First Full Week of March

And (as usual) a full week it was - not just because it was "fully" in March, calendar-wise.

On Monday (4 March), I was able to schedule my work tasks so that I could go for a back, neck and shoulders massage mid-afternoon. The evening saw me at a meeting with my volunteer group.

Tuesday and Wednesday (5 and 6 March) are quickly told: I spent both days at the office in Weilimdorf, and both days were chilly, grey and wet, so that no walk was on the cards other than the few minutes it takes me to get to and from the train stations. 

Wednesday was the 50th birthday of our Head of Department, and she had food and drinks (no alcohol, of course) brought up to our meeting room. After the work part of the meeting was over, we remained together for another hour to celebrate. It is good to have a boss and colleagues I really like and where I feel truly appreciated and part of the "gang".

The 5th strike of train drivers within the past few months on Thursday (7 March) meant I was working from home, and any walk I would want to go for after work would have to be without relying on a train to get back home. 

During lunch break, I quickly popped over to my Mum's for an errand. After work, I walked on the fields for about 1 3/4 hours, which did me good, in spite of it being a cold day with near frost during the night and early morning.

Hedgerows were bursting with buds that day - now, a week and several sunny and mild days later, more and more flowers and the first tender green leaves are showing by the hour.

My mother-in-law in Ripon turned 90 on Friday (8 March). As arranged with my sister-in-law, I called her in the early afternoon. We had a nice little chat and she sounded upbeat and like always - she may sometimes repeat things she has told me before, but all things considered, at 90 she does not sound any different than when she was 70 or 80. (Besides, I do that, too - telling someone the same story again because I forget I have told them already.)

Weather-wise, it was a good late afternoon / early evening for my standard Benningen walk. Entering the little nature reserve just before the first houses of the small town was like walking into fluffy clouds, with trees and bushes covered in white blossoms.

The big ferris wheel is back!!

I travelled to Offenburg on Saturday (9 March) on what was a beautiful sunny day, the warmest of the entire week. My trains were on time, and O.K. and I set off for a walk around the village almost as soon as I got there. Coffee & cake were next, followed by a brief rest and then a visit with O.K.'s Mum.

View from O.K.'s living room into the neighbours' garden. The tree was not yet in full bloom that day, but I am sure it is now.

Sunday (10 March) started sunny again; it rained in the afternoon and for most of the evening, but we didn't have time for a walk anyway. The village brass band were playing in church in the morning, and although O.K. did not play this time (his cough was still quite bad), we still went to church. 

The band members and their families, friends and supporters (such as myself) gathered in the Rectory Hall next to the church afterwards. Lunch was served, and at 2:00 pm the official part began: It was the band's annual General Meeting, plus a retrospective of the last 100 years - 2024 is the band's 100th anniversary.

We were home at about 5:00 pm and spent a quiet evening in, like we do most Sundays when we have an early start on Monday.