Pssst, Don´t Tell!!!! Or... Do! Shout Out Loud!

Tonight, when all the party-people  have had their fireworks done and went home 

Henry 🦁 - they say (no one knows for sure) ... he jumps off his place and roams THE WHOLE CITY to make sure every one is home safely - it´s frickin´ cold!

 

The whole city, what am I saying - all the way to the PTB, where the time for  Europe is made.

 

And before January 1st really pops up he is back in his place. As if nothing happened and everyone is indeed safe.

 

And.... when you stroll by in January, PLEASE:

 

Shout:

 

"Henry, this was a wonderful year!"

 

Then stop and look at him. He will give you a secret smile - just for you. 

 

Have a Happy New Year soon! To 2026! 

This is for Tom´s Signs2. 

 

Aaaaand again an addendum as Erika posted she remembers  heading into the new millennium and that is now soon 26 years ago.

 

You can imagine where we were?

Rhüden. At Ingo's Granmas place we lived.

Just days before we left... Perth! Imagine!!! We could´ve "jumped" into the New millennium in Perth! - We did that in....2016 to 17, see here, if you like.

Into the year 2000... in Rhüden.

Next day we called at our Caravan Park to wish them a Happy New Year. 

 

"Jumped"?

 

 

Our mantel was in sitting-height. 

And with "Knallen" my Dad meant fireworks! That´s why Bro and I wear winter-jumpers and no Kimonos anymore, like Granma and Dad still did. Mom was taking the pic.

Then Dad took a pic and reckon he had ... haha, look to the right, looks like a Märzen"...

 

Anyways, if you see a Lion tomorrow shout at him it was a wonderful year - he'll be a cousin of Henry after all and might give you a smile. 

Me, also, I am wishing you a wonderful New Year. To health, happiness and love.  

 

My parents meant well and I got a condo to  rent out. This is what I got from my tennant:

 

 

See... happy- and friendliness spreads... Or, as my Mom said, "How you shout in the woods it comes back." 

 

 

 

Tue...???

 

 

Have a great day.... T-Day, just scroll down!

 

 

T STands For ... Oh, 2025!

 

Who can pass by such a can? Not me. And with that I join Elizabeth´s T. To Limoni, Gennaro! 

Great recipe from your pupil I followed here. 

 

The journal:

 

Monday: Sleep in. It was a tough year. I am not 20 anymore. Studying, tests, ... failing one - all others good.

Nearly fainting at the Christmas party - hell...  

 

 

 

Tuesday: Time for myself. Needed.

 

Wednesday: New Years cracker fired up at 1:30 p.m.. Second! And. Third ... and ...  So.On... 

 

Thursday:  Silent, finally!  Haha, just a sketch -  my fingernails are ... useless, short and blank - in winter ... they break. And I wore color-lipstick but once - my car refused to start, so.... 

I´m the grey mouse in the corner - and I´m happy with that! 

 

 

Friday: Silent, yippeee. 

My Brother made me reading glasses years ago. By now... age, you know maybe.... I just take my PC-glasses off and read a book and yes.

My Brother is an optometrist, I also have glasses for going outside, others for outside with the sun up. 

Always check what glasses you have on before you leave the house!

Or come back and hear Ingo shouting, "wrong glasses again???". 

Meep. Red ones at PC, blue ones outside.

 

 

Weekend: Saturday: Came home shaking - not from cold.... -5C is bearable. Ingo´d warned me. I am so happy to report I made it home without a broken bone ... haha,. English is funny, it rhymes all the times! Yes?

 

Sloooow. People went slooooow.

 

Ice. The pavement - the copper street - pure ice! For what takes 5 minutes it took me 20. I was so scared and have no phone atm.... Breaking a bone before heading to Perth?!

On the way to the grocery it was a bit icy. Temps must´ve dropped, air more moist, I dunno, it was.... 

 

"Encountered" the most unfriendly employee, too. Man. I saw her over 15 years, she never smiled and her face has such deep, angry lines, it was sad and scary. She just told me off!!!

 

But I thought, who knows what she is fighting, don´t make a fuss.

And never address her again.

