Getting Ready Week

This past week saw some rain nearly every day, but I had many good walks, too. Work was still quiet, it being the last week of the summer holidays and many of my colleagues still away with their families. Therefore, it was easy to get ready for O.K. and my second holiday of this year, starting today (Sunday). More on that in my next posts.

On Monday (8 September), I was working from home and, as is often the case on Mondays, interrupting around lunch time for a massage at the nearby Day Spa. It was mixed weather with sun in the morning, rain later on and then sun again by mid-afternoon. I had a good walk to Benningen after work in the late afternoon light. 

The nightly sky on Monday, as seen from my kitchen

Tuesday (9 September) was again spent working from home, and the weather was very similar to Monday. After work, I walked to Asperg and back in a wide loop via Eglosheim.

Wednesday and Thursday (September 10 and 11), I worked at the office in Weilimdorf. My boss is on holiday, and with many colleagues still away as well, I had few appointments and could work through my tasks largely at my own pace without any pressure. Lunches with my colleagues at the canteen were good.

On the Wednesday, I went to see my Mum after work, and she made delicious pinsa for us (not to be confused with pizza - if you don't know what pinsa is, you can easily find information about it online.

Leaving my Mum‘s at sunset

On the Thursday, I walked home from Zuffenhausen, on a different route from my usual standard one, and enjoyed it very much - the sunshine was beautiful (I had not forgotten my sunglasses this time), and I found the first horse chestnuts of the season, a sure sign of autumn.

I was wrapping up work at home on Friday (12 September), did the washing and then went for a walk of about 2 1/2 hours on the fields.

Saturday (13 September) was mainly dedicated to cleaning and getting things ready for our upcoming holiday, but I also managed to finish my current book (the review you find in my previous post) so that I can start on our holiday with fresh books. 

O.K. arrived at around 4:30 in the afternoon, and a bit before 7:00 pm, we walked to the Indian restaurant where we had ordered food. We took the food to my Mum, and the three of us enjoyed a delicious meal. (My sister is currently on a short holiday with a friend.)

Yesterday, Sunday (14 September), O.K. and I left late morning for just a bit under two weeks away. As I said, more of that in my next posts :-)

Read in 2025 - 23: Dogs and Monsters

Dogs and Monsters

Mark Haddon

A friend who lives nearby and I have been regularly exchanging books for a few years now (it was through her that I was introduced to The Thursday Murder Club series). It works like this: We each put aside books we have read and think the other might like, and by the time we meet up (at her place or mine, or at a café), we usually have put together a good mix of around five books by various authors and on various subjects.

Some of the secondhand paperbacks I have lent her I don't want back; I bought them from the monthly book sale at the church in town center and she can do with them what she likes, either keep them or give them away or donate them back to the church to be sold again.

This book was among the ones she last gave me, and I must say that Mark Haddon is a great storyteller.

"Dogs and Monsters" is not a novel, but a collection of 8 stories of different length. Some of them are the author's interpretations of classical myths, such as the Minotaur of Greek mythology, or the temptations of St. Anthony in the desert, while others were originally written for a collection of ghost stories and based on a real place, or inspired by stories like The Island of Dr. Moreau.

I enjoyed each of them, although what happens in some of them is as terrible as it is beautiful, and all of them are touching in different ways.

When I researched Mark Haddon, I found out that he is suffering with Long Covid, which in his case has resulted in him having "brain fog" so as to losing his ability to read. That is very sad, but apparently the fog has recently been lifting somewhat - I wish him all the best for a full recovery.

He has is own website but - in his own words - has not updated it in a long time. You can of course find a lot about him online, for instance on wikipedia.

September

My next before last post covers Monday, the 1st of September; therefore, this post about the first week of September begins on Tuesday.

There was some rain on Tuesday (2 September), but the sun came out later, and it was very pleasant at 20C/68F. I try to get a massage for my back and shoulders once a week at the nearby day spa, and managed to have an appointment around lunch time. After work, a walk to Benningen was a good opportunity to take in the beautiful late afternoon / early evening light - and I spotted the first autumn crocus along the way! 

