Rainy Week

As far as last week is concerned, I can not complain about a lack of rain - apart from Wednesday and Thursday, it rained every day at least for a bit, and some days/nights the rain came down in sheets so that the view from my kitchen window felt like standing behind a waterfall. How much this has actually made up for the lack of water we've experienced before, I can't say; having seen so many fields already harvested in the first half of July, about four weeks ahead of the usual time, makes me think it must have come too late for some crops.

Anyway, what was my week like?

I worked from home on Monday (21 July), spending part of my lunch break on the massage table. After work, I went for my customary walk to Benningen (part of it in light rain, which wasn't a problem since I was wearing my rain coat) and wasn't home long before a thunderstorm brought more rain - and a rainbow.

Reverse order of pictures - this was actually the last one I took on Monday, from my kitchen window.

The sky behind me on my way to Benningen

Harvested field near Benningen

Tuesday (22 July) was rather windy with a mix of sun and rain, and another day working from home. The rain meant that my friend and I cancelled the morning walk we had planned, but I was able to go walking in the evening.

For two days in a row (Wednesday and Thursday, 23 and 24 July) I worked at the office. I have the next two weeks off and therefore it made sense to see my colleagues face to face before that. Wednesday was the nicest day of the week in terms of weather, and I took advantage of the sunshine by walking home from Zuffenhausen.

On Thursday, I went to see my Mum after work. In other news, on that day I bought the first present for this year's Christmas, but I am not going to reveal what it was, or for whom :-)

Friday (25 July) saw sun and rain alternating again. I wrapped up work, which took me until about 4:00 pm, and did my usual cleaning. No shopping for the weekend, since I wanted to make sure to use up my perishable food before leaving for Yorkshire on Monday.

It was about 20 past 8:00 pm when it looked "safe" enough weather-wise to go for a walk which took in the sunset. 1 hour 15 minutes later I was back home.

Reverse order again - last picture of the day...

...and first. I rarely show you the industrial estates of where I live; this is between Ludwigsburg and Asperg.

My Mum and I met up on Saturday (26 July) at a bus stop in nearby Pflugfelden (a suburb of Ludwigsburg, originally a village and several centuries older than the town itself) for their village fête. 

We enjoyed a drink first and were deciding about what to eat when the rain that had been threatening for the last hour or so arrived in full force. There was no way we were going to leave the relative shelter of the pavillion we were sitting under! When the wind picked up and drove the rain sideways, we ended up wet in spite of raincoats and umbrellas, but it wasn't cold and we just remained put until it was over.

Field of barley between Pflugfelden and Ludwigsburg, ready to be harvested.

Afterwards, my Mum felt fit enough to walk home, and we briefly stopped at the cemetery. I was home a little after 5:00 pm and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening reading, playing my favourite computer game, watching TV and of course talking to O.K. on the phone.

On Sunday (27 July), my sister and I went to see our Mum at 3:00 pm for coffee and cake and good-byes before our trip the next morning. Mum had made apple cake, and we enjoyed that while looking out at the mix of sun and rain with rumbling thunder as a background noise.

By the time we went home, it was sunny again but very damp; my sister and I had decided to turn our way home into a bit of a walk, but the warm damp air made it rather hard-going, and so we cut the walk short.

I fetched my big black suitcase from the basement and brushed the dust off (it had last been in use in May, so it wasn't too bad) but started to pack a few things only after I'd watched the main news.

It is already Monday (28 July) as we speak, and I shall finish packing shortly and then make sandwiches for the long trip - it will be at least 10:00 pm before we'll reach Ripon tonight, provided all goes well, but we have planned very generously, allowing for delays.