 

Have you ever crossed a copper street covered in ice?

At one point the only help was a car! A parking car.

I had to cross two streets. 

 

Sunday: The funniest Maus but other my PC is dying! At least I have a good book, yes, a paper-book! On Quantum Physics.

German word for me: Streber. fK said, yes, be a Streber! Strive for more knowledge and Ingo sure provides exactly that! 

 

Went down to the scary cellar and got our suitcases up. Ingo even said "thank you" for that.

Ingo did ALL OTHER stuff so we can get to Perth (I "did" the cabin) - THANK YOU for that, Ingo! 

Scary. Our cellar is scary. I nearly fell, too, because... bricks popping up to fill up gaps!

 

 Henry 🦁

 

 

Let´s get relaxed into the New Year... Let time not run that fast, please...

 

Addendum, again! To the fireworks, Elle mentioned animals get scared of fireworks and YES - in Perth they had LED-"fireworks" - I was sadly "cabin-bound2 with a spider bite but Ingo went and took a video, see here. 

 

 

 

Lemon Pasta - A Foodie-Mural

I tried Jamie´s #1 out of 3 quick pasta-recipes - quick and yummy!

As Sami is on holiday I need another mural! 

See here:

 

 

In case you cannot see the video:

Cook spaghetti, don´t forget the salt.

The sauce: Get an unwaxed lemon, grate the zest, use 1/2 - 1 of the lemon juice, add salt and then twice as much extra virgin olive oil and 40 g of good, grated parmensan.

Mix, add the spaghetti with some of the starchy water, grate more cheese and decorate with fresh basil:

 

 And ha-HA!

 

 

So much better with black olives!

Speaking of eating... after days and days of not eating I suddenly got hungry 14 years ago.  

Mom had made it. She left us around lunch time after fighting so hard. Darn cancer you.

14 years - can you believe that. Miss you, Mom. And as long as I do that you are still here. Somehow, a bit.

 

The internet series: 

 

"Habits of the 1960s that would be unthinkable today 

 

 

 Surfing was trendy

 

Surfing became increasingly popular in the 1960s."

 

I  tried that once. I failed. And burnt my back badly. I was 14. You? 

 

Henry 🦁 

 

 It is yummy, Henry!

 

 

 

24 Days Of Christmas Food Around The World

 

 As the Christmas Market is open till December 29th I am not too late to make you hungry with this! 

And in case you did not know: Kapers are NOT animals (I thought so for a very long time and sorted them out - they are yummy). Germany: Green kale it is - not that sweet stuff! Yikes ... India is my fav - you?

 

Here you see my Mom.. what can I say. Her (second-) fav boy, Ingo. She made kale... before Christmas, because that we spent in... yah, guess... Perth. It´s a pattern, kinda, huh.

 

 If you like, post here.

 

Addendum - the pic above shows my Mom, I look like this (as Ingo says, awful, frozen, the moment a cam gets up, sorry about that - I gave my "best" to look friendly - and yes, it says "run!!!" - but, as Ingo also used to say - and maybe it saved my job: "show your face!" I worked at ESE a couple of times, bosses saw me... when working for Alstom Salzgitter I worked 100% from home and hence no one knew me... I don´t want to be a ghost to you...):

 

 

 And I join Gilenna´s Sunday Smiles with it, too. 

 Henry 🦁

 

 

Dad made me join Bro when I was living in Hildesheim already, I was in my 20´s and yet... we had to wait in Bro´s room upstairs till Dad rang the bell and only then we were "allowed" to join Mom and Dad - Santa had left the place after leaving pressies...

 

Santa, btw... US military lets you know where he is when here. 

Cause in 1955 a little girl called... oh, bet in the United States you know the story of Colonel Shoup and "Big Red One" - soooo sweet.  Santa´s sleigh is faster than the F-15-jets!

 

How I know? Ingo got this and lets me read first:

 

 "Chasing after Santa Claus with quantum physics" by Metin Tolan.

 

 Or is he?

 

Hey!!! I am here standing right in front of you! 

 

Let´s Play!

 

 For Eileen I have today this:

 

 

Have a happy holiday! It´s still a bit of a holiday, yes?

And of course animals understand a lot. We´re ALL beings with understanding (some humans one might doubt at times ;-)...) 

Henry 🦁

 Very cold here, brrr... no snow, though... 

 

Merry Christmas At The Market

At daytime and from another entrance.

Braunschweig is a big city and an old, grown one - my mT  - and others - call Braunschweig "Tetris-City" as they (and even we) get lost in all the streets that mingle together.

So, no surprise, we have way more than one Christmas Market - in the heart of the city alone are three. 

 

As you will see many a face and food...  Nicole´s FFO and Gillena´s Lunch Break I join with this, too.

 

 I kept at the heart, as in... where our beloved Henry is. Here you see his butt. Sorry.

 

 

Better to see this? 

I am sorry - when you enter the city from where I live... first thing you see is Henry´s butt. You have to go around the place, see where Henry tried to get inside the church to say good bye to his late friend (he failed and starved up front) ... and then you see his face high up - I think he still waits for Duke Heinrich...

 

 At least he has his people, right?

 

 This coat makes Ingo HUGE. And a bit scary. Sexy? The cam blushed!

 And here:

 

Left: Spekulatius - they wait for my W and fK, right... long ago ... and then Quokkas by Wendy Binks and glasses by my dear Brother...

 Someone might recognise the tram, and yes, I write it with an "s" (I once had to translate a train from American to British English so I know a bit). 

That wobbly thing to the left is my hair in a plastic bag - from when I got my first hair cut ever. 

Dad was a romantic guy...

And left to that you see Henry (the Lion), Henry (the Duke and founder of Braunschweig) and his very young wife Mathilda. In Lego. Is that Lego?

 

Let´s go on? 

I got the Anglerfish in the WA-Museum!

  

Some of the first "welcome-money", this man says went to his stand! 

When the German wall fell in the town hall former GDR-people got their 100 DM and many spent some for a mulled wine.

His "Schwarzwaldstübchen" is here the 49th year. I counted - Braunschweig is mentioned ten times in this short video.

And of course I have to end with something silly. 

 

 Henry 🦁

 

 

And who the heck does not love Käsespätzle???

I was into flat-sharing with a dude from South-Germany who made them from scratch!!!

YUM!!!! (Hence I won´t ruin my tastebuds and try these super-expensive and likely fake ones).

 

Neither the beer - got it all inside -  it was  minus 8C!

Frickin´cold but no snow... 

 

 

It's A Wonderful Life

My Dad insisted we watch this every 25th. (Miss you!)

 Angel Second Class - and every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings!

To Dad. Long gone. As anyone, it seems. 

No one is perfect, no one. And some years are hard. 

 

This was a hard year to me.

  

I was raised to be "the tough one". Is that fair? 

I feel like I need help. Love. 

 

Three attempts to eat yesterday - failed each time - enough fat on my ribs, haha.

 

To our loved ones. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas from our Christmas Market! This sign is for Tom´s Signs2!

Flammkuchen, well too expensive at the Christmas Market and also I told myself into baking Onion-cake for two guests, so... this SIGN is a reminder. To watch what you say... mpfth...

I have apples. Is it wise to put an apple pie into the oven with an onion cake? Will they mix?

Our oven takes ages to warm up so I want to be effective... On the other hand I don´t wanna ruin two meals, especially not when having guests!! Three people in our tiny kitchen... how to do that?!

 

Santa... I need a bigger kitchen! Bruno, can you help? I search our Christmas-Market...

 

 

 

Have I ever mentioned I love my city? 

It  was my deepest wish to live here - I nearly ended up in Frankfurt! 

Yet here I am!

If Perth was an option... but it is but for holidays. And that... soon!

 

Found this gem:

 

 

 

 

 Henry 🦁 is in the middle of it all and he LOVES it!

He´s kinda red from joy! 

 A very merry Christmas to you!

And please pop by at CJ´s for a Christmas Greeting from firefighters!

Living with an ex-firefighter sure made me smile and humble for the work of these men and women! I´d never be so brave, I´d RUN in case of fire....