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Monday, December 19, 2022

T is for This and That

 

Foggy December sunrise

Hello T gang - last week I had to pass Bleubeard and Elizabeth's T Tuesday because I was summoned for jury duty. Usually I don't mind being called for jury duty, but this time it really bugged me since it was so close to Christmas and I was very busy fulfilling Christmas orders for my shop. You can't knit in the courthouse (they don't let you through security with knitting needles, those murderous weapons!) in order to fill all those times you are waiting. And there is a lot of waiting involved. It's such a poorly managed process. Nevertheless, in the end I was excused on Thursday afternoon and could return to my knitting needles. I had published an early deadline for Christmas orders, but still many orders for Christmas were put in after that, most of them by men who realized that Christmas is on Decmber 25th (indeed!) and they were looking for a gift for their wives, mothers, lovers... and thought hand knitted socks and hats are the ticket. The socks are made to order, but the hats are ready-to-ship - of which I almost ran out! Only a couple are left. I am determined to have a bigger inventory next year.

The weekend before my jury duty we had our "Winterfest" at the German School. Since we are only a tiny satellite campus - the other one is in Marin County and way bigger - we had a small celebration. Everybody came together in my classroom and we just sat, eating cookies that our administrator had made (she is a wonderful baker), drinking spiced cider and having good conversations. Here you can see the display of the cookies, and to the right there are "gebrannte Mandeln" (roasted almonds) that are my all time favorites.

The hallway in our school (it actually is a church where we rent rooms in their school) was decorated with these cute reindeer. I couldn't help myself, I had to take a picture of one of them.

I brought some leftover cookies home which the Geek really appreciated. We were in a German mood that day and had a German, or better say, Swabian dinner - Kässpätzle. Spätzle is a Southern German kind of noodle made from flour and eggs. They're mostly eaten in Baden-Württemberg (where Swabia is located) and Bavaria, but the Swabian and Bavarian Spätzle are different from each other. The Bavarian ones are small lumps whereas the Swabian ones are longer and thin and actually look more like a noodle. In my completely unbiased opinion (ahem...) I think the Swabian Spätzle are better. Real traditional Swabian Spätzle are handmade - when the dough is done you scrape it bit by bit from a wooden board into boiling water. This sounds much easier than it actually is; unfortunately I have never managed this art. "Käs" means cheese, so these are cheese noodles, a bit like maccaroni and cheese; the most important part though is the slowly sautéed onions on top.

A glass of wine was the perfect companion and this, of course, is my contribution to this week's T Tuesday.

When I'm not knitting I'm taking walks in the neighborhood (usually to the mailbox to mail my orders) and am still finding autumn leaves on the sidewalks - pure poetry. Today Liz and I walked around the lake - she has a new dog that I had to meet, he's super cute - and we saw this beautiful Great Egret who landed next to the trail.


Last week I received mail from Kathy in Ozarks who sent me a beautiful handmade Christmas card. She put a gorgeous wax seal on the back of the envelope - look at the deer!

Inside was a very beautiful card - look at that:


And the back of the card - the kitty is drinking the milk for Santa - I so love this! Thank you very much again, Kathy!

Things are slowing down in the Bartz household. After tomorrow the Geek will be off work until after New Year - the company is shutting down over the holidays and I am very happy about that. They have been doing this for several years now, but this year the break is longer than usual. I don't mind, I love to spend time with the Geek. After almost 25 years of marriage I still love my husband very much.

I wanted to display our angel orchestra - these are little handmade wooden figurines that are made in the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) in East Germany. They have been with us for a long time, but unfortunately we couldn't find them. I know they are somewhere, I am sure we put them in a "safe place" which is always a bad idea. But while looking for them we came upon this jigsaw puzzle that we bought 25 years ago when we were in Oxford, UK. So instead of putting up the angel orchestra, we sat down and assembled the jigsaw puzzle of Christ Church, one of the colleges in Oxford.

Do you like to put together jigsaw puzzles?


If you celebrate it, I wish you a happy Hanukkah.



21 comments:

  1. Good evening, all the food here looks so delicious-lovely display of cookies and more too. and wow pretty leaves, ours here are all brittle and brown now.
    So happy you liked the card-I really enjoyed making this year's cards. and I am in love with wax and seals too-so fun to use and look for the stamps
    I do like puzzles allot, but now I do puzzles on my computer at jigsaw planet-where you can even upload your own photo to turn into a puzzle-and they have so many choices for the puzzles-puzzle shapes, turned or not-I really enjoy it and hope it keeps my mind working haha
    Happy T wishes and have a wonderful new week Kathy

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  2. I missed you last week. I picked a bad week to share my own Stroopwafel. Glad you were dismissed from jury duty. It isn't always much fun.

    Those leaves are gorgeous. I would use them for eco-dyeing. Nice you had a friend to walk with you, too.

    WOW, that beautiful puzzle reminds me of the Morse TV shows I watched on PBS. The show was shot in and around Oxford, too.

    Loved seeing the German food. I adore sauteed onions and they take a long time to saute properly, too. Your wine looks like it went well with the food. Thanks for sharing your wonderful cookies, which are making me really hungry, your walk, and your German food and wine with us for T this week, dear Carola. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas.

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  3. I'm glad jury duty is over so you can join us this week for T. Thank you for your card too. It arrived today, and I'll share all my cards next week. It's much appreciated, and such a great photo too. Your German treats look delicious. Are the crescent shaped cookies made with hazelnuts and vanilla sugar? I might have made those or something similar to those before. They are very yummy (if they are those cookies). And your dinner looks delicious too. Have a wonderful time with your husband while he's on his break, and happy holiday too. I hope it's a special time. hugs-Erika

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  4. Your school party looks like a lot of fun. Have a great Christmas!

    best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  5. I agree the system we have for jury duty truly needs to be updated or something. Glad you were able to get back to your orders. Kathy sent a very beautiful card. She is so talented. Nice display of cookies. Have a lovely evening.

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  6. I was summoned for jury duty a few times in my life. I had to turn them down as I am working in the health sector where there is also a shortage of workers.

    The wine looks so tempting and the food look fabulous. Hope not too late to prepare for Xmas

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  7. I am glad that you were (eventually) discharged from jury duty and love all the beauty (and deliciousness) you shared.

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  8. Miriam has similar issues with her Etsy shop, Carola. It's amazing how many people leave their shopping to the very last minute and then are shocked when it's too late for it to arrive by Christmas. Fortunately we don't have to wait for a break from work to spend time together. It happens every day! All the very best for the holidays and a wonderful new year - David.

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  9. What a lovely post! Glad you are getting into the mood for Christmas, and that your husband has more time off just now. And so good that you still love him so much, you are a beautiful family, inside and out! That puzzle makes a wonderful picture. Happy T Day, and happy holidays! Hugs, Valerie

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  10. Looks like your holiday season is full of GREAT food and drink, friends, and happy mail. The cookies are WONDERFUL. Merry Christmas, Carola, and happy T-day. Lots of hugz

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  11. Glad you are getting lots of orders in your shop, but it can be stressful when it is last minute. The cookies look so delicious and Kathy's card is lovely and that cute reindeer on the wall. I used to live in Oxford, it's a lovely city to walk around. Happy T Day! Elle/EOTC xx

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  12. I've never been called for jury duty. I can't imagine being called more than one. So many pretty cookies!

    Happy T Tuesday

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  13. Ingo wurde 1965 geboren. Mädchen durften stricken, also hat ers gelernt und im Unterricht mitgestrickt - Rebell, der ;-)
    Viel Erfolg mit deinem Shop! Toll, wie das heutzutage geht.
    Das Rentier ist sehr süß.
    Oh. Ich hatte einen Mitbewohner aus Süddeutschland, der auch mal selbstgemachte Kasspatzen serviert hat - sehr lecker!
    Puzzlen, ja, das hat mich gerettet, als ich den Fuß gebrochen hatte - allerdings online, sonst hätte ich verloren ;-)

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  14. Hello Carola! Glad to hear everything is good with you. Lovely food at the party and at home. It is the season to indulge. :) Now that i think about it my mom made alot of German food.. unfortunately she never taught me how to make it.. She made a potato cake that i miss very much.. from left over mashed potatoes.. Beautiful card from Kathy, i received one just like it. Merry Christmas to you and Family! Happy T day! Hugs! deb

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  15. Those cookies look really delicious, and so well made. beautiful!
    You are talking about knitting and orders. Can I deduce you have an Etsy shop? I hope you can fulfill all the orders.
    Kathy's card is beautiful. I got one too.
    And I love jigsaws. I find it so relaxing. Yours is really beautiful. I've never been to Oxford but I recognize it from Morse (someone else mentioned that too).
    Happy T-Day and have a lovely Christmas, if you celebrate it.
    Hugs,
    Lisca

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  16. Sounds like a busy time for you and I'm glad jury service is over so you can concentrate on your shop, your makes must be perfect for Christmas with all the orders you have 🙂. All those treats look so good too and your happy Christmas mail is beautiful. Happy T Day wishes and Happy Holidays! Hugs Jo x

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  17. The puzzle is lovely. Did you find your angel orchestra? Haha, a "safe place." I know all about that.
    Loved seeing the German food. I knew what Spätzle was because I have been studying up on German food for our Advent study.
    Happy Tea Day and Merry Christmas,
    Kate

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  18. That puzzle looks three dimensional. Wow! Lovely card from Kathy. Lovely post. Happy T day.

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  19. Such a delightful post. Oh, those cookies, and that reindeer is just adorable. Dinner looks fab and so comforting. Wow, the color still showing on the leaves. The egret looks like s/he walked off a card. Kathy's card is so cute especially the kitty lapping Santa's milk, before s/he knocks the glass over. That was Ink's favorite thing to do. Enjoy your holiday time with your Geek.
    Happy T Day und Fröhliche Weihnachten!

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  20. Wow! That jigsaw looks difficult! Sorry you had to do jury service at tis time of year! I hope you get everything finished. The food you had looks delicious! Belated Happy T Day, Chrisx

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