A rainy day

We taught another day... another week is checked off, closer to retirement. :)

Dave was here today for dinner and to pick up Bob's old computer and to give me some work on his website :) He also helped Bob put together his first farm tool, a well-made handtool to turn over soil without disturbing delicate make-up. We found out that his nice, new and expensive truck has been in the shop a couple of times already.... no wonder these American car makers are going broke...

As most nights, I looked at the New York Times before heading to bed. There was an interesting article which caught my eye. It compares the European response to the economic crisis to that of the American government's. For a change the Times doesn't have its usual attitude about the European welfare state, it acknowledges that there is something to be said for a REAL safety net.

At Home in VA

Here are two very happy campers in front of their "mountain chalet."

The tulips are peeking out of the ground and the forsythias are in bloom, but the weeping cherry still has only small buds. I hope we won't miss the time when it is in its full glory.

Anke sent us these pictures she took on the day we decided to buy the house. As you can see we already had a party on the front steps.

We all got to enjoy the mild spring sunshine and the bread and cheese lunch with apple cider. Bob and I already felt at home and can't wait to start our new life in the country.

Here are a few more of Anke's snap shots from the area.


The picture with the snow landscape is from Anke's Lady Bug Farm on a previous visit.

We woke up in a magical winter wonderland, and took off to meet with our realtor and home inspector while the roads were still covered with snow. (We were very glad to have bought ourselves our little new playmobile - it handled very well on the snow covered roads.)But, (un-)fortunately, the gorgeous scenery melted away in a couple of hours and signs of Spring were back.







(left) Here we are with Anke in her kitchen. I guess, Bob and I liked Axel's joke better than his wife.



On the right are two little pigs at the Black Eagle Farm we visited on Saturday morning. As we say in Germany: "Schweine bringen Glueck," or roughly translated: pigs bring good luck!

Sorting and Packing

Today we decided to clean out the hall closet. I sorted all the boxes with hats, scarves, and gloves. Among the gloves pile I found three single gloves. Since two almost match (one was black, the other brown, but otherwise they are the same kind), I told Bob he could still use them to shovel snow in VA. He thought this was very silly considering that he had at least 5 other perfectly good snow-shovelling pairs of gloves. I finally conceded, but this is really hard --- I am just not good at throwing things out, if one can still can find some use for them!

Speaking of finding a good use:
Bob found on the internet a photography school in Bethesda, MD which takes old cameras, lenses, filters, bags, etc..... so he packed up our non-digital photography selection and we're planning to drop the box off when we head south the next time. At least two drawers are empty now! .... and some students still can utilize Opa's, Bob's and Bob's father's old camera equipment. I like that!

Dave is supposed to come tomorrow and maybe I can convince him to take some of his stuff -- otherwise it will go to either the Goodwill or the curb.

Now I have to do some class preparations for tomorrow. Cleaning house is so much more fun!!!

Another Day in Oma's Life

I'm starting this blog because I want to remember the excitement I felt when we were planning a new chapter in our book of life.
Retirement!
Retirement. This word sounds full of promise of leisurely days: growing vegetables, sleeping in on rainy days, enjoying the beautiful landscape, hiking and biking, lounging and working on projects of choice... heaven - yet there is also the knowledge of finality. This will chapter, too, will come to a close.

My mother often tells us to enjoy our days now - these warm and joyous days will end. Before we know it, we will no longer be the same people as we are now. Decline will set in and limit the amount of things we can do. So, goes my mother's advice: Enjoy it now!

That's what we are determined to do: enjoy the simple life as long as we are able to work the ground and live at home.