I´m In A Bit

I´m reading „Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?: And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House” by Alyssa Mastromonaco at the moment and wow, I was always a fan… did you know Barack Obama called her to give his condolences for the loss of her cat?

He said “There are a lot of sad faces up here on Air Force One right now. You should know – I´m pretty sure we saw his spirit up here over Denali.”

Some kind of a POTUS he was, huh.

I always wanted a cat, my Mum didn´t like cats so they offered me “a dog”.
Little did I know at age 4 that a German Shepherd is not that “cute” dog as small as a cat.
The dog, her name was Inka, and I never were close, so when she died… well.
It was a fact.
It was a relieve as she had suffered from cancer.
The pain made her aggressive and I was too young to tell Mum we should help her go. I still feel bad about this.

I once had a mouse, a Jaculus - again, I was too young not knowing you shouldn´t keep them separate and at the shop they didn´t tell me, either :-(
She was very cute.
And clever, too.
She would make her way up to my shoulder, stand up to reach my ear and tell me stories – or asking for help, who knows… But hey, she knew what my ears were!
She knew where to pee and poop, too, a clever fella, I was very sad when after just 2 ½ years she passed and I never again wanted a pet.

Now we both work and Ingo is no cat-person anyways, but I kinda joined the club a bit, cause when Ingo asked me if I want a cat I sure said yes!

Please welcome this fella. Have a suggestion for a name for her?
She won´t be bored, she won´t die, either.

Cause... you know, she came from The modern housewife. Tiny as she is she clearly must be a kitten and the croc-head... TINY!

One day, mayyyyybe one day we´ll have a garden, live in a warm place and I will have a cat or two for real.

So far, for now... Give me an egg or two and I divide the white from the egg-yolk for ya cause someone did not resist.

And I bought eggs (to make pickled eggs, as usual).
I stood in line for.ever. Lucky thing Ingo wasn´t with me!
At ALDI peeps had their trolleys full to the brim!
The woman behind me said to her friend, "I´m so afraid I forgot something!".

When it was finally my turn I said to the cash-out-boy, "seesh, we cannot buy anything on Monday!!!" to which he replied, "yes, and guess what! Today is Sat - tomorrow the shops aren´t open, either!!!"
The women behind me likely didn´t get it.
Love long weekends, hate how mad peeps get about grocery-shopping!

Oh, just to make it clear: Sundays shops are closed.
Gas stations are open, though, and you can get the lot, too. Means food and even beer and wine and stuff...

Tuscany VS Braunschweig

The mornings are still frickin´ cold, my ears hurt after only one kilometer.
Yet peeps come visiting the city already!
Since Monday morning this huge travel bus from Hungary with Asian guests (how does this mix anyways?) is parked in front of the mill.
Come arvo it´s gone – where do they travel to I wonder?
Braunschweig is a great city but actually you can reach most stuff on foot plus… a whole week?!
Is there really so much to discover?

When I look back to our travels in Italy 2015… the longest we stayed in one place was three days.

Call me chicken but I don´t take the route through the park, nor do I walk alongside it.

I walk where the parked cars are, feels safer.
And thus I “found” this “dreamy” bridge I never realized before.
Obviously it is even used, there is a path.

Looks kinda lovely, no?
You just see more when you walk, not cycle - or take a huge bus, goes for me at least.

Land Of Signs

Once a week I have lunch with my name-Sis, usually at Brodocz (the rest of the week it´s home-made carrot-salat plus pickled egg).
This week we had noodle-spinach-nettle-dandelion casserole... Y.U.M.M.Y, I tell ya!
And, as usual, so much it makes two meals for me :-)

It was cold but sunny so we went for a lille walk, also cause name-Sis wanted to get rid of change.
You know, we have 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50-cent pieces, it´s ridiculous!
Her boyfriend simply throws the money in a jar and that thing is full.
When you´re at Postbank you can throw the change in a machine and the money goes to your account.

This sign...

Buttons? NOTES???? Paper-clips?
Are Germans stupid?

We had a nice walk back and worked a bit longer, love that we can have flexible hours!

Love, too, that this glasses-wetter is back on!

Every time the wind seems to see us arriving and blows the water in our direction!
Glasses... waterdrops, gah!
Yet... sign of the good side of the year, right?

Modern - Men Are Real Men

Seesh. We sure fell for ad.
Ingo did order this.

Can you believe this? Would be funny living in Perth maybe, but here a croc must be a joke.

At least Ingo let go of this icky fella - though... if I ever am to separate egg-yolk from the white... but since it did not happen in 45 years I reckon it never will:

You know, this is one of the many things I love about Ingo:

He´s a real man, he doesn´t care if it says housewife, if it´s good, it´s good.
Same btw as ex-teamleader. I sent him the link and he reported back he found something for his son.
Real men, right? :-)
Girlfriend still around, btw, when will her sore body let go, it´s no "life".