Checking back on my blog, that first sighting in 2024 happened only a few days later.

Wednesday and Thursday (3 and 4 September) were office days, and especially the Wednesday was quite warm at 24C/75F after a chilly morning at 16C/60F.

My boss brought plums from his garden for me and other colleagues; this is how he left his delivery in my office:

I walked from Zuffenhausen to Ludwigsburg on my way back, but didn't go straight home. 

On the fields between Schwieberdingen and Ludwigsburg

Instead, my sister and I were at our Mum's; she had prepared a very nice meal for us, and I put a small item of furniture together for her (it still needs some work with three of the screws, where I simply couldn't fit them together properly - not for lack of understanding how it was supposed to work, which was simple and straightforward).

A thunderstorm in the very early hours of Thursday brought more rain and high winds, but as far as I am aware, nothing was damaged in my neighbourhood. I didn't go for a walk after work but went straight home, feeling very tired; more than what was justified by the work day, which really had not been stressful, but the thunderstorm had woken me up way too early and I didn't get enough sleep that night.

On Friday (5 September), I was working from home and went for a nice walk to Lake Monrepos late afternoon. 

A bit after sunrise, seen from my kitchen last Friday.

The stillness of the lake and the prematurely turning of the leaves of some of the horse chestnuts (not really a good sign; the trees probably didn't get enough water in spring and summer) made for a beautiful early autumn atmosphere, while it was still warm enough not to need a coat.

Because of a committment with the village band, O.K. and I spent the weekend each at our own place. I spent Saturday (6 September) partly with my sister; we visited the secondhand book sale by the church in the middle of town (and of course did not leave empty handed), had a very nice breakfast at a cosy bakery café, and strolled across the farmer's market on the square.

Later, I cleaned my windows (finally!! They really were a disgrace, especially when the sun was trying to shine through.) and eventually went for a walk to Pattonville, where I had not been in a while. For my evening meal, I fried slices of zucchini with diced onion and chestnuts - maybe not the first combination that comes to mind, but trust me, it was good.

Sunday (6 September) was the third time this year that I set off on my Steinheim walk (or rather hike, pf about 18.5 km). Click here for my previous visit in May, which in turn links to the February one.

That particular walk for me is as nostalgic (a few tears flow nearly every time I am on this route) as it is important to mark the seasons, and the changes from late summer to early autumn were visible everywhere. The vineyards are about to be harvested, the grass has been cut for the last time this year so that the summerly scent of hay is still in the air; atumn crocus adorn the meadows and apples are ripe on the trees.

I stopped on a favourite bench of mine for my sandwich and a drink of water. 

The view I had from the bench. By then, sitting in the shade was quite welcome.

Next was "my" grassy path - and only for the second time in all the many years I have been walking there did I encounter someone there! It was a lone man with a camera around his neck. 

We greeted each other, and he said what I had just been thinking, that it was very rare to meet someone on this particular path. We exchanged a few friendly words - and then he started talking and didn't stop... It was all interesting and good, about his hobby (photography) and his work (he's a joiner), his family (he has a wife and a 25-year-old daughter and small granddaughter) and local history etc., but I really wanted to continue my walk, especially since I'd only just been sitting on that bench and didn't need another break just yet.

The start of the grassy path; just a bit further on I met the talkative hobby photographer.

Eventually, I managed to politely extricate myself from the conversation and walked on.

That tree was still upright last time I walked here.

This one is for my sister.

Steinheim church

It was warm at 25C/77F now, and I was glad for my sunglasses, bermuda shorts and t-shirt, and that I still had water in my flask. 

I reached Marbach train station with the train already there, and it left a minute after I boarded - just in time! Had I missed it, a half hour wait wouldn't have been a problem, but it was still nice to be on my way home after the long, beautiful walk.