Mid-December Week

Would you like an update on my Mum's handbag story? See the end of this post if you don't know what I'm talking about. 

As I said in that post, I'd posted on our neighbourhood platform and wrote to the police. While I had much positive feedback on the platform, there was no answer from the police. My Mum wrote a letter to our local paper, and instead of publishing her letter, they turned it into a proper article, ending with the offer to help the finder get in touch with my Mum.

And guess what - the young woman read the article and sent my Mum an email! She didn't expect any reward; she says it was the natural thing for her to do and she is just happy that my Mum got her bag back with everything still in it. My Mum sent her a beautiful card and a book for the little girl. 

Finally, the police replied; because they had arranged for the finder to bring the bag to the station, they had not taken her contact details on the phone and couldn't help me. I wrote back, telling them that everything was sorted now.

O.K. took this picture on Monday (15.12.) afternoon, with the village hidden under dense fog.

Last week Monday (15 December) was still sunny and relatively mild for the time of year. I worked from home and afterwards met my book-swapping friend (the one who shares her Thursday Murder Club books with me, among others) at the Christmas market.

We enjoyed a hot drink and good chat, but she was coughing and felt rather exhausted, having come straight from the office, and so we didn't stay long.

She emailed me the next afternoon telling me she had tested positive for COVID that morning and hoped she had not infected me. Of course I self-tested (although I felt - and still am - really fine) but was negative.

It got colder on Tuesday (16 December), but was still mostly sunny. Again I worked from home, and again I met up with friends afterwards, this time in Stuttgart, but not to visit the Christmas market there (which I am not keen on). Instead, my sister and a mutual friend we had not seen in a long time met for a meal at a restaurant, and had a good time catching up and eating good food.

Wednesday (17 December) was not only my last day at the office for this year, but also my last day this year working for my main employer. 

Our regular weekly department meeting was extended to include our sister department (we're Legal, they are Compliance), and apart from the first twenty minutes or so where important topics relating to our work were discussed, we turned it into a mini Christmas celebration.

There were cookies and tangerines on the table (I had made a dozen of dark chocolate chip scones, others brought traditional Christmas cookies and sweets), and our Head of Compliance had a festively decorated bag of home-made cookies for each of us. I read to them an admittedly very sentimental Christmas story I had written, and we ended the meeting wishing each other a Merry Christmas, a relaxing break and a good start into the new year.

I made sure to leave no unanswered emails or pressing tasks unfinished, and left at around half five. It always feels strange to me, saying to my colleagues "see you next year" and knowing I won't be back until January.

Unexpectedly, my boss had found that I was still due one day off this year, when I had been certain that I had taken them all - but I didn't complain, and so it happened that Thursday (18 December) was a day off for this employer (but I still did a few things for my secondary employer).

It meant I was able to have a massage in the morning (another "last time for this year" thing, with me and the very nice Chinese lady who is my favourite masseur exchanging Christmas gifts) and coffee with my Mum in the afternoon.

Sunset over the fields just after leaving my Mum's.

From there, I walked to my sister's, and together we went to the Christmas market one last time. We also had some fun looking at what went for festive clothes in one of our town's well stocked fashion stores, without buying anything.

A miniature Christmas train for small children has been installed on a square in town centre, for the first time this year.

Me waiting to get our hot drinks.

Friday (19 December) saw me doing my usual work in the morning and equally usual cleaning round in the afternoon before taking the evening train from Stuttgart to Offenburg. All went well with my trip, although Stuttgart Main Station was as chaotic as always on a Friday evening, with many last-minute changes of platforms, announcements of delays and cancellations and of course a constant stream of people dragging their luggage around in search of the information they needed to get to where they wanted to be.

O.K. and I had to get up early-ish on Saturday (20 December) in order to be at the village hall by 9:00 am. With other members of the village band and some other helping hands, we set up over 300 chairs and decorated the hall festively for the annual concert to be held that evening.

It took us about three hours; then O.K. and I went home, had a snack and then a good rest - I think I slept for almost an hour in the early afternoon.

By 5:45 pm, we were back at the hall, now dressed for the concert. The musicians went through the evening's music one last time, while I listened and scribbled some additional notes on the cards I had prepared for my MCing.

