the dance of the Red Kites.

One of the most memorable moments of that walk was when I observed a couple of Red Kites on their courting flight. It was like watching a superbly choreographed dance, with every swoop or dive, every flapping of wings perfectly synchronised.

Saturday, the 18th of March, was another sunny day of about 18C (64.4F). A former colleague (now retired) and his wife were hosting a little "spring fest" at their home. The wife is an accomplished storyteller who regularly gathers groups of people at their home, or is booked by various institutions, to tell stories.

The stories are not hers, but fairytales and other stories she has read somewhere and adapts for telling (not reading). It is a wonderful way to spend an evening, and a very different form of entertainment: It is not like reading a book or listening to audio books or podcasts, and it is totally unlike watching TV or Netflix etc. 

Did your parents or grandparents tell you stories when you were little? If they did, do you remember how much you enjoyed that? It was exactly like that, and the buffet was very nice, too :-)

Earlier that day, I spent a couple of hours with my sister at her allotment, getting things ready for spring. It was so warm in the sun that I worked in shorts for the first time this year!

Taking a break around lunch time

Another spectacular sunset near O.K.'s village that same day.

I spent a quiet day on my own on Sunday (March 19). After a 2-hour-walk to Pattonville and back, I rested a little before starting to set up my new computer, as mentioned on my previous post.

O.K. was much better by then and had been testing negative since Saturday. What a relief!