Daily Archives: 05/02/2021

FOTD 5th February 2021: Horse Chestnut

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I am quite proud of this horse chestnut flower. It was the first and only time my chestnut tree in a pot flowered, after 15 years. I planted a chestnut I found fallen from a tree in our village and it began to grow. The flower only happened once. Unfortunately the plant no longer exists. I did not have the room for it, but who knows, perhaps I might grow one again.

FOTD 5th February 2021: Horse Chestnut

FOWC with Fandango: Tell

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I would not be a proper Swiss (although only half Swiss) if I did not bring something about Wilhelm Tell, the man that shot the apple from his son’s head with his cross bow, although over the years a little might have changed in the story. However, we do have crossbows in our town in the old arsenal showing what the Swiss men used to defend themselves in past days. Crossbows still exist today, but they have developed into somewhat technical machines and need strength to operate.

Every year the Tell plays are performed in Interlaken in the open air theatre. It is quite an event and I was once there with Mr. Swiss company where he worked. We had front row seats. It was quite well performed and they were very clever to distract your attention from the stage when the arrow was shot. In the town of Altdorf where he came from (although am no so sure) there is a statue of Wilhelm Tell with his son and crossbow, a national monument almost. Tell is not a name you hear often here and I have never met a Mr.Tell in Switzerland.

FOWC with Fandango: Tell

RDP Friday: Silence

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One of today’s contributions to silence. Mr. Swiss sits in a chair reading a book, but he is also listening to the radio – through his ear pods of course. Sometimes he is even watching a video, also listening with the ear pods. And me? I am in the kitchen cooking, or perhaps dealing with some housework, but accompanied by music, usually something classical. I have listened to Beethoven and Mozarts complete symphonies whilst touring the apartment with my vacuum cleaner. The advantage is that you are not bothering anyone with your music choices because they cannot hear them: unless you like to sing along, that could be annoying, especially if it is an opera aria.

RDP Friday: Silence

Good Morning

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Really nothing special compared to yesterday’s wonderful sunrise. The clouds have returned although luckily the rain has not returned although I do not plan on any expeditions into the unknown today. My week-end groceries will be delivered this morning. I have already received the confirmation of what is arriving and it is complete, so what could be better. When I think of the days when I had to go myself in the afternoon choosing and picking and spending time. Having to do your shopping with a walker is not very efficient and takes time. Now it is brought to my door and sometimes into the appartment entrance and it is all with no extra costs involved. Into the bargain I am also avoiding contact with too many people which is important in our pandemic ridden days.

Switzerland really seems to be a small forgotten corner in this Covid infected world.Our vaccination material is in short supply but it has been confirmed that in summer everyone will get their jabs, so let us wait and see.

I passed my time yesterday with baking yet another bread. This time with semi white flour which is Mr. Swiss favourite, although I prefer brown flour. Now there is a bread baking pause until next Monday as we do not need so much bread through the week-end and I always order a ready prepared Platt bread that I can finish baking myself. It only needs 10 minutes in the oven. I am quite proud of the progress I have made with my bread baking. It really does not need a lot of time to make the pastry in my super kitchen mixer and the rest is just waiting until it has risen. The appartment even smells like a bakers in the morning.

The sparrows are still appearing at the laid table outside, but there are not so many at the moment. They probably feel that Spring is now just around the corner. Our weather is no longer as cold as it was. My birds do seem to have got a little rounder and fatter during the Winter.

It is mainly the sparrows that arrive, but now and again a blue tit will appear, keeping the distance from the others. The tits mainly only eat from the bird house.

I was updating my Apple computer this morning with a new programme. Luckily I have two computers so have been working on my windows machine. They are both in good working order so there is no problem, but in the meanwhile my Mac is finished with the new version. Our computer guy says he does not often have people that work on both types of computer. I have got used to both of them and have no problem with either.

And now it is time to move on, a little bit of cleaning, a little bit of cooking and a lot of ironing from yesterdays bed linen wash, but what else can I do all day. Have a good day everybody.

I thought I would bring a little music into the day after watching a film on the BBC TV centered in a senior home for retired opera singers and musicians. The quartett from Rigoletto featured as one of the main arias which refreshed my memory of my teenage years of listening to operas and also visiting an opera in my London years, mainly Sadlers Wells theatre. So here it is, my apologies to the non opera fans.