Getting ready

The after-show bar set up in one corner of the hall was decorated with "Walk of Fame"-type stars for every director the village band had during the past decades.

A little before 7:00, the doors were opened and the first people came in. The hall filled up quickly, and I chatted to a few visitors, among them O.K.'s sister and her husband.

My work place for the evening :-)

At 8:00 pm, the lights were dimmed and the musicians came on stage. That moment when there comes a hush over the audience, and when I then take the microphone and welcome everybody (after the head of the band has spoken, of course), is very special - a precise point in time marking the beginning of something many people have been working on for months.

This year, the concert marked the end of an era for the band: Their director of 30 years is leaving, and the new one was introduced. The music spanned those 30 years; from Jacques Offenbach's ouverture to "Orpheus" which they had played at their very first concert together in 1996 to a piece called "Nostalgia", played for the first time at this, their very last, concert; they played a Mary Poppins medley (my favourite!) as well as a Bon Jovi (I could easily live without that) and a Simon & Garfunkel one (nice) plus some more traditional pieces for brass band, and a Christmas carol with the crowd singing along at the end.

Memories were shared, and the moment when the "old" director said his good-bye was very emotional, for him as well as for the musicians. 

In short, it was a real success, and there were standing ovations at the end.

With all those additional speeches and honourings, the concert lasted until 22:45 pm, and it was 11:00 pm by the time O.K. was able to join me in the hall where we could finally clink glasses and have a much needed snack.

As usual, about half of the guests and musicians didn't stay on, while the other half took the chance to chat and have another drink. O.K. and I left the hall at around 1:30 am, and it was lights off for us at the cottage by 2:00 am.

The next morning (Sunday, 21 December) at 10:00 we were back at the hall. With many there to help, it took us just a bit over an hour to take down the decorations, put things back to normal, clean the hall's kitchen and sweep the floor.

I was given this beautiful bouquet at the end of the concert, but we only took a photo the next day.

It was cold and grey with a dense fog, and we were glad to have an easy hot lunch because O.K.'s Mum had given us home-made butternut squash soup. An afternoon nap followed, and in the early evening we went to deliver a birthday card to someone in the village, combining it with a little walk which gave us the chance to look at people's Christmas lights and decorations.

Our evening meal was delicious fresh pasta with pesto and rucola salad, and later we watched a cheesy romantic film, the kind where you know from the first scene exactly who's going to end up together - we love this kind of easy entertainment and escapism every now and then.

Thus the Fourth Advent Sunday ended. Happy, but tired!

Because I had not been home for the weekend, I lit the four candles on my Advent wreath on Monday evening.

Read in 2025 - 32: The Impossible Fortune

The Impossible Fortune

Richard Osman

That's me on the 18th of November, when my book-swapping friend who originally introduced me to The Thursday Murder Club popped in to lend me her copy of the latest book in the series.

As you can tell, I was very happy to get my hands on it, and I was not disappointed.

For me, it was the kind of book that part of me wants to keep reading in order to know what will happen next, while part of me wants to read just a short chapter or two at a time, in order to draw out the pleasure of reading it.

I can say that I genuinely enjoyed every page, every dialogue, every paragraph and every line.

If you are familiar with The Thursday Murder Club and, like me, count Connie Johnson among your favourite villains (as a literary character only, of course), you will love the story, since Connie features quite prominently.

The familiar cast are all there, too, and a newcomer is added - here to stay, possibly, if there will be more books in the series (which is by no means certain, as far as I know).

As before, the book is much more than just a work of crime fiction. It's never only about solving a mystery with the Thursday Murder Club; the big topics of life and death, love and friendship, youth and age are all part of the parcel. There is food for (deep) thought as well as laugh-out-loud lines.

If you haven't yet read any of the books, I recommend you start with the first one. Typing "Thursday Murder Club" or "Richard Osman" in the search box in the top left corner of my blog you will find my reviews of the previous four in the series. Enjoy!

A Mild Week

We experienced unusually (but not unheard of) high temperatures last week, with Tuesday being the warmest day at 14C/57F, warmer than what we often get on a day in March, April or sometimes even as late as May.

It was often sunny, too, and whenever I could, I arranged my day so that I could go for a walk in the good weather. The weekend was rather eventful.

Monday (8 December) was a busy day working from home, interrupted mid-afternoon by my almost weekly back & shoulders massage.

My bedroom window on Monday morning.

In the evening, I met with my pub quiz team at the Christmas market for a good evening of catching up over our food and drink. One of them had only two days previously returned from two months away on a diving and hiking trip in Southeast Asia, and of course he had a lot to tell.

The sun shone brightly from sunrise to sunset on Tuesday (9 December), and because I started work very early (easy to do when I'm working from home), I was able to leave at 3:00 pm and walk to Benningen, where I'd not been in a while. It was very muddy in parts, and my shoes looked accordingly, but  stretching my legs, airing my head and enjoying the spring-like sunny weather was very good.

Sunrise on Tuesday, as seen from my kitchen

On the fields between Ludwigsburg and Freiberg

On the fields between Freiberg and Benningen

Sunset in Benningen

My regular day at the office followed on Wednesday (10 December). After work, I met my Mum and my sister for our first and only visit of the Christmas market together (all three of us, I mean) this year. Again, the mild temperature made for a pleasant time; cold enough to appreciate a hot drink but not so cold as wanting to go home after half an hour.

On Thursday (11 December), I worked at the office for the second time that week. It was nearly a non-stop series of meetings, but all went well; I was just glad not to have anything planned for the evening.

Friday (12 December) was the start of another weekend spent not with O.K., due to appointments and engagements that would have made visiting one another very hectic and impractical.

Finishing work around lunch time on another mild and sunny day, I decided to postpone the customary afternoon cleaning to Saturday morning and go for a good long walk instead. It wasn't difficult to choose where to: I took the train to Marbach and from there walked to Steinheim on what used to be my Mum and my favourite walk, often featured on my blog. 

Leaving Marbach at 10 past 1:00 pm

Crossing the village, I climbed the hill on the other side, walked to where my parents used to have their allotment and then on towards the woods. Unlike during my last visit on the 6th of September, I had "my" grassy path all to myself.

The village of Lehrhof

"My" grassy path

I looped back to Steinheim along the rim of the woods, where I encountered another woman walking on her own. She remarked on the muddiness of some of the paths, and we exchanged a few friendly words about the right footwear and how good it was to be out on a day like this.

Bench where I stopped for my sandwich and some water.

The same view from the beginning, almost exactly 3 hours later, arriving at the outskirts of Marbach again.

After about 17.5 km, I reached Marbach station and didn't have long to wait for a train back to Ludwigsburg. 

A young woman took the seat opposite me. We politely smiled at each other, then I looked out of the window and she pulled out her mobile phone. A while later, she took her earplugs out, leant forward and said: "Excuse me, may I say something?" When she started to speak I thought her "excuse me" was going to be followed by some question about a train connection or our next stop. Instead, she complimented me on my earrings, saying they were wonderful and looked very good on me! 

This was totally unexpected, and after I had said a surprised "thank you", we briefly talked about how I have the same ones in several different colours and like to match them with what I wear. The train stopped, and she left after we wished each other a nice evening, with me still a bit puzzled but pleased at the same time - these earrings are by no means unusual or particularly eye-catching, but obviously the young woman had liked them.

Spending another quiet evening at home alone, I developed a headache. Thinking that it was caused by me not having drunk enough water during the afternoon (I did have a sandwich and my flask filled with tap water with me, but didn't drink the whole flask), I made an effort to re-hydrate and went to bed relatively early, hoping I'd wake up the next morning feeling fine again.

However, I spent a rather uncomfortable night, and the headache was still there on Saturday (13 December) morning. I had plans for the day and although no fan of medication unless really necessary, I ended up taking a paracetamol, and over the next couple of hours did my cleaning and felt 80 % back to normal again.

At 11:00 am, my sister and I met in town and walked to the palace to visit an exhibition about Barbie, focusing on how the fashion for the doll evolved since her first appearance in 1959, and how it was all connected to fashion and image (and a mirror of society, of course) in the real world during those decades.

We really enjoyed the exhibition, last but not least because the display with Barbies from mainly the 1970s - which was when we were of Barbie-playing age - was like meeting old friends and acquaintances: So many familiar dolls and outfits were gathered there! 

Hagrid, Harry Potter, Hermione and Ron - Hagrid's size does not match the children's; he should be towering over them.

Lucille Ball and Audrey Hepburn; Marylin Monroe in a box in the background

Rhett and Scarlett :-D

Two American icons combined - Coca Cola and Barbie!

See the Hawaii Barbie wearing the lei? I had bought her partly with my own pocket money and was extremely fond of her. She came with a surfing board, an orange plastic ukulele and even a straw skirt! (None of those accessories were in the exhibition.)

Many of the 1960s dolls and dresses were still around in my childhood.

These were the 1970s dolls, furniture and outfits we knew best.

The early 80s brought some particularly flashy outfits, "Dynasty"-style.

Familiar because we or our friends had them when we were young, and we often played Barbie together. Other items we recognised from having admired them at the toy shop or come across them in the toy catalogue published every year around Christmas - we loved that catalogue and often wished for specific things (not always getting them, of course).

It was late lunch time when we left the palace and crossed the road to a nice café-bar where we had slices of quiche and cold drinks. Back home by mid-afternoon, I slept for nearly an hour - the remnants of my headache had made me really tired.

The rest of Saturday was quietly spent doing a few household things, some Christmas-related stuff and later watching TV, reading and talking to O.K. on the phone.

Unfortunately, the headache was back on Sunday (14 December) morning. It didn't go away after a mug of coffee, nor after a shower, and not after a bowl of muesli with fresh banana, either. So, once again I resorted to paracetamol, because once again I had plans.

It was still sunny, a little colder than during the previous days, but I did not feel like a walk, conserving my energy instead.

Shortly after 3:00 pm, I left the house to meet my mum at a bus stop in town. From there, we walked to the concert hall where the annual "Singalong" Advent Concert was held - a firm favourite of ours.

The curtain is still closed...

...and then reveals several different choirs, while the orchestra is ready, too.

The red and green lights looked particularly nice.

Even Santa made an appearance!

We enjoyed it greatly, even though this year there were less songs for the audience to sing along and more performed by the choirs only. 

I was going home with my Mum for a meal together, and waiting for the bus, my Mum sat on a bench. A younger woman with a little girl sat next to her. The bus came, we got on and found seats. The woman and girl remained, waiting for their bus. 

Less than a minute into our journey, my Mum realised that she had left her handbag on the bench!! Everything was in there, her wallet with ID and bank cards, her house key... only her mobile phone was with her, because her bus ticket is on it and she had shown it to the driver. We were both shocked, and at the next bus stop (still on the same main road but at its other end), I jumped off and ran back, while Mum rode home; we knew she was going to be able to get in, because her friend who lives in the same house has a key to her flat.

To my immense relief and gratitude, the woman with the little girl was still there, and while the girl was firmly holding my Mum's handbag, her mother had just been on the phone to the police, arranging to take the handbag there. She recognised me immediately, gave me the bag and said she was going to ring the police again to tell them that I had returned to claim the bag and there was no need for any further action.

I thanked both the girl and her mother for their kindness and honesty; their bus arrived, they got on, while I started on an adrenaline-fueled 20-minute walk to my Mum's.

Only later did I remember that I should have given the woman some money, but I was so overwhelmed by the entire incident that I had not thought of it at that moment.

We have since then posted the story on a local neighbourhood platform, hoping that the friendly young woman will read it, or maybe someone who knows her and whom she'd told of the incident. Also, I have emailed the local police station but have had no reply yet. (I still wonder why she called the police instead of simply looking at the contents of the bag, where she would have found my Mum's address on more than one card in her wallet.)

We still want to thank the woman for rescuing Mum's handbag and hope that, one way or another, she'll get in touch.

In any case, from now on Mum will always make sure to wear her handbag with the cross-body strap and not place it on the seat next to her when waiting for the bus!

Three candles were lit that day.