Real men...
Also cause Ingo presented me with a new "toy":

Our kitchen-tiles are awful to clean, they were laid so badly I had to do it on my knees and Ingo has had it, finally.

Now the job itself doesn´t take 30 but 5 minutes and my back says thank you, too!

The Pietz

It´s the season and for a change I gave it a go.
Usually I only like asparagus from the glas, but with the option of Ingo not taking it personally if I don´t like it I agreed upon fresh asparagus!

What can I say.
It´s healthy, right?
Won´t ever be my fav, but I ate it ok.

Yes, two it was. It was a start, right?
Why the fork is called Pietz I can´t remember. Guess I was too lille to say the right word and after all the German word is "pieksen".

Ingo got some eggs, too, for making asparagus-soup on Sunday.

I still find it disturbing that most kill male chicks, so this is a good product.

Also disturbing... Neighbour caught me in the street opening the talk with "I don´t know many who do what you do".
I was puzzled!
Yes, I have to carry stuff since Ingo can no more.
That´s not what she meant!
She again refered to the car-incident.
I feel sorry she really thinks it´s like this.
We do indeed have nice and helpful neighbours...

New Peugeot

Since a couple of weeks Ingo was toying around with the thought of buying a PEUGEOT and on Sat we went to the city and with a bit of consideration bought one.

I put it in my handbag and at home Ingo tried it already.

It comes with a number and has a warranty of 5 years.

Yes, Ingo got himeself a pepper mill from PEUGEOT :-)

You didn´t think we just went and bought a car, right?
Though Ingo really needs a new one, too.

New toys must be played with, right?

Sadly I forgot to take a pic of the nicely peppered soup Sun evening...

Kind Regards, Your Farmer

Don´t you just hate when they put new products at the cash out you actually don´t need?
And don´t you hate it even more when you really fall for them?!
I hate that!
When this product is a hit and is full of calories it´s even worse!

Shoot!
Tell ya what.
Actually this should be the first pic:

Kinda cute, huh?
And yes.
I fell for it TWICE!

Next time I´ll be strong...

Addendum: I had to go back a third time to get salt and I managed NOT to take one!

Even though they use mean tricks like these:

Different sayings to make you curious! Mean!

Was It On Purpose?

With no developers going to lunch with (comfort zone! Peeps I don´t know confronting by myself on purpose?! - not yet), I went to grab a Royal TS at Maccas I was craving the other day not being hungry not taking one.

Certainly. Graff got in my way and I checked for new Braunschweig-stuff.
And presented myself with a card.
No worries, I´m not that crazy to write myself a note, but really... who could not love this?

Certainly in front, in very first, deserved row you find our dear Henry and behind him his Castle Dankwarderode.
Behind that the Town Hall where we got our Aussie marriage-documents verified surprisingly for free!
Then Happy Rizzi House and waaaay in the back the Schloss-Arkaden, mimicking the Brunswick Palace, the Brunonia not being visible.
Maybe the designers - as many a Brunswick person, including me - missed the park that was there instead...

So, yeah... maybe on purpose, sorry, Brunonia - we have to climb up on you on a clear day still anyways!

Neighbours

The other day I came from REWE and saw the lights on on our neighbours new car, the neighbour not being around.

What do you do? I never knew you should ask yourself that.
I went up to fourth floor and let them know.
That´s what neighbours do, right?

She was so darn surprised, not of the lights but of me letting her know.
I offered to go down and put the lights off as they´re in their 80´s and it´s four floors, but she won´t let me.

Why??? Was she afraid I might take off?!
After all she knows where I live, huh?
Ingo explained to me that the most important thing to a typical German is the car, hence...
We always leave our car-keys to neighbours when we go on holiday for in case the cars have to be removed. So far no one made a trip throughout Europe with either car.
Trust. Neighbours, huh?

Anyhows, we were in the kitchen, no telly blurring, so I was able to hear the soft knock on the door.
(Our door-bell is on only when we expect someone, otherwise the posties will ring all the time, pretending peeps in floors 1+ aren´t there, leaving the stuff with us - neighbours usually said: We were home, waiting for the goodie! So... we´re out of service here!)
It was said neighbour thanking me for the car-thing!

Really?!!!!
Again. That´s what neighbours do!
Sadly only later I saw...

9 Euro, too! I know they don´t have that much.
For that I don´t like chocolate, too (which I didn´t say to not offend her).

If I´d seen the price I wouldn´t have taken it, asking her for something from their garden instead.

Alas, lesson learned: Be honest, always. Don´t wait to find out the "value".

Isn´t this sad?
She said she would let us know, too, but others here are not like that.

I do know of at least two more neighbours who certainly would do that, too.
Kinda sad she thinks everyone in the house is "mean"...

Chocolate, anyone?

I´m A Mother

Tuesday I “took all my courage” and went upstairs in seek of help in the developer´s office.
I hardly know them and some are really young!

Next day, shortly before lunch-time, one of them, who is my age, and the only one I know the name of, called me on the phone, asking in a very high voice if I wanna join for lunch.
I had already a date with my name-Sis, so I had to say no.

But – reckon due to the high voice – I said, “but sweet of you to ask!”!!!

That is so not me, is it!

OMG. I´m a Mother, talking to a child!
That happens when two introvert people start to make contact, I guess! :-)
Embarrassing moments eventually to come… though yesterday no call. No idea if to be happy or not?

I Admit

Very seldom, but eventually it might happen and I get a sweet tooth.

I took two of these cheapies home and admit I´m nearly done with the second and last!
This is the last purple one, purple was best!!!

I really do hope when we come back Woolies doesn´t have those anymore!
Cheap as they are they taste surprisingly natural.
And yes - they have natural flavours: Raspberry, Pineapple, Orange aaaaand Blackcurrant, that must be the purple one, I reckon.

Woolies, please... come 2019 don´t have them in your stores!

The Egg-Yolk

Turned on the radio doing the dishes on Monday (yes, I´m the dish-washer, we have not much space) and a-ha - "Take On Me" was on, yikes.

Threw me right back to 8th grade Höxter were we had to go for a one-week-long school trip skiing - did I ever mention I hate snow?

I had a "clinging friend", she loved the lead singer and esp this song, oh, my. Stressy times. Right back.

Das Gelbe vom Ei, a radio-show was on.
Now I near to never listen to the radio and thought, "WHAT?! This show still does exist, really?!".

The day before Easter 1994 my then-to-be-ex-boyfriend came by.
After having been "absent" for two weeks...
Telling me - after the Kriminalpolizei (German F.B.I.) had interviewed me on his whereabouts AT MY WORK (where I was the only woman, too, it was an undertaker, it was my training for studying. Wood, it was about wood! The only carpenter in the neighbourhood...) - I kid you not. I cry-laugh typing this. He told me he´d signed "something" at the French Foreign Legion, speaking no French at all.

That was it for me then.
I had his stuff packed already, handed it over and cried myself through Easter listening to that stupid radio show.

23 years later that show is still on?!

Fury in the Slaughterhouse (a German band from Hannover btw) with "Time To Wonder" was next.
Despite the band´s name it´s a beautiful song, I think, give it a go?



I was standing on the balcony in Jolly Joker Braunschweig.
I was 18 years old and my friend, only 17 got in - she was tall.
I had to go back to MY (!) car to get my license to proof I´m 18. Thanks again, genes.

Does music propel you around the time-universe, too, or is it just me?

That ex-boyfriend? No idea. He managed to loose all his friends, Bro´d seen him a last time ages ago looking like a hundred years old. Drugs do that. I do not feel guilty.

It´s just a time to wonder, huh.

Music...

Go Traditional, Flatterschiss

So. Well. We bought high quality Italian stuff for making a Pizza Margherita on Sat cause... I found this:

I provided all the stuff needed and Ingo took to the job.
Well.
What can I say... they do not mention a rolling pin for a reason... (we do have one, it´s red).

So, since the oven was on already I made a dash for our REWE... again.
Got a ready-to-go Pizza dough and ended up at the same cash-out-girl, the one I met at HEH (hospital) where she also was visiting someone.
Did I mention I live in a big city that is a village?
I love it, too!
She grinned knowingly, wished me luck and said use it cold, otherwise it gets funny.

The outcome...

... reminded me of the worst Italian Pizza we had at Lake Garda. Brrrr.

The low-carb... if you know me I had to give it a chance, right. Or rather ask Ingo to do so cause I simply cannot make myself working the stupid oven.
In my second semester a fellow student came up to me, showing me a really nasty scar, informing me she accidentially got in touch with the hot oven the other day.
Thank you.
I nearly fainted.
My Dad´s Mum (I cannot remember her) as kid was cleaning a window. Her Mum said, "take care not to cut yourself" - the pure thought of that made her faint for real.
Thanks, stupid genes!!

Anyhows, Ingo did it and...

What can I say.
The real good olive oil saves everything, but both were very far from an Italian Pizza Margherita!

Flatterschiss? That´s how Ingo called the low-carb-dough, LOL...

Anyone with a good receipt for Italian Pizza